4 out of 5

Created by: Barbara Hall

covers season 1

Or – Keeping It Real: The Story of Scripting Quality TV Without Tropes or Sensationalism.  This was probably too wordy of a title (maybe too ‘meta’), and so the more sensible and, I suppose, descriptive ‘Madam Secretary’ was chosen.  Were you expecting a female-driven West Wing?  The tone and pacing and topicality is definitely similar, but creator Barbara Hall rounded up the perfect actors to represent her vision which, by stepping down the political ladder a bit from Prez and having a more singular character focus, allows for a more relatable point of view, which is the key for keeping us glued to our screens as Elizabeth McCord – Téa Leoni – must grapple with the insane decisions that come with her position as Secretary of State.  The show then somehow maintains an episodic structure without it seeming as such, boiling big topics and complications down to an hour format though never skimping on the details that keep it feeling immediate, which is where the strength of all of the supporting characters – those surrounding Elizabeth at work and at home – comes into play, as it allows room for ideas to bounce off of different perspectives without having to drift far from its lead.  Early on in the season, there’s a bit too clear of an attempt to dangle some “it’s all connected!” conspiracy strings, and personal dramas aren’t completely avoided, but in the case of the former, past the midpoint of the season the direction of that plotline is streamlined and cleaned up and becomes much less obvious as cliffhanger-bait, and in the case of the latter, it’s almost always used simply as flavoring and not some MacGuffin diversion.  Which does lead to one of the main criticisms of the show, though it’s also part of its charm: that things are a bit too perfect.  Out in the world, people die and bad things happen, but closer to home, Elizabeth sort of has a perfect family and perfect staff.  Problems arise but everyone deals with them the way you secretly hope and they get to hug it out afterward.  This is the sensationalism the show avoids, so it’s sort of nice and comforting, but if you start to study it a bit too much, it starts to look rose-tinted.