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[Curufinwe]

Finished up the sason. Overall I definitely like it more than season 2, but the way they decided to end the season was just lame as hell.

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The adversaries this season (Petrov and Dunbar) were way stronger and more interesting. Solid performances, they convincingly stand up to Frank, and they don't come off as incompetent dumbfucks who just happened to stand in Frank's way. In terms of storylines, I liked what they did with Doug and his brother, although I'm not really a fan of the character himself. It was nice to see him having to reflect on how he has no family or purpose outside of his commitment to Frank, but aside from that there wasn't really anything there.

Jackie's story was pretty awful, but then again she's kind of a wishy-washy awful person anyway so whatever. Remy felt totally wasted, Seth hasn't really developed beyond "hot guy gunning for a bigger gig", and what the FUCK happened with Mendoza? Lol. Did the actor just drop out of the show half-way while they were filming for no reason? Super weird.

I found myself really taken by the Claire storyline though. I've been a pretty big fan of the character arc since the first season, especially with all the Lady Macbeth allusions, and I love that the show has allowed her to continually become a huge wildcard. The ending was bullshit though. If they wanted to pull that, they should pull it with some sort of closure for the season, not drop it off like that. Meh. Definitely looking forward to how it develops next season.

Gavin and Rachael are the worst things about this entire season. I feel the Rachael plot in particular is a complete waste of time because there was really only one way it could end. Regardless of whether Doug lets her go or if he kills her, she won't have any place in the show. Why waste all that time on building intrigue and suspense on her fate? They should really have just actually had her die off screen like it seemed. Doesn't help that the entire plot was tied to Gavin, who is a garbage-tier character carried over from the worst subplot last season. Should have dropped this entire thing and given more time on the season to develop Remy and Seth more.

Spoiler

I think the odds are high Doug's decision to kill Rachel comes back to bite him. Just because she won't be on the show doesn't mean her death is a waste of time.

 

[BertramCooper]

Doug had waaaaaaaaaaay too much screentime this season.

His storyline could have been cut in half and still covered all of the same major points.

 

[duckroll]

Spoiler

I think the odds are high Doug's decision to kill Rachel comes back to bite him. Just because she won't be on the show doesn't mean her death is a waste of time.

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So what though? Just because they can use the plot point for something in future doesn't mean it was worth the time spent showing stuff which most people won't care about. Rachael as a plot point is done. Using it to drag out Doug's Adventure in the finale was a bore. And honestly, the outcome is really the same. If he lets her live, she could still be a liability some point in the future. If he kills her, someone could find the body, or he could have a further crisis of conscience later on. Zzzzzzz.

The big question is, why the fuck didn't Doug kill Gavin? Rachael was a loose end, but so is Gavin? Plus, Gavin actually knows his connection to Rachael, to Lucas, and to the FBI. Isn't that even more dangerous? And he assaulted the dude to extract information from him which he was going to use to kill someone. Yet he leaves him alive? I fucking hate Gavin and if this means he could show up in S4, then fuck this show. Lol.

 

[TatteredHat]

Finished watching this season yesterday, pretty disappointed with the entire thing.

EDIT:

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I did like Petrov, though

 

[amnesiac]

worst season by far but will still binge watch all future seasons

 

[Vivalaraza]

In Episode 5 Doug

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asks Dunbar for $250k and 3 points on the _____. What points is he referring to?

 

[Mully]

I feel like this season did a fantastic job at depicting how frantic and exhausting the presidency is, but did a horrible job at creating a consistent and coherent storyline.

The show is at its best when the storyline is tight, and there's lots of scheming from Frank. When Frank became VP the scheming either fell apart or deux machina occurred and the story became convoluted.

The show either needs to go full into the downfall of Frank (which I think is happening next season) or go full into having Frank crush his enemies.

The problem is they turned Frank into a rattle snake rather than a spider at the center of his web. Too many threats and not enough waiting and scheming.

 

[Sami+]

Just finished. I don't know if I dislike this or Season 2 more, honestly. I liked watching those crazy Machiavellian Rube Goldberg political plays come together in Season 1. Focusing on the Underwood's monstrous manipulation of people like Russo and how each step brings them closer to power.

But then after S1 they spent more and more time on dumb melodrama that I really couldn't give less of a shit about, and the writing in general just became extremely hamfisted

Spoiler

(peeing on father's grave and spitting on Jesus are you fucking serious)

. Claire became this completely illogical emotional wildcard, ugh.

Just really wasn't feeling this season. Season 1 was great but I really don't like what this show has become.

 

[TacticalFox88]

I'm sorry but there was no redeeming Claire after that bullshit she pulled in

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Russia. Just how many years of progress did she set back? Just how many future acts of diplomacy just went down the fucking drain? How many people did she indirectly kill?

No.

Fuck that bitch.

 

[King Cobra]

I'm sorry but there was no redeeming Claire after that bullshit she pulled in

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Russia. Just how many years of progress did she set back? Just how many future acts of diplomacy just went down the fucking drain? How many people did she indirectly kill?

No.

Fuck that bitch.

I completely agree with you,

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I love the line Frank gave her about courage.

 

[Sami+]

I'm sorry but there was no redeeming Claire after that bullshit she pulled in

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Russia. Just how many years of progress did she set back? Just how many future acts of diplomacy just went down the fucking drain? How many people did she indirectly kill?

No.

Fuck that bitch.

Yeah, that bit made me really angry. She's the fucking ambassador.

 

[Jackben]

Gavin sucks because

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I feel like he had potential, at least to me it seemed set up like he is actually going to grow a pair given his rage against the political machine, his friends getting fucked, and the kind of dangerous information he has and power he could potentially wield. I thought after season 2 we would see him go dark and then subtly plot to fuck up the entire Underwood organization. But instead he just whines and never really amounts to anything

.

 

[BlueCrow]

Am I the only one who's in love with Rachel Brosnahan? Dem eyes...

 

[Partition]

Gavin sucks because

Spoiler

I feel like he had potential, at least to me it seemed set up like he is actually going to grow a pair given his rage against the political machine, his friends getting fucked, and the kind of dangerous information he has and power he could potentially wield. I thought after season 2 we would see him go dark and then subtly plot to fuck up the entire Underwood organization. But instead he just whines and never really amounts to anything

.

probably because

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he only really existed to bring doug to rachel, they didn't really have time to develop him outside of that

 

[Imm0rt4l]

Just finished. I don't know if I dislike this or Season 2 more, honestly. I liked watching those crazy Machiavellian Rube Goldberg political plays come together in Season 1. Focusing on the Underwood's monstrous manipulation of people like Russo and how each step brings them closer to power.

But then after S1 they spent more and more time on dumb melodrama that I really couldn't give less of a shit about, and the writing in general just became extremely hamfisted

Spoiler

(peeing on father's grave and spitting on Jesus are you fucking serious)

. Claire became this completely illogical emotional wildcard, ugh.

Just really wasn't feeling this season. Season 1 was great but I really don't like what this show has become.

Personally I enjoy the symbolism. In a show where the protagonist often speaks directly to the viewer,I find it hard to consider this hamfisted. Just my opinion though.

 

[A Human Becoming]

Doug had waaaaaaaaaaay too much screentime this season.

His storyline could have been cut in half and still covered all of the same major points.

This I agree with.

I think this season was better than the second. Things were actually happening, not just behind the scenes manipulation and backstabbing. I appreciated that it had a different feel than the first two, with Frank

Spoiler

being less in control and acting more reckless

. The story line with

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Petrov was the highlight of the season. It encapsulated Putin perfectly.

I wish it wouldn't be renewed for a fourth season because the ending while unusual can work as a series finale. That final scene painted everything as being over.

 

[Sami+]

Oh, I will say to the show's credit that

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the confrontation in the Oval Office between Frank and Claire was really chilling. Spacey killed it.

 

[Jigorath]

Spoiler

Yeah I agree Claire was just weird this season. I guess they wanted her to be the moral center of the show but it goes completely against her established character from the first two seasons. She's always been just as cold and calculating as Frank, often more so. Remember her threatening to kill that lady's unborn baby in season 2? And her reasons for being mad at Frank were weak. He was bending over backwards for her all season. He stuck his neck out and put his reputation on the line when he made her ambassador only to have her screw things up with Russia. She very nearly started World War III and he didn't even get mad at her. Then the writers make Frank go completely out of character when he starts yelling at and insulting her. This is just so they have a good reason for Claire walk out on Frank.

Honestly the more I think about this season the less I like it. Not a good sign for future rewatches.

 

[RELIGHT]

Boring fucking season. Fuck it.

 

[f0rk]

I wonder what the Venn diagram of people who hate Skyler and people who hate Claire looks like.

Over the last episodes I thought she was going to

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tell Frank she should/will be president.

 

[Sinfamy]

Am I the only one who's in love with Rachel Brosnahan? Dem eyes...

2pale4me

 

[krameriffic]

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I'm one of those people who felt like S2 suffered from Dexter syndrome, where the main character was just stomping over all his opposition, and everyone around him acted like complete idiots. It was just unbelievable to me and there was little to no tension. This season? A lot more uncertainty, more believable and intelligent counterparts to Frank, and more tension. The Russian president was fantastic, and Dunbar was a good opponent for Frank.

.

I never got that at all from season 2. Season 2 is Frank barely squeaking by, constantly teetering on the edge of the president's trust, winning and losing battles against Tusk and Lanagan, and nearly getting caught and blamed for everything at the end. Season 3

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just seems to conveniently forget all of the illegal and horrible things he did in favor of absolutely nothing at all happening for an entire season. Then when stuff finally does happen at the end of the season, it makes no sense at all and you're bored out of your mind from having watching 12 episodes of nothing. There's no tension, there's no sense of stakes, there's no sense of everything hinging on his success. If Frank fails in season 2, he goes to prison, a disgraced murderer and failure. If Frank fails in season 3, he goes down in history as a stopgap president. Who cares.

 

[A Human Becoming]

I never got that at all from season 2. Season 2 is Frank barely squeaking by, constantly teetering on the edge of the president's trust, winning and losing battles against Tusk and Lanagan, and nearly getting caught and blamed for everything at the end. Season 3

Spoiler

just seems to conveniently forget all of the illegal and horrible things he did in favor of absolutely nothing at all happening for an entire season. Then when stuff finally does happen at the end of the season, it makes no sense at all and you're bored out of your mind from having watching 12 episodes of nothing. There's no tension, there's no sense of stakes, there's no sense of everything hinging on his success. If Frank fails in season 2, he goes to prison, a disgraced murderer and failure. If Frank fails in season 3, he goes down in history as a stopgap president. Who cares.

Spoiler

Getting 10 million Americans to work and bringing peace to the Middle East isn't something to care about? Okay.

 

[Interceptor]

Just finished it.

Couldn´t wait for season 3. I don´t care anymore about season 4.

In short: Very dissapointing.

 

[Krixeus]

Spoiler

Getting 10 million Americans to work and bringing peace to the Middle East isn't something to care about? Okay.

Bit of a stretch there on both ends.

 

[Cromat]

The parts with Gavin and Doug are so boring

Spoiler

and had no payoff whatsoever

. The last two seasons finished on an incredibly strong note,

Spoiler

this time Claire's decision seems pretty random (didn't they just renew their vows? didn't we already have them drifting apart several times already in the show?) and Frank's victory in the primaries had nothing to do with any sort of smart move he made. The only really good parts were everything involving the Russian president and the debate, and even those parts relied on really farfetched and unrealistic foreign policy scenarios.

The best thing about this show is how Frank and Claire take on the world together with their unending ruthlessness and ambition. This season had

Spoiler

sadly very little of that.

 

[UnObtainium17]

Jesus this ep11 is trash tier.

 

[SeroTyler]

So did something happen with

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Mendoza's

actor? Cause it really strange that they were building him up and then they just write him off in one sentence.

 

[Sami+]

Spoiler

Getting 10 million Americans to work and bringing peace to the Middle East isn't something to care about? Okay.

Not really when both of these things are just a means to an end. Frank's goal, from the beginning, had nothing to do with either of these things. He just wanted power. He has it now - whether or not he's remembered as a good president isn't quite as suspenseful as either becoming president or being imprisoned for life for murder.

 

[inm8num2]

Finished. Not sure what to make of this show. It's entertaining and well-acted, but the characters are almost like caricatures. Some of them are evil, cold, and calculating to the point of hilarity, which is why I kind of enjoy this show more as a dark, over-the-top satire than a straight drama.

Spoiler

The final episode felt like an 80s horror movie with Doug and Rachel. The guy is a fucking psychopath, and that means something in a show filled mostly with psychopaths.

 

[A Human Becoming]

Not really when both of these things are just a means to an end. Frank's goal, from the beginning, had nothing to do with either of these things. He just wanted power. He has it now - whether or not he's remembered as a good president isn't quite as suspenseful as either becoming president or being imprisoned for life for murder.

The fact that he couldn't get those accomplished shows how little he could yield it. Power isn't much if you can't do anything with it. To me that was suspenseful, as was maintaining the power.

IMO

Spoiler

he had less power as president than whip and vice president

.

 

[TacticalFox88]

And good lord, it's like they took the complaints of Season 2

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where Underwood seemed unstoppable

and did the exact opposite here.

The constant

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failures/setbacks and DUMB shit

was really annoying. It's one thing to

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fail to keep things interesting, but JESUS House of Cards writers. Throw us a bone.

 

[Fantastical]

Ep 11:

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Dat delicious Jackie backstab.

 

[GK86]

So did something happen with

Spoiler

Mendoza's

actor? Cause it really strange that they were building him up and then they just write him off in one sentence.

Someone mentioned earlier that he went to do another show.

 

[ChawlieTheFair]

Finished yesterday, definitely no where near as good as the others.

Spoiler

I didn't like how Frank wasn't seemingly in control of everything like the way he was in the first seasons. Like he can outsmart everyone in the first two seasons and suddenly he loses his ability to fuck shit up with Petrov? I didn't buy it. When he's fighting with Claire he just constantly sounds like a huge douche, like they completely just turned his charisma into asshole just for Claire to have any sort of ground to stand on. The writer was also just a super annoying twat, really unlikable. I liked what Claire was trying to do but often she just acted illogically, felt too much like forced conflict rather than genuine. Doug's arc was great, especially loved how the killing of Rachael went. Didn't feel overly dramatic, felt super quick and brutal like "Wow he actually did it" with that quick cut to her in the grave. Jackie's and Remi's plotline just felt kinda weird, didn't really care about either of them.

Not bad, but not amazing either.

 

[UnObtainium17]

Not sure if doug stamper or

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aaron hernandez

.

 

[Bladenic]

Finished, not sure how I feel. Least favorite season by far. And I hated the resolution to

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Doug/Rachel, and moreover, that it was dragged across the whole season.

Honestly I kinda wanna just rewatch season 1, since that was by far my favorite. I'll hold out hope that S4 will reach those heights for me (and also be the last one).

 

[Vermillion]

Spoiler

1) Petrov tha gawd

2) Claire is a completely different character this season. If there's anything that put her in Frank's shadow compared to other seasons, it's the fact that she made silly and irrational decisions the whole time that Frank had to clean up. Tragic. I enjoyed this season, but definitely not as good as Seasons 1 and 2.

 

[BIGWORM]

Presidential candidacy, then POOF, gone...

 

[Van Owen]

Have to agree that Claire was just completely annoying this season. I really grew to hate her squinty eyes and the giant trachea divot in her neck.

Spoiler

The shit with her being regretful after all this time was out of nowhere and is the complete opposite of season 1 and 2.

 

[Frank the Great]

Have to agree that Claire was just completely annoying this season. I really grew to hate her squinty eyes and the giant trachea divot in her neck.

Spoiler

The shit with her being regretful after all this time was out of nowhere and is the complete opposite of season 1 and 2.

Totally disagree with that.

Spoiler

It did not come out of nowhere. It was always hinted that she felt bad about what she was doing. She justified it by the goal; the presidency. Now that she and Frank obtained the goal, she realizes they are still horrible people, and even weak. She can't even take a stand against an oppressive regimes anti-speech law. She did not make all those sacrifices (including children) just to desperately continue to cling on to power as Frank intends on doing. She wanted to do more and actually change things, as evidenced by her stint as ambassador. She realized that all the terrible stuff her and Frank did was for absolutely nothing, and she snapped.

Not 'out of nowhere' at all for me.

And why do people spend so much time questioning Claire but give Frank a pass? He is the murdering psychopath here, remember.

 

[Darth Pinche]

Totally disagree with that.

Spoiler

It did not come out of nowhere. It was always hinted that she felt bad about what she was doing. She justified it by the goal; the presidency. Now that she and Frank obtained the goal, she realizes they are still horrible people, and even weak. She can't even take a stand against an oppressive regimes anti-speech law. She did not make all those sacrifices (including children) just to desperately continue to cling on to power as Frank intends on doing. She wanted to do more and actually change things, as evidenced by her stint as ambassador. She realized that all the terrible stuff her and Frank did was for absolutely nothing, and she snapped.

Not 'out of nowhere' at all for me.

And why do people spend so much time questioning Claire but give Frank a pass? He is the murdering psychopath here, remember.

Thank you for this. I feel the same. A lot of the hate seems to be the same arguments vs Skylar in Breaking Bad. Claire's breaking point seems to have been

Spoiler

waking up to the suicide of the man she was fighting to save. After that everything just seemed pointless and she lost her cool.

 

[duckroll]

I also reject the claims that Claire is being "out of character" in this season. It felt very natural to me because this was always going to be where her character ended up.

Spoiler

Right from the start, the very first episode of the show, Claire was introduced as a character who was willing to support all the bad things her husband did as long as it got her something in return.

How can anyone say she it above nepotism? She was angry that Walker didn't give Frank the cabinet position because it was what they were promised and she was counting on him getting the position to give her non-profit a corporate sponsorship. Did we just forget all that? Claire's character arc for the entire first season was about her wanting to do something which can be perceived as meaningful and positive. Her hypocrisy runs extremely deep. She wanted the moral benefits from running non-profit and "making a difference" in third world countries, but she was also more than willing to be an awful human being just to accomplish her goals. She is a selfish person who does charity to make herself feel better and so other people would have a higher opinion of her, not for the charity itself.

The way she handled the sexual assault reform stuff in the second season is another example of this. She wants to be seen as a crusader, as a moral pillar in society for women, but when things go bad, she's more than willing to throw other people under the bus to deflect blame from herself. She is disgusting, but that's who she is. But she's not disgusting just because she is "ruthless", she also has these repeated panic attacks from her conscience, but she finds ways to ignore them to keep doing what she's doing because she wants to remain in a position of power, and she can only do that by supporting Frank.

This season is basically a culmination of all that. She feels she has had enough of being in his shadow, of not being able to make something big of herself. What she doesn't see is that she had been given so many chances, but she just isn't really all that good at doing that shit. So she wants to be ambassador, and Frank lets her have it. She blows it big time, and what is her reaction to this? To blame others, to avoid blaming herself, to cry about how unfair it is. She makes a fool out of Frank, Petrov, and diplomacy by making the statement she did. She sure as fuck didn't do it because she really believed in the cause, she did it because she wanted to feel important. She wanted to feel she DID something that makes her BETTER than those who didn't. It's entirely selfish. She's disgusting, but that's why she's a fascinating character.

Her walking out on Frank at the end is not being out of character, it is her wanting to blame all her failures on something else - her husband. She refuses to admit that she has been given as many opportunities as he has, but simply isn't capable of making something of herself on her own. Because she cannot see that, the conclusion is obviously that everyone else is wrong except herself. Since she believes in herself so much, she thinks she can walk out and make a difference that way by screwing someone else up. That's what she has done to everyone else her entire life.

Thank you for this. I feel the same. A lot of the hate seems to be the same arguments vs Skylar in Breaking Bad. Claire's breaking point seems to have been

Spoiler

waking up to the suicide of the man she was fighting to save. After that everything just seemed pointless and she lost her cool.

Spoiler

But was she really trying to -save- him? Or was saving him an important goal for her because it would mean she succeeded? I don't think she really cared about him, but she probably tells herself that she does. When he killed himself, she probably did see that he was brave though. He picked an option that neither she nor Frank would ever have picked. He stuck to his guns instead of compromising. It probably hit her hard because if she reflects on her life that's all she'll ever see - compromise.

 

[Curufinwe]

On Mendoza:

Spoiler

I think his actor left to do American Crime. Which sucks cause he was cool.

 

[DrGonzo615]

Yep, 3rd season was a bit of a mess overall. Lots of stuff that petered out or went nowhere. No overarching plot, lots of bumbling side plots, almost none of them had any sort of real pay off and some were just dropped completely in 1 or 2 lines of dialogue.

With that said its still fun to watch Spacey do his thing.

 

[Dany]

Finished it. Meh. really all over the place and incredibly sloppy :/

 

[Mogwai]

Yep, 3rd season was a bit of a mess overall. Lots of stuff that petered out or went nowhere. No overarching plot, lots of bumbling side plots, almost none of them had any sort of real pay off and some were just dropped completely in 1 or 2 lines of dialogue.

With that said its still fun to watch Spacey do his thing.

It feels like the actors are much better than the material they've been given.

A better plot and subplots plus a few more interesting side characters and the show would be a lot better.

 

[AIDSBot]

Claire and Frank really are the worst characters on the show, they're just nothings. The real drama on the show was how the fallout from Frank's bullshit affected bystanders like Zoe and Russo.

 

[zou]

Just finished it. I'm in the minority that enjoyed the season. I thought it was better than the second one. I agree with some of the overall complaints people had about the season. Especially the pacing. Just felt like random time jumps with zero explanation what happened.

My biggest complaint though, and one I haven't seen many people bring up, is the

Spoiler

lack of fourth wall/Frank talking to us. It is one of the reasons I love about the show. I wonder why they toned it down this season.

I definitely agree with this. Became even more apparent after rewatching the first season.

 

[Eiolon]

Finally finished season 3.

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Poor Rachel. I really thought Doug was going to let her go.

Claire's entire persona was changed midway through the season. One minute she is tough and the next she is having a mid life crisis. Her entire character has tanked.

All in all, I enjoyed it until the election crap. Then it started becoming a soap opera. I hope they quit while their ahead next season.