Designated Survivor “The Interrogation” was written by the team of Barbie Kligman and Jenna Richman and was directed by Michael Katleman, whose very long list of credits includes
Zoo,
The Last Ship,
Justified, and
Life on Mars. Kligman’s credits include
Secrets and Lies,
Private Practice, and
CSI:NY, and Richman’s credits include
Limitless,
Mistresses, and
Allegiance. Tom (Kiefer Sutherland) continues to realize just how heavy a burden the Presidency is, and McLeish (Ashley Zukerman) gets closer to potentially relieving Tom of it. This episode was structured very nicely around two interrogations – one of the President and one of Nassar (Nicholas Massouh).
As the episode opens, we have what seems to be the regular walk and talk scene. Nassar is locked up but hasn’t spoken. Aaron (Adan Canto) is pleased that Tom’s approval ratings are up, but Tom doesn’t care about them – he’s more concerned that a good man was lost on the mission to get Nassar and doesn’t want it to be for nothing. Tom is more concerned with getting the House back up and running so that they can get a budget.
I was a bit sad to see the loss of Tom’s super nerd glasses. Combined with the new haircut, the contacts make him look more and more like Jack Bauer. If you think Tom’s self-doubt in the episode is a departure from Bauer, it’s not. This isn’t a criticism of Sutherland – I may see Jack Bauer a tiny bit, but Tom Kirkman certainly feels like a much different character, and I’m very much enjoying seeing him have to adapt to things in the Whitehouse.
Mike (LaMonica Garrett) isn’t accompanying them to the Governor’s Summit – he’s off for the night to go bowling with his brother. Luckily, he doesn’t get too far and comes back when he hears the gunfire at the Whitehouse. It’s Mike that takes down the shooter, but not before taking a bullet himself. Tom calls Mike to thank him, and Mike assures him he was just doing his job and it’s an honor. There is plenty of evidence throughout the episode that Tom has easily won over those people who work with him every day.
At the Governor’s Summit, Seth (Kal Penn) runs into a new reporter – Lisa Jordan (Melanie Scrofano). They seem to have a “thing,” just before the shooting starts. Seth’s first instinct is that it would be a lapse in judgment to ask her out because she is press after all. When he does eventually ignore his better judgment and ask her to join him for some sparkling cider, she drops a bombshell on him. She wants a comment from a “source” on whether Leo (Tanner Buchanan) is really the President’s son. So clearly, that storyline isn’t going away…
Before the Governor’s Summit is interrupted by gunfire – and the shooter says he’s working for Nassar – we learn some interesting things about Tom – he’s a registered Independent! He tells the Governors that he wants to bridge the divide and find the common ground that has been missing for years. This seemed like a particularly timely speech on his part. Interesting that the show should choose NOT to choose a party for its President as well. I wonder if we will see him run for re(?)election as an Independent? It certainly sets up some interesting possibilities in regards to discussions about Democrats and Republicans to come.
The shooting increases the need to get Nassar to talk. Enhanced interrogation is suggested by Carrera (Paulino Nunes), and Atwood (Malik Yoba) points out that all the evidence proves it doesn’t work – it just gets people to say what you want. Atwood gets 24 hours to make Nassar talk, and of course, he enlists Hannah (Maggie Q). Emily (Italia Ricci) has also asked Atwood to vet McLeish for VP, so the pressure is really on to get the truth from Nassar that he and his group were fronting for someone else.
Meanwhile, the Governors take a stand against Tom. Governor Rivera (David Norona) suddenly refuses to take a plane of Syrian refugees in Florida, leaving them stranded on the tarmac – with a woman going into labor. Naturally, Alex (Natascha McElhone) gets involved in trying to find them a place. Aaron asks Alex not to rock the boat, but she tells him it’s not political, it’s humanitarian. Rivera insists that the refugees pose a threat and many of the other Governors jump on board, calling for a complete shutdown of immigration. And isn’t that ripped from the headlines! It’s as ludicrous in fiction as it is in reality.
It was fitting that Tom would end up by arranging for the plane to go to Toronto to be welcomed into Canada as of course, Sutherland is Canadian! Not to mention that the show is actually filmed in Toronto. It does, however, open a rift between Alex and Tom. She does tell him that she isn’t angry at the President, but she is disappointed in her husband. I suspect that he’ll be more affected by the disappointment as he clearly feels that himself too.
I loved the parallel of Nassar and Tom both being lead to their respective interrogations as the camera cut back and forth between them. Aaron and Emily both urge Tom not to do it, and when the Governors turn confrontational, Tom insists he’s not on trial – but he is, and he asked for it. The Governors grill him on all his decisions, concluding that he just gets rid of the people he doesn’t agree with. Governor Nichols (Christine Estabrook) from Arizona hits him hardest. She wants to know why he should be her President – after all, designated survivor is merely a formality, it’s not an honor! Governor Mennuti (Murray Furrow) tries to come to Tom’s rescue, pointing out everything he’s accomplished, but Tom shocks the entire room by saying that he can’t say why he should be President.
Sutherland is excellent in this scene as he looks utterly stricken. All of his self-doubts bubble to the surface and he concedes the Governors may be right. Aaron follows him to his office and tells him that he needs to fight back (let’s face it, self-doubt or not, Jack Bauer would have been throwing punches!). Aaron tells him that six weeks ago, he barely knew Tom’s name, but he’s convinced him in that time that there is no one better able to lead the country. It’s what Tom needed to hear.
Tom goes back to the Governors and tells him that he thinks he can affect change and promote unity – what the country needs. He tells them he can’t do it alone and he can’t waste any more time. Either they support him, or he steps down. They give him the impossible choice of immigration or Congress. He is forced to choose Congress and shut down immigration. There is something soothing in being reminded that the President can do very little completely on his own. Though in this case Tom has the much better viewpoint.
Meanwhile, Hannah very clearly tells Nassar his rights. The threat is that they will send him to Pakistan where he will have no humanitarian rights. He reminds them of the hardship he went through when his family died – they won’t break him. Hannah trips him up by getting him to say that he wanted McLeish dead, proving that he really didn’t commit the bombing but was a front for someone else. She finally gets him to crack by revealing that they know about his other family and they will also be sent to Pakistan if he doesn’t give up who was really behind the attacks. He gives them the name – Catalan, but they can’t find any intelligence on it. Nassar ends up dead before the end of the episode, leaving them with no real evidence against McLeish.
It was interesting that both Nassar and Tom had elements of family that played into their decisions. Nassar gave his life to save his family. Tom chose the country over Alex’s requests. Alex tells him she gets it. He’s always going to disappoint someone – but it seems he may be disappointing himself as much as anyone. I thought this was another solid episode. It’s well-written and well-acted. We aren’t being given any easy answers and Tom is right to struggle with what the position requires of him. What did you think of the episode? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
