Veep 6.03: "Georgia" - Review:
Directed by Becky Martin & Written by Billy Kimball
In the third episode of the sixth season it was time for Selina to go to Georgia and observe the first free elections that the country has ever had. The decision to reunite most of the cast together in this episode really paid off as Georgia was probably the best episode of the season so far, really having lots of laughs to boot as characters managed to adapt to the new status quo. The show has kind of suffered as a result of splitting up its ensemble cast and seeing everyone stumble around Selina's new position and screw everything up for her was just pure Veep, and it just really paid off. This episode also put Selina back in control of the power that she had experienced as President of the United States, representing the country in Georgia, and the results were pretty interesting to watch unfold, having to put up with the offer of multiple bribes in the process that could have helped fund the State Library that she wanted. Selin herself is struggling to work out the differences between the two candidates in the process making things even more complicated, and she's also facing another dilemma - does she accept the bribe offered without it being made known to the public?
Selina herself is becoming increasingly frustrated with the process. She labels Democracy as a horror show and is only there not because she is a believer in it, but she is looking to drive up interest in her book by putting good things in it after having the Tibet honor stolen from under her nose by the current President. Gary, Richard, Mike, Ben, Kent and Jonah are all back in the picture as well which allowed for some great exchanges and interactions, particularly when Selina insulted Jonah, promising him that she would destroy him so badly that they would honor her for it at the Kennedy centre, and of course Jonah being Jonah in turn saw fit to adapt her insult to use it back against Richard seconds later. But that didn't quite work out as planned for Jonah as Richard quickly brushed it off, believing that he was in fact quite happy where he was, viewing his current job as a step up from his former job, much to Jonah's annoyance. It's also worth taking into account that despite how unnaturally tall Jonah is he was still left incredibly intimidated by Selina, showing that she still hasn't lost her touch when it comes to ripping people a new one. And as if more bad luck couldn't come their way, despite not being Georgians, both Gary and Mike end up voting by mistake in the process.
What also made things interesting was that Mike had typically forgot to reserve a room, causing all sorts of problems for him. To make matters worse Selina herself also had to deal with her best friend, Minna, the ex-PM of Finland, who seemed determined to drive her more and more insane by the moment. Her main task was to help ensure that Nikolai Genizde, a professor, was elected, in order to overcome the human-rights violating President Murman, who isn't above using death squads to take people off the board for good. It turns out that both of them, not just Murman, were capable of offering Selina bribes to win her support, but Selina finds out that accepting the money would not be a violation of American Law. It also wounded land her in trouble with the Georgians, because technically they have no official law yet either. It turns out that the election quickly shifts in Murman's favour when it is revealed that Genizde isn't as good-looking as he first appears, and the former President ups his bribe to $20m, which becomes increasingly hard for Selina to turn down. It turns out that Minna is dissuaded by the whole election, but Selina offers her a more diplomatic approach than just saying that it is essentially worthless.
Selina is eventually is able to help Murman get elected, but before he can be sworn in he is promptly arrested and a third man, who was Selina's aide during her time in Georgia, ends up becoming the President.
Unfortunately Amy and Dan are the main two members of the Veep cast that didn't make it across to Georgia in this week's episode and as a result they're left dealing with the fallout from Buddy's drunken arrest video. To make matters worse Amy fails an a question when asked who her favorite Downton Abbey character is ("Abbey, I guess"), when Amy mentions that she's happiest watching the show with Buddy and some popcorn. It's pretty clear that Amy is far more experienced at this than Buddy is, and is carrying his way through the talk on CBS This Morning. To make matters worse Dan makes the fact that he had a relationship with Amy when they were younger public, and Amy eventually decides to drum up support for Buddy by enlisting him on a 25 mile walk for Breast Cancer as well as attending a WNBA game in the process. However, Buddy has other ideas, and announces his resignation from the race much to the devastation of his support.
It's safe to say then that this was the best episode of Season 6 so far, helped along by a brilliant cameo from the always excellent Stephen Fry, as well as the reuniting of most of the ensemble cast. As usual, there were some great lines in this episode that continued the witty dialogue that this show is known for, with lines such as "You two ding-dongs look like you fingered the Incredible Hulk", coming from Selina's reaction to Gary and Mike's green thumbs, "Hawaii is rightfully a monarchy, and will be again", and There is literally no Georgian law, and I am using literally correctly," all being highlights from this week's episode.
What did you think of Georgia? Let me know in the comments section below and check out the next episode of Veep this Sunday on HBO at 9:30pm.
