Review: Veep (Season 5, Episode 10)

The day of reckoning has arrived. Will Selina keep her presidency? Will Jonah actually become a decent congressman? No, and no. Obviously.

When writing these reviews, I always regard each episode as a fabulous trainwreck. But this… this episode is a tremendous nuclear explosion. The beginning of ‘Inauguration’ gives some promise in regards to Selina (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) keeping her presidency; but that just ends up being the high before the eventual comedown. Selina and her team watch in horror as the votes between Selina and O’Brien race towards another tie – all thanks to Tom’s (Hugh Laurie) magnificent plan to have the vote tie with three abstains so that he can become president. Through this plan, Selina ends up begrudgingly dragging her heels back to being VEEP; this time for Tom, as part of the deal to free Tibet (as concocted in the previous episode), and for her to win her goddamn Nobel Peace Prize.

Even that backfires on him, and shit truly hits the fan. Instead, Senator Laura Montez (Andrea Savage) is given the Presidency, after promising Selina’s Vice President the coveted role of Secretary of State to steal his vote away from Tom.

Kent: Ma’am, last night I ran a flash poll on Presidential scholars, they have rated you the 43rd most effective President ever.

Mike: Of how many?

Kent: 44. You were right ahead of James Buchanan…who many feel caused the civil war.

Selina: Kent, can you give a girl some warning next time before you jam it in the back door?

Kent: Data gives you no warning, Ma’am.

‘Inauguration’ signals the ultimate low for everyone involved in Selina’s presidency; everyone is too shocked for words when the eventual dreaded vote comes in. Apart from Gary (Tony Hale), for in a surprise turn of events he completely loses it, cursing and screaming at this colleagues for letting the precious flower that is Selina down. Selina deals with her loss in her own way, by completely annihilating a coffee machine, drowning her sorrows away with Richard (Sam Richardson) in the Oval Office – only to deal with the hangover the next day, just in time for Senator Mortez’s inauguration.

The entirety of Veep‘s cast have given such a stellar, hysterical performance this season. Everyone – especially Dreyfus – have become extremely comfortable within their roles, seemingly enough to have formed the ability to expand their talents farther than I’d ever deemed capable for a television show as complicated as this one can be.

I really don’t know how they’re going to top this season next time around, and I have no idea where Selina and her administration will be heading next.

Veep aired on Sky Atlantic.