This Netflick-only political potboiler (now on DVD) is The West Wing written by Darth Vader.

Spacey is the centerpiece of this series, who – along with the help of his very politically savvy wife (Wright) – tries to consolidate power and use that not for his constituents or the good of the country, but to advance his own agenda, which is the career of his character. (If it helps others in the meanwhile, well, that’s gravy and makes for a good soundbite with which to raise money.)

The whole series (which has been renewed) is a cliche of sorts: The show examines power vs. money, good vs. evil, does the ends justify the means, why we make the choices we do and so on. Sounds like a yawner.

It isn’t. Surrounded by a stellar supporting cast, Spacey still stands out as the most interesting character. (To be fair, his pronounced South Carolina drawl fades as the series go on….). And there are multiple plot threads going on at once, some that intersect, others that may, but have yet to, converge. Season Two will be interesting.

I’ve catagorized this as TV, as it is episodic, but is it TV? Not a movie, as it was never on the big screen. But had I watched it streaming to my computer/mobile device, would it still be TV? Interesting gray area.

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