This was one of the best Veep episodes in a series of great episodes. There are big shakeups and little earthquakes. Mike (Matt Walsh) is actually in charge of the vice president’s team for a short term. As frightening a prospect as that might be for the team, it was far scarier for Mike. Or maybe it just took a little too much effort. Mike would almost be up for it, but he’d already given his all on a speech commemorating the 100th anniversary of World War I. Only to have his masterpiece trampled under the athletic shoes of Ray (Chris Meloni). “Special Relationship” changes relationships on the team and it shows how people become frontrunners in Washington: By hobbling their opponents. Every episode is a tour de force for Reid Scott’s face. His bulging veins, eyelid flutters, tics, tocs and twitches are a weekly symphony of anguish, despair and something that comes almost close to the human emotion joy. Watch his chin quiver as Amy breaks the news over his nose. His breakdown is very believable. I can’t imagine Dan going gently into the good night. Ray, I’m sure is gone after tonight, but Dan, like Jonah, is an unstakable vampire who you can’t bury facing down. I actually liked Jonah (Timothy Simons) in this episode. A lot of that is because of the closing sequence where he’s reciting a litany of ill-chosen ailments off Dan’s chart in the hospital room. I’ve always liked being annoyed by Jonah. He’s written to get under your skin. All characters on Veep find their ways under your skin, like beetles crawl out of it during methane hallucinations, but Jonah goes uber-dweeb today and it further solidifies his growing status as a player. Ben Cafferty (Kevin Dunn) consistently cuts to the heart of every situation. He describes Ray talking to smart people as “like watching a goat try to work an ATM.” The interplay between Kent Davison (Gary Cole) and Sue (Sufe Bradshaw) comes to a head tonight as Sue relegates all future contact from Kent come remotely. This was a very satisfying episode. A nice cup of tea. Den of Geek Rating: 5 Out of 5 Stars Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for all news updates related to the world of geek. And Google+, if that’s your thing!
