'Designated Survivor' Recap: 'The Results'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

THIS IS THE EMERGENCY SPOILER ALERT SYSTEM...YOU ARE ADVISED TO READ AT YOUR OWN RISK...

You know that a television show is doing a fine job of connecting you to the characters, the instant you feel anything for them and when it comes to Designated Survivor that moment of emotional connection has arrived because after seven week of crisis after crisis, I have to admit that I outright feel bad for President Tom Kirkman. 

I mean come on, the poor guy simply cannot get a break. For every step forward he takes, he seems to take five back and this week's episode was no exception to that rule because 'The Results' was another tough day at the office for the new President of the United States, but more importantly it was also an episode that more or less opened the floodgates for the conspiracy that's been brewing behind the scenes, giving us some chilling insight as to how deep this whole mess goes while posing some new questions. But before we get too far into that, let's take a moment and discuss the tough night that Kirkman had to deal with. 

If anything this episode should have been a celebratory one for the President since the Election was right around the corner, and his vision of seeing a new and functioning Government was about to come to fruition...and then came the first bombshell of the night, poll workers in Kansas were coming down ill thanks to a bio terrorism attack, prompting a grand discussion amongst Kirkman and his inner circle...do they cancel the elections or push forward? Kirkman's first instinct was to shut the whole thing down until his Administration could determine that it would be a safe event for all Americans, but a few inspiring words from the daughter of one of the victims of this bio terror attack...reminded him to be vigilant and brave, forcing Kirkman to change his mind and allow the election to continue and the people of the United States were inspired to come out and vote, despite any hint of danger because their President went to the polls and took part in his civic duty. 

But while that storyline eventually ended on a happy note...there is still the conspiracy to deal with and holy cow, the people behind the scenes of this mess are ruthless to say the least. They not only kept Jason's son from him to force him to do their bidding, but the price they asked him to pay ransom wise for his child, was incredibly high. The mystery woman in black asked the Deputy Director of the FBI to confess to the murder of Majid Nassar, resulting in his subsequent arrest and the sheer power this mystery lady exhibits was enough to keep Hannah silent as well and to top it all off, we came to learn that Congressman MacLeish, is nothing more than a pawn. Yes, the man we thought might be the mastermind behind the attack is nothing more than a humble servant of the real brains of this operation...and who that is exactly, has yet to be seen...

Either way, holy cow...that little revelation about MacLeish and his role in this mess means that whomever is behind this whole attack has their eyes on the Presidency and they clearly have their own plan for the United States of America and they are truly willing to do whatever it takes to execute that agenda. It changes so much for the show because in many ways now, Kirkman is extremely vulnerable in his new role since he's learning on the job and dealing with one crisis after another, meaning that there's no time for him to watch his back; and considering how many people may be in on this mess, there's little chance of him getting any kind of red flags when it comes to that kind of danger. In the end, this is a flat out game changer of an episode for the show and since these mystery folks are coming out of the wood work, it most likely means they are accelerating the time table for their plan and I'm extremely curious to see what their next move will be. Until next time.

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