! contains spoilers about season 2, not season 3! Almost two weeks ago Designated Survivor season 3 was released on Netflix. I binge watched it and as the season developed I became increasingly impressed. I have to admit that, after Natascha McElhone *left* the show in season 2 I felt Designated Survivor went downhill [pun not intended]. And even though I still think it was a horrible move to remove the First Lady from the White House, this new season is the bomb. It will leave you on the edge of your seat, it will make you feel uncomfortable, sad and enraged and it will make you think. Here is why you need to watch Designated Survivor season 3.

Designated what?

If you haven’t seen Designated Survivor, here is a very brief synopsis of the show. The President of the United States, his vice-president and almost everyone in Cabinet die after a horrible attack on the night of the State of the Union Address. Tom Kirkman (played by Kiefer Sutherland) finds himself first in line to become president. He has the impossible job to get the country back on its feet, find out who is responsible for the bombing and keep everyone safe. In season 1 you will see him do just that. As I mentioned in the intro, season 2 just couldn’t keep up. The writers made so many bad decisions during that second season that, until I got an email from Netflix announcing season 3, I had completely forgotten about Designated Survivor. 

#backwithamission

But it is clear that Designated Survivor is back with a mission for season 3. A very ambitious mission. Some may argue that it is too obvious, too woke, too much. But honestly, it’s not. And here is why.

Designated Survivor season 3 contains a lot of important, present- day issues. In only ten episodes the show discusses racism, poverty, illegal immigration, homosexuality, aids, transsexuality, feminism, assisted suicide, pain killer addiction, the American political system and the American voting system. And then of course there is also “the usual” political corruption, the threats to (inter)national security, love and cheating. It may seem like an ambitious list. Or, depending on “where you are at” concerning all things life & love related, a bit cliché. Because, yes, every single one of the issues is brought in a quite “obvious” way. But it is still refreshing and important. 

Why you need to watch Designated Survivor season 3

It’s not just that these issues matter. It not “just” because illegal immigrants are still being treated horribly and inhumane in the USA. And it’s not just because racism is a ghastly and everyday problem. And it’s not just because gay and trans people are still being attacked psychically, verbally and online. It is also about the way the show decided to portray all of these issues. 

Make you feel it

The way to make these issues really tear through our hardened and media tired souls is to make us feel it. With some of these issues Designated Survivor did an amazing job. They didn’t just “write in a gay person” or put people of different ethnic backgrounds in the foreground. The ‘gay storyline’ for instance, is about two black gay men. One of them is a very big and strong Secret Service guy. They kiss, have sex, fight and talk about HIV and have very tender moments on screen. I have been married to another woman for five years. We have two kids. For me, being gay is on the same level as loving houseplants or the color pink: nothing major, just a part of everyday life. But seeing these two beautiful black men made me feel uncomfortable, just for minute, but still. If they managed to wake me up, make a gay woman think about her prejudice, they did something right. Apparently in my mind big black men are the archetype of “the manly man”. And apparently in my mind, all that manliness doesn’t coincide with being gay. Which is insane on so many levels, but for me personally because I am a super feminine gay woman, which probably doesn’t fit a lot of people’s stereotype either. It made me realize I’ve got some growing to do on this matter.

Another great example of how the show makes you feel it, is with the subject of assisted suicide. They have managed to portray a lot of complicated feelings about euthanasia in a way that leaves you in tears. I don’t want to give any spoilers, but it suffices to say that Emily Rhodes’ character is unfolding in a beautifully imperfect way in season 3. And there are many more gems, with Aaron Shore’s girlfriend Isabel Pardo shining the brightest. But President Kirkman’s daughter also has some very touching scenes [and one in the final episode that will wrench at your heart]. And of course the stunning Sasha, Kirkman’s transgender sister in law, has a beautiful role in the show.

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I do feel they chose a safe route on the immigration front. The show could have taken a bigger stance by portraying a horrible story of child-parent separation instead of a terrible, but solvable story of a sick child. That “safe” choice is a clear sign of having a different point of view than I have on the USA’s current policy on illegal immigrants. Shonda Rhimes didn’t shy away from it in this season’s Grey’s Anatomy. She has turned the issue into the season’s most important cliff hanger. 

Shondaland

While we are on the subject of Shondaland. Shonda Rhimes is the biggest example of how TV shows can have an impact, not just on the way people on TV look, live and love, but also on how they think, act and feel in real life. In our pre-Shonda world, there weren’t really any TV shows about strong black women, successful black men, gay men and women, transgender people and many other minorities. Shondaland has created a world where a TV show will not survive its first season without putting minorities in the foreground and normalizing what so many still regard as abnormal. And it looks like Designated Survivor will be able to survive in Shondaworld.

#reallife in Designated Survivor season 3

One last cool thing about Designated Survivor season 3 is that they have put in real stories, from real people. In these unscripted videos people talk about the shame and pain of addiction, the struggles and pride of transgenders and other topics addressed on the show. It is clear Designated Survivor season 3 came back with a mission. That mission is to educate, to ignite and to make people think. And I like it.