Dear writers of “America,”
I’m a big fan of your show. It was madcap from the start. There was a restlessness, a spirit of unlimited possibility, that made for excellent television. Characters were morally compromised, sure, and some of what they did was horrific, but the story had real forward motion, and there was always the promise of redemption. At the end of every hour, I always eagerly hit “Next Episode.”
But over the past few seasons, you really seem to have lost the plot. You’re doing too much with too many characters and in too little time. It’s getting difficult to keep track.
Just take the past few episodes. The long story arc about a sinister president facing his comeuppance in his first midterm elections finally came to its conclusion. But, then, instead of dwelling on his struggle to reconcile a rebuke from the public with his evident narcissism, or at least introducing some of the new characters that are joining the Washington cast in supporting roles, you immediately hurried along to the next story line.
There was the firing of the attorney general and the attack on the independence of the special counsel. There was the implausible spectacle of the president bickering with the leadership of Congress in front of the press. There was his attempt to politicize the military on a trip to Iraq, his decision to pull troops out of Syria, and the surprise resignation of the secretary of defense. And don’t get me started on shutting down the government over a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border no one would be crazy enough to build. It’s getting painful to watch.
I’m not yet giving up on my favorite show. Perhaps it’ll find its footing again in a couple of seasons.
This insane series of events was hardly an exception. So many things have happened in the last season that fans are struggling to remember some of the most basic — and implausible — facts about the current lead character.
With his brash manner, his ludicrous haircut and his despicable rhetoric, it was clear from the start that you intended for the president to be a kind of anti-hero. But then you also made him a crook with a long history of tax evasion. You had him bragging about sexual assault and covering up affairs with porn stars. You hinted at shady links to dictators in foreign lands.
Whatever happened to the old writer’s adage that compelling characters should never be wholly good or wholly bad? It’s becoming increasingly difficult to believe this Machiavellian character could still be in office.
Nor is it at all clear where the writers are going with all of their heavy-handed hints about collusion with Russia. Anton Chekhov famously advised writers not to put a loaded gun on stage if no one intended to fire it. Well, this particular gun has appeared in virtually every scene for the past two seasons — and yet most characters act as though it doesn’t exist. If the thing doesn’t go off soon, I’ll lose all faith in this show.
Donald Trump has moved the news agenda along at a terrifying pace | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Once upon a time, you had great ambition and artistic integrity. People all around the globe admired your work and dreamed of living in the world you created.
But now, you’ve jumped the shark. The surfeit of minor characters, the cartoonish villains and the incessant plot twists — this is starting to feel more like an episode of reality TV than a prestige, prime-time show. No wonder everyone is getting very angry at you.
I’m not yet giving up on my favorite show. Perhaps it’ll find its footing again in a couple of seasons. Or perhaps you’ll finally decide to write off some of your most villainous and one-dimensional characters. But you better turn things around fast. For the first time in my life, I catch myself wishing I could just switch the whole thing off.
A disappointed fan,
Yascha Mounk
Yascha Mounk is associate professor at Johns Hopkins University and the author of “The People vs. Democracy: Why Our Freedom Is in Danger and How to Save It” (Harvard University Press, 2018).