So it just feels incredibly frustrating that a show of such brilliance in its prime declined so rapidly in Season 5, to the extent that it feels like a completely different show altogether. 'House of Cards' throughout has been so strongly acted, with Kevin Spacey on tour-De-force form and Robin Wright giving career-best work. The characters engaged and intrigued, Frank being another example of one of contemporary television's most fascinating lead characters. The stories didn't go at a 'fast' pace but it never dragged in the show's prime days, and they were also very layered, had variety and were suitably complex without being convoluted. The political elements were intriguing and not heavy-handed, a problem so common in film but avoided in 'House of Cards'. Biting, thought-provoking and tightly structured, the writing in Seasons 1 to 4 was an example to all television. The direction was smart and intelligent, especially the first two episodes with David Fincher's, to me one of the better directors of the last twenty five or so years, involvement (the first episode earning Fincher a Primetime Emmy) and the music knew when to have presence and when to tone things down to let the dialogue and characters properly speak. Throughout its run, it's one of the most stylish and most atmospheric shows personally seen, with cinematic-quality photography and production design. For the first four seasons, 'House of Cards' was seriously addictive, must-watch television and very quickly became one of my favourite shows. Lets start with the many great things first. Not since 'Once Upon a Time' and 'The Walking Dead', and before that 'Lost' has such a brilliant show of great promise declined so rapidly. Sadly, it has also become one of the most frustrating. 'House of Cards' much of the time was one of the most compelling shows.

Nytimes front page oct 2018