Senhora Secretária

I don't understand why people are giving poor reviews, maybe they have only viewed the pilot. They could have expanded more, but people should not be so quick to leave a review after only seeing 60 minutes of a season series. So far I have only viewed the pilot and the first episode, but I am anticipating it will get high reviews. Anyone who enjoys watching the TV series Scandal, should enjoy this series as well. Scandal is quite violent and into shock value. To compare the two shows I find the writing far superior. Tea Leoni was an excellent choice. She is a wonderful actor and I have enjoyed all her movies. She can make you feel the emotions of the script every time.

This is the fictional story of an ex-CIA analyst who now is a professor in a University and a wife and a mother of 3 teenagers. One day, her mentor in the agency, who now happens to be the president of the U.S. offers her (insisted more like it) the position of the secretary of state.

In the pilot episode we see her dealing with her first big crisis, 2 months after her appointment as the secretary.

The whole presentation of the show is soft and painless. Her 4-5 assistants add some comedy elements to the not-so-dramatic atmosphere while she is dealing with the crisis and at her home everything works like a clock with her clever kids and the supportive husband.

The star Tea Leoni (who serves also as a producer for the series, and it shows because of the favorable way her character is scripted) is doing her best, I guess, but it's hard not notice the results of some cosmetic surgery or botox, that make her face far less expressive than it should be.

I read some comments that compare this with the ...multiple award winning series The West Wing! Sorry no comparison at all. This is a mild political drama with (I'm afraid so) a very fragile future.

This show is just so good. There is clearly a budget as there are some great actors, often filming out of country (granted a lot is staged but not all of it), tons of extras when cities are shut down or mass emergency. Also there is so much action that normally I'd say it's too much or not plausible but the foundation of the story is so well laid that the pieces are all there. Nothing seems to be forced but sometimes it moves so fast I'm like what is happening. I've always been a fan of Téa Leoni and this show beyond solidifies that. After staying in the same hotel as Biden and seeing our federal agents in action in real life my family was left in awe it was the highlight of our trip. They run deep with people of expertise everyone looks and acts smart and are about their wits you just sense it. This show really conveys that exact same energy as real life (albeit this is a drama I'm not dumb haha). With that being said I'd highly recommend this series as something being well written well made and a series apart of the rest.

I would seriously doubt a show like this with a lead male character would have a synopsis essentially refer to 'work life balance', automatically putting it in the 'career mom struggle' basket. Bess (Madam Secretary), is an extremely well written, complex, political character who happens to wear a skirt sometimes. I really hope people do not dismiss the show without giving it a chance. Yes, it does explore both sides of political life, the professional and the personal, but that kind of exploration makes for layered plot development, and is not gender specific. It may at some stage get irritating the way the State Office consistently seems to be able to achieve positive outcomes to complex global issues in one handy episode, but for now it's just satisfying. And welcome back Tea Leoni, wow!

This is not weighty, or particularly politically sophisticated, but for a feel good (normally), well made, well scripted series it's good enough to look forward to each week, like meeting up with a friend. The characters in the program are particularly enjoyable and for that alone it's worth at least a try.