Is this the end of Madam Secretary? Not the show—which improved considerably during its second season—but rather Elizabeth McCord's (Téa Leoni) job title, as inter-office politics plant the suspicion that the President (Keith Carradine) is looking for a new Secretary of State. The opening episode sets the various plates spinning beyond its standalone main story as the Chief Justice (executive producer Morgan Freeman) of the Supreme Court swears Elizabeth into the Oval Office after the president's plane goes missing, the vice president is hospitalized, and the next in line—a senator—is revealed to be senile. Elsewhere, Elizabeth's husband (Tim Daly), who teaches military ethics at the National War College, is recruited by the CIA to turn one of his Russian students into an asset. On the inter-office politics front, Elizabeth must contend with the new National Security advisor, with whom she has a frosty history. As the season unfolds, tensions with Russia (timely!) and the Middle East (timeless) take the world to the brink of war. The seriousness of the issues makes some of the comic relief (Elizabeth may be forced to perform in a talent show at an important Pacific Rim Economic Forum) tonal missteps. But Madam Secretary offers some much-needed escapism in the form of a show about a functional, as opposed to dysfunctional, government. Presenting all 23 episodes from the 2015-16 second season, extras include cast and crew interviews, a behind-the-scenes featurette, an Oval Office tour, and deleted scenes. Recommended. (D. Liebenson)
Madam Secretary: Season 2
Paramount, 6 discs, 995 min., not rated, DVD: $42.99 Volume 32, Issue 2
Madam Secretary: Season 2
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