As Thanksgiving arrives, a new crisis hits the team, with Selina left unable to fulfill her duties. Meanwhile, Dan takes on a new role, and Jonah receives exciting news.
Selina uses a Thanksgiving alone to get some discreet plastic surgery and canvas delegates via phone. Meanwhile, Dan starts a job working for Tom James, and Jonah is recruited by his Uncle Jeff Kane to run for Congress.
Tropes:
- Ask a Stupid Question...: Kent really plays himself by asking, “Do people not understand non-parametric statistics?”
- Badass in Distress: Selina having double black eyes from her oculoplasty surgery means she can't do any public service as a politician without risking humiliation, meaning she has to rely on others for a few days.
- Bait-and-Switch Comment: Doyle greets Ben on Thanksgiving with, “I’d invite you to the table, but my wife fucking hates you, as do I.”
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Ensemble Dark Horse: Engineered. The New Hampshire delegate Harry Sherman who supported O’Brien over Selina in the recount has suddenly died. This means that Selina's party can run one of their own to take his seat and vote for Selina instead. But this will mean essentially pulling a candidate from nowhere and making him win against the the dead man's widow. - Establishing Character Moment: Jeff Kane makes his introduction telling both Kent and Ben - pretty respected figures in the scheme of things - to fuck off with their ideas and listen to what he has to say.
- No-Respect Guy: Dan expects himself to be a privileged member of Tom James' staff, but finds himself being relegated to being his bagman. When he confronts James about why, he reveals it's because he knows about the nervous breakdown Dan had a few seasons ago and finds him unfit for a good spot.
- The Pawn: Jeff Kane outlines his plan to make Jonah this, serving as a placeholder for the New Hampshire seat in the House until his far more qualified cousin Ezra returns from his tour of duty.
- Jeff: We need some cannon fodder here, some spectacular dumbass willing to charge this machine gun nest, sacrifice his life and reputation, and then fuck off to let Ezra slide in.
- The Reveal:
- Tom James is secretly working with the unscrupulous big-business lobbyist Sidney Purcell after previously seeming to have a squeaky-clean image.
- It's revealed that Sue, who has been less present, got married last year and just didn't tell anyone from work.
- Running Gag: One of the congressmen Selina calls is Bill Jaegar, who's been seen as having an incessant prostitute problem. He mentions that family time at the holidays is pretty tense for him, and that you can get ahead of just about anything if you tell people yourself. In a final scene, he's seen hitting on a Navy servicewoman.
- Shout-Out: Jonah mentions Simon & Garfunkel and seems to be under the impression that Simon was the less cool of the two.
- He also mentions the Ice Bucket Challenge.
- Throw the Dog a Bone: In an uncharacteristically intelligent move, Selina ends the episode by going to the South China Sea to see the Navy and Marines for the rest of the Thanksgiving break because she can wear aviators that cover her eye bruises. This lets her work, do some positive press, and probably genuinely makes the servicemen's day better.
