Designated Survivor Review: Capacity (Season 2 Episode 19)
Between Ethan West’s investigation into Kirkman and the continued investigation into Andrea Frost, Designated Survivor Season 2 Episode 19, “Capacity,” is an intense hour of television.
It’s a nonstop hour of television, and it’s a pretty darn good one at that.
Ethan’s investigation highlights not only how skilled he is at his job, but how skilled Kendra is as well. She never once appears to be outmatched.
It’s fascinating watching her and Ethan take turns questioning the witnesses. Neither one of them ever needs to take a break or regroup after the tables get turned unexpectedly.
They are both ready to do battle, and it’s amazing to watch. They make the investigation exciting.
If there’s one thing “Capacity” proves is that Kirkman and Hannah are way too close to the hacker investigation. They both make shocking lapses in judgment.
Ethan: I did not co-conspire. I did nothing wrong. I just merely received a tip.
Hannah: A tip?
Ethan: A tip. You know what a tip is, don’t you? It’s the part of the iceberg that the White House is about slam into.
Kirkman could have really botched this entire investigation all because of his friendship with Andrea. He had enough sense to know that there is a chance that he’s too close to Andrea, but then he makes a terrible decision and decides to bring in an outside perspective — Dax’s.
The President of the United States discusses a suspect in a federal investigation with an outsider. Wow.
Kirkman doesn’t come right out and say there’s suspicion about Andrea, but he definitely doesn’t make it difficult to deduce. Can you imagine if Dax shared this suspicion with anyone?
Then, there’s Hannah going guns blazing on the “Andrea is the hacker” train despite Aaron and Chuck warning her to slow down and gather proof.
Aaron sticking up for Hannah and reminding Kirkman of her insight and skill in the past is a good reminder that there’s a chance that Hannah is right about Andrea, even though she’s lacking concrete proof currently.
However, Aaron vouching for her doesn’t excuse her confrontation with Andrea.
There was hope that Hannah somehow had a secret agenda in going to see Andrea, but it looks like that’s not the case at all. An FBI agent simply let her emotions get the better of her and told someone that they were suspected of being a hacker.
If Andrea is the hacker, well now she knows that the FBI is on to her. Great job, Hannah.
You want to sit there and appreciate the fact that Kirkman and Hannah are only human, but it’s frustrating to see them botch things up so badly. You’d like to hope that FBI agents and the President of the United States are able to focus on the job at hand, leaving their emotions out of it.
Kirkman and Hannah both come off poorly as a result of their emotionally driven actions. While Kirkman is at least able to redeem himself through his speech to the senators and his speech on the stand, there’s no redemption for Hannah. She ends on a low note.
It’s hard to tell if Kirkman does the right thing by firing her. Aaron definitely makes the right call when he removes her from the investigation, and maybe that should have been enough.
There’s this lingering suspicion that maybe Kirkman fires Hannah partially because she attacked his friend, someone Kirkman is loyal to, and someone he believes is loyal to him. Do you think Kirkman made the right call in firing Hannah?
It could be because of my undying love for Maggie Q, but I don’t think Kirkman makes the right call. I’m expecting Hannah to prove herself and her theory that Andrea is the hacker.
Lastly, we have to talk about Emily and Aaron!
It feels like forever ago that these two were in a room alone together talking about something other than work. Seriously, we’ve been waiting for eons for them to have a conversation!
Emily: Do you ever think about us?
Aaron: How do you mean?
Emily: Well we had that kiss last year, once, and it was, you know, it wasn’t bad as far as kisses go.
Aaron: It was definitely serviceable.
Emily: You ever wonder what would have happened if there were a sequel?
Aaron: I did, but I decided long ago not to pursue it.
Emily: Why?
Aaron: Because then you wouldn’t be here, in my office, a year later exchanging stories about how we’re the two lowest-rent crooks in the history of the White House.
The timing of it all is definitely curious.
Okay, talking about what they are going to steal from the White House is fitting considering there’s a chance that Kirkman is about to be ousted, but Emily bringing up the kiss is interesting.
It could be that she’s simply reflecting on what could have been during her time at the White House. Maybe she’s thinking about where everyone will stand, relationship-wise, if they all no longer work at the same place. What are your thoughts on this?
What did you think of this episode of Designated Survivor? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Designated Survivor airs Wednesdays at 10/9c on ABC.
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Allison Nichols
Allison is in a love affair with television that doesn't seem to be letting up anytime soon. Slightly damaged fictional characters are her weakness. She loves to spend her free time curled up with a cat and a show to binge-watch. Allison is a Tomatometer-approved critic (Rotten Tomatoes).
13 comments
It is funny how Kirkman was worried about his job because of his relationship with Andrea and was relieved when he was exonerated but did not have the same compassion for Hannah who was doing her job in trying to find the hacker. I too believe it is Andrea. If she does not return I may no longer watch. Kirkman makes me the of the biblical character in Matthew 18:21, so unforgiving.
Did anyone notice how they focussed on the Car in the Oval Office that Kirkman’s friend gave him? The hacks began after he got the car as a gift and I’m pretty sure his pal is the hacker and he planted a bug inside the car to gain the intel he needed. He was the one who wrote the anonymous letter that West recieved regarding Kirkman’s conversation with Frost. What are your thoughts??
Wow, that’s really, really interesting!
Yes! I think the author of this post totally missed what was really going on in this episode. Dax is the hacker and Kirkman didn’t really fire Hannah, it was a fake out to help uncover the truth. Remember how good Kirkman is at fakeouts!
Looks like you got it exactly right!
Can’t imagine the show not having Maggie Q on it. She has been at the center of so many major developments ever since the show started. I think her firing is a sham and that she will continue her investigation of Dr. Frost, who most likely is the hacker. The writers of the show may surprise us, but I would certainly be surprised if we don’t see Maggie Q back and Dr. Frost gone by the end of this season of “Designated Survivor.” Clearly there is a bug in that miniature black car!
Just before Hannah went and confronted Andrea there was a shot of her and a couple of empty beats, an aha moment? I think she went and stormed into the restaurant with a definite plan. Then she says ‘let me explain’ to Kirkman while he was firing her and he cuts her off. I really think there is more to this than Hannah having an emotional breakdown. I’d like to think Andrea is indeed the guilty party (‘cos that would vindicate Hannah, who is the greatest) but I agree there is something suspicious about the way Dax is called back into the story at this point for no otherwise apparent reason. Surely they (Dax and Andrea) couldn’t be in it together? Is that just too neat?
But Hannah… she simply can’t be gone. I won’t stand for it.
Very possible and I too began to speculate in my own mind if there was a connection between Dax and/or the model car and the leaks. The only thing that perhaps may push that line of thinking away is that Dax was so confident in Kirkman and the fact that he’d still be president upon completion of the inquest sort of makes the case that he really had no clue about what was going on at the moment. Honestly, I just hope Maggie Q isn’t going anywhere as I like her character very much.
Designated Survivor is a great production. I thank agent Hannah Wells is one of the finest people to work in that capacity. (Maggie Q) is outstanding. I was not happy that President Kirkman fired her and it is my hopes that she will return shortly, as she adds a great deal to this series. They are all doing a fine job and of course having special appearances with Michael Fox was great too. Love the show.
I think Agent Wells was fired to release her to pursue the investigation independent of the federal government. The car theory is fascinating. One I hadn’t considered, but it makes a lot of sense.
My theory: There is a bug in the miniature model car sitting in the Oval Office. President Kirkman thought this out, and brought in Agent Wells to “fire” her to throw off whoever is listening in to the Oval Office conversations, as well as to release her from the investigation so further pursuit doesn’t have to be tied back to the White House. “It’s a win/win situation!”
I too think the car is bugged. but it is too straightforward for Dax to be behind the hacking also. Perhaps the hacker is one of his partners?
I think firing Hannah is a ruse. Several times in this episode comments were made about limits of government employees and the like. Remember when Frost was brought into the courtroom Kirkman states to Kendra that she was a private citizen? I think he fired Hannah so she can peruse Frost without the bonds of government official. Maggie Q has signed in for Season 3 so she’s not going anywhere.
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