Madam Secretary - Season: 1

There’s a specific kind of comfort food in television: the smart, idealistic political drama. Think The West Wing in its prime. In 2014, CBS launched Madam Secretary , and while it initially seemed like a network clone of its prestige cable predecessors, by the end of its first season, it had carved out a distinct identity. It isn’t cynical. It isn’t nihilistic. It is, surprisingly, a show about in a world designed to blur lines.

Spoiler Warning: This post discusses major plot points and character arcs from the entirety of Season 1 of Madam Secretary . Madam Secretary - Season 1

(e.g., negotiating a hostage release in Iran, stopping a genocide in a fictional African nation, dealing with a Chinese cyberattack) is where the show shines. These episodes showcase Elizabeth’s unique tool: empathy . She doesn’t just threaten; she listens. She finds the personal angle. In one episode, she stops a war by bonding with a general over their shared love of poetry. There’s a specific kind of comfort food in