Line #34 Awesome/HouseOfCardsUS


1	'''Moments pages are Administrivia/SpoilersOff. Administrivia/YouHaveBeenWarned.'''
2	----
3	!Season One
4	* Frank Underwood playing XanatosSpeedChess with Marty Spinella and the Teachers' Union.
5	** Though Marty got one when he actually beat Frank in a debate.
6	** And then Frank turns it right back around by threatening and badgering and insulting Marty until he punched Frank in the face - which was exactly what Frank hoped for. For extra awesome, Marty knows what Frank's trying to do the whole time... and still ends up taking the bait.
7
8	!Season Two
9	* Frank abstains from addressing the viewer throughout the entire first episode, just long enough for the viewer to suspect that Frank's {{Aside Comment}}s isn't a trait of the show any more. Yet at the very end of the episode, he suddenly looks toward the camera and delivers the following monologue, which smacks of {{Magnificent Bastard}}ry and the most overt FourthWallBreaking so far:
10	-->"[[LampshadeHanging Did you think I'd forgotten you?]] Perhaps you hoped I ''had''.... Don't waste a breath mourning Miss Barnes. Every kitten grows up to be a cat. They seem so ''harmless'' at first -- small, quiet, ''lapping'' up their saucer of milk. But once their claws get long enough, they draw blood. Sometimes from the hand that feeds them. For those of us climbing to the top of the food chain there can be ''no'' mercy. There is but one rule: ''Hunt''...or be hunted." ''(Smirks)'' "Welcome back."
11	* When the Republicans attempt to filibuster a bill Frank is determined to push through, he walks into Congress, sits down at the front of the room, and passes a motion to force the Republicans who have fled the room to avoid voting on the bill to attend, by arrest if needed. A few scenes later, cut to six Republican congressmen and women being dragged and carried into the room in handcuffs.
12	-->"It's good to be back in Congress."
13	* Claire outing her rapist on live television. Not only does she get revenge on her assailant, but she successfully steers the attention away from what could have been a politically damning abortion.
14	* In the closing scene of Season 2, Frank enters '''his''' Oval Office, disdainfully shoves Walker's rolling chair out of the way, lays his hands on the resolute desk, and does his customary knock on wood. His expression says it all.
15
16	!Season Three
17	* Frank's speech introducing America Works to the public, managing to make the total dismantlement of the country's monetary entitlements sound like exactly what everyone needs.
18	* Frank making it clear that he will let '''no-one''' threaten Claire when one of his rivals threatens to release the reason of her abortion to the public.
19	-->'''Frank:''' She can go after me all she wants, but she goes after Claire, I'll slit her fucking throat in broad daylight.
20	* Any time in Series 3 that someone rebels against Petrov. The three protestors who blag their way into the meeting, the homosexuals on hunger strike, and finally Claire's ''epic'' speech to Petrov after the American citizen imprisoned for gay rights campaigning kills himself.[[note]]YMMV on the last one--see the "Alternative Character Interpretation" entry.[[/note]]
21	** Even better once you take into account that Petrov is (pretty obviously) an {{Expy}} of Vladimir Putin. This stuff actually happens in Russia -- Pussy Riot even appear [[AsHimself as themselves]] in episode 3.
22	** Also, Claire's response when Frank tries to chastise her for the aforementioned speech to the Russian president.
23	---> '''Frank''': I should've never made you ambassador.\
24	'''Claire''': I should've never made you president.
25	* The sequence where Frank declares to Tom his intention to run for reelection after all. It's perhaps the big HopeSpot of Season 3, as it really feels like Frank's "back"--down to his snarky AsideComment.
26	* Claire finally standing up to Frank after Frank chews her out.
27	-->'''Claire''': I'm not going to New Hampshire. I'm leaving you.
28	* Dunbar sees right through Frank's deception and announces herself as his rival for the primary election.
29	* Jackie and Remy [[MistreatmentInducedBetrayal have finally had it]] with Frank and [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere turn on him]].
30	* Frank's response to Dunbar's threat of revealing the truth about Claire's abortion after Doug defuses it.
31	--> '''Frank''': I have only one thing to say: Go fuck yourself. ''(Hangs up)'' Christ, that felt good.
32	* Bob Birch works with Senators Mendoza and Mitchell (both from opposite sides of the political spectrum) to oppose Frank's blatantly illegal scheme to fund America Works. They then manage to trap him with an awesome HoistByHisOwnPetard moment. Hell, despite Frank calling Birch a coward, the guy does a pretty good job of standing up to Frank for most of the season.
33	--> '''Birch''': We were ready to impeach one president; we'll do the same with you, if necessary.
34
35	!Season Four
36	* Tom Hammerschmidt single-handedly doing what no one else could: expose Frank Underwood's crimes. Then, when confronted by Underwood at the White House, seeing right through his charms and calling him a liar to his face.
37	** It says something about Hammerschmidt's efforts that this is the first crisis Underwood has faced that he cannot charm or manipulate or threaten into going his favor. The only strategy Frank has is to point out the lack of solid evidence in Hammerschmidt's article. And even then, as Hammerschmidt rebuffs, the corroboration of the Democratic Whip, Frank's former Chief of Staff, and a ''former President'' is going to make a lot of people take a closer look at Frank's affairs.
38	** Thanks to Tom Hammerschmidt, many of Frank's victims like Remy Denton, Jackie Sharp, and Garrett Walker get to go on the record about how he manipulated and used them. Double points for Walker since he seems to be getting a measure of redemption in the eyes of the public, so he won't be going down in history with UsefulNotes/RichardNixon.
39	* Frank getting Cathy Durant back on his side after she begins to sow chaos at the Democratic convention. He has no ability to cajole Durant back to his side, as Durant has completely lost trust in him. He has nothing he can offer her. He has no leverage with which to force her. He only has one weapon in his arsenal: his sincere promise to completely and utterly destroy her if she crosses him. And through sheer intimidation alone, he succeeds.
40	* Frank having the audacity to kill Claire's hopes for a Senate run by claiming ''in the State of the Union address'' that she endorsed the person she was hoping to replace. And then Claire hits back by going to one of Frank's random victims from Season 1 to leak a picture of his father at a Ku Klux Klan meeting, all to force him to make her his Vice President.
41	* Edward Meechum vs. a lone shooter. When Lucas Goodwin tries to assassinate Frank, Meechum moves to protect Underwood, getting hit and killed. However, in-between getting shot with the bullet that killed him and before he died from it, he shoots and kills Lucas.
42	* "You're a motherfucker... ''Mr. President''."
43	* The WhamShot at the end of the season when Claire turns to the camera once she's finally on the same level as Frank.
44	* Freddy finally giving Frank TheReasonYouSuckSpeech he's had coming for four seasons. It's quite something to see a person completely outside the politics game being able to lay into him like this with Frank helpless to threaten him with anything.
45
46	!Season Five
47	* Frank's first line to the camera near the end of the season premiere, after the reveal that he'd had the surviving terrorist in his custody the whole time, chastising us for being surprised at what he's capable of at this point. "And I thought you knew me."
48	* Jim Miller's wife and daughter see right through Underwood's exploiting his death to distract people from the Hammerschmidt article, and have no problem telling him off. The daughter even whispers to him ''at the funeral'' that she hopes he dies so Claire can be president.
49	* Despite everything Frank does to undermine him, it turns out Conway ended up winning on Election Day, stunning Frank and Claire with how his turnout was so much greater than expected. If not for Frank faking a major terrorist threat to throw things off, Conway would have won cleanly and become President after all. So much for a man Frank dismissed as a pretender.
50	* Realizing Donald Blythe is holding off on a key vote, Claire gives him a TheReasonYouSuckSpeech she's obviously been building up over the last few years.
51	-->'''Claire''': You're a fool, Donald. You always were. You and your dumb, dead wife that you never, ever shut up about. Principled? Idealistic? A champion for the people? What did you ever actually do? Nothing. The great crusader? I don't think so. You just liked the position of the bumbling idiot that you are. The optimist. The idealist. You loved it so much that you couldn't even make a deal or move a single thing forward. You have a legacy of nothing.
52	** Points to Blythe for his fantastic comeback:
53	--->'''Donald''': You know what I just realized about your initials? They're missing [[CountryMatters an N and a T]].
54	* Underwood can't help but lay it on thick when Conway is finally forced to concede, and then offers him transportation secretary just to cause Conway to snap.
55	* Looking for Frank, Claire searches up and down the hallway and starts speaking. It soon becomes clear that she's finally talking right to us.
56	-->'''Claire''': Just to be clear, it's not that I haven't always known you were there. It's that I have mixed feelings about you. I question your intentions. And, I'm ambivalent about attention. But don't take it personally. It's how I feel about most everybody. (''walks out like nothing happened'')
57	* The final scene: Now President, Claire is in the Oval Office as the White House has a lockdown over a protestor shot. Frank is calling Claire, waiting for her to tell him about the pardon she'll be giving him. Claire looks down at the phone...then looks right up at the camera to intone "My turn."
58
59	!Season Six
60	* Claire beautifully explaining how she crafted the "crazy crying" face shown on the news and that her "breakdown" is all part of a carefully crafted plan.
61	** And the reason for the breakdown? To trick the cabinet into trying to invoke the 25th Amendment which gives Claire the excuse to fire them all.
62	* Annette shows up to try and blackmail Claire with a story of Claire getting an abortion at 16. Claire just says to go ahead and run it. She then shows Annette her new ''all female'' Cabinet, meaning whatever points Claire loses with female voters over an abortion will be made up by this.
63	-->'''Claire''': I just wanted to see your face.

Context Awesome / HouseOfCardsUS