Eager fans await third season of ‘House of Cards’

House of Cards returns to Netflix Feb. 27 for its third season.

photo courtesy of Creative Commons

‘House of Cards’ returns to Netflix Feb. 27 for its third season.

Politics and corruption are just two of the words that describe the events that unfold in the show House of Cards.

The third season of the Netflix exclusive show, House of Cards, premieres Feb. 27. The show revolves around Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey, American Beauty), a corrupt congressman who is determined to become the most powerful politician in all of the U.S. government. Fans of the show have become intrigued by all of the different plot twists that surround Underwood’s political career.

“The first season of House of Cards was invigorating and edging,” junior Austin Yang. “I thought that it had insane plot twists that constantly kept me on the edge of my seat.”

The show provides viewers with an interesting look inside the mind of a corrupt politician. One of the ways it achieves this is by having Underwood constantly break the fourth wall. Breaking the fourth wall is when a character in a movie or TV show talks directly to the camera giving the illusion that he or she is communicating with the audience. This allows the viewer to understand what is happening and gives Underwood a chance to express his opinion about what’s occurring in the show.

“Breaking the fourth wall really adds to the show,” Yang said. “You feel like Frank has total control during every episode and it gives you a sense of relief.”

Much like Breaking Bad, viewers are not sure whether to root for or against the main character of the show. Underwood does some terrible, inhumane deeds, in order to move up in the political hierarchy.

While politicians are corrupt, the show may exaggerate what politicians are willing to do to be successful.

According to junior Nick Hinsch, the show is accurate “to some extent, but politics is not as corrupt as the show.”

Many other characters add to the quality of the show. Frank Underwood’s wife, Claire (Robin Wright, Forrest Gump), is another power-hungry character whose goals sometimes tend to conflict with the goals of her husband, creating intense storylines. Zoe Barnes (Kate Mara, We Are Marshall), is an aspiring journalist who uses Underwood as an inside source for her newspaper. These characters become interesting as their careers begin to intertwine with Underwood’s career.

“My favorite character is Doug Stamper,” Yang said. “He does the most unexpected things in the first and second season no one saw coming.”

The show has become a huge success, showing that television streaming services, such as Netflix, may be becoming more popular than cable television. Shows such as Orange is the New Black and House of Cards give people a good reason to pay for streaming services.

According to a Jan. 2015 Forbes article, Netflix had 4.33 million new subscribers in the fourth quarter of 2014.

After waiting almost a year for the new season to begin, fans are eager to see what happens next. The first two seasons are available on Netflix, so be sure to clear some time to binge watch before season three begins.