House of Cards Season 4 Episode 8: Will's Counterattack
James Foley
Director
David Fincher
Director
Kevin Spacey
Francis Underwood
Robin Wright
Claire Underwood
Michael Joseph Kelly
Doug Stamper
Kate Mara
Zoe Barnes
Kristen Connolly
Christina
Plot Summary:Will Conway is unwilling to be constantly controlled by Frank. He invites Thomas Yates to his home under his wife's name. At this point, Will and Hannah are no longer the loving couple in front of the public, but genuine politicians. In fact, they hope Thomas can publish that novel about the president before the election. Even with a pseudonym, readers can still identify the Underwoods as the prototypes. The content of the book is definitely not what Frank wants to see, and it can further lower his public image. To get Thomas to agree to publish, Hannah even leverages her connections at Vanity Fair magazine. But Thomas doesn't care about fame or fortune; after meeting with the Conways, he wants to talk to Claire. Frank meets with the vice presidential running mate recommended by his party, Ohio Senator and NRA member Dean Austin. Frank initially doesn't make things difficult for him, not requiring him to support Claire's gun control bill, just not to publicly oppose it. Bob and others don't want the NRA to know in advance that Dean is Frank's running mate, to prevent the association from pressuring Dean. But Frank and Claire want exactly that. The court approves the domestic surveillance application, and Aidan Macallan successfully obtains the NSA contract, becoming a provider of network data investigation and analysis for the NSA. While serving the NSA, Aidan secretly transfers the data Ryan needs via USB drive. The front page of the Telegraph publishes Kate's article, questioning the White House's close contact with congressmen who oppose gun control while simultaneously pushing for it. As soon as Dean sees this report, NRA representative Julia Maiman shows up. When a rift appears between Dean and the NRA, and under Frank's lobbying, Dean publicly supports gun control. Meanwhile, Claire uses the condition of being willing to let the gun control bill die in the Senate to pressure Julia to make Dean successfully withdraw from the election. When party members recommend Secretary of State Catherine Durant as the next vice presidential candidate, Frank proposes that at the open party convention, Democratic delegates from each state vote to make Catherine the first vice presidential candidate elected by the party. He also promises to pave the way for Catherine with overwhelming advertisements. In this way, Frank lays the groundwork for Claire's candidacy. Will decides to let Kate get an exclusive interview with General Brockhart, making a big deal out of the Defense Secretary's resignation and his role as a Republican candidate's running mate, not only embarrassing the Frank administration but also building momentum for his own campaign. After exhausting all means, Will and Hannah once again feign a celebrity couple image, showing public affection and receiving cheers from supporters. This move by Will indeed hits Frank's weak spot, catching him off guard. Doug blames all responsibility on LeAnn because her opposition to fighting the Caliphate led to today's unfavorable situation. To get LeAnn out of the White House, Doug orders Seth, who is accustomed to digging up scandals, to investigate LeAnn's past experiences. Tom Hammerschmidt has been thinking about Lucas's will during this time and wants to find the truth. He retrieves all travel records from Meechum's entry into the Secret Service until Zoe's death, and from them, he sorts out the times and locations of Frank and Zoe's meetings.