The sixth and final season of House of Cards arrives on Netflix on 2 November, bringing to an end an extraordinary political drama.
Derived from a 1989 novel by Conservative Party aide Michael Dobbs – a special advisor to Margaret Thatcher, who spun his experiences inside Westminster’s corridors of power into a trilogy of thrillers – House of Cards has become its own beast since its restaging in Washington, DC, by Beau Willimon, finding Shakespearean intrigue in the machinations of Democratic whip Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey).
As the show has progressed, with Underwood conniving his way to a Nixonian presidency, focus has increasingly turned towards the character of his wife Claire (Robin Wright), the First Lady Macbeth of the piece.
Following allegations of sexual harassment against Spacey in 2017, House of Cards looked in jeopardy but Netflix has pressed ahead without him, casting the spotlight on the Claire Underwood presidency for its eight-part concluding instalment.
After 65 hours of television, you’d be forgiven for having lost the thread, so here’s a reminder of the story so far.
Season 1
South Carolina Democratic congressman and House majority whip Frank Underwood has masterminded the election victory of Garret Walker (Michael Gill) on the understanding he will be appointed secretary of state as his reward.
When Walker reneges on the deal, saying he wants Underwood to enforce his agenda in Congress, Underwood graciously accepts but seethes in private, plotting revenge. He begins an affair with junior reporter Zoe Barnes (Kate Mara), leaking stories to her to embarrass and undermine the Walker administration.
Underwood also inveigles alcoholic Pennsylvania congressman Peter Russo (Corey Stoll) into his web of intrigue, compromising him with the aid of escort Rachel Posner (Rachel Brosnahan). When Russo threatens to come clean, Frank kills him, arranging the murder scene to look like a suicide.
He subsequently befriends tycoon Raymond Tusk (Gerald McRaney), an influential adviser to the president, and uses the partnership to oust and replace the vice-president.
Season 2
When Zoe becomes too close to the truth about the Russo murder, Frank meets her on a darkened subway platform and shoves her into the path of an oncoming train.
Her death does not deter fellow journalist Lucas Goodwin (Sebastian Arcelus) from continuing the hunt for Rachel, whom he believes holds the key to the mystery, seeking help from hacker Gavin Orsay (Jimmi Simpson).
Rachel has been concealed in a safe house by Doug Stamper (Michael Kelly), Frank’s trusted right-hand man, who has developed an unhealthy obsession with her. Gavin uses this fact to extort Doug, prompting tensions to escalate and Rachel to flee, leaving him for dead.
Frank and Claire – head of NGO the Clean Water Initiative – drive a wedge between President Walker and Tusk as a trade war with China erupts, using Chinese businessman Xander Feng (Terry Chen) for leverage and exploiting Claire’s discovery of the Walkers’ marital problems to engineer his impeachment.
Tusk ultimately delivers the fatal blow to his old friend after being secured a presidential pardon over his alliance with Feng and Frank takes the Oval Office.
Season 3
As president, Frank faces a tanking economy and a challenge from solicitor-general Heather Dunbar (Elizabeth Marvel) in the Democratic primaries.
Doug, kept at arm’s length by Underwood over the Rachel affair, continues to search for her with Gavin’s help, tracking her to New Mexico and finally killing her in the desert.
Claire becomes US Ambassador to the UN and crosses paths with Putin-esque Russian president Viktor Petrov (Lars Mikkelsen), facing diplomatic crises over military action in the Jordan Valley and the arrest of an American gay rights activist in Moscow.
When Petrov requests Claire’s resignation, she agrees but feels betrayed by Frank and, having fallen for biographer Tom Yates (Paul Sparks), announces her intention to leave him.
Season 4
Claire, thwarted in her hopes of running for Congress in her native Texas, leaks information to the Dunbar campaign but agrees to stop if Frank makes her his running mate.
Lucas, released from prison after being framed by Frank, attempts his assassination in revenge for Zoe’s murder, only injuring the president but killing bodyguard Edward Meecham (Nathan Darrow), Frank’s sometime lover, who in turn fatally wounds the assailant. Doug subsequently leaks evidence of a secret meeting between Lucas and Dunbar, ending her challenge for the Democratic nomination.
With Frank in recovery, editor Tom Hammerschmidt (Boris McGiver) picks up the investigation begun by the late Zoe and Lucas and appeals to embittered ex-president Walker for help in exposing Underwood’s crimes ahead of the election.
Meanwhile, a strong Republican nominee emerges, Governor Will Conway (Joel Kinnaman), as the radical Islamic Caliphate Organisation (ICO) kidnaps a family of American tourists, executing a hostage on live TV as Frank and Claire send in the military, declaring total war.
Season 5
President Underwood orchestrates a campaign of fear as the election nears, having Doug instigate a cyberattack to be blamed on ICO. The Underwood camp then stages a terror attack in the crucial swing state of Tennessee.
Frank then orders Ohio and Tennessee to close the polls early as a precaution against further terror, leaving the election undecided and the country in disarray after a nine-week stalemate, unsure of who is rightfully president.
To ease the situation, Claire steps up as acting president and calls a special election to decide the two states outstanding. As Conway cracks under the pressure, the Underwoods win out and Frank returns to the White House.
When Hammerschmidt’s article finally appears, the resulting scandal sees an impeachment motion drawn up. The Underwoods move to tie up loose ends – allowing Doug to take the fall for Zoe’s murder, pushing secretary of state Catherine Durrant (Jayne Atkinson) down the stairs before she can testify against them and having Yates poisoned.
Frank resigns in disgrace, fully expecting a pardon from Claire as she succeeds him to become the 47th president.
“My turn,” she says, turning to the camera.
