The Politican Review: Ben Platt Saves Ryan Murphy’s Messy Netflix Debut

After helping usher viewers into the era of “Peak TV” with shows like Nip/Tuck, Glee, and American Horror Story, creator Ryan Murphy is finally bringing his stories to the world of streaming, having signed a massive $300 million deal with Netflix just last year. His current shows will continue on FX, but Murphy’s era as one of Netflix’s most prized minds begins this week with the release of The Politician, his first show on the streaming service. With the training wheels of cable TV fully removed, this is the chance for Murphy to do quite literally whatever he wants with a TV series.

The Politician is exciting at times, but awfully messy. It’s filled with great actors cranking their camp and hysterics all the way up to 11 to deliver wonderful performances, but the series never actually does too much with them. About half of the episodes have something solid to say while the other half try to argue the opposite. It’s equal parts endearing and off-putting, with a heavy dose of chaos sprinkled on top. The Politician is the most Ryan Murphy show of Ryan Murphy’s career.

The Politician tells the story of high school senior Payton Hobart (Ben Platt) who has been driven by one singular goal throughout his entire life: to one day become the President of the United States. Payton has obsessively calculated every move it will take to make it to the Oval Office, based on the successes and failures of presidents past. The key for him at the moment is becoming the president of his school’s senior class and using that as a launching point to get him into Harvard. Things prove to be more difficult than Payton may have expected and the race turns into an all-out political war, bringing the ugliness of D.C.’s inner-workings to a rich and snobby high school.

Everything about The Politician, especially in the first half of the season, is so incredibly over the top, on par with Glee and Scream Queens. But this series lacks the vision of those two earlier entries to Murphy’s catalog. Well, the first season of Scream Queens, at least. The second season of the canceled Fox series is a much bigger mess, which lines up well with what’s going on here in The Politician.

Payton is so driven that he will stop at quite literally nothing until he gets what he wants and wins the election. It doesn’t matter who he harms or how unhappy it makes him, as long as it won’t ever come back to bite him and create a scandal. This keeps him from feeling anything emotionally and it seems like that sentiment is the crux of the entire series, right up until it isn’t. The unfolding of Payton’s story is interesting at times, but it jumps back and forth between being personal and totally unrelatable, creating a confounding narrative that you often want to give up on. These jarring shifts also extend to the tone of the series itself. Going from scenes dealing with teen suicide immediately to light-hearted political camp, which just doesn’t work. At all. It honestly feels a bit reckless for someone like Murphy, who has built a career on telling stories about sensitive topics that no one else is willing to address. The “real issues” of the show are consistently tied to Payton’s personal journey but they never really amount to much of anything.

That said, Platt is absolutely fantastic in his portrayal of Payton, even if he doesn’t always have the best material to work with. This show would’ve failed quite miserably in the hands of a lesser performer. It’s Platt’s earnest nature and devastating inner turmoil that keeps you wanting to follow Payton’s story through every flat twist and not-so-surprising turn. He also gets plenty of chances to show off his singing voice, which is nothing short of phenomenal. Platt performs Billy Joel’s “Vienna Waits for You” in the finale and it’s worth watching all eight episodes just to get to that moment, which is far and away the best scene of the series.

Like most other Murphy vehicles, the entire cast is incredibly delightful. Zoey Deutch and Jessica Lange shine brighter than ever as cancer-ridden student Infinity Jackson and her deceitful grandmother. Their subplot is oftentimes more interesting than the actual election. We also get to see some fresh faces in stellar turns (another Murphy trademark), like Laura Dreyfuss, Rahne Jones, Theo Germaine, and Julia Schlaepfer.

As strangely bland as The Politician can be at times throughout its eight episodes, the finale is nearly guaranteed to make you want to see more, leaving you excited for what’s to come. The series shifts entirely in setting up its second season and introduces a new, better storyline with some intriguing character additions. Think of the finale as the pilot for the sequel series, which already looks more promising than its predecessor.

The Politician is completely and unapologetically Ryan Murphy, for better or for worse. If you thought Glee was too much and you still struggle to finish a season of American Horror Story, stay far away.

Rating: 3 out of 5

The Politician Season One premieres on Netflix on Friday, September 27th.