The 1 Big Problem With That Shocking Death on House of Cards

Warning: spoilers about House of Cards season four, episode four follow:

We all should have seen it coming. Still, the demise of Edward Meechum on the fourth episode of House of Cards's fourth season is a huge bummer. Why? The secret service agent was not only just really damn likable, but he may have been the only character on the series completely absent of cynicism; the one person in the White House who seemed actually, deeply good. Think about it: has any other relatively central character on the Netflix show been so unwaveringly loyal? So endearingly innocent? So completely devoid of ulterior motives? Nope. That's exactly what makes Meechum's death — which comes as he takes a bullet meant for, and arguably pretty well deserved by, President Frank Underwood — so foreboding.

While the first three seasons of House of Cards told the story of a political power couple who worked together — even while admittedly manipulating each other — toward a shared end, season four of the show has completely blown that up. Meechum provided a kind of symbolic link between Frank and Claire Underwood, as illustrated by that sort of WTF threesome they had last season. Not only that, but his death is a big signal to viewers that the POTUS is completely and utterly alone. His protector is dead; his former partner in life (and sometimes actual, literal crime) is ready to destroy him if he doesn't give her what she wants. The show's writers could not have sent a stronger message that Frank Underwood is more vulnerable than ever.

My one gripe with the way the show handles Meechum's departure? Just how far the episodes leading up to his death go to show him as, well, kind of a total dummy. He is comically bewildered when Underwood tries to question him about his possible role in sabotaging his campaign, ridiculously dense while the two ponder a painting together (after mistaking the Confederate flag for the American flag, he offers up this intellectually stimulating bit of art criticism: "The colors are nice"), and is essentially reduced to a kindergartner when the president decides to trace his handprint on a wall in the White House with a marker. Even if the Underwoods themselves believe you have to be dumb to be decent, conflating Meechum's goodness with stupidity seems just a little bit too simplistic for the writers of such a nuanced series — not to mention unnecessary. He deserves better.

RIP, Edward Meechum (2013-2016).