《紙牌屋3》 繁華終歸平淡時
The latest season of House of Cards opens with Frank Underwood on the verge of becoming a sitting duck president, his empire slipping through his fingers like sand. And that empire’s foundation – his marriage – appears to be falling to pieces as well.
最新一季的《紙牌屋》一開篇，弗蘭克•安德伍德就險些成了傀儡總統，他的權力帝國則如同指間沙般一點點脫離他的掌控。而作爲他根基的婚姻也岌岌可危、眼看就要毀於一旦。Frank, on several occasions in this new season, states that he isn’t good enough for his wife. And by all accounts, this is the plain truth. Where Frank operates like a brutal tyrant, Claire, though equally calculating, always enacts her devilish plans with class.
第三季中，弗蘭克多次表示自己配不上妻子。在坊間，這早就是不爭的事實。弗蘭克殘忍如暴君，雖然她的妻子克萊爾也精於算計，但她總能優雅地實現她的邪惡計劃。
But despite Claire being perhaps even more talented at manipulation than her husband, she’s always played second fiddle to him. When Frank needs someone to infiltrate the United Nations, he uses Claire. When he needs someone to charm a Russian leader, he trots out Claire. When he needs his confidence replenished – Claire.
在控制力方面，克萊爾甚至更勝丈夫一籌，但她卻總是屈居二線。當弗蘭克需要人打入聯合國內部時，他讓克萊爾上陣；當需要有人誘惑俄羅斯領導人時，他獻出了克萊爾；當他需要重拾信心的時候，還是克萊爾……
Like many real-life first ladies, it’s frustrating to watch Claire live in her husband’s shadow, and as has always been the case with the series, Claire’s turmoil is as entertaining as it is meaningful.
克萊爾就像現實生活中的總統夫人們一樣，生活在丈夫的光環之下，令人沮喪。而就像前幾季一樣，克萊爾的爆發既意味深長又富有娛樂性。Season three is far from perfect. Like a nasty cold passes from one person to the next, one of the series’ most exhausting subplots continues to be passed along season to season.
《紙牌屋》第三季遠非完美。其中，最無趣的副線就像重感冒一樣從上一季傳染到這一季。Doug Stamper isn’t that interesting a man, so it’s hard to understand why so much time is spent on him and his obsession with a long lost love interest. Who actually cares who Doug is in love with? His story’s constant reappearance is an indication that the show’s creators are possibly running short on creativity. Doug is a distraction from the show’s most interesting component – the crumbling relationship between the first lady and the president.
道格•斯坦普本就不是個討喜的角色，劇集卻將大量的時間浪費在他和他那曠日持久的失意愛情上，着實令人費解。誰會真正關心他喜歡誰呢？如此頻繁地講述他的故事也許只能說明編劇沒了創意。道格的故事線反而擾亂了劇中最有趣的總統與夫人間岌岌可危的感情線。This third season doesn’t reach the dramatic heights that the series’ opening does, but it far exceeds the blandness of season two. Is season three worth watching? Sure, if only because season four threatens to outdo them all.
《紙牌屋》第三季也許很難再達到該劇首播時的高度，但是較之平淡無味的第二季，還是要出色很多。那麼《紙牌屋3》是否值得一看？答案是肯定的，因爲第四季說不定會更出色。
