The captors of a kidnapped State Department employee demanded to talk to Madam Secretary on last Sunday's episode. Additionally, Henry had some problems recruiting Dmitri while Russia had a few problems of its own.
Meanwhile, Henry has problems recruiting Dmitri for the DIA. Dmitri informs his teacher he is going back to Russia to take care of his ill sister. He tells this to Jane Fellows, who suggests to recruit Ivan instead. However, Henry is still reluctant to use his closeted homosexuality against him and instead thinks he can still get Dmitri in. Henry offers Dmitri a clinical trial for his sister in exchange for him becoming a spy for the US. Dmitri gets mad about this and says he won't betray Russia.
Russia, in the meantime, has problems of its own. President Pavel Ostrov (who we met in episode 20 of last season, when he was hunting with Henry) has not been seen for a week, leading to speculation on his whereabouts. Jay already has to make a contingency plan with DoD in case things go sideways. It becomes even more suspicious when Russian Foreign Minister Anton Gorev will be attending an event honoring Russia's assistance during World War II. Elizabeth also goes to the event, but Gorev denies anything. Speculation is later laid to rest when Ostrov appears at a public event. However, at the end of the episode Gorev comes to Henry and Elizabeth. He asks them to keep an eye out on his daughter Olga if something were to happen to him. After both of them pressure him to tell more, Gorev reveals that the Kremlin will announce in an hour that Ostrov is dead. Gorev heads back to Russia, and Henry and Bess speculate if he could have had something to do with Ostrov's death. As Elizabeth calls Dalton, Henry goes to Dmitri to tell him about the Russian President's death. Dmitri is then convinced to spy on Russia for the US.
Family fun and other notes:
-Allison gets a talking stick for peer mediation, which is also used in the McCord mansion.
-Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright guest starred as herself. She gave Elizabeth advise on how to deal with Dalton and Sterling.
-Henry and Elizabeth had Stevie's hair investigated on drugs. They also believe she should tell Harrison's parents about his drug use. Stevie actually decided to listen to her parents for once, but ignored everyone's phone calls and texts the rest of the days. It turns out she took the LSAT, because she doesn't know what to do with her life.
-The investigation into the malware on Air Force One is still ongoing, but there is nothing conclusive yet.
What did you think of "The Doability Doctrine"? What are your thoughts on the case of the week? Were you surprised that things didn't go Elizabeth's way? How do you feel about the tension between her, Craig Sterling and the President? And how do you think things will change in Russia following President Ostrov's death? I would love to hear your thoughts and theories in the comments below.
The next episode airs this Sunday at 8/7c on CBS. Here is a promo of the episode:
