Madam Secretary (CBS Sundays 8pm)

At first glimpse I thought this show would be a rehash of the 2005 Lady President show Commander In Chief, starring Geena Davis, but that wouldn’t be a bad thing.

Madam Secretary starts with ex CIA agent Elizabeth McCord (Tea Leoni), who whilst living in a rural part of the country, gets dropped on by her former boss, The President of The United States, asking her to be his Secretary of State after his current one is killed in a plane crash. McCord packs up her family and heads to DC where she is greeted with not so open arms, and has to deal with two teens stuck in Syria. Talk about a nightmare first day on the job!

Think Commander In Cheif meets Homeland, and you’ll start to get the overall vibe.

What can I say? I really liked this show, at least the parts dealing with McCord doing her job, the parts dealing with her family – not so much. We have so many of those “career woman juggling it all” kind of premises that it gets a bit boring. (See my thoughts on Mysteries of Laura).  Her kids are moody teenagers, one hates his school and the other misses her boyfriend, and her husband is the typical just there to complete the family unit kind of character – or at least that’s how it’s come across thus far. There’s nothing wrong with the glimpses of her family life, but we can get that many places – give us the action! More DC, and less family and this show could be a great companion for CBS’ other big drama The Good Wife.

As a norm pilots are a tricky thing to judge I think, and my overall stance is to give shows at least three full episodes to try and find it’s balance – unless they annoy the hell out of me, and I’m more than happy to give Madam Secretary that time. With Leoni’s feisty nature, and the scope for some great storylines – hello ripping from the Hilary Clinton headlines – I look forward to spending a  bit more time with this Madam.

My Prediction: I think this show will see a full season. A full term? That’s questionable. It’s premiere ratings weren’t too bad so let’s hope it can build some momentum by November Sweeps.

So come on guys, what did you all think?