🤐 SPOILER ALERT 🤐 

There’s the thrill of working in crisis politics and there’s the excitement of being able to share a career with your spouse. But mix the two together and it’s a complex web of secrets and suspicions, especially in the midst of a global crisis that could spell war. 

From creator Debora Cahn (The West Wing, Homeland) comes a thrilling eight-part political drama, The Diplomat. It follows Kate Wyler (Keri Russell, who also serves as executive producer) and her husband, Hal (Rufus Sewell), who are both successful US diplomats known for their ability to thrive in high-tension situations. When Kate is lifted out of her comfort zone and placed in the ceremonial world of British politics, their personal and professional lives intertwine in the most unexpected ways.

“The people these characters represent just run so much of the world,” Russell told Netflix, likening the series to 1987’s Broadcast News and 1998’s Primary Colors. “So many of our lives are affected by these decisions and by these people, and I just think it’s endlessly fascinating to know who those people are.”

Here, we look back at what happened in the series premiere. 

Who are Kate and Hal Wyler?

The Wylers are a married couple. They’re both ambassadors, and they have distinctly opposite approaches to their careers. Hal is a longtime political star with a knack for using charm to win others over, while Kate tends to take a slow and steady approach, sniffing things out before diving in. (And there’s a lot of sniffing, from Kate doing a smell test on clothes for dry cleaning to the Wylers’ most intimate scene — Hal taking a whiff of Kate’s stinky armpits.) 

Though Hal is the star, Kate has made a name for herself too. She thrives in danger zones, having been the number two in Beirut and Islamabad. 

Why is Kate sent to the United Kingdom instead of Kabul?

While Kate is packing to go to Kabul for her latest post, the Wylers learn that an explosion aboard a British aircraft carrier, the HMS Courageous, has killed at least 25 Royal Navy personnel — and she’s called into the White House for a briefing. But it isn’t what she expects. 

The Americans need a British ambassador — and fast — to show sympathy for the incident, and President Rayburn (Michael McKean) reassigns Kate to the job. But serving in the UK, with all the “ceremonial” aspects, is nothing like Afghanistan, which she finds more substantive — Hal is so much better suited for the British job. The problem is, Hal once called the secretary of state a war criminal, and President Rayburn can’t send him anywhere else again. 

Kate begrudgingly takes the UK position, immediately hopping on a plane with Hal by her side, complaining that the frilliness of this role makes her an “emotional support dog.” But Hal reminds her that the president is sending her to prevent a war and “not butter a crumpet.”

But what’s the real reason Kate is chosen for the position?

Before Kate touches down across the pond, the White House chief of staff, Billie Appiah (Nana Mensah), calls Kate’s deputy chief of mission at the US Embassy in London, Stuart Hayford (Ato Essandoh), and lets him in on a secret tidbit only five people already know. A scandal is about to come out involving the vice president, and she’ll resign within six months, so Billie needs Stuart to suss out if Kate has what it takes to step into the nation’s second highest post. Kate, meanwhile, has no clue that she’s being eyed for veep.

What’s the state of the Wylers’ relationship? 

Kate and Hal move into the grandiose Winfield House, which was bought by Barbara Hutton before she married Cary Grant. Residence manager Frances Munning (Penny Downie) notes to Stuart that Kate checked if there were sheets on the bed in the Adams guest suite — this hints that the couple may not sleep in the same bed anymore. 

Despite Hal repeatedly telling people not to call him ambassador anymore since “one ambassador’s plenty” — and referring to himself as “the ambassador’s wife” — there’s a clear competitive tension in the Wylers’ interactions. Kate draws boundaries, cutting Hal off from attending briefings and putting her foot down about handling things her way. Hal heads off the property, only to find he has no access to a car, so he schemes his way into getting a ride in a cop car.

What’s the “Cinderella Thing” the episode name refers to?

Kate balks at all the frivolous details on her agenda, which include tea-length dresses, carriages and an interview with a fashion magazine. Hal tells her to lean into the “Cinderella thing,” to which she replies: “I’m not Cinderella. I’m here for 30 funerals — the only tea-length garment I packed is a burka.” 

What challenges does Kate face as UK ambassador?

Kate finds herself on a fast-tracked first day. As a silent listener on a call between the US president and UK Prime Minister Nicol Trowbridge (Rory Kinnear), she hears the president threaten to attack Iran for the naval explosion without proof. Then Kate is pulled aside by UK Foreign Secretary Austin Dennison (David Gyasi) before the US Secretary of State Miguel Ganon (Miguel Sandoval) has called him to address the incident, a breach of protocol. Dennison then takes Kate directly to meet the prime minister.

When she has a moment later with Stuart, she admits she thinks Hal was responsible for going behind Ganon’s back and making all those in-person introductions so quickly. Stuart sees Hal’s meddling firsthand at the Greenwich Naval Memorial wreath laying, where the ambassador’s husband is spotted talking to Tory operative Meg Roylin and trying to bring her to meet Kate. 

Stuart pulls Kate from the situation before any photos are taken, but they return to the office to find plenty of stories about “Ambassador Wyler” at the event — only to find they’re referring not to Kate, but to Hal — who posed for sympathetic photos in front of the wreath and was seen leaving in a police vehicle.

What else does Kate have to deal with?

Kate’s problems are greater than her husband’s constant interference. She tells Ganon that he has to reassure Trowbridge that the US won’t attack Iran. Although the attack was on the Brits, it was clearly a message to Rayburn. 

Ganon is resistant, but Kate reminds him the country has an “elderly president who just lost the House and a young VP who would like to prove she likes to blow things up.” In the end, Ganon promises to keep President Rayburn off the air for just one day.

How does Ganon feel about Kate as UK ambassador?  

Led by London station chief Eidra Parl (Ali Ahn), the CIA looks for clues of who’s behind the attack, and signs keep pointing to Iran. But Eidra also admits to Stuart that Ganon told her to “slow roll” Kate’s clearance — a sign he wants to get rid of her.

That’s when Stuart asks Billie if Ganon knows about the vice presidential plans for Kate — and of course the answer is no. So Stuart tells Kate to apologize to Ganon.

What does Kate do to alleviate all this tension?

At that point, Kate realizes what she has to do: “You know who you can’t fire? Cinderella.”

She dresses the part in a Brit-appropriate $1,600 dress (which she complains has no pockets) and agrees to the photo shoot and interview with British Vogue. While prepping, Hal tells Kate she’s going to be famous, but she says she doesn’t want that — Hal is so famous that nobody wants to work with him.

How does Episode 1 end?

In the midst of the classy shoot, Stuart latches on to Kate, who says that Hal will “be gone soon.” Realizing that means she and Hal are getting a divorce, Stuart panics, noting that being a diplomat is a “two-person job.” He confronts Hal, and Hal reveals that he not only knows about the vice presidency plans, but is secretly grooming Kate for the role (and promises they won’t ultimately divorce). 

The episode closes with the seemingly idyllic couple in a carriage. Hal is then seen chatting about clothing fittings with a young stylist and getting into the backseat of a car with her. She suddenly puts a needle to his neck and sedates him — as the car drives off away from the Cinderella scene. Not quite a fairy-tale ending…

The Diplomat Season 1 TrailerInternational affairs meet personal affairs. London's newest diplomat has arrived.

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