The Diplomat Season 3 Episode 3 Recap: Is Hal Wyler Being Replaced As VP?

Episode Two of The Diplomat closes on an ambiguous note, as to whether Kate Wyler chose her career identity as the ambassador over her newly found potential tag as the Second Lady to Hal Wyler, or not. Episode Three, titled “The Riderless Horse,” opens with a busy day of Kate Wyler in DC receiving the Second Lady treatment. For a moment, you will think that maybe she caught the next flight, but that’s how successful this photo-op is. Kate has stuck to her decision of keeping her role as an ambassador at London while flying to DC for photo-ops and high-visibility events. The first among the many events that are to come is the funeral of Bill Rayburn and the gatherings around the vice president nomination. Kate and Hal have agreed on this functioning arrangement of visit-based Second Ladyship, but it sure is becoming an issue for quite a handful of people in the White House. On top of that, Hal is unmistakably being Hal. Let’s see how the third episode unfolds with Kate and Hal’s marriage at the center of it.

Spoilers Ahead

Well, Kate has donned a skirt suit and is wearing stilettos to the pre-gathering before Rayburn’s funeral. Despite her doing a bit about appropriating the role, there are questions; people are raising eyebrows at their decision to stay apart, and Kate’s rationales are falling short. Kate is also experiencing a severe deprioritization, mainly by the new Chief of Staff, Nora. She is unable to have her own meetings at the Blaire House, which Nora declared is for hospitality, and she is barely able to put two words in while Nora and Hal are apparently newly bonding to their new dynamic. This infuriates Kate who tries cutting in the way of the President, telling her that Hal may be needing some pinching above his elbow so that he does not blabber out of line, but the President merely considers it wifely, diminutive advice. (This does not turn out well in the end; watch out for it!)

Hal and Kate’s marriage becomes the epicenter of this episode. The two seem to have a strange dynamic that outlasts a lot of hits; Kate is trying to implement a private divorce, public marriage approach, which is upsetting Hal since he keeps slipping back into old marital habits and putting in the effort to bridge gaps. He is also significantly upset at the possibility that Kate may be intimate with other men, and as a compound result of all that he starts disagreeing with Kate at any given occurrence. 

Eidra Park back at London is considerably losing her head about getting fired, and Stewart comes up with the idea that Kate can have a word with CIA Director Diane Clack and put in a good word. Kate fixes a meeting with Diane but ends up missing it, and I will explain why. Meanwhile, it comes to Kate’s notice that a certain Bob Synar, the governor of Pennsylvania, is also being vetted for VP. In a public gathering, Hal washes the governor with criticism about his incapability in a conversation with the president, which exposes his inefficiency but also highlights the fact that Hal Wyler cannot and would not keep his mouth shut. This is exactly what Kate was trying to tell Grace, which she brushed off as wifely advice. The episode wraps up with two vital meetings, one between Grace and Kate, and the other follows suit as Grace offers Hal to ride with him to discuss strategy. But what caused all of this? Let’s take a look!

Hal is an enigmatic foreign policy wonder whose charisma lies in his recklessness, his tipping just a foot across the line, and generally being unbearable to people. While this almost boyish charm wins him great deals and makes him an exceptional negotiator, a bureaucratic role requires a little more restraint than this. Hal is someone who cannot be streamlined which drives Kate crazy, but from what it looks like, it has also become the glue holding the marriage together. Kate knows that Hal is incorrigible but will get the work done, or perhaps a miracle done, but Grace does not know that. Hal’s extreme measures raise suspicion in Grace and Nora’s eyes, and Bob Synar is brought into the picture to be vetted for the VP. While we have seen Hal standing up for Kate and supporting her from the sidelines, this time we see Kate doing this exact bit. Kate is the one to reveal this news to Hal, which sets him back temporarily; she also approaches Billie Appiah, asking the right questions. Bille seems to have been a little disempowered after Nora’s arrival, and she comments that Kate was her choice for VP, and not Hal. However, Kate’s now decided that Hal should have the position.In a conversation, or rather a confrontation between the two, Hal reveals that he is three votes away from having consensus to pass the Law of the Sea treaty, which five presidents before have failed to establish. While the candlelight dinners and the intimate conversations could not hold this marriage together, this political glue does just that. Kate jumps to her feet in excitement and starts rerouting Hal to a streamlined path to walk towards his vice presidential seat. Hal follows it until he does not and publicly chides Governor Bob Synar for his deeds; surely Hal knows better. That is the point with Hal; he does know better, but his communication skills need brushing up! Or does it? I sometimes think that his recklessness is measured, strategic, and intentional—just the right amount of spice to tune up the zing of the dish.

This also brings me to answer the question of why Kate absolutely forgot about her appointment with Diane Clack. While we discussed Hal’s issue till now, let’s talk about Kate’s. Kate’s composure about her own identity often becomes splotchy; the moment she sees an opportunity to be on something of merit with Hal, she forgets and forgoes some of the important stuff, like meeting Diane. After hearing about the Law of the Sea treaty, she completely swoons over this and starts planning things with Hal and misses the appointment, earning flak from the CIA director for practicing girl-to-girl misogyny! (This coinage will stick with me.) While she tries to put in a word afterwards, her kids back at home (I am talking about Stewart and Eidra here) must surely be feeling abandoned by this. Nonetheless, I can understand that this is the form of second-ladyship that interests Kate. She wants to have a stake in “making” Hal Wyler. Hal Wyler considering her to be the intellectually superior one in the marriage probably holds a lot of value to her. 

While I discuss Hal and Kate and their silly little marital fights driving a big political decision, it is also extremely important to assess the other side. Grace Penn was not ready to become president; now that she has, she requires one thing: stability. Things are chaotic around her as it is; she cannot possibly be dealing with Hal Wyler’s tantrums while running a grossly unstable situation at the White House. Grace Penn is trying to play safe. She has picked up all the old agendas of Rayburn and also declares that it is Rayburn’s presidency; she is merely a footsoldier running it. This approach, Hal thinks (and I do too), needs to change. The new government cannot be a tribute to the old one. Grace is understandably a little lost and confused, but it is Kate’s turn to intervene and advocate for Hal just as he was doing it for her all the while. In the end, nobody knows Hal Wyler better than Kate, and President Penn summons Kate for a conversation to know whether Hal Wyler is trainable to a digestible version for the new role. Kate’s advice, which she brushed off in the beginning of the episode, gains political value after things go wrong. I would like to remind you that Kate did foresee this and tried to warn the President. However, Kate drops the Law of the Sea treaty detail, which wins the President over. Temporarily, it seems like Hal is back in the game of being the biggest contender for the vice president role. 

Billie and Hal were being absolutely morose together over a classic Coke-and-chips catch-up when Grace Penn walks in and offers Hal to ride with him. Kate has pulled the strings at the right places, restoring Hal back to his position. Now it seems like a marriage of equals! While everybody seems more or less happy by the end of this episode, let’s see what the upcoming episodes have in store for the adorable Wylers!