House of Cards season 3 is good. It’s an entertaining and enjoyable season of television. And it’s one that, more than a month after its release, I have not finished watching. Nor am I about to. House of Cards season 3 is a very different beast than its predecessors. Unlike the first two seasons, it does not reward binging. It is slow and steady, very measured in its pacing. And, while it’s still a good season, it isn’t as good as the first two. And it’s acutely obvious.

House of Cards Season 3 Review: The West Wing Meets The West Wing

The first two seasons of House of Cards were built around dirty intrigue. That’s what made the show compelling. The show has always been about politics and manipulation, and it is at its best when Frank Underwood is manipulating on both a high and low level at the same time. Getting Peter Russo to lapse into alcoholism again—dastardly and low. Getting the vice president to run for governor to take his place—masterful political persuasion. The two go well together. Underwood is a player in politics and in the criminal underworld at the same time.

That’s why House of Cards season 2 started so strong: Frank killing Zoe with his own hands told us a lot about the new season, about Underwood, about the lengths he would go to in order to get what he wanted, and to protect himself. But by the end of season 2, he got what he wanted, and there weren’t any threats on the table. That remains the case in House of Cards season 3, and that’s the season’s big flaw.

House of Cards season 3 is not without conflict or plot. But those plots, at least through the first half of the season, are almost entirely on the political level. How will Frank pass America Works? How will he derail his opponents in the 2016 election? House of Cards is fun when Underwood and his cronies are operating outside of the law, not when he’s just a particularly sneaky politician. House of Cards season 3 is just West Wing with more shadowy corners. The Scandal—sorry, the scandal—has gone entirely out of it. It’s no fun anymore.

I’m still watching House of Cards season 3. I’m told there’s more intrigue at the end, that it returns to form to some degree. But man, the first half of the season is slow. I don’t care about America Works. You can’t set up a show about a president who kills people to get his way and keeps his secrets, and then not have that president kill anyone. Even if the show picks up at the end of the season, House of Cards season 3 misses the mark. There’s too much drama, not enough violence and discord.

But I’ll still keep watching it. Just not in any big hurry.

Read More:

House Of Cards Season 3 Episodes: Honestly, You Don't Have To Binge This Time

House of Cards Season 3 Spoilers Spread By Official U.S. Government Twitter Account

House of Cards Season 4 News: Why Season 3 (Probably) Isn’t The Last Season