As the fifth season of House of Cards begins, we pick up just where we left off in the aftermath of the execution of James Miller, a young husband and father, by domestic terrorists (of sorts). His death was caused in no small part by Frank’s need for a political win, fueled by Kinnaman’s handsome, tech-savvy veteran’s gains in the polls. The new season moves breezily from the burial of the soldier to the election, which ends with a series of states not certifying their votes and therefore kicking the election to the House and Senate. The intricate and yet not so complicated governmental rules are laid out in an opening fourth-wall-breaking speech from Frank in “Chapter 57,” and Kevin Spacey gives the dialogue his reliably rhythmic, seductive theatrical touches in delivery and uses the space outside the Lincoln Memorial as a stage with masterful confidence. Frank speaks about a preposterous set of circumstances that would leave the nation in a state of emotional and societal disarray with utter control and not even a slight hint of nervosa.