David Bianculli

Garfield's nominating speech, though, is so inspirational, the deadlocked convention eventually adds his name to the potential nominees.

On the 36th ballot, Garfield emerges as the Republican frontrunner, a fact that amuses Senator James Blaine, played by Bradley Whitford.

Bradley Whitford, from the original West Wing TV series, is featured at the moment in another Netflix political drama as the first gentleman on the new season of The Diplomat.

He has more to do as this four-part miniseries goes on, and so do many of the other supporting players.

Two in particular are worth spotlighting.

Nick Offerman, as Chester Alan Arthur, is cartoonish and bullying when it's called for, and sensitive when that's called for.

And he's perfect in every scene.

And Betty Gilpin, as Garfield's wife Lucretia, he calls her Crete, is perfect too.

You might wonder why Gilpin, after starring in American Primeval and Glow, is playing such a relatively small role, even one that's so dignified and independent.

But her scenes with Shannon as Garfield are lovely, as in this rare moment alone, sitting on their porch after he's returned with his party's presidential nomination.

But on another point in Death by Lightning, Gilpin's character explodes into a whole new gear, altering the course of history along the way.

It's a moment that makes it clear why Gilpin took the role.

The series is created by Mike Makowski, based on the book Destiny of the Republic by Candice Millard.

Among its executive producers are David Benioff and D.B.

Weiss, who brought The Game of Thrones and Three-Body Problem to television.

And now they've all brought to TV a dated history lesson that seems not at all dated today.

Death by Lightning is full of recognizable arrogance—political, social, medical—and also contains recognizable strains of both optimism and hopelessness.

Those, by the way, all were central themes in the musical Assassins, which included the actual song Charles Gouteau composed to sing on the gallows just before his execution.

The song is performed in part in Death by Lightning, but I'll close with the Broadway version, sung by Dennis O'Hare as Gouteau.

Assassins is an outstanding musical, just as Death by Lightning is outstanding television.