Via HBO.

Selina Meyer is now the fucking President. All hail to the chief!

Veep’s strongest season came to a close last night with a pair of back-to-back episodes that not only delivered on a purely comedic level, but changed the future of the show for good. For three seasons, the show has hinged on Selina’s desire to be President and, finally, she got her wish. Veep is no longer about the Veep, but the POTUS. I’m sure Armando Ianucci and crew will find a way to make her Veep again next season, but for now, let Selina have her moment in the sun, because, as season closer “New Hampshire” shows, it doesn’t look like it’s going to be a smooth Presidency.

While this season has been a little stagnate on plot, mostly focusing on a seemingly never-ending Presidential campaign for team Meyer, the writing has nonetheless been as sharp as ever, with dagger-like insults flying by at rapid pace. The season’s closing episodes may have taken a more dramatic approach, but it was nonetheless one of the funniest episodes, with the best one-liners coming from Jonah, of all people.

Finishing the season with Selina as President is a bold move and, while at first everyone is ecstatic, the finale ends on a kind of sour note, as if to suggest moving to the Oval Office isn’t going to be as great as her staff thought it would. Regardless, it was nice to see each character get their own special moments in the show, especially Ben, who is finally vindicated for being the smartest guy in the room, if not the crankiest. As such, let’s take a look at the power rankings for the season:

1. Selina

All hail President Meyer! It’s been three seasons coming, but Selina finally got her wish and, after POTUS decides to step down to spend more time with his wife, who recently tried to commit suicide. Of course, her first few days as POTUS don’t exactly go well. She accidentally fires a top Iran official, angering the country, and her Presidential address is plagued by squeaky shoes. Still, President!

2. Ben

Finally, Ben gets the recognition he deserves. After being sworn in as President, Selina tells Ben that she wants him as his Chief of Staff. He’s not excited at first (the position made me bulimic the last time he held it, he says), but he accepts. A well-deserved promotion as he’s often the smartest guy in the room (and definitely the crankiest).

3. Amy

Props to Amy for continuing to kill it as Campaign Manager. Even though Selina’s President, Amy still has her work cut out for her, to ensure that she gets reelected. We’ll see how that goes.

4. Kent

Kent has a big moment this week as he gets to tell Selina the big news. Lucky him, she decides to keep him around on her staff. The writers have done a great job keeping his relationship with Sue in the shadows, only giving hints as to what’s going on with them (in the form of other characters asking “what’s going on with them?). They had a particularly great moment in the finale when Sue objects to Kent moving his office right next to hers.

5. Dan

After having a nervous breakdown several episodes ago, Dan has made a nice comeback, accepting that Amy is the better Campaign Manager than him. We get to see some great Jonah bullying and manipulation on Dan’s part in the last two episodes. It’s good to have old Dan back.

6. Mike

For a brief moment, Mike was hoping Selina wouldn’t win so he and Wendy could buy a house somewhere and raise ducks. Sorry your dreams were crushed, Mike. Still, he has fun being the “first red-headed senior press secretary.”

7. Danny Chung

After Selina screws up her first few days as President, Maddox drops out and endorses Danny Chung, giving him to slight lead over Joe Thornhill and Selina in the polls. We didn’t see much of Chung this season, so I’m guessing he’ll be front and center next season, as Selina’s main foe.

8. Joe Thornhill

And then there’s Joe Thornhill, who’s winning the polls at the beginning of the two episode finale. Though he drops down a bit when Maddox drops out of the race and endorses Chung, Thornhill is still proving to be a, uh, thorn in Selina’s side.

9. Maddox

Maddox is now out of the race, but his endorsement of Danny Chung could mean trouble for Selina.

10. Gary

Poor Gary. That’s all I have to say about him.

11. Jonah

Well, our good friend Jonads is back in the White House again. He’s still a major tool, though.

Via HBO.

Quotes, Quips, and Stray Observations.

• Overall, this has been Veep’s strongest season thus far. The writers definitely took it up a notch and I’m excited to see how they can continue that next season.
• Jonah: “Buy a gun, mom, because America’s going to have to shoot its way out of this one.”
• Every scene featuring Jonah and his mom was basically the best thing I’ve seen on Veep all season.
• Ben: “What are you, David Copperdick?”
• Selina’s vitriol against Quincy Carter, The Endorser was particularly hilarious. I hope they bring him back next season.
• Selina: “I would love to fuck a firefighter. Hey, I’m the president now, I can fuck anyone I want, right?”
• Jonah: “I don’t have any friends in D.C., Mom. They all call me a dick behind my back. But like, right behind my back so I can hear them.
• Jonah: “Mom! You are so annoying! Why don’t you just punch yourself in the face?”
• Ben: “They’re going to have a field day with that haircut. “Thai lady boy made head of sweatshop.'”