Madam Secretary: Season 4
Season 4 Lore Primer
Key plot threads, lore context, and character stakes you need to remember before diving into this season.
- Directly follows the overarching narrative developments of Madam Secretary Season 3.
- Faction dynamics and core character alliances shift under escalating external stakes.
- Crucial mysteries introduced previously reach key turning points and narrative reckonings.
- Sets up serialized story arcs that build directly toward the climactic season finale.
Episode Guide
Season 4 Progress Shield
News Cycle
Oct 8, 2017
When the assistant vice minister of Timor-Leste suddenly dies during a meeting with Elizabeth on the first day of the U.N General Assembly, she becomes suspicious after the preside
Off the Record
Oct 15, 2017
While Elizabeth is in Libya to help negotiate an end to their civil war, a tragic accident with her chauffeured car embroils her in an urgent situation to secure medical care for a
The Essentials
Oct 22, 2017
With a government shutdown looming, Elizabeth must think outside the box to help fund an electrical grid in a Syrian refugee camp, before riots break out in the country due to the
Shutdown
Oct 29, 2017
As the government shutdown shows no sign of progress, Secretary of State McCord must negotiate an agreement between the White House and its opposition led by Senator Morejon. Also,
Persona Non Grata
Nov 5, 2017
Elizabeth is determined to continue to hold a human trafficking conference in Kyrgyzstan despite the inappropriate actions by a U.S. ambassador. Also, Elizabeth and Henry worry abo
Loophole
Nov 12, 2017
Henry disagrees with the President and Elizabeth when they refuse to negotiate with terrorists for the release of an American CIA agent who was captured by the Taliban in Afghanist
North to the Future
Nov 19, 2017
When a Russian dissident flees to the U.S. after contracting smallpox, Secretary of State Elizabeth McCord and retired U.N. Ambassador Kat Sandoval must work with Russian Foreign M
The Fourth Estate
Nov 26, 2017
Secretary of State McCord and her staff work with the Mexican government to extradite a Mexican cartel leader to a U.S. prison in an effort to diminish the opioid crisis. But after
Minefield
Dec 10, 2017
Secretary of State McCord reluctantly agrees to host a holiday party in the hopes of persuading senators in attendance to pass a treaty that requires countries to destroy landmines
Women Transform the World
Dec 17, 2017
Secretary of State McCord struggles with the realization that she may need to advise the Afghan government that a compromise with the Taliban may be better than a war with them. Al
Mitya
Jan 7, 2018
When Vice President Hurst feels threatened that Secretary of State McCord is vying to be the next president, she attempts to set Elizabeth up for failure by promising that American
Sound and Fury
Jan 14, 2018
After President Dalton hears about a sonic attack at the U.S. Embassy in Bulgaria, he thinks Russia is to blame and uncharacteristically threatens them with military force, leaving
Reading the Signs
Mar 11, 2018
Elizabeth seeks creative solutions when the president of Sri Lanka's psychic convinces him to not move forward with a trade agreement with the U.S. Also, Alison grapples with guilt
Refuge
Mar 18, 2018
Jay and Kat devise a way to help persecuted foreign LGBTQ citizens escape their country while their U.S. homeland security applications are processed. However, when the country clo
The Unnamed
Mar 25, 2018
Elizabeth and the team are caught in an uncertain situation when they are about to award a foreign leader with the Medal of Freedom but learn he may have known that a minority grou
My Funny Valentine
Apr 1, 2018
As the 20th anniversary of the American embassy bombing in Mali approaches, emotions run high among the State Department staff, who had personal connections to lives lost that day,
Phase Two
Apr 8, 2018
Senator Morejon puts phase two of Elizabeth’s U.S./Iran arms deal in jeopardy when he asserts that Iran funneled money from phase one of the deal to fund a recent bombing that kill
The Friendship Game
Apr 22, 2018
Elizabeth’s negotiations for a security agreement combatting gang violence in South America becomes complicated when she attempts to free an American recently kidnapped there.
Thin Ice
Apr 29, 2018
Elizabeth is attending a summit in Montreal to resolve territorial claims of the North Pole when an activist group detonates a bomb and she can’t locate Jason and Piper. Also, thin
The Things We Get to Say
May 6, 2018
Elizabeth must watch what she says and does when she deals with a refugee situation while being shadowed by Neal Shin, a newspaper reporter who may use his access to write a tell-a
Protocol
May 13, 2018
When terrorists threaten to cause a flood in the Middle East that could kill millions of people, Elizabeth’s hopes of getting a neighboring country to close the dam fade after the
Night Watch
May 20, 2018
Elizabeth and cabinet members brace for the fallout at home and abroad as President Dalton prepares for a retaliatory nuclear attack on a country that has reportedly just launched