Just finished season 2.
I thought it was, overall, better than Season 1. Season 1 had a bunch of filler in the middle but it was bookended by some terrific episodes. Season 2 is the same, except it's a bit more consistent overall. I think that I will end up being one of those annoying naysayers that picks apart the 'popular show of the week.' I love House of Cards for its acting and its characters, but god does it take the easy way out with a lot of its plotting. Aside from Frank and Claire, pretty much everyone is either naive or incompetent and President Walker makes Dubya look like some bastion of towering intellect with how easily he is duped and played by Frank. It's a great show to watch for the characters and the acting but the politics and the maneuvering is like watching a game of Scrabble between an English major and a group of mentally handicapped four year olds.
I was really disappointed that the reporters' storylines seemed to get dropped halfway through the season. There was some potential there to bring another facet of the story into play but unfortunately, that did not happen. Rachel's story seemed the most needlessly lengthened as if it was just there to fill up space until that inevitable climax. I quite like Stamper though. He's a certified slimeball creepbag and one of the few characters with almost nothing redeeming about him, but I'll be a bit disappointed if he ends up dead.
So yeah, I enjoyed this season but I don't think it deserves all the acclaim it's getting. Maybe if the acclaim was limited to the acting and some of the characters, but I can't help but find most of the plotting lazy and contrived.