Sunday, November 18, 2012

'The Good Wife' Review - 4.08 Here Comes the Judge

        On the newest episode of CBS' The Good Wife, Will is convinced a judge is biased against his client and he and Alicia risk the judge's wrath by demanding a hearing to determine if another judge should take over the case; Grace is affected by the death of a classmate and starts falling for a "bad boy"; Zach looks for a way to help Peter's campaign; and Kalinda becomes suspicious of Nick.

        Any episode of The Good Wife that predominantly features the various subplots of Grace and Zach is bound to be less engaging. When used to bring out that parental and protective sides of either Alicia or Peter, they seem necessary to the overall series. It's just when the show sets them up in their own stories to give them something to do, it feels more like a distraction than anything else. Tonight, both Grace and Zach had their own stories and while everything I just said is still true I can actually see promise in their plots. Grace's story was given a significant amount of more time and I did not care for it at all. The only redeeming factor was how her relationship with this guy may be used to hurt her father in the election. Zach's plot was much more connected to the political side of things and thusly felt more relevant. It carried much more weight as we could see how it effected everything right in this moment. It's highly unlikely that we have seen the last of either of these stories but as long as they don't emerge as a dominant subplot throughout the rest of the season I can at least put up with them.
        The much more redeeming and entertaining story from this hour was the battle between Alicia and Will against guest star Judd Hirsch's Judge Creary. I love the fact that the actual case that they were arguing in front of Hirsch's character was such a non-factor and was only there to kickstart the actual hour's main story. This episode was not about whether or not their client was guilty. It was these people taking a stand against what they saw as discrimination. That, quite frankly, was far more entertaining than whatever twists the murder case could have come up with. At hour's end, the judge favored on Will's side but it was intriguing to see the show include a final act twist that didn't paint Judge Creary in such a negative light as the main characters thought. It just goes to show that Will, Alicia and Diane have big egos and personalities and sometimes certain details need to be shared in order for them to see something differently.
        Nick popped up once again to act smarmy in a corner but not really adding much to the nuances of other characters. His jealously of the relationship that Kalinda has with Cary totally feels true and plausible as does his reaction - even though it takes things to a new level than his previous disdain with Lana Delaney. I feel for Cary because that attack at the end of the hour was brutal and pretty much sets up a golden confirmation scene between Nick and Kalinda as well as a possible end point to this story and Nick's exit. I mean as soon as Kalinda learns the truth there's no way she will honestly want to stay with Nick, right?


So what did everyone think of the episode? Still not caring about the kids? How soon until Kalinda kicks Nick to the curb? Share your thoughts in the comments.