Diane is aghast when Kurt reveals he recognized the face of a man featured in a U.S. Capitol insurrection "Most Wanted" poster. Intrigued by Wackner, Marissa sneaks over to his copy shop "courtroom" and is thrilled by what she encounters. Back in legitimate court, Liz uses a current case to tackle Section 230.
In 2020, the television industry aired 493 scripted shows across numerous outlets. The way people consume content now is different than it used to be. It happens according to one's own schedule. As such, it's less necessary to provide ample coverage of each episode in any given season from a show. Moreover, it is simply impossible to watch everything. As such, this site provides shorter episodic reviews in order to cover as many shows as possible. With all of that being said, here are my thoughts on the next episode of Paramount+'s The Good Fight.
"And the Court Had a Clerk..." was written by William Finkelstein and directed by Tyne Rafaeli
Liz tackles a simple case. Her client is suing a woman spreading lies about him online which has directly impacted his business. It's a clear-cut case. The judge rules in his favor. And then, a billionaire decides to latch onto what happened with the direct intent of challenging the constitutionality of a law in front of the Supreme Court. This season has had its sights set on the highest court in the land. It also details the brutal realities of the process. So many of these cases are fueled by people with political agendas and deep pockets who care about the perceptions of everyone associated with the case. They prop up cases knowing they will fail in the lower courts just so they can appeal and hope the nine justices on the Supreme Court will want to hear arguments on the issue. It's a system driven by the money. In this case, the firm goes along with the plan because it is the only way in which they are going to earn a profit from all of this. The original case hits a dead end in that regard. Justice is still effectively served. It has a satisfactory ending for the parties involved. People still want to use it as a weapon against a law that has serious opponents on both sides of the political aisle. Social media platforms cannot be held liable for the information shared on them. They employ moderators that traffic stories and try to address any serious problems. But it's completely up to the people behind the machines to moderate themselves. The business has no regulation even though it has become the source for so much of the public's daily news. Destroying Section 230 may have many far-reaching consequences. That fight can bring unlikely allies together for a common goal. It too plays into the overall conversation of bipartisanship and civility. Those ideas are romanticized as notions of a better time in which the systems worked for everyone. That ideal sense of the world has never existed. The narrative still serves as motivation for so many. It's chasing a dream that was never real in the first place. So many are beholden to that construct. As such, everyone carefully monitors how they present themselves in the hopes of offering that appeal. The partners argue over whether they should take this case. Liz makes the final decision. Her mind was already made. She isn't worried about the reputation of the firm and how taking this billionaire's money will change their good standing with other clients. Of course, Carmen is also bringing in business through clients no one else is willing to touch. She will represent anyone. That's a striking distinction for her. The partners are still trying to grapple with that. It's all fundamentally driven by the financial benefits. It's not about fighting for justice through the law. People want to play towards that ideal too. This is still a vicious business. One that is demanding for everyone. Marissa doesn't feel fulfilled in this environment handling paperwork. She is intrigued by what Judge Wackner is trying to create. He too sees the perfect system as one that is willing to offer itself fully to every person regardless of their standing elsewhere in the world. Sure, his decisions can be arbitrary at best. He too yearns for an ideal past that may be nothing more than a fantasy in his head. It's certainly more comfortable living in that space instead of being terrified by the attack on the government on January 6. That wraps up Diane and Kurt because he knows some of the people present that day. He even arranged for them to meet with a congressional representative the day before. These optics aren't great. Diane recognizes that. She stands by him because she knows he would never engage in this behavior. He is entitled to his freedom. That comes into direct conflict with the FBI. It's much more personal. Diane knows the rational thing to do. The FBI asks the public for help in identifying these people. It quickly becomes much more than that, which is mostly just teased here. Of course, it also suggests Gary Cole and Jane Lynch will be present for a significant story this season. That's an encouraging sign. It may verge on the show trying to do too much. That has bogged it down sometimes in the past. And yet, so much of the storytelling remains delightful while highlighting the realities of the law today. It's always amusing to see an animated musical sequence depicting the intricacies of a significant legal precedent. But it's also just dynamic to see these characters try to work together despite the turmoil that defines so much of their world. They are trying to build something solid that can last. They have the hope for that stability once more. They still have to account for the past. They can't ignore that in pursuit of a better future. Nor can they handle things the way they were done before. That too only brought forth more drama. The world is still complicated. The firm has the resources to thrive. It's just a perilous journey because of the injustice that dominates the legal system.
Liz tackles a simple case. Her client is suing a woman spreading lies about him online which has directly impacted his business. It's a clear-cut case. The judge rules in his favor. And then, a billionaire decides to latch onto what happened with the direct intent of challenging the constitutionality of a law in front of the Supreme Court. This season has had its sights set on the highest court in the land. It also details the brutal realities of the process. So many of these cases are fueled by people with political agendas and deep pockets who care about the perceptions of everyone associated with the case. They prop up cases knowing they will fail in the lower courts just so they can appeal and hope the nine justices on the Supreme Court will want to hear arguments on the issue. It's a system driven by the money. In this case, the firm goes along with the plan because it is the only way in which they are going to earn a profit from all of this. The original case hits a dead end in that regard. Justice is still effectively served. It has a satisfactory ending for the parties involved. People still want to use it as a weapon against a law that has serious opponents on both sides of the political aisle. Social media platforms cannot be held liable for the information shared on them. They employ moderators that traffic stories and try to address any serious problems. But it's completely up to the people behind the machines to moderate themselves. The business has no regulation even though it has become the source for so much of the public's daily news. Destroying Section 230 may have many far-reaching consequences. That fight can bring unlikely allies together for a common goal. It too plays into the overall conversation of bipartisanship and civility. Those ideas are romanticized as notions of a better time in which the systems worked for everyone. That ideal sense of the world has never existed. The narrative still serves as motivation for so many. It's chasing a dream that was never real in the first place. So many are beholden to that construct. As such, everyone carefully monitors how they present themselves in the hopes of offering that appeal. The partners argue over whether they should take this case. Liz makes the final decision. Her mind was already made. She isn't worried about the reputation of the firm and how taking this billionaire's money will change their good standing with other clients. Of course, Carmen is also bringing in business through clients no one else is willing to touch. She will represent anyone. That's a striking distinction for her. The partners are still trying to grapple with that. It's all fundamentally driven by the financial benefits. It's not about fighting for justice through the law. People want to play towards that ideal too. This is still a vicious business. One that is demanding for everyone. Marissa doesn't feel fulfilled in this environment handling paperwork. She is intrigued by what Judge Wackner is trying to create. He too sees the perfect system as one that is willing to offer itself fully to every person regardless of their standing elsewhere in the world. Sure, his decisions can be arbitrary at best. He too yearns for an ideal past that may be nothing more than a fantasy in his head. It's certainly more comfortable living in that space instead of being terrified by the attack on the government on January 6. That wraps up Diane and Kurt because he knows some of the people present that day. He even arranged for them to meet with a congressional representative the day before. These optics aren't great. Diane recognizes that. She stands by him because she knows he would never engage in this behavior. He is entitled to his freedom. That comes into direct conflict with the FBI. It's much more personal. Diane knows the rational thing to do. The FBI asks the public for help in identifying these people. It quickly becomes much more than that, which is mostly just teased here. Of course, it also suggests Gary Cole and Jane Lynch will be present for a significant story this season. That's an encouraging sign. It may verge on the show trying to do too much. That has bogged it down sometimes in the past. And yet, so much of the storytelling remains delightful while highlighting the realities of the law today. It's always amusing to see an animated musical sequence depicting the intricacies of a significant legal precedent. But it's also just dynamic to see these characters try to work together despite the turmoil that defines so much of their world. They are trying to build something solid that can last. They have the hope for that stability once more. They still have to account for the past. They can't ignore that in pursuit of a better future. Nor can they handle things the way they were done before. That too only brought forth more drama. The world is still complicated. The firm has the resources to thrive. It's just a perilous journey because of the injustice that dominates the legal system.
