Posted by Janie Logan Apr 6, 2011, 14:55 GMT
Alicia (Julianna Margulies) and Will (Josh Charles) contend with the peculiar antics of Judge Abernathy (guest-star Denis O'Hare) and Louis Canning (Michael J. Fox) in "Wrongful Termination." Photo courtesy of CBS.
Last night's episode of The Good Wife showed just how far Alicia Florrick has come since the series began. Whether she's navigating the twists of a big case, the ugliness of politics, or romantic drama, she exhibits a greater sense of confidence and gumption than the timid woman standing by her man in Season 1, Episode 1. "What happened to that cute, little housewife that I used to know?" Stern asks her.
By contrast to Alicia's composure, and to great amusement, Eli unravels as Election Day approaches. Peter is leading in the polls, and everyone seems hell-bent on screwing that up. The Democratic party leadership give Wendy Scott-Carr an issue to rally behind that no amount of screaming from Eli can undo ("Where did you go to school, you idiot?!?!").
Then a reporter catches on to the rumor about Peter's one-night stand with a co-worker in the State's Attorney's office. She wants to talk to Alicia, or she's going to run with the story. Eli urges Alicia to keep her cool, but when the questions start getting invasive, he slams down the phone: "Go to Hell!"
Alicia didn't seem too shaken by the conversation, but she's only dealing in the hypothetical. It must've crossed her mind during this whole scandal that Peter was unfaithful with other women than the prostitute. The writers are setting our heroine up for a big fall (because she's sure to be shaken when the truth comes out about Kalinda). What will happen to her confidence then?
"Wrongful Termination" was light on Kalinda--the better to let anticipation build. Ever since we found out her secret, she's seemed more vulnerable than ever before. She's trying to keep the past hidden, but when she learned that Cary knows, we could see the worry creeping through her usually-cool demeanor.
As Cary continues to protect Kalinda, I can feel myself liking him again. He voiced a creeping suspicion I had but couldn't say, for fear of being a total cynic. "Why didn't you just tell Alicia? If you would've been upfront with her, none of this would matter...Or is that why you became friends with her in the first place?"
So that idea is out there, waiting to upset the life Alicia has built for herself. The one thing I take comfort in is that Alicia has become the kind of woman who, I believe, no longer hinges her happiness on forces outside her control. It's clearly important to her to be the best mother/lawyer/person she can, but she isn't just a cute, little housewife anymore. And maybe it wouldn't be so bad if circumstances allowed her and Will to explore their chemistry some more...
As for this week's case, executive producers Robert and Michelle King gave us another insightful glance at a contemporary issue. In this harsh economy, companies are being forced to lay off workers and cut costs. The show reflected that (on a more dramatic, television scale, of course), as things had gotten so bad at the company Lockhart/Gardner was fighting in a class-action suit that employees were miserable, and three had even committed suicide.
Lest we praise Diane and Will too much for their nobility in taking on a big, bad corporation that didn't care for people--they were actually disappointed to learn that the company had been involved in criminal activity because the FBI would freeze the assets and make it impossible to pay the clients of the suit and, by extension, them. That, plus the way Will and Diane jumped at the chance to retrieve their clients when they heard about Stern's death, doesn't make us like them less, but it is a nice reminder not to get too idealistic about our beloved characters (or any human beings for that matter).
Michael J. Fox reprised his role as Louis Canning, who bought Stern's firm and offered Alicia a job with double the salary and an opportunity to make partner. She declined without much consideration, but I like this development, if only to give Fox a chance to come around more often. His character is one of the few who offers Alicia a real challenge in the courtroom. Plus, he has a unique perspective on morality that is, in the very least, interesting: "I do what I need to do at work to win. Then I go home--I cuddle with my wife, I cuddle with my kids--and I tell them pretty stories about heroism and Heaven."
In next week's episode, it looks like Alicia is going to be dragged into the spotlight of Peter's campaign again. I doubt his indiscretion with Kalinda will be revealed yet, but I guarantee the writers will make things as uncomfortable for us viewers as possible until then.
What did everybody think about "Wrongful Termination"?
You can follow @theTVcricket on Twitter for more tv news and reviews!
Comments