Article originally written for Seat42F.
CBS’s THE GOOD WIFE was one of the few broadcast network
shows airing on Easter Sunday, but those who ignored this installment, “Loser
Edit,” because of the holiday missed out. Alicia (Julianna Margulies) grants an
interview to Petra Moritz (American Horror Story’s Lily Rabe), who is doing a
profile on her. But when Petra gets a hold of the firm’s hacked emails, which
reveal Alicia’s affair with Will, it becomes a race not to hide the truth, but
to deflect and minimize damage.
The persona of Saint Alicia has always been an interesting
one. Those who know Alicia know that she’s not a saint, but in general, she’s a
very respectable woman deserving of much of the praise she gets. Still, she is
human, and there are temptations. Will is one of those temptations, and while
we viewers, who witness what Peter (Chris Noth) does and how their marriage is
basically over before anything happens with Will, understand Alicia’s choices,
the public, who only see that packaged image, will not.
Is spin the best way to handle this? Eli (Alan Cumming) and
Josh (David Krumholtz) think so, having Alicia deny as much as possible,
admitting only to a flirtation, while scooping Petra in a petty way by distracting
her and setting up other interviews in the meantime. But this dodging, this
outright lying, while it does protect Alicia’s public image to some degree,
also sends her further down the path of a politician. Alicia doesn’t settle in
naturally to the role, but the more she compromises herself, the more she seems
like Peter and others we’ve seen in that arena, and the further detached she
becomes from Saint Alicia.
Even as “Loser Edit” finds Alicia weathering this storm OK,
it spins up an even greater one as accusations of election tampering are
lobbied against her. It’s certain that Alicia is not at all involved in voter
fraud in her own election, but because there have been strong suspicions that
Peter has rigged results in the past, this story carries a lot of potential
damage for THE GOOD WIFE. The show is great at pulling skeletons out of
closets, picking up threads long forgotten about, and this is the latest
continuation of a story from an earlier season. It should be quite exciting.
While Alicia undergoes all of this, Diane (Christine
Baranski) gets to work for her new client, R.D. (Oliver Platt). R.D. brings her
into a mock trial on civil protection for homosexuals versus religious rights.
It’s definitely another ripped-from-the-headlines case, this being a
contentious issue of our day. After being given permission, nay, orders, to
take the kid gloves off, Diane fights hard and wins the day, though seeing how
she does so gives R.D. ideas on how to fight for the other side in a real court
of law.
What I love about the way that THE GOOD WIFE handles this is
that we get to see thoughtful opinions on both sides from nuanced characters. I
agree with Diane, as will many viewers of the show. Her position is well known
and, I think, well understood. What’s interesting about R.D., though, is that
he approaches the issue from an argument I haven’t heard very well-articulated,
someone who respects people who keep consistent values, and who can separate
the individual from a widespread practice. He may not be doing right by his
nephew (Wesley Taylor, Smash), nor the country in general, but one would be
hard-pressed to argue that R.D. is stubborn or hate-filled. Very well done
articulating a position that is so often misunderstood or miscommunicated.
The third subplot brings back Andrew (Tim Guinee), who is
able, without much effort, to expose Kaldina’s (Archie Panjabi) data
falsification. Even if the intention behind it is correct, Kalinda does
something very, very wrong that will have bad ramifications for her, Diane, and
likely the firm as a whole. Finn (Matthew Goode) tries to help a bit, because
he apparently is the most understanding, nicest guy in the world, as anyone
else in his place would be furious, but it won’t be enough. Kalinda is about to
leave the show for good, and she will not be going quietly.
These three threads, all of which continue serial stories on
THE GOOD WIFE, are all excellent, as is par for the program. It always
impresses me how THE GOOD WIFE can churn out twenty-two high quality episodes a
year, a feat that seems to elude practically every other broadcast network
drama, staying timely, engaging, and surprising. Only a few weeks remain this
year, but I am ready for the ride!
THE GOOD WIFE airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on CBS.
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