Monsters of Television

“Then I’ll get to disabusing.”

While I got to see “Taking Control,” the season 2 premiere of The Good Wife, I was unable to write a review for it so as to conserve energy for sitting on a bus for 22 hours (I was attending a conference in Austin). I apologize for missing it, but Tuesday night was the last chance for legitimate sleep until the following Sunday, and I love sleep more than The Good Wife.

But not by much.

After the jump I’ll do a brief review of “Taking Control” (even shorter review: excellent) and then a regular sized review of “Double Jeopardy.”

“Taking Control” is probably one of the best returning premieres I can think of in recent memory. Indeed, it meets all of Daniel Walters’ rules for a great season premiere. Reminding me of why I love the show: it manages to do a number of plots (Eli maneuvering Peter and family, trial, new name on the firm’s letterhead, new in-house investigator) while still wrapping up the previous season finale (phone conversations, awkward conversations). It does all of this with grace, as the episode never feels overstuffed or busy. No real re-introductions occurred, except for maybe Jackie. The episode was legitimately an episode with a trial ripped from the headlines (Dick Wolf is furious) while still moving things forward (Cary is brilliant). And it was careful the time skips.

Oh, and then there’s the All Things Considered sex scene. You don’t get to see that on network TV (someone pointed out that you do, but it’s normally done the other way around), and kudos to CBS for letting it happen. But major kudos to the show for executing an incredibly steamy (literally and figuratively) sex scene between two people who still aren’t on the same page. Alicia’s hesitancy and desire coming through here even more than when she went after Peter in the maid’s room (do they have a maid yet?). And the scene plays as if we have a full understanding of their history (even though we don’t), and the intimacy is simply intense.  No possible way they can top “Taking Control” from all fronts.

And they don’t, but that’s not really what matters here.

“Double Jeopardy” is calmer but no less engaging an episode, if only because if the premiere was ultimately concerned with bringing a conclusion to the finale and this episode is ultimately setting up the necessary plots that will keep the rest of the season moving. Oh, and Lou Dobbs can actually kind of act. I was impressed anyway.

Let’s get small details out of the way first, even though small details are ultimately what make this show as good as it is. For instance, the military judge. We’re given nothing about this woman whatsoever. Except that she drinks herbal supplements with her water and stirs them very methodically. And that the JAG co-council knows this is a thing. but that tells us everything we need to know about her. And that’s why this show does such a great job with its judges. Sure, the judges are given very specific traits and the actors are allowed to go whole hog, but why shouldn’t they? They’re judges.

Or how Alan Cumming says “tweet” exactly like who he said it last season (and it’s still funny). Or Josh Charles’ brilliant gestures of false modesty at the false compliment of getting a continuance. Or Matt Czuchry’s carefully staged body language while on the witness stand: defiance to defeat, swirled with a mixture of thinking he’s doing the right thing in the first place with dashes of ethics to his ruthlessness (he won’t lie under oath).  It’s an amazing atmosphere that the show is able to construct around these beats and make them speak for the character as opposed just the writing.

Narratively though, this episode is a little less packed than the premiere, but that’s fine with me, I like for things to breathe. It felt like the trial took up a bit more room than normally, but I think I always feel like this anyway (I didn’t last week, but there was so much happening). On the other hand, all the beats and arcs are focusing.

Like Will’s dalliances with younger women. Clearly he’s trying to re-capture Law School Alicia with both L3 from last season and law review writer from this episode: sexy, dark haired lawyers in training. All the things Alicia was when she and Will met. Again, it’s the details that make this show and the script doesn’t make this connection for us, but lets us make it (if we want, I’m trained in the art of pop psychoanalysis).

Speaking of pop psychoanalysis, I’m super curious as to Becca’s motivations. While I was a bit startled by her being put on a bus last season, having her just magically appear didn’t startle me (maybe because the promos prepped me). I personally doubt she’s seeking outright forgiveness, but I can’t see ulterior motives here. The “get back in good graces with the son to destroy Peter” seems like too much of a Xanatos Gambit for the show to run, and who would be running it? Childs? Is he that bored over at the DA’s office?

As I often do, and I’ll close with this, I find the interworkings of the firm to be just as fascinating, if not a little more, as the other plots. Watching as Diane navigates the changes that Bond brings to the firm, including teh_Lou Dobbs, including Will’s betrayal (nice work from Baranski as she has Diane barely managing to keep everything in when confronting Will) is a treat, especially as it lets gender politics, never far from the show’s focus, into brief focus here. Old boys club mentality indeed.

I’m eager to see Bond not only mentoring Alicia, but also to see him court. His style needs to be different from everyone else’s thus far (Will’s slickness, Alicia’s methodicalness, Diane’s slyness, Elsbeth’s unassuming scatterbrainess). But, really, I’m just eager for each new episode of this series.

FINAL THOUGHTS

• Viral video was a little weak, but perhaps just due to how untimely it is now (perhaps when Obama Girl was new, it would’ve played better).
• Like that Blake and Kalinda were kept to the background a bit. I worry about their brilliant skills of deduction making me TV burn out.
• Do like the pattern set up that Cary and Alicia will battle wits each episode, trading hits. I just hope the show is able to maintain this in an organic way. If Cary needs to not be in an episode, and he shouldn’t be in every trial Alicia is involved with, I’m okay with that. In fact I welcome it.