"Paul Levinson's It's Real Life is a page-turning exploration into that multiverse known as rock and roll. But it is much more than a marvelous adventure narrated by a master storyteller...it is also an exquisite meditation on the very nature of alternate history." -- Jack Dann, The Fiction Writer's Guide to Alternate History

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

The Good Wife 5.18: Tying Up Loose Ends

A powerful Good Wife 5.18 Sunday night, which tied up lots of loose ends, and moved the narrative along to new, more stable ground, which will be a good foundation for future developments.

The realization that the NSA had been tapping her phone conversations snapped Alicia out of her depression about Will's death.  This had all kinds of beneficial consequences.   She gave an aggressive defense of Finn, which shut down, at least for now, the dastardly attempt of the new state prosecutor to make Finn the scapegoat for Will's death.  (But it's great to see Michael Cerveris aka the Observer from Fringe play the prosector Castro.)   And Peter's brilliant political maneuvering to get the NSA to back off - after Alicia alerts him to the problem, which afflicts them both - serves as the basis for something a rapprochement between the two.

The NSA story, in general, has been of the high points of this season's The Good Wife, which has easily been its best season so far.   The NSA has been woven in and out of several crucial story lines, and though it's a relief to see this put to rest, I have a feeling we won't be seeing the last of the NSA, if not in this season than the next.

Back at the firm, the big addition of course is Michael J. Fox's Louis Canning as a named partner.  The flirtation with Alicia coming back was good, but only as a bubble quickly burst.  Alicia on her own - that is, with Cary - puts her and the overall narrative in a much better position to make waves, cause trouble, rise to the occasion, and keep The Good Wife on the high-energy level it's been on this season.

CBS has complained that it's not fair that shows like The Good Wife, which perform all year with 20+ episodes, be judged for the Emmys against shows like Breaking Bad and Game of Thrones which air only a third to a half as many episodes.   Hart Hanson, show runner of Bones, has tweeted much the same.   My view: CBS and Hanson are right.  The Emmys should split the dramatic series award into Long and Short forms, just as the Hugos and Nebulas have separate awards for science fiction novels and short stories (and, indeed, for novellas and novelettes).  This should be in addition to the mini-series category, which has been subject to controversies of its own.

See also I Dreamt I Called Will Gardner Last Night

And The Good Wife 5.1: Capital Punishment and Politicians' Daughters ... The Good Wife 5.5: The Villain in this Story ... The Good Wife 5.9: Reddit, Crowd Sourcing, and the First Amendment on Trial ... The Good Wife 5.11: Bowling Bowls and Bogdanovich ... The Good Wife 5.13: NSA on Television ... The Good Wife: 5.15: Stunner!


#SFWApro



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