S02.E15: Hear My Voice

[WendyCR72]

Airing May 10, 2021:

Quote

Lola finds herself in the judicial hotseat when she presides over the case of former Sherriff Wayne McCarthy (Louis Herthum), and struggles because she and Mark can't talk to each other outside the courtroom. Also, Detective Rashel (Nick Wechsler) and other cops come forward to speak against McCarthy, but Corinne (Anne Heche) continues to turn their testimonies against them, and Luke demands that Mark allow him to take the stand.

 

[greekmom]

So guessing since no one posted no one is watching?

I don't understand the whole rerunning for the spot as judge. Does that mean that she was elected after the incident in the courthouse in Season 1?  Who supported her and why are they not supporting her now?  Also it seems pretty unfair or a sense of blackmail that the whole police union would coalition against her because of her decision to sentence the police officer. It's not like Lola gave the guilty verdict. She could have given a lighter sentence but this is Lola we are talking about. And Anne Heche's character speech on how McCarthy is one of the good ones was way out of line.

I'm glad the mom in B plot got the help she needed and stopped abusing the little girl.  I think Sara is going to go to law school to become a lawyer.

Emily and Joquin are pretty good together when they are saving the world.  Luke just wants to drag her down and be all about him.

Mark has a right to want some space especially after Amy being all on her high horse about the kiss meanwhile she's married.

I don't know if show will make it to next season.  I think they are in the bubble.

[Shelbie]

I watched it. All of it felt deeply unrealistic and I can usually hand wave away a lot of tv stuff. If the show is canceled I won’t miss it very much and if it’s renewed I hope they get better writers with sharper story lines. 

[illdoc]

1 hour ago, greekmom said:

I think Sara is going to go to law school to become a lawyer.

I would think a social worker instead.

[Msample]

After all the lead up, they convict the sheriff simply by goading him onto admitting “he ordered the Code Red”?? That’s some weak assed writing.

 

[vibeology]

This episode was so bad. I'm sorry to say it but the writing of the trial was a mess. But I guess that's because the entire process happened in days. Just the jury selection would have taken serious time in real life. And I don't care about Mark and Amy. I was never really sold on them and now that they haven't interacted in a while I certainly don't care. Also, Luke's situation cleared right up with no real explanation. 

That being said, Sam and Sara both had a good day. And Emily was at her best here. 

And I don't care about judge elections. I know they're important but everything about this is giving me Good Wife flashbacks and Alicia getting political and out of the courtroom and I hated that so I'm not enthusiastic about this. Maybe that's not fair but it's where I'm at.

[HurricaneVal]

Gawd.  But Sam's wardrobe though...  <shudder>  Is that fashion now? 

Are they going with Sam having a love-crush on Mark, or a hero worship work-admiration-crush on Mark?  The writers seem to keep flip flopping back and forth on that, reducing the character to making undefined longing puppy eyes at Mark.  But now that Mark is "on a break" (and, yes, I did crack up at the Friends reference) will he rebound with an ill-considered and very bad all ways around office romance with Sam?  I really hope not.  A better storyline would be if she throws herself at him a few times, and gets respectfully rebuffed until she figures it out.

And speaking of Mark, he's pretty much in the most important trial of his career so far, and he gives his lucky pen to Sam?  Awwwww....

Boy howdy, did they make Anne Heche's character out to be a witch!  She's almost not even a real person at this point.

[milkyaqua]

Can't add much.  This was a jumbled mess of an episode.

The trial, like most on TV, was short and not realistic.  Anne Heche's lawyer was over the top and not in a good way.  And all it took was for Mark to mention McCarthy's failed family relationships and then goad him into admitting he was a criminal?  Okay, show.

Mark and Amy, yeah, don't really care and yes, her over reaction to Mark's kiss when she's still married...  She needs to go find another place to stay.

Emily didn't annoy (too much) this week.  Though I'm not sure why Joaquin wants to be bothered with her.  She and Luke need to work on some issues before they get tangled up with anyone.

Also glad the mom got some help and am curious as to what Sara will want to do now career-wise.  I like Sam so I'd like her not to get saddled being the b-girlfriend or rebound one.

Lola and the re-election.  Meh.  Unless they can do it so it doesn't interfere with her actually being in court and presiding over cases.  As for the sheriff's department/law enforcement agencies wanting to oust her, not necessarily surprising and it's not like it would have come out of left field as she's always been seen as favoring the defendant side and not so much law enforcement.

[tennisgurl]

Lola having to fight to get reelected doesn't sound very interesting, and it makes the cops look really bad and intensely petty to the public if they try to unseat a judge just because she presided over a trial where a cop was convicted of being corrupt. Its not even like its Lola who found him guilty, it was the jury. This show is at its best when its mostly focused on cases and trying to find the best way to give people justice, with personal stories and character stuff sprinkled in, adding a campaign seems like it will just clutter the show up. I have really liked this show and I want it renewed, but I hope that the writers tighten things up. The first season had some misses but was mostly really good, while this season has had a lot of good in it but has struggled with its longer arcs. I am glad that at least the cop conspiracy seems to be wrapping up, its been going on for ages it feels like, even if its leading to problems for Luke and a new big plot with Lola trying to get reelected. 

Anne Heche was seriously chewing the scenery, bugging her eyes out, screaming at everyone, even Lola, waving her arms around, it was like she was a rabbis infected used car lot balloon. 

Its like Joquin knew that Emily was getting bored with him so he decided to take her to this heartwarming reunion between this adorable little immigrant girl and her mom so that he can get her interested in him again. He knows that Emily likes nothing better than to get into a cause. Joquin seems like a nice guy, but I don't know him well enough to really be invested in him, and Emily has never impressed me with her girlfriend abilities. It seems like she was almost ghosting Joquin before he showed up this time and has been all over Luke for awhile now, but when they were together she had her foot out the door most of their relationship. 

Lola sending Mark cute baby pictures featuring outfits that Mark bought was adorable, and I am glad to have more "Mark and Lola chat" endings after Lola has been gone for so long. Not surprising that Mark doesn't want to talk to Amy now, she really dropped a ton of crap on him that he needs to process. 

Glad that Sara helped the little girl, I think it seems like she could decide to become a social worker. She would be good at that and it would keep her at court while also letting them explore some different kinds of cases.

Edited May 11, 2021 by tennisgurl

[HurricaneVal]

I see where Sara was inspired by her experience on the "other side" of court and was thinking about a career change, but I'd like her to remain as a court reporter who volunteers with at risk kids on the side.  Having her a part of the court "staff" gets her in behind the scenes into all the judges chambers, not just Lola's.  If she became a social worker or becomes a lawyer, she only really has access to the courtroom and judges chambers if invited.  Though, no matter how good a gatekeeper Sherri is, Lola has a pretty open door policy, so we'd see Sara in Lola's chambers a lot, and maybe some in Benner's.  But we wouldn't ever see her interacting personally with Laski or Campbell because they'd stand off to avoid any collusion speculations, and we'd only see her interacting with them when a case required it.   I like her being a member of the team, and I love it when she and Sherri and Nessa conspire together.  We wouldn't get any more of that if she moved to another career. 

This show used to be written well, but with the way it is see-sawing all over the place I'm sure we'll find out that Sara was only a few credits shy of her law degree when she had to drop school to get a steady paycheck to help support her grandparents, so she turned a side gig she had doing court reporting and taking affidavits for a private law firm into a full time job at the big show in Superior Court.  But now that she wants to be a courageous defender of the downtrodden, she'll finish up that law degree lickety-split and pass the bar in one try all within a single episode.  Because that's the way these things go.

[KaveDweller]

10 hours ago, greekmom said:

I don't understand the whole rerunning for the spot as judge. Does that mean that she was elected after the incident in the courthouse in Season 1?  Who supported her and why are they not supporting her now?  Also it seems pretty unfair or a sense of blackmail that the whole police union would coalition against her because of her decision to sentence the police officer. It's not like Lola gave the guilty verdict. She could have given a lighter sentence but this is Lola we are talking about. And Anne Heche's character speech on how McCarthy is one of the good ones was way out of line.

Lola was elected before the series started. She will obviously win re-election because that's the premise of the show, so this feels like a waste of time.

I agree it is pretty ridiculous for judicial elections to be so politicized. Judges are not supposed to have sides. I read this book (fictional in theory) about how corrupt it can get, because it a person gets campaign donations from someone and then later has to rule on something related to the donor, they aren't really impartial.

The trial seemed a bit anti-climactic. And Luke probably didn't need to risk his career to testify because McCarthy kind of hung himself with his "I'm a father and have to teach my boys" bullshit.

[Brian Cronin]

The cops are also mad at Lola for ostensibly being at a Black Lives Matter protest (and for that viral clip that had her saying "Defund the police"), so it makes sense to me that after this latest case, they'd want to mess with her a bit. Obviously, she'll win re-election, but I don't mind it as a little bit of temporary drama if the show gets renewed.

Amy continues to be one of the oddest cases of a recurring character being made permanent that I've seen in a while, as she was never an interesting character to me, but she at least had a personality, a personality they dropped right when they made her a full-time cast member, which doesn't make ANY sense, and because she IS a full-time cast member, we know her romance with Mark can't ever really end, since he's her only real connection to the plot, so she pretty much HAS to stay with him, even if their chemistry has gone down the toilet ever since they neutered her as a character.

[HurricaneVal]

Not to inject any reality into a TV show, but how long are judicial terms in CA anyways?  They seem to be pretty long in my area, six years I think before they're up for re-election.  We are in season two, and Lola was recently elected right before the first season, so by my math there should be at least four more years to her term, assuming a six year term.  Perhaps in TV!CA, judicial terms are only two years long.  Or was Lola appointed two years ago to serve out a remaining term for a judge who died or resigned and she's now up for re-election per the regular schedule? 

[cameron]

Can't believe that Lola wouldn't have held the lawyer who was representing the sheriff in contempt for her continued outbursts in that courtroom.

[illdoc]

1 hour ago, HurricaneVal said:

Or was Lola appointed two years ago to serve out a remaining term for a judge who died or resigned and she's now up for re-election per the regular schedule? 

That's what I think, since I was under the impression she was appointed judge (and was surprised by this "re-election" talk). While I don't know how long a judge's term is, I'm sure it's more than 2 years.   From Google: The California Legislature determines the number of judges in each court. Superior court judges serve six-year terms and are elected by county voters on a nonpartisan ballot at a general election. Vacancies are filled through appointment by the Governor. Also, from ballotpedia.org: If they wish to retain their seat for the remainder of the unexpired term, newly-appointed judges are required to participate in yes-no retention elections occurring at the time of the next gubernatorial race (held every four years). After the first election, subsequent retention elections are for full 12-year terms.

 

[buckboard]

1 hour ago, HurricaneVal said:

Not to inject any reality into a TV show, but how long are judicial terms in CA anyways?  They seem to be pretty long in my area, six years I think before they're up for re-election.  We are in season two, and Lola was recently elected right before the first season, so by my math there should be at least four more years to her term, assuming a six year term.  Perhaps in TV!CA, judicial terms are only two years long.  Or was Lola appointed two years ago to serve out a remaining term for a judge who died or resigned and she's now up for re-election per the regular schedule? 

According to the Judicial Council of California "Superior court judges serve six-year terms and are elected by county voters on a nonpartisan ballot at a general election. Vacancies are filled through appointment by the Governor."  According to the National Center for State Courts, in California, most judges reach the bench by gubernatorial appointment and are rarely challenged for reelection.   Of course, those are the facts; "All Rise" is a television show that doesn't have to live by the facts as we see every episode in the courtroom scenes.

Police and fire department unions are very active in endorsing candidates, but not because they are po'd that a corrupt officer has been convicted.  

[possibilities]

I'm pretty sure the actress playing Sarah is pregnant, based on how they're hiding her behind pillows and other barriers 100% of the time now, so that is probably the real reason for her need of a leave of absence to pursue other ambitions. If the show is renewed, I'm sure they'll find a way to bring her back to the action after her real life maternity leave, or at least I hope so. 

I'm not at all surprised that Lola would be opposed by the police union. Unions of all kinds endorse or oppose candidates all the time.

 

Edited May 14, 2021 by possibilities

[cameron]

2 minutes ago, possibilities said:

I'm pretty sure the actress playing Sarah is pregnant, based on how they're hiding her behind pillows and other barriers 100% of the time now, so that is probably the real reason for her need of a leave of absence to pursue other ambitions. If the show is renewed, I'm sure they'll find a way to bring her back to the action after her real life maternity leave, or at least I hope so. 

I'm not at all surprised that Lola would be opposed by the police union. Unions of all kinds endorse or oppose candidates all the time.

 

I have thought for a while that she looks pregnant.

[jabRI]

I was confused about the abusive mom case.  First of all, what exactly was the sentence? I just something about parenting classes?  And are those  normally trial cases? I thought they'd just get handled by social services, unless they were looking for sentencing for severe abuse.  I don't know, that's why I'm asking, not trying to pass judgement.

[Empress1]

Was Anne Heche’s voice always so raspy?

On 5/14/2021 at 7:19 PM, jabRI said:

I was confused about the abusive mom case.  First of all, what exactly was the sentence? I just something about parenting classes?  And are those  normally trial cases? I thought they'd just get handled by social services, unless they were looking for sentencing for severe abuse.  I don't know, that's why I'm asking, not trying to pass judgement.

48 months probation, a year of parenting classes. Her daughter was in the care of relatives; I’m not sure if the mom has to complete the parenting classes before her daughter is allowed back in her care.

Mark and Lola’s friendship remains the heart of the show. The whole roof scene was gold. “Don’t come at me with that Ross and Rachel nonsense!”

Edited May 16, 2021 by Empress1

[bunnyface]

I also wondered if Lola was appointed because she seemed pretty naive (however that is spelled) about elections every time the subject came up.

If McCarthy is "one of the good ones" I don't want to see any bad ones.  He's scary.

As wonky as it was, I'm going to miss the whole mess.