S06.E14: Mind's Eye

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Alicia prepares for a key interview which could impact the outcome of the race for State’s Attorney. Also, Louis Canning pressures Florrick/Agos/Lockhart to agree on a settlement in his wrongful eviction case against the firm.

 

Promo:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69nUqHw173w

[merylinkid]

Really quick comment, even though the show is on -- I am also suffering from laryngitis right now.   I sound just like Alicia when I am talking to the tv.   Also trying not to save my voice for court tomorrow.   The laughing over this is causing more pain.

[movado23]

For the first time ever - I turned this off a half hour in.  That half hour felt like it would never end. What a complete and utter waste of my time.  Maybe something spectacular happened in the second half ?  Pretty sure nothing did.  I miss The Good Wife.

[terracool]

Thus concludes what may be the second-to-last episode of TGW that I watch. After tonight's dull and disjointed mess, I'll give it one more chance before I give up on it completely.

Please, show, move the story forward with the great writing and characters that made you a favorite. Why the self-indulgent, faux-artsy and unfunny crap that was tonight's episode? Louis Canning may die soon. That's the only plot point that moved forward. A wasted hour.

Edited March 9, 2015 by terracool

[riverheightsnancy]

So she says good bye to Will and now she is free to move on? What was that whole thing with Finn?  I don't even recognize this show anymore. I could have bought it if she had been high on too much cough medicine. 

[Whimsy]

This episode was sooooooo boring! I FF'd a lot of this episode. It was just so annoying.

[merylinkid]

I was so hoping that all the overthinking she had to do would make her realize what a pretzel she is twisting her "morals" into just to win.   Like every other politician.   But nope, she comes to the realization that you can't make changes unless you win the election so lying is okay.   (yeah, yeah, yeah, you can make's changes if you don't win is true, but honestly, what have you WON then?).   But St. Alicia is always right.    I agree with whoever said last week that JM becoming an exec producer did something to this show.

 

BTW, was that Tracy Pollan playing Canning's wife?   I really hope not considering she would be facing that in real life someday so making her act it out is just too cruel.

 

Oh and depositions are not just set whenever.   You coordinate schedules.   Alicia could have avoided being deposed until after the election.  I hate when this show just throws in legal things without a thought to how it actually works.

Edited March 9, 2015 by merylinkid

[readster]

 Alicia... you are out of your mind. I know I view things in ways that don't work in the real world but this... what the hell was this? Ok, you are over Will. Good! Now grow up and move on. Wow! This was just horrible.

[momlyd]

I didn't think it was as bad as I thought it was going to be. Low expectations are helpful!

[sarkygal]

That was bad. So bad in fact, I kept forgetting to switch channels back from watching Total Divas. Yes, a badly written, badly acted reality show about WWE divas was better than this mess. 

[portia7]

Unpopular opinion, but I loved it! It showed me how a lawyer's mind works. I really enjoyed it. It was odd to not have the real Will in the scenes, tho. What's up with that?

[Litnit]

What a horrible mess.  What was with Richard Dawkins showing up?  I'm an atheist and it's good to see us on TV, but I don't tune in to this show to see this.  I might be done.

 

Oh, and Zach and Grace share an account?  What?  Techy craziness strikes again!

[TimWil]

Uhhh...words fail me. Wow. I'm very sad.

[Tetraneutron]

 

BTW, was that Tracy Pollan playing Canning's wife?   I really hope not considering she would be facing that in real life someday so making her act it out is just too cruel.

No, that was Susan Misner (Sandra Beeman on The Americans).

 

That was a 44 minute pause button. We didn't learn anything. It just moved a few chess pieces forward for subsequent episodes so they can have actual storylines play out. All we learned was that Matthew Goode is probably leaving the show and the show has run out of ways to use David Lee and Howard Lyman but wants to keep them there anyway. And I miss Zach. He's fun. The show needs fewer earnest do-gooders and more sleazebags.

 

Also, Richard Dawkins? Would it even be in character for Alicia to have his voice in her head? She's not an anti-theist, she's someone who's tempermentally an atheist but doesn't see it has her identity. And isn't a vacuous narcissist, but that might be my personal biases. Dawkins is the worst. Any of the other professional atheists are better, although I still don't think Alicia sees Atheism like they do.

 

Unpopular opinion, but I loved it! It showed me how a lawyer's mind works. I really enjoyed it. It was odd to not have the real Will in the scenes, tho. What's up with that?

 

Yeah, that was embarrassing. They wanted to show Alicia still thinks about will, but they won't use JC for whatever reason, and they think THAT's a solution. Pull a fit, dark-haired, white guy off the street and shoot him in shadow? That was beneath the standards of a canadian cable access show, never mind a glossy American network prestige drama. Use footage from past seasons, or write something else.

 

Also, the actors need to cool it with the fake tan. Zach Gernier and Chris Noth look like pumpkin spice lattes.

Edited March 9, 2015 by Obviously

[MerBearHou]

This was a complete waste of time. A vanity project for the writers. Did not push forward any of the stories. The campaign and Alicia storylines this season are absolutely uncompelling and for the first time ever, I'm really, really not liking the show. Big, big thumbs down.

[whatsatool]

I did like the pros and con's. But don't want to know that much about Alicia's private life.

[kwnyc]

They could have called it "End of The Good Wife." She spent an hour deciding she's going to do what she has to to win the race. They didn't really underline it, but I think this is the episode where she turned into Peter.

 

She is no longer "The Good Wife," though she will play St. Alicia to the hilt.

 

Makes me want Prady to win more than ever.

Edited March 9, 2015 by kwnyc

[dbell1]

What was worse? The hour I lost to this mess? Or the really loud music over the dialogue? Or the super fake Will?

What the hell happened to my show? I'm sad.

It was like watching The Good Wife: The Musical.

Edited March 9, 2015 by dbell1

[unlabyrinth]

This episode felt like Robert King took the most remarkable elements of  "The Decision Tree" (S5 Ep. 11), and  rewrote them for Alicia while on a fever dream. And I'm not referring to Alicia's feeling ill.  Parts of The Decision Tree, were told through Will's mind's eye, he used his legal pad to think through decisions, imagining multiple outcomes of his  examinations of Alicia; Will's  memories of 'that time in New York City' when they made love on the balcony that disrupted Alicia's thoughts, client Ashbaugh's portable classical music  recurring like a soundtrack.  I loved every single one of those elements, music cues, writing choices, in that episode. This episode took all those elements and raised them to 11.  Maybe, I just need a re-watch. I don't object when a writer demands closer attention be paid to an episode. I remember "The Decision Tree" had wonderful coloring and camera tricks to question the veracity of memory: had Alicia worn blue or red at the  Ashbaugh meeting in NYC?  Initially, I found myself looking for such details in Alicia's fantasies, but then kind of gave up trying about 20 minutes in (second commercial break or so).

 

Oh, and I suppose the worst part of it all: after imagining so many ways this interview might go, and building up that suspense to what will Alicia say, we don't get the satisfaction this episode of witnessing Alicia committing to the lie about what and when she knew that Bishop funded her PAC.

[Boundary]

Edit: Something related to the episode. Grace struggling with her faith came out of nowhere. Prady should win this election but even Alicia winning will serve a purpose, Alicia will finally jump off her high horse regarding Peter. There were glimpses of it here.

Edited March 9, 2015 by Boundary

[HappyDancex2]

I hope they are pleased with themselves. That was so for them....nary a consideration for the loyal viewer. I don't know how they managed unsettling and boring at the same time.

[vibeology]

I thought when Alicia saw Grace's text about giving up, she'd drop out of the race and this would be the best episode ever, but instead it was just an hour of Alicia being up her own ass. Nothing happened except Canning is a step closer to death. I honestly forgot I was supposed to care about him until they brought him up again.

 

The fake Will thing was awful. Josh Charles has a very distinct nose. You can't just put some other guy in shadow and expect the audience to believe its him. Either get him for an episode or don't use "new Will" stuff, just rely on flashbacks.

 

Finally, how pathetic is Alicia that she's still more obsessed with Kalinda and Peter than she has ever been with Ramona and Peter or Peter and the prostitute he slept with in their marital bed? The Ramona betrayal is more recent, she knew Ramona for a much longer time and the affair could have seriously damaged her professional life but somehow when she thinks about Peter cheating, its Kalinda. 

 

I've been trying to hang on, but I hate Alicia. I just hate her. She's an awful person, a selfish person, a cold person and a person so unwilling to forgive others for their mistakes and lapses while doing whatever to secure her own wants. She worries about being a hypocrite when it comes to praying for someone's health, but she needs to look at her life in general. She's a hypocrite and I have no idea what the writers expect the audience to see in her.

Edited March 9, 2015 by vibeology

[shapeshifter]

Really quick comment, even though the show is on -- I am also suffering from laryngitis right now. I sound just like Alicia when I am talking to the tv. Also trying not to save my voice for court tomorrow. The laughing over this is causing more pain.

I wondered if JM really had laryngitis when the filmed it. Maybe it's going around?

Anyway, probably too late for you, but a former neighbor and friend who was a voice teacher told me that you should not whisper if you have laryngitis, because it's harder on your vocal chords than quiet talking--which I think Alicia was doing, so yay to the researchers for the episode.

But I was wondering why they never showed Alicia gargling with salt water.

Unpopular opinion, but I loved it! It showed me how a lawyer's mind works. I really enjoyed it. It was odd to not have the real Will in the scenes, tho. What's up with that?

I didn't love it, but I liked it a lot more than I thought I would.*

I did love homeless Zach. He was too adorable.

And I did love some of the lines from her head people when they questioned her musings--like homeless Zach pointing out that he was enrolled at Georgetown.

*ETA since even more posters hated it: I also loved the "Fly" episode of Breaking Bad.

Edited March 9, 2015 by shapeshifter

[Tetraneutron]

Prady should win this election but even Alicia winning will serve a purpose, Alicia will finally jump off her high horse regarding Peter. There were glimpses of it here.

The show's been careful with keeping Alicia on the moral high ground compared to Peter. Peter cheated with two different people when Alicia and Peter had a "real" marriage, and once afterwards, in the middle of Alicia's SA race, when it could do the most damage to Alicia. Meanwhile, she's cheated on him once, when (a) they were separated and living apart and (b) with the one true love of her life. All three of Peter's affairs were shown to be disposable - in fact, he said specifically they meant nothing and he callously (judging by her crying) dumped Ramona the second it became inconvenient. The show seems to believe that gives Alicia the moral position here. Even now, if she has an affair with Johnny or Finn, it's after they agreed to an open marriage and not during an election for either one of them, so she can still claim the moral high ground although it's shakier.

 

Not how I'd see it, but pretty clear how the show wants you to. I also thought it was interesting that Alicia's internal monologue assumed so casually that Peter had an affair with Ramona and didn't seem bothered by it particularly. At least she's sticking to her rules about the open marriage if she dose end up cheating on him. The show seems really reluctant to go there though, despite all the teasing with both Finn and Johnny.

[jjj]

What was that? Did they just have time for makeup, and let a high school class do the writing and editing?

[TV Anonymous]

Quick comment: I have watched every episode of this show since S1E1 and I can confidently say that this episode is one of the worst all-time.

 

Nitpick: why did she need to pick the handset up to receive a call? Why did she not just speak through the earphones? Also, is driving while handling handset legal in Illinois?

[whatsatool]

I think it is legal

Person of Interest did a similar show but I think it worked better for them.

[UsernameFatigue]

I made it through half an hour of this episode and could not handle any more. You know how some shows are so good that an hour flies by in what seems like ten minutes?  This thirty minutes seemed like thirty days. Ugh.

[Former Nun]

This "bottle episode" was so obvious...obviously trying to make some budget cuts.  Obviously filming (mostly) one character at a time.  It was tedious.  It was an hour taken out of my wasted time...but it made no difference to the storyline, unless....unless Canning really IS dying.

 

And couldn't they have found some "double" who could at least have a similar profile as Josh Charles...and hair.  This person had more hair than Charles did at age 20.

Edited March 9, 2015 by Former Nun

[KLovestoShop]

What has happened to my favorite show? It's turned into a giant crapfest!!!! While watching tonight's episode, I felt like I was on a bad LSD trip. Why has it become so Alicia-centric? Where are the rest of the characters that have made this supposed ensemble cast so great? Where are the great courtroom stories? I guess I need to take this off my DVR list.

[Artsda]

What a disaster. She still hasn't spoken to her son? After all the lies she's told, what a hypocrite. I hope she doesn't wonder why she's not liked.

 

I was done when she was asked to pray for someone and then instantly called Grace to do it. Like it was picking up the dry cleaning or take out.

[Rosebud1970]

OK, what the actual feck was that? I'm pretty much an unabashed fan of the show and I stared at the DVR clock, willing it to move faster. The writing was sloppy and lazy, the entire show felt like filler and nothing happened to advance the overall story arc.

Fail.

[photo fox]

Well, I was expecting it to be God awful, but it was only somewhat awful, so... Yay?

Fake Will was really unworthy of this show, or any network show for that matter. I honestly thought he was going to dream-morph into Colin Sweeney, because that's who he really resembled.

I miss Cary and Diane. Maybe there's room for MC and CB on AP's new show.

[pennben]

 

Well, I was expecting it to be God awful, but it was only somewhat awful, so... Yay?

 

Ringing endorsement there!:)  However, In a pull quote promoting the show and reviews of this episode, they will show:  "Yay" --photo fox

[meisje]

The fake Will thing was awful. Josh Charles has a very distinct nose. You can't just put some other guy in shadow and expect the audience to believe its him. Either get him for an episode or don't use "new Will" stuff, just rely on flashbacks.

Finally, how pathetic is Alicia that she's still more obsessed with Kalinda and Peter than she has ever been with Ramona and Peter or Peter and the prostitute he slept with in their marital bed? The Ramona betrayal is more recent, she knew Ramona for a much longer time and the affair could have seriously damaged her professional life but somehow when she thinks about Peter cheating, its Kalinda.

Yes, what an awful choice for Will as his nose is probably one of my favorite things about him and one of his most notable features! At least the show is being honest I suppose in that, if it's not Alicia/Julianna, an extra might as well stand in. And yeah show, what really needed to be settled was Alicia letting Will go as opposed to Alicia realizing she might not again ever treat someone who loved her with total disdain and take their existence for granted while managing to only think of herself for years at a time...

 

Poor Nanny Kalinda. First we got that stupid visual of Kalinda's shadowy figure in a doorway when Alicia thought to call her, and then we were treated to a totally ridiculous premise about Kalinda and Peter having had some heated and ongoing affair. I call total lazy and self-indulgent, bullshit writing to try to make sense of demoting Kalinda to a character not even allowed to share the same scene as Alicia in ?? episodes now. Not only is the show's writing practically unrecognizable now, but apparently they want to re-write previous seasons.

 

 

*ETA since even more posters hated it: I also loved the "Fly" episode of Breaking Bad.

The realization that TGW writers were attempting a "Fly" episode struck me with genuine horror. Alicia is no Walt. Walt didn't labor under the constant delusion that he was something other than who he was. And BB never made the mistake of thinking that any character was less interesting, or less worthy of a full plot, story and dialogue, than Bryan Cranston. I would also bet that Bryan didn't insist on all of the money associated with becoming the central character in a successful show where large raises follow additions to titles like co-exec producer, therefore freeing up some budget to allow for other actors to also be featured on the show.

 

I miss Cary and Diane. Maybe there's room for MC and CB on AP's new show.

I really wish this would happen. They could follow the lead of The Closer and write the lead off the show and let us get back to the ensemble and premise (no offense to Kyra Sedgewick, as Brenda at her worst couldn't hold a candle to Alicia -- it's just an example that it's been done). That is about the only season/series finale that would feel satisfying to me after this shit show known as season 6.

 

And what was up with Zach's fever story? I really do miss that character and actor. How charming that she imagined her privileged son to be homeless after standing next to an actual homeless man on the street who was holding out a cup for change, where she stopped and looked at him, only to change songs and continue walking. Eli and Peter wouldn't be written as that insensitive. This show can't be cancelled quickly enough for me.

 

eta: Apparently Josh Charles or a look-a-like made a minuscule appearance on last night's Girls. I couldn't confirm it was actually him, but it's unintentionally hilarious timing nonetheless!

Edited March 9, 2015 by meisje

[Ms Lark]

So glad I watched Walking Dead instead of this. Caught up OnDemand and now I know which one is the real "walking dead." And we thought last week was bad?

[Prima]

This show was awful. It was a waste of time. I kept thinking that I could be doing something else with my time on Sunday nights.

Also, I don't like the storyline of Alicia running for office. It is boring.

Also, Alicia and Peter should just get a divorce already, they're not fooling anyone.

[poppytheastronaut]

I started out hating this episode, and ended up kind of liking it. It may be that unlike others I still find Alicia the most interesting and relatable character, even (or especially?) in her advance along the scale of moral greyness. It feels realistic to me, and I think that it's brave of the show to take this route with her character. I really like that she had the insight to ask herself why some of the choices she was making or considering making were bad when Peter made them, and not now. 

 

Will's stand-in was incredibly poorly chosen (couldn't they just show the back of his head as if he's lying facing away from her or something? Have him standing behind a screen? Or just anything else?). On the other hand, her campaign manager continues adorable, and is starting to severely erode away at my previous Finlicia hopes.

[TVForever]

Unpopular opinion, but I loved it! It showed me how a lawyer's mind works. I really enjoyed it. It was odd to not have the real Will in the scenes, tho. What's up with that?

Yeah, Fake Will was weird. I just assumed they couldn't get Josh Charles, but there had to be a better way to represent the character without using a just so obviously different actor. 

 

I liked the episode too, surprisingly, but I was disappointed to find that the whole thing seemed to be leading to her finally letting Will go.As if that was the basis for her questionable choices lately. I'm curious to see where this goes now.

[Whimsy]

On the other hand, her campaign manager continues adorable, and is starting to severely erode away at my previous Finlicia hopes.

IA.  I was shipping Finn and Alicia simply because I love Matthew Goode.  I now have started to ship John and Alicia for the same reason.  I honestly don't care about the Alicia part of either of those equations.

[ChocButterfly]

Boring, very boring. Even when I don't like episodes I still never find them this boring.

 

I hope Canning dies soon. There I said it, I don't care, I've been tired of him for too long and I'm with Alicia when she told him that he has been dying forever. Just die already!

 

What a disaster. She still hasn't spoken to her son? After all the lies she's told, what a hypocrite. I hope she doesn't wonder why she's not liked.

I was surprised she's still angry at Zach about it and apparently she hasn't had a talk with him!!! She is a truly crappy mom. But then, she's still holding a grudge against Kalinda! She could forgive Peter for sleeping with hookers and cheating on her while being married, but she can't forgive Kalinda for sleeping with a married man whose wife she didn't even know??

 

 

I was done when she was asked to pray for someone and then instantly called Grace to do it. Like it was picking up the dry cleaning or take out.

Actually, I didn't mind that, it was the right thing to do. She doesn't believe, she doesn't pray, but she was asked to by someone who really thought praying would make a difference. Since she can't pray herself, because it wouldn't be of any point, she still honors Canning's wife request by asking someone who really believes to pray for him. So, if pray does anything at all, and if there is a God at all listening, Grace could get through him. I would have done the same thing. Now if she, Alicia, would have prayed, I wouldn't have bought it.

 

I also don't mind Alicia lying about knowing Bishop is founding her campaign. She cannot say she knew. The lying is not the problem, ACCEPTING THE MONEY FROM BISHOP IN THE FIRST PLACE IS THE PROBLEM. She should have returned it or denounce it or whatever from the moment she found out he was funding her. She knew that was the right thing to do, or more likely the ONLY reasonable thing to do! You cannot accept funding from a drug dealer and then expect it not to bite you in the a$$. And I'm not even talking just about the press finding out about it. No, the implications are bigger, what is she going to do when Bishop comes demanding return for his favor? Didn't she ever see the Godfather??

[atir]

I agree with you, chocbutterfly, about the handing off of the praying to Grace. What was A supposed to do when Ms Canning asked A to pray? Tell her that I don't pray but I'll send positive thoughts/vibes to you & Louis?

[AriAu]

Not much happened, but didn't hate the episode. Alicia/Julianne is the star and the true focus of the show, so I am not bothered by an internal monologue about her struggles, demons and thought processes.

Couple of questions about what the episode.

1. Did she actually go to the hospital to see Canning or was that in her head.

2. Anyone else a little freaked out as his 5pm deadline approached, especially as they kept showing the clock.

3. Nice to know that David Lee could still be deceitful and realize that he would gain power if they all had to write checks.

4. Why is she picturing Zack as homeless?

[Gregg247]

That was weird, but not in a good way.  I liked when they did this same type of episode last season when it showed how the characters were thinking through a case, and the different ways things could go.  This episode, though, was just a lady randomly thinking through her whole life.  Isn't that better left to "Previously on The Good Wife..." at the top of the episode?  Very self-indulgent.  

 

Midway through, I couldn't help thinking that the producers must be very comfortable with the idea that the show will be picked up for another season.  If they were close to cancellation, I doubt they would have wasted an hour on this kind of silliness.

[Noreaster]

Loved this episode. I think this season has been pretty uneven (not unusual for this show) and last week's episode was bad. But the bad episodes are worth it for the really great episodes like this week's.  Really smart and well-crafted. Will need to rewatch to catch all the little things I missed.  

[cali1981]

I don't really know what to make of this one.  It was a stream of consciousness jumble.  The best moment was when Peter was with Kalinda and said to Alicia something like "you know we really don't speak this way".  That was actually funny.  One thing that stood out was that Makenzie Vega, who plays Grace, has grown up to become quite a beautiful young lady. 

[photo fox]

Biggest WTF moment for me... Zach has a landline? And he actually tries to answer it? Even assuming he lives somewhere that provides the phone, no teenager I know would give that number to anyone, and so would have no urgency to get to it. And no parent I know would actually expect them to answer it.

For that matter, no teenager I know actually talks on the phone. They let it go to voicemail, listen, and then text back. (Sad, but true.)

[thewhiteowl]

I liked it. Many times I have wondered WTF Alicia was thinking so this was some insight. Like the rest of she is pretty jumbled up and prone to rationalization.  Good to know.

[Julie23]

This never-ending campaign story is sucking the life out of this show. It is no longer a legal drama about legal things, you know, like clients, cases, court.

I never liked Canning, but wondering why he was suing for millions of dollars. Did he not have life insurance to take care of his family?

[TVForever]

I never liked Canning, but wondering why he was suing for millions of dollars. Did he not have life insurance to take care of his family?

        

        Maybe his chronic condition prevented him at some point from getting life insurance that's sufficient to take care of the family at their same living standard.