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S07.E16: Hearing


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As the grand jury against Peter Florrick is assembled, with U.S. Attorney Connor Fox (Matthew Morrison) leading the proceedings, Alicia, Eli and Peter's lawyer, Mike Tascioni (Will Patton), attempt to discover what charges are being leveled against him.  Also, Alicia and Jason attempt to spend a quiet weekend together but are interrupted by her meddling family.
  • Love 1
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Lemme guess. Veronica and Owen walk in on an intimate moment between Alicia and Jason. Hilarity and much drinking ensues.

Veronica sizes up Jason. She interrogates him, he passes the test and she tells Alicia to leave Peter. Owen has a heart to heart with Alicia and tells her that this is her one chance at happiness and not to let it slip away like she did with Will.

I go and throw up in the bathroom.

 

Wait, Alicia, Peter and Eli all have the same lawyer? Come ON, show.

 

I had to re-read the sentence a few times. I think the lawyer is just Peter's. Alicia and Eli help. And Peter does nothing.

  • Love 4
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Why are Smirky and Bitchy eating a NEW YORK style pizza cut in triangles? It was soft and foldable!

It's Chicago... for out of towners you get deep dish (because they always ask for it), and if you're a local, your pizza is thin crust in a "party cut," cut into squares.

That stupid pizza scene really pissed me off!

No shade to NY pizza, I love ALL pizza. But come on, you don't get the pizza that they were eating in Chicago! Idiots.

  • Love 9
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(edited)

I'm interested to see how the elder scam investigation pans out, but if Veronica is routinely falling for such expensive ruses, shouldn't Alicia have power of attorney over her financial affairs?

Edited by shapeshifter
  • Love 2
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So did I understand correctly that they seem to be going with the Locke kid's being Peter's illegitimate son?  Quelle soap!

That's what I took from it.

 

Can't wait until the end of this.

  • Love 1
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I did like the scene in the office where Alicia came on to Jason, and they both turn directly toward the camera for a second. 

 

If they buy Cary out, does his non-compete clause hold or go away, assuming there is one?

  • Love 1
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So did I understand correctly that they seem to be going with the Locke kid's being Peter's illegitimate son?  Quelle soap!

 

 

That's what I took from it.

 

Can't wait until the end of this.

 

That was my first thought, but then the questions about that person who gave bucket loads of money to Peter in 2012 (whatever his name isr) makes absolutely no sense.  I'm thinking the kid is secretly that guy's and where Peter comes in is the dismissal of the case (or whatever the outcome was- I honestly don't pay much attention to this show anymore.  I don't even know why I'm watching it...).  So, this is my guess:

The murder is the secret love child of that guy.  He asks Peter to get his case dismissed in exchange for campaign money, which Peter does with his level of power. 

Feel free to correct me with any proper terminology and names  ;)

  • Love 6
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Alicia has been back at Stern Lockhart Gardner Bond Canning Agos Lee for all of two episodes and they're already pushing for another change in the partners? Good lord.

 

I'm with Eli - I don't want to touch anything in a public bathroom.

 

One very realistic but annoying thing from this episode was the ridiculous expectation that you are required to answer your cell phone at all times. I remember not long ago (circa 2000) when everyone had cell phones but it was totally fine not to answer it every time it rang because it was understood that you might be busy or asleep or at a movie or you didn't want to use your precious minutes or whatever. Now we're to the point where people get mad if you don't answer the phone or respond to a text right away. I had a friend who quit grad school and then would call in the middle of the day because she was bored. She would get annoyed if I didn't answer the phone or call her back right away, despite the fact that she knew I was, you know, AT WORK. Working. Thankfully my parents don't live close enough to just pop by if I don't answer the phone right away because that would drive me insane.

  • Love 10
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The murder is the secret love child of that guy.  He asks Peter to get his case dismissed in exchange for campaign money, which Peter does with his level of power.

 

Yup, that's what I thought too, GenL. That's why the investigation has to do with improper funding. The kid's father bribed for his illegitimate son to have a mistrial giving lots of money to Peter's campaign. 

 

Or something. I don't care anymore, with the shit that Peter has done I have no idea how the guy is not in jail already. Remeber way back in Season 1 when there was a hint that Peter was really corrupt about using public funding to buy Alicia some jewelry? They never mentioned it again.

  • Love 4
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Lemme guess. Veronica and Owen walk in on an intimate moment between Alicia and Jason. Hilarity and much drinking ensues.

Veronica sizes up Jason. She interrogates him, he passes the test and she tells Alicia to leave Peter. Owen has a heart to heart with Alicia and tells her that this is her one chance at happiness and not to let it slip away like she did with Will.

I go and throw up in the bathroom.

 

 

 

IDlT23p.jpg  .... and the line forms behind you.  How very far this series has fallen !!!!

  • Love 3
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So did I understand correctly that they seem to be going with the Locke kid's being Peter's illegitimate son?  Quelle soap!

 

What does it mean that I completely missed this? Nothing good I imagine. Maybe I'm just suffering from Peter-Scandal-itis and can't take the foolery anymore...

 

Speaking of Peter, where is he? Will they just roll him by on a dolly one of these days for 45 seconds? The lack of Chris Noth reminds me of the years of The Closer's reviews always mentioning the "criminally underutilized" Jon Tenney. I realize he's not a primary character, and hasn't been in a while, but his story line is 99% innuendo with a 1% chance that he'll actually be seen or heard. 

 

It's just strange timing that I was reading a review/summary of House of Cards s4 and this made me think of TGW right away: "House of Cards has always been far more interested in the Underwood marriage than it really needed to be. The connection between Frank and Claire isn't as mysterious as the show imagines it is, and it mostly just boils down to 'they both like power, and realize the other can help them attain it.'" Alicia spelled this out in this ep (though I'm not sure what kind of detective would need that spelled out *side-eyeing Jason*), but I find the sentiment apt for TGW considering the entire premise of the show really is the Kings and writers mistakenly think we believe that Alicia is terribly mysterious - with politicians, murderers, and any man (or woman) within a 10-ft radius becoming so enchanted by this brunette enigma that they all want to be a part of her world. I've never felt they've shown us why we should believe this, but they get an "A" for insistence I guess.  

 

Alicia has been back at Stern Lockhart Gardner Bond Canning Agos Lee for all of two episodes and they're already pushing for another change in the partners? Good lord.

 

One question: Are the writers actually required to write in reverse at this point in an attempt to make the story lines work? I lost all patience when Diane reasoned pushing Cary out; it's the newest shark jump in the saga. No, I suppose he is no Will Gardner, especially given that he's only been at partner level for about a year. About half of the time he was co-running a firm, he was stuck in jail, with no one bothering to make his bail though his life was in danger, and which occurred as a result of protecting their only real bankable client. Why would anyone draw the Will comparison at this point? If he was actually at LAL for a decade, with Diane supporting him as a partner, it's plausible he'd have Will-like powers. The reasoning was just so profoundly lacking, and I can only hope the new all-female firm would spend its days hearing "I like the idea of your firm, but you have changed your partners so frequently that I'm not sure what to expect 6 months, a year or 5 years down the line, so no thank you...". Alicia is lousy with scandal, and always with more on the way, it just doesn't check out.

 

I'm with Eli - I don't want to touch anything in a public bathroom.

 

I had a House flashback during the that sequence, it was reminiscent of Three Stories with the real-time heard and imagined characters sharing scenes. 

 

Oh, and show, don't make me dislike you more by suggesting that Chicago's Only Investigator Jason, has time for petty cases and then freelance work on top of being the only investigator working for the entire firm. I would have loved to see him hired when Kalinda was still there if only to watch her run to the courthouse, a client's place, a school, the morgue, tail someone, etc. all while Jason managed a phone call and a coffee run. Hey Diane and Alicia, quit worrying about who's running the place and remember to actually work your cases with competent help! 

  • Love 5
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The murder is the secret love child of that guy.  He asks Peter to get his case dismissed in exchange for campaign money, which Peter does with his level of power.

 

 

Yes, that's the conclusion that I came to as I was falling asleep last night--it's not Peter's kid, it's the kid of some donor that we haven't met and don't care about.  Yawn!

  • Love 1
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Are we in countdown mode yet? How many are left?

 

I didn't see a preview at the end, which leads me to believe there will be no new episode next week, which has become the exhausting pattern. It's probably less about how many are left than how CBS is going to cling to them like they're afraid they'll never see an Emmy again, and it will just be months of this... (FWIW though, I count 6 remaining with the last ep to be aired May 8th). It's like reverse binge watching where you can forgive a lot due to being engrossed, and every stupid plot point will linger for 2 wks until a new ep is released.

  • Love 1
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Is the show forgetting or ignoring that Eli is also a lawyer?

Other than that, an improvement from last week because I actually cared what was going on.

  • Love 6
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You guys, I couldn't even get through the cold open without being knee-deep in hate. I despise Alicia's family. Just despise. I know I'm supposed to think that the quirky shit is cute, or I'm supposed to feel for Alicia because she's such a complete doormat where her blood is concerned, but I hate them so much. This probably has something to do with my own overbearing family that I have no patience for and I probably need to take this up with my therapist. >.>

 

(Please be advised that I positively adore Stockard Channing, so this is a big thumbs up to her acting. Just hate Veronica. Haaaaaate.)

 

Okay. I just needed to get that off my chest. I'll be back.

  • Love 11
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I was actually happy that they included the very disturbing movie Roar as foreplay, because it means that maybe they will revisit the idea that Jason is a sociopath. I still think that could be interesting.

 

Lucca's wardrobe is starting to rival Diane's. Love it or hate it, that blouse was notable.

  • Love 3
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(edited)

Right. So. 

 

As Thog mentioned upthread, Roar sort of becoming their go-to sexytime viewing is kinda messed up. Even beyond Jason being a sociopath, which we really knew already, Alicia clearly is one too, and I hope they really pull the covers back on that (figuratively, not literally; whatever they were doing under there during that scene in the cold open looked awkward and I'm fine with letting that stay unseen.)

 

It is to Dallas Roberts' credit that I only expected him to come in and menace people for about a minute or so. He plays creepy so horribly well that I was worried that I could never see him as Owen again. I really hope the end of TGW isn't the end of his career. He's a much better actor than he seems at first blush. 

 

Dug Matthew Morrison's beard. I hardly recognized him. 

 

The recaps need a "meh" button, instead of just "love" and "hate." Who do I talk to about that? I didn't love this episode. I didn't hate it. It was meh. It's a good thing that it's ending; it's tired. I think that's it. It's just tired. It's given us all it can muster and all we got is meh.

Edited by Risky Librarian
  • Love 3
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It is to Dallas Roberts' credit that I only expected him to come in and menace people for about a minute or so. He plays creepy so horribly well that I was worried that I could never see him as Owen again. I really hope the end of TGW isn't the end of his career. He's a much better actor than he seems at first blush.

 

He really is. I swear I've seen him everywhere in the past few years. He was even on The Walking Dead while he was also on TGW for a while, which was utterly bizarre given that both were airing a few hours apart on Sundays. It seems like he pops up in movies as much as television, and some pretty high-profile stuff. He's one of the few actors I can think of who really gets a variety of roles instead of just playing the same guy over and over again which is refreshing.

 

Dug Matthew Morrison's beard. I hardly recognized him.

 

He looks extremely different these days; is it just the beard? I've wondered if it's even something more drastic. Speaking of actors on 2 shows simultaneously, he just guest starred on Sutton Foster's show Younger, but given that his story was that he had a special relationship with a sheep, it's fair to say his TGW role is better stuff.

 

I was actually happy that they included the very disturbing movie Roar as foreplay, because it means that maybe they will revisit the idea that Jason is a sociopath. I still think that could be interesting.

 

I'm still wondering why they ever introduced the idea since there hasn't been much followup, and there isn't much time left. If not for that random call with Alicia specifically warning her and recommending "The Sociopath Next Door," it could just be another eccentric character trait like all of the judges have. I've also wondered if it's a sloppy shoutout to Sherlock Holmes/Elementary. We can only hope the show decides to finish that thread.  

  • Love 2
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Plastic Surgery? I think that he had something years ago, mid Glee run, but not recently.

Ever since he finished Glee and began Finding Neverland he has seemed much more happier, glowing you might say. It could be that.

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(edited)

It stuns me that one of the best shows on TV has been reduced to the drivel we're now watching.

 

I'm as far from a prude as you can get and the love scenes with Alicia and Jason are nauseating.

 

Another 40 min or so of my life a I won't get back and have nothing to show for it.

Edited by CaptainCranky
  • Love 3
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I thought it was pretty clear that the Locke kid is somehow related to the Lloyd Garber who donated to Peter's campaign (though not necessarily an illegitimate son or whatever).

I think this was a fun episode. I could do without the Lockhart Agos power struggle but all the other stories were enjoyable to me. The Alicia/Jason affair is not super serious, Veronica and Owen are fun, the Eli stuff is good comic relief. A good lighthearted episode.

  • Love 3
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I'm only curious to see how it ends and who winds up in prison, disbarred or worse.

As long as Eli is not among the aforementioned, I'm good.

If this show could shit out a Eli, Mike, Marisa and Charlie spin off I could forgive. And forget.

  • Love 2
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I honestly don't know what to make of this episode. It felt so disjointed. There were the comedy parts first with everybody busting in on Alicia and Jason which was halfway funny and then the gimmick with Eli trying to listen to the hearing which was well done, especially the overlapping of the two different scenarios he was listening in. (I could have done without the gimmicks in front of the handicapped bathroom though.)

 

Diane wanting to get rid of Carey because he's not Will makes zero sense. And despite the show insisting that Alicia is bff with Lucca I find it hard that to believe that a woman who's been emotionally clamped up for 6 seasons all of a sudden would be so open. And the Freudian slip from 'Will' to 'Jason' was a master class in subtle writing.

  • Love 3
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That was my first thought, but then the questions about that person who gave bucket loads of money to Peter in 2012 (whatever his name isr) makes absolutely no sense.  I'm thinking the kid is secretly that guy's and where Peter comes in is the dismissal of the case (or whatever the outcome was- I honestly don't pay much attention to this show anymore.  I don't even know why I'm watching it...).  So, this is my guess:

The murder is the secret love child of that guy.  He asks Peter to get his case dismissed in exchange for campaign money, which Peter does with his level of power. 

Feel free to correct me with any proper terminology and names  ;)

 

That makes much more sense than the defendant being Peter's son. Because if the guy was on trial for murder in 2012 then he would have to be older than Zach and Grace (otherwise he'd be on trial in the juvie courts. And if he's older than Zach or Grace than he'd be from before Alicia and not much of a scandal. But funding a defense when he was SA is pretty sketchy. It also explains why they are talking about the donor.

 

Cary said the case ended in a mistrial though. Could Peter have arranged the mistrial?

 

I'm only half-watching at this point, but did Jason open the door of the governor's wife's home in a pink robe to greet the pizza delivery guy? 

 

I thought of that too. Because shouldn't that officially be the governor's house too?

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I was actually happy that they included the very disturbing movie Roar as foreplay, because it means that maybe they will revisit the idea that Jason is a sociopath. I still think that could be interesting.

Is that what the point of that was?

 

Lucca's wardrobe is starting to rival Diane's. Love it or hate it, that blouse was notable.

Highlight of the episode, IMO.
  • Love 1
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Wow, I never thought I would say this, but fuck Diane.  The only reason there's a firm to try to take over is because Cary had the idea and the plan to start one in S5, which Diane then joined when her own firm imploded.  And fuck Alicia for her weak-ass defense of him, after he JUST rescued her from her legal/financial ruin like two weeks ago.

 

At this point, the only way I will be happy with the series finale is if Cary ousts both of them to take complete control of the firm.  Or he leaves corporate law behind to go back to the Innocence Project (and becomes the center of a spinoff).

 

Alicia and Jason have less than zero chemistry. They're cringeworthy. I've been watching old episodes, and it's striking compared to JM's chemistry with Chris Noth and Josh Charles.

  • Love 15
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Alicia has been back at Stern Lockhart Gardner Bond Canning Agos Lee for all of two episodes and they're already pushing for another change in the partners? Good lord.

 

I'm with Eli - I don't want to touch anything in a public bathroom.

 

One very realistic but annoying thing from this episode was the ridiculous expectation that you are required to answer your cell phone at all times. I remember not long ago (circa 2000) when everyone had cell phones but it was totally fine not to answer it every time it rang because it was understood that you might be busy or asleep or at a movie or you didn't want to use your precious minutes or whatever. Now we're to the point where people get mad if you don't answer the phone or respond to a text right away. I had a friend who quit grad school and then would call in the middle of the day because she was bored. She would get annoyed if I didn't answer the phone or call her back right away, despite the fact that she knew I was, you know, AT WORK. Working. Thankfully my parents don't live close enough to just pop by if I don't answer the phone right away because that would drive me insane.

 

 

My father sends me an email if I don't answer my phone. The subject is ANSWER YOUR PHONE and the body says "answering phones is a good thing". The other day he sent it to me after I'd already had four phone calls to him that day and went to a movie.

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You guys, I couldn't even get through the cold open without being knee-deep in hate. I despise Alicia's family. Just despise. I know I'm supposed to think that the quirky shit is cute, or I'm supposed to feel for Alicia because she's such a complete doormat where her blood is concerned, but I hate them so much. This probably has something to do with my own overbearing family that I have no patience for and I probably need to take this up with my therapist. >.>

My comment to the friend with whom I watched this episode was, "I'm so tired of shows trying to convince me that family members with no respect for boundaries are enjoyable to watch."

 

If I decided to sleep in on a rare day off and have massive amounts of sex or, more likely, treat myself to a bingeathon, anyone who dared to interrupt that would be summarily dismissed in such a way that they'd never attempt to do it again. Call before you come over, if you want me to answer the door. If you can't get me on the phone, assume I'm unavailable.

 

My friend pointed out that if she couldn't get me on the phone she might come over out of fear something bad may have happened to me. To which I replied, "Well, your coming over wouldn't make me any less dead!"

 

Anyway, I'm so over this show. I'm hate-watching with the rest of you, but I don't know if I'll make it to the finale. 

  • Love 5
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(edited)

I don't know why the producers decided to pay for a guest appearance by Dallas Roberts if he was gong to spend the whole episode doing little more than follow Veronica around.

I am only still watching because I've invested too much of my time not to see the end. I don't even like the dog, and I LOVE dogs.

Edited by Athena5217
  • Love 3
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My comment to the friend with whom I watched this episode was, "I'm so tired of shows trying to convince me that family members with no respect for boundaries are enjoyable to watch."

 

If I decided to sleep in on a rare day off and have massive amounts of sex or, more likely, treat myself to a bingeathon, anyone who dared to interrupt that would be summarily dismissed in such a way that they'd never attempt to do it again. Call before you come over, if you want me to answer the door. If you can't get me on the phone, assume I'm unavailable.

 

Yes! Thank you! That's exactly the phrasing that I couldn't think of earlier in my cold medicine haze. I have boundaries, and I love them, and watching shows with people with no boundaries just kills me and makes me mad. And they're the worst kind of people without boundaries too, the ones that are so far into their lack of boundaries that they act like you having them makes you weird and tight-assed, and if they could just impose on you enough times, you'll finally see how great it is to have them all up in your shit all the time. Not. Even. Close. 

 

I am only still watching because I've invested too much of my time not to see the end. I don't even like the dog, and I LOVE dogs.

 

Even the dog has to be quirky. Poor dog. 

  • Love 3
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(edited)

Wow, I never thought I would say this, but fuck Diane.  The only reason there's a firm to try to take over is because Cary had the idea and the plan to start one in S5, which Diane then joined when her own firm imploded.  And fuck Alicia for her weak-ass defense of him, after he JUST rescued her from her legal/financial ruin like two weeks ago.

At this point, the only way I will be happy with the series finale is if Cary ousts both of them to take complete control of the firm.  Or he leaves corporate law behind to go back to the Innocence Project (and becomes the center of a spinoff).

Alicia and Jason have less than zero chemistry. They're cringeworthy. I've been watching old episodes, and it's striking compared to JM's chemistry with Chris Noth and Josh Charles.

 

1000 likes to this! You've now set my new bar for "only satisfactory ending" to include Cary sending them on their way. Would either Diane or Alicia be a partner anywhere without him towing the line of continuity through their series of unending dramas? As far as I can tell, he's the named lawyer working actual cases consistently and keeping firm business handled while the others have limitless amounts of time to play imaginary firm chess and always have irons in the fire for judgeships, SA, random Democratic appointments, and head of current-or-next firm. 

 

Clearly I'm immune to the supposed charms of JDM so I can't objectively judge, but you're quite right about the old Will-and-Alicia chemistry. I've watched a few reruns in the past couple of months and been floored at how much chemistry existed between multiple people in the firm, but you could take all of the "romantic" entanglements of the past few years and barely fill a thimble with convincing chemistry.

 

Whether it was the character of Will, or what the actor Josh Charles exudes, it's clear to me that, from the start, anything remotely sympathetic, interesting or likable about Alicia was a virtual organ donation from Will/Josh. Jason and Alicia are nothing more than two basic sociopathic sticks using each other to try to create a spark. The only good thing I can say about them is that is they've removed each other from the dating pool. Even Lucca (who supposedly has no interest in people, friendships or relationships -- with the exception of the magical Alicia) and Rowby had more heat, nuance and believability. 

 

I am only still watching because I've invested too much of my time not to see the end. I don't even like the dog, and I LOVE dogs.

 

This is the biggest laugh I've had all day, so thank you for that. I don't know much of anything about Chihuahuas in particular, but I'm worried about its poor little spine every time it's on screen. These smaller breeds are often treated like accessories, but don't they require standard walking and moving around time (and not to be held paws-up defying gravity day after day) to not develop a doggie herniated disc or something?  

Edited by meisje
  • Love 8
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So did I understand correctly that they seem to be going with the Locke kid's being Peter's illegitimate son?  Quelle soap!

That made no sense (same with the theory that the defendant's illegitimate dad was a big donor) because . . . Peter was the prosecutor. If he wanted, couldn't he have had the case dismissed outright or sandbagged it a hundred different ways that didn't involve paying for pricy defense attorneys? Whatever, I'm sure Peter did something horrible that has nothing to do with Alicia so the audience cheers when she leaves him for Jason. Although didn't the Kings forget about Eli? If Peter did something and Eli, campaign supermanager, doesn't know about it, doesn't it make clever, scheming, Eli look kind of stupid? We already know Peter stole the SA election for Alicia without Eli knowing, at a certain point it's going to get harder and harder to keep seeing Eli as the brilliant manipulator everyone keeps saying he is. 

 

The other two things that bugged me were the scenes in the courtroom, and the fact that the Random Characterization Generator ended up on "Diane likes Alicia" this week. When they showed the voices of Conor and Hlavin cutting in and out and getting louder snd softer, it drove me absolutely insane because I had to turn the volume of my computer all the way up and rewind those scenes a million times so I could hear everything, and I hate doing that. Why make it hard for me to watch your show, assholes? I'm sure they thought it was some clever stylistic trick, but all it does is take me out of the action and remind me I'm watching a show. 

 

And wasn't it literally last episode where Diane was mad at Alicia and lecturing her like a stupid child? Didn't she resist having Alicia come back to the firm in the first place and Cary had to practically go over her head? Now she wants to start a firm with Alicia? That makes zero sense, even if you assume a woman's only firm would be something people actually do, which it isn't. 

 

Still place-setting. We still don't know what Peter did, except that it somehow involves Shackowsky, Ruth, Peter's donor, and the damn NSA. The more they drag out the reveal, the harder it is not to disappoint the audience if it doesn't live up to the hype. 

  • Love 2
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Is the show forgetting or ignoring that Eli is also a lawyer?

Other than that, an improvement from last week because I actually cared what was going on.

Eli forgot too--he distinctly said "I am not a lawyer" to Alicia and chihuahua lawyer before, during, or after the magic airvent listening scenes.

I think Vlock will be the voting machine manufacturer.

Really annoying that all the testimony was muffled and the courtroom scenes were in Eli's head. It's hard enough to make sense of this show without being cutesy with the sound and the filming.

OTOH I was impressed that JM filmed those bedroom scenes topless. It seems to be the standard today that women in the tv world never take their bras off while actively engaged in sex, so good on you for that, JM!

  • Love 2
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