The Good Wife: Oppo Research
October 13, 2014 8:35 AM - Season 6, Episode 4 - Subscribe

Alicia makes a big decision, and finds out some shocking information in the process. A new cast member is introduced. Is Peter up to his old ways, or is there a more innocent explanation? Someone has to leave Florrick & Agos, but that doesn't mean they're really gone.
posted by desjardins (27 comments total)
 
I guess I'm on board for the run after this great episode, but I still don't understand why she's doing it. She's asked a few times throughout and deflects the question every time. I get that it's a way to depict creeping systemic corruption in ways the show hasn't been able to touch fully and I have faith in the show, but seeing Alicia's cold hard politician face after speaking with Zach and hurting other family members was awful. That's not even getting into the scariness of the final scene; how can you do a good job as States Attorney if you're beholden to the scariest drug lord around?
posted by yellowbinder at 9:14 AM on October 13, 2014 [2 favorites]


"It's like a Marx brothers film in here."

"I don't tell my children whom I'm sleeping with. It might upset them when they're leaving early in the morning to have their abortions."

I don't like the election plot turn, but I have to admit it's being well handled.
posted by orange swan at 9:43 AM on October 13, 2014 [1 favorite]


What was up with the meeting between Kalinda and Eli? It was weirdly tense and she was cagey (well, more so than normal). Did/does Eli have a crush on her or am I imagining/misremembering that?

Also, I like Finn sooo much and I wish he and Alicia could have somehow ended up together. Assuming she runs and wins, I guess that makes her his boss and I guess that rules out a relationship. I feel like they're setting something up between her and her campaign manager.

Final thought: not enough Diane this season, although I'm probably saying that because she reminds me of my divorce attorney (who I liked).
posted by desjardins at 9:56 AM on October 13, 2014


"Christianity, 3; Atheism, 0,"

I can't believe I didn't see who had set up Alicia's PAC coming, but when it was revealed, I rolled my eyes -- not because I didn't believe it but because I didn't realize the show was giving me exactly what I wanted again before I knew I wanted it.

Emily Nussbaum had some great tweets this morning about the Darkness at Noon in-universe parody and what The Good Wife is trying to say with it (other than "not all cable 'prestige dramas' are worth your time). I'm going to just copy the text of the tweets here but recommend checking out the links for her back-and-forth replies (especially the second and third:

I know some people think the AMC parody is laid on a bit thick, but I like it for a specific reason: it shoves it in the audience's face...

that what they're watching is an anti-heroine show, just not one soaked in speeches & stags & "badasses." It's an argument about itself.

It almost feels like the show is punching back at misreads of Alicia, by refusing to give us grand idealistic speeches or loving mothering.

So basically, it's The Sopranos after Chase got frustrated at fans for panting after Tony. Except sleeker, bouncier and not as angry.

btw I'm not saying Alicia is a monster. But she is a person who gets so furious at someone lying to her that she orders them to lie.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 10:26 AM on October 13, 2014 [3 favorites]


At this point, Eli is absolutely my favorite male character on the show.

The scene where he goes to talk with Peter just...really, it killed me. Because Eli is a true believer. He's backed Peter all these years because he really does think, deep down, that Peter is the best man for the job and that Peter is trying his best to be the best version of himself. Or at least, a better version of himself. And being told about what happened with Kalinda so obviously struck him like a physical blow -- just knocked the wind right out of him, leaving him to stand there in front of Peter the next day and try to keep his shit together. More than once in the past season or two, I've felt like I was watching Eli grasp at the broken pieces of his faith in Peter, trying to reassemble them into something that will let him keep doing his job, keep believing, keep setting his entire personal life aside for the sake of Peter's needs.

I'm just really, REALLY interested to see where this is all going, is the thing.

Also, I know I'm supposed to be rooting for Finn as the "replacement" for Will, but Alicia's scenes with Eli have a much more intriguing, energetic quality to them. There's so much history between the characters, so much necessary intimacy that's pushed them into a far more personal relationship than they might have expected or wanted to begin with, a sense that the two of them are allies against the chaotic elements closing in on the already tattered Florrick family.

I'm also not fond of this twist in Alicia's story, but if it's a setup for a deeper and more complicated relationship between herself and Eli, I'm willing to get on board.
posted by Narrative Priorities at 11:26 AM on October 13, 2014


Like a romantic relationship? I just don't see that happening in a million years. Maybe Eli has a thing for her, but no way is it reciprocated. In any case, as soon as I saw Handsome Campaign Manager walk through the door, I thought "ayup, they'll be sleeping together."

I'm just really, REALLY interested to see where this is all going, is the thing.

Same. At the end of last season, I think we all knew that she would decide to run, but there are so many directions this could go.
posted by desjardins at 11:36 AM on October 13, 2014


Oh, I know a literal romantic relationship Eli and Alicia isn't likely to happen on the actual show (although jeez, who knows, I certainly haven't seen a few other twists coming!) -- I'm just hoping for more shared screentime, and for things to basically continue along the path they're already following.

I had a similar thought with regards to Handsome Campaign Manager, but ugh. I hope not. :/
posted by Narrative Priorities at 11:48 AM on October 13, 2014


I thought the accumulating bad revelations would convince her not to run. That Castro is a bad 'un has really only affected her in regards to Cary, and in their meeting last week, he *really* overplayed his hand. Would a politician be that crass?

Still, she was ambivalent until she saw the PAC webpage with all the money being raised. She was flattered. Now she knows it was sponsored by Bishop and it's all his money so it's not a reflection of popular support for St Alicia. Plus, how can she run without this coming out to bite her in the ass?

Nope, don't want her to run.

But this: "she is a person who gets so furious at someone lying to her that she orders them to lie" forces me to admit we're in for a bumpy ride.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 11:58 AM on October 13, 2014 [1 favorite]


I actually like that they've made such a point of having real-life women in political and feminism circles lean on her to run, as I think that flattery is a large part of what made it so appealing. The situation with Castro almost seems like more of an excuse -- she wants to run because she wants to be An Important Woman Politician whom other Important Women are proud of, but that must feel too self-indulgent to be a "real" reason that she shares in conversation.

That said, it seems like the show has deliberately obfuscated her private reasons, which is in keeping with her generally guarded nature. I wonder if we'll ever get more insight, or if they'll leave it vague.
posted by Narrative Priorities at 12:05 PM on October 13, 2014


In any case, as soon as I saw Handsome Campaign Manager walk through the door, I thought "ayup, they'll be sleeping together."

Peter: Didn't he recently have an accident that left him with a scar on his face?

Grasp at those straws, Peter!
posted by orange swan at 1:01 PM on October 13, 2014 [3 favorites]


Literal LOLing when Eli was telling her irony doesn't play well in the press. Have had literally the same conversation with my campaign manager. (Also, for that matter, my lawyer: "Depositions are not the place for sarcasm.")
posted by Eyebrows McGee at 3:06 PM on October 13, 2014 [1 favorite]


What was up with the meeting between Kalinda and Eli? It was weirdly tense and she was cagey (well, more so than normal).

Kalinda always gets really cagey and guarded when the subject of her relationship with Peter comes up, with anybody. There are hints - little tidbits dropped in conversations and a lot of really fine, subtle acting - that Kalinda's relationship with Peter was kind of a big factor in her becoming who she is now. She seems to really intensely regret it, in spite of (or maybe because of) indications that the relationship was one where she was really vulnerable at the time and Peter had all the power in the relationship. A lot of Kalinda since then seems to be about trying to kind of atone for that relationship while simultaneously never letting herself be that vulnerable or powerless in any other relationship. But it's still a huge sore point for her, and she basically shuts down anytime anyone brings it up (except for Alicia, who Kalinda feels incredibly guilty towards, and I also suspect, without much basis, that she may have sublimated some of her attraction to Peter into adoration of Peter's wife). I love that it's the kind of narrative that you could write a whole Kalinda-centric TV show around, but it's never explicitly spelled out or delved into, it's just left as hints on the periphery, which is some remarkable restraint on the part of the writers, not to mention a lot of fantastic acting from Archie Panjabi.
posted by mstokes650 at 3:32 PM on October 13, 2014 [1 favorite]


you could write a whole Kalinda-centric TV show

omg wouldn't that be an awesome spinoff after this show ends? I would watch the hell out of that, if only for her clothes.
posted by desjardins at 4:43 PM on October 13, 2014 [2 favorites]


I appreciate the show's disdain for spoilers.
posted by jeather at 5:19 PM on October 13, 2014 [1 favorite]


The funniest thing is how the show makes light fun of "post-episode talk shows about the episode you just watched" in a way I find amusing, but I would also SO watch smart people weekly yakking about The Good Wife.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 5:29 PM on October 13, 2014 [1 favorite]


The betrayal and grief with her son was just wonderfully played. It was brutal because she had to process this enormous news while handling other people (and she couldn't talk to her mother and brother because she was handling them, such a disaster with Owen who could have been the person she leaned on as Peter is still - she didn't quite believe he didn't know, but Owen was so hurt), and he was the son she adored and trusted, to find out that he had lied well to her just as his father had, and that she hadn't bren the parent in the room, that the other parents had been there - brutal.
posted by viggorlijah at 6:14 PM on October 13, 2014 [1 favorite]


I was intrigued as to whether Finn really is her friend with no hard feelings, or whether he was the one setting her up. The line about her weakness (in this case wine) seems like he was in on the DUI setup, but we all want him to be a good guy, and it's not conclusive. Perhaps Castro knew about the meeting and used that without Finn's knowledge to set her up for the photo?
posted by TwoWordReview at 6:15 PM on October 13, 2014 [1 favorite]


Or the alternate theory: Finn knew or suspected a DUI setup might happen and that's why he wanted her to call a cab.

I don't really root for an Alicia/Finn relationship because it'd be doomed anyway, especially since she can never, ever get a divorce. Hard for me to care about the hot man-meat there, really.

The whole episode I was screaming in my head DON'T RUN, DON'T RUN! I wouldn't want anyone I liked to take up politics, I honestly think it's like drinking poison for your soul. Look how vicious it is already and how much ammo there is against this "saint." And that was where Alicia started turning into an asshole. Barking at Zach to lie and wanting to cut him off financially--never thought I'd hear her ever say such a thing. Now she'll only go more asshole from here on in. Plus we get to wait until Saint Alicia's affair comes out--probably during the debate on national television or something choice. I would be surprised if Castro didn't win with flying colors.

Poor Owen.

Hoo boy, Bishop. Now he's suddenly fine with quitting once he can get a politician in his pocket. Whee.
posted by jenfullmoon at 10:28 PM on October 13, 2014 [2 favorites]


I've only been watching since last season, so a question for long-time viewers: was Nissa's pregnancy and abortion known (or even hinted at) to viewers before this episode? Or was that as out-of-the-blue to everyone else as it was to me (and Alicia)?
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 4:42 AM on October 14, 2014


was Nissa's pregnancy and abortion known (or even hinted at)

Hinted at very obliquely last season in the NSA phone tapping scenes. Nissa was calling Zach and hanging up. The NSA was interested because her father supposedly had some extremist ties, he might even have been the focal point of the investigation which then led to Alicia (or Will could have been the starting point, I forget). At that time she hadn't even been on an episode for months; I thought her storyline had been dropped.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 6:40 AM on October 14, 2014


I thought her storyline had been dropped

They tend to bring up small plots like that much later. The only plot I can remember them just plain dropping was the terrible Kalinda's ex plot.
posted by jeather at 8:52 AM on October 14, 2014


Not so much dropped as drop-kicked out the door to the relief of many.

After the amazing reveal of Zach's secret, which was both out-of-the-blue but managed to not feel like a cheat if you remembered last season, I am even more fascinated by the process in The Good Wife writers room for plotting out story. Part of me assumes when they got to the idea of Alicia running and the opposition research, they came up with the backstory that fit with the timeline of Alicia being overwhelmed with her new firm/Will's death so she didn't know what was going on under her own roof even more than usual. But then part of me wonders if they were really playing the long game and back when Zach wasn't around much last season and someone asked "So where is Zach during this?" and they came up with "Saying he's at Boston College but really with Nisa and her parents having an abortion."

It's probably somewhere in between but I can't help but be curious.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 10:05 AM on October 14, 2014 [1 favorite]


I'm wondering if the person who left doctored photos - the B&W photos Zach hid from Alicia - will reappear. Was that story-line concluded while I was folding laundry or is that still a mystery?

More Cary. When he was arrested, I hoped for a more Cary-centered season.

Her running would make me quit if it wasn't for more Eli and maybe his fantastic daughter.

(And what is with fat, vaguely upholstery patterned ties? They're everywhere, or at least on the sharp dressers.)
posted by Lesser Shrew at 2:21 PM on October 14, 2014


It looked like Eli left his cell phone on the table when he and Kalinda hurried out without ordering anything.
posted by Obscure Reference at 3:40 PM on October 14, 2014


I thought the new campaign manager was creepy, and I thought that we were supposed to think that something was up with him possibly not being who he says he is (scar on face comment). Theory: he's actually a plant by Castro. He went to Alicia's place, saw her drinking wine, then planned with Castro to set up the DWI pullover (complete with flash photo coming from passing car). I'm about to watch last night's episode though so I will probably find out I was wrong.

Eli is great, his daughter is great, and it would be great to have more of both of them. And Parker Posey!
posted by tractorfeed at 5:25 AM on October 20, 2014


Kalinda always gets really cagey and guarded when the subject of her relationship with Peter comes up, with anybody. There are hints - little tidbits dropped in conversations and a lot of really fine, subtle acting - that Kalinda's relationship with Peter was kind of a big factor in her becoming who she is now.

I'm only just getting caught up, but I sort of suspect that Peter and Kalinda were involved together in something worse than an affair (e.g. some political shenanigans or having someone offed) and the story that they slept together is a coverup for that.
posted by ktkt at 10:53 PM on January 12, 2015 [3 favorites]


I'm wondering if the person who left doctored photos - the B&W photos Zach hid from Alicia - will reappear. Was that story-line concluded while I was folding laundry or is that still a mystery?

IIRC that was the season 1 bad guy played by Titus Welliver.
posted by Monochrome at 3:39 PM on August 25, 2015


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