The Good Wife: Wanna Partner?
May 10, 2015 10:25 PM - Season 6, Episode 22 - Subscribe
Alicia's client is dropped down a legal oubliette. Peter's political plans get even bigger. Louis Canning gets pissed off. Who will Alicia partner with in a new law firm? And as for Kalinda....
Okay, where do I start?
Peter's Political Plans: It's time to sit everyone down and say that Peter's now going to run for president! Er, vice president first. Who's down with that? Grace reasonably wonders if Alicia will go to Iowa with Peter and Alicia, currently unemployed, claims she'll be "too busy." Grace is all, does that mean you're going to still fake being married, and Peter is all "technically" and Alicia is all "yes." During the "family meeting" portion of this episode, Alicia points out to Peter privately that Grace will say okay to this because he wants it, and then the entire family will be put through the wringer and she'll feel bad about it. Also, why are you bothering to ask our opinions when it's not our decision, it's yours and Eli's, and you can't walk away from that. Peter is all, if you believe that, you don't know me. Anyway, Alicia flat out says NO, she doesn't want Peter to run. Peter says okay and walks out, and that's the end of him for this episode.
Later on, Alicia spots "too tough softer" written on her ghostwriter's rough draft, suspects rightly that Eli put him up to this to make her sound like a homemaker, and tells him to his face she doesn't want Peter to run. Will this stick? Find out next season!
Waiting for Godot: Right after the whole presidential announcement, Alicia gets a too-late call from her client Jacob Richter calling for help. She figures out he must be getting arrested and ends up tracking his phone down to Homan Street, which turns out to be some kind of police oubliette where they can just secretly stash a dude indefinitely with no legal aid, and they kick her out when she walks in. Tons of legal wrangling with her and Finn on the job ensue, trying to find out if the guy was ever actually arrested/Mirandized, and if he asked for a lawyer or was even given the option to (they also charmingly claim that Jacob "is meeting with his lawyer right now" when Alicia shows up with a court order later), etc., etc. They eventually end up faking that Jacob has epilepsy and will keel over after 16 hours off meds--Alicia tells a guard this after she stakes him out and gives him Finn's phone number as the "doctor." (And does a happy dance in her seat when the call happens.)
Even the judge thinks all of this shit is even fishier than the fake phone call and eventually demands that Jacob show up within 2 hours. This does finally happen ("There was a Godot-like experience," the judge says) and they find out that Jacob confessed under duress. Officer Tannerman, the guy Alicia has been harassing at Homan all episode, testifies that he heard Jacob described as a 10-26--police code for someone who's been arrested. And after all this shit, they get the confession thrown out! Huzzah!
What was Jacob arrested for, you ask? Was it bombs? Terrorism? Um, no, it was pot. WHAT.
The Cannings: Oh, look, doesn't that new paralegal hired at Lockhart, Agos, and Lee look familiar? Why, it's Simone, Louis Canning's wife, applying under her maiden name! I'm sure that's not fishy At All! She claims she just wanted to "do something herself," but David Lee is all GTFO, she's a spy. Diane attempts to defend her, but in the end does the firing herself, and Simone cries and says she can't get a job anywhere else. (Wonder why.)
Later, Louis storms in all ticked off and says that he's never gone after any of their families before (because none of us have any, David Lee drawls, forgetting that Diane eloped), but now he is SUPER PISSED OFF! More on him later.
The End Of Kalinda: Mr. Lester, Lemond Bishop's actual criminal lawyer, "drops by" a few places looking for Kalinda. He first stops at Alicia's while she's distracted trying to find Jacob. He has the reasonable assumption given Alicia's last claim in court that she's the last one who saw Kalinda. Alicia is all, "Did you see my husband's bodyguards out there? They gave me a panic button and when I was out getting you your water, I pushed it."
Next, he drops by LAL (har) and they haven't seen her either. Cary attempts to e-mail Kalinda to warn her, but he gets insta-mail failure.
As Lester wanders the grocery store looking for the ultimate frozen pizza (really), HE FINDS KALINDA WAITING FOR HIM. He was wondering when she'd contact him! So what's your question? "Do you know where you can get a good frozen pizza?" he asks, no, I am not kidding. She grabs his phone. Did you betray Mr. Bishop? No. But you ran. Well, I read the writing on the wall, Dexter was blaming me. "Hey! Pizza in the Wall it is," he responds. She offers Lester a deal: leave her work and friends alone and she'll see Bishop as he's asking. How do you define friends, Lester asks, and she's all "You know who." She agrees to see Bishop on Wednesday at 8. He would have preferred sooner! Wait, what about my phone? Go buy a new one!
Later as Alicia's in the bar... HOLY SHIT, YES, SHE AND KALINDA ARE ON SCREEN TOGETHER NO SPLIT SCREEN NO NOTHING ONCE AGAIN HOLY SHIIIIIIIIIIIT. And it actually seems friendly! (Call that acting!) I thought you were gone, Lester's asking about you. Kalinda thinks she's safe for the next five minutes--let's do some tequila shots one last time for the road. Anyway, while we never get to read the letter, Kalinda says it's a confession (of what, I'm not totally sure--about Bishop?) that Alicia can use to get off the hook (for what?) and she should give the note to Lester. Alicia has the quote of the episode: "A great thing happened when I lost the election. I gave up." She doesn't care what anyone else thinks any more, she threw that shit overboard. "It's nice not to care." She missed drinking with Kalinda though! Kalinda says she's never been very good at talking, but she does need to say this: "My time with you as my friend was the best I ever had, and I'm sorry. I'm really sorry that things got messed up." "I wish we had the chance to do it over again," Alicia says. They drink once more. "I'll never see you again, will I?" Alicia asks*, and Kalinda says she doesn't think so. "That's too bad," Alicia says, and whispers a "bye" as Kalinda leaves. (Later she sees that fake Kalinda that's going around in the bar, but that's not her.)
* as presumably Julianna Margulies is doing a happy dance inside for the same reason, maybe she should win an Emmy for that?
Lester shows up at Alicia's one more time after Kalinda fails to show up for Bishop, and Alicia whips out the letter where she stashed it in the kitchen, fires up her oven, and dramatically sets it on fire in front of Lester. Why did you do that? I didn't want you to have it. What did it say in it? It said goodbye, Mr. Lester. Goodbye!
In her final scene, Lester is attempting to get someone to wait on him to get another phone when Kalinda returns his. She realized that if Bishop is leaving the business and giving it all to Dexter, what's the point in meeting him if he has no power? Don't test MY power, Lester says. Why not? Because Bishop has people like me working for him! Kalinda is all, btw, that flash drive had notes on YOUR employment, but I didn't turn it over to the state and I could change my mind on that. No bluff.
Lester is all, "What is it with all these tough-talking women?!" Why can't they just be demure?! Fine, I'll say I didn't find you, don't make me a liar by coming back. And...are you sure you don't want to go into business with me? (Hah.) "We could dominate!" No, she's good. Kalinda puts on her sunglasses and struts out of our lives forever, to badass music.
Who Will Alicia Partner Up With? At the beginning of the episode, Finn says he'll partner with Alicia. The sexual chemistry continues, but Finn bails early on bar activities because he can't go there. He's dating his ex-wife, trying to make things right. By the end of the episode, he bails on the partnership and presumably, the entire show. Darn it.
Just as Alicia is moping that she doesn't want to be alone, Louis Canning knocks on her door. You were looking for a partner?
THE END.
Okay, before I finish: Right around the start of the episode, my mom calls to tell me Alicia is pregnant! I am all WHAT? She slept with that Johnny dude once! With Peter's political plans? Holy shit, what's going to happen now? I am all, how do you know this, it hasn't even aired where you live yet (I have early prime time)?, but never got an answer to this and I quickly kicked her off the phone to watch the rest.
She calls me at the end of the episode. "Alicia never came up pregnant," I said. Uh...apparently she was referring to my cousin. I was all, "excuse me, you call me up right when The Good Wife's on and tell me Alicia is pregnant, what do you expect?"
So anyway: GRRR, that was even more annoying than the slow-ass traffic I was in trying to get home to watch the show. Also, Alicia Florrick is not pregnant. That is all.
Okay, where do I start?
Peter's Political Plans: It's time to sit everyone down and say that Peter's now going to run for president! Er, vice president first. Who's down with that? Grace reasonably wonders if Alicia will go to Iowa with Peter and Alicia, currently unemployed, claims she'll be "too busy." Grace is all, does that mean you're going to still fake being married, and Peter is all "technically" and Alicia is all "yes." During the "family meeting" portion of this episode, Alicia points out to Peter privately that Grace will say okay to this because he wants it, and then the entire family will be put through the wringer and she'll feel bad about it. Also, why are you bothering to ask our opinions when it's not our decision, it's yours and Eli's, and you can't walk away from that. Peter is all, if you believe that, you don't know me. Anyway, Alicia flat out says NO, she doesn't want Peter to run. Peter says okay and walks out, and that's the end of him for this episode.
Later on, Alicia spots "too tough softer" written on her ghostwriter's rough draft, suspects rightly that Eli put him up to this to make her sound like a homemaker, and tells him to his face she doesn't want Peter to run. Will this stick? Find out next season!
Waiting for Godot: Right after the whole presidential announcement, Alicia gets a too-late call from her client Jacob Richter calling for help. She figures out he must be getting arrested and ends up tracking his phone down to Homan Street, which turns out to be some kind of police oubliette where they can just secretly stash a dude indefinitely with no legal aid, and they kick her out when she walks in. Tons of legal wrangling with her and Finn on the job ensue, trying to find out if the guy was ever actually arrested/Mirandized, and if he asked for a lawyer or was even given the option to (they also charmingly claim that Jacob "is meeting with his lawyer right now" when Alicia shows up with a court order later), etc., etc. They eventually end up faking that Jacob has epilepsy and will keel over after 16 hours off meds--Alicia tells a guard this after she stakes him out and gives him Finn's phone number as the "doctor." (And does a happy dance in her seat when the call happens.)
Even the judge thinks all of this shit is even fishier than the fake phone call and eventually demands that Jacob show up within 2 hours. This does finally happen ("There was a Godot-like experience," the judge says) and they find out that Jacob confessed under duress. Officer Tannerman, the guy Alicia has been harassing at Homan all episode, testifies that he heard Jacob described as a 10-26--police code for someone who's been arrested. And after all this shit, they get the confession thrown out! Huzzah!
What was Jacob arrested for, you ask? Was it bombs? Terrorism? Um, no, it was pot. WHAT.
The Cannings: Oh, look, doesn't that new paralegal hired at Lockhart, Agos, and Lee look familiar? Why, it's Simone, Louis Canning's wife, applying under her maiden name! I'm sure that's not fishy At All! She claims she just wanted to "do something herself," but David Lee is all GTFO, she's a spy. Diane attempts to defend her, but in the end does the firing herself, and Simone cries and says she can't get a job anywhere else. (Wonder why.)
Later, Louis storms in all ticked off and says that he's never gone after any of their families before (because none of us have any, David Lee drawls, forgetting that Diane eloped), but now he is SUPER PISSED OFF! More on him later.
The End Of Kalinda: Mr. Lester, Lemond Bishop's actual criminal lawyer, "drops by" a few places looking for Kalinda. He first stops at Alicia's while she's distracted trying to find Jacob. He has the reasonable assumption given Alicia's last claim in court that she's the last one who saw Kalinda. Alicia is all, "Did you see my husband's bodyguards out there? They gave me a panic button and when I was out getting you your water, I pushed it."
Next, he drops by LAL (har) and they haven't seen her either. Cary attempts to e-mail Kalinda to warn her, but he gets insta-mail failure.
As Lester wanders the grocery store looking for the ultimate frozen pizza (really), HE FINDS KALINDA WAITING FOR HIM. He was wondering when she'd contact him! So what's your question? "Do you know where you can get a good frozen pizza?" he asks, no, I am not kidding. She grabs his phone. Did you betray Mr. Bishop? No. But you ran. Well, I read the writing on the wall, Dexter was blaming me. "Hey! Pizza in the Wall it is," he responds. She offers Lester a deal: leave her work and friends alone and she'll see Bishop as he's asking. How do you define friends, Lester asks, and she's all "You know who." She agrees to see Bishop on Wednesday at 8. He would have preferred sooner! Wait, what about my phone? Go buy a new one!
Later as Alicia's in the bar... HOLY SHIT, YES, SHE AND KALINDA ARE ON SCREEN TOGETHER NO SPLIT SCREEN NO NOTHING ONCE AGAIN HOLY SHIIIIIIIIIIIT. And it actually seems friendly! (Call that acting!) I thought you were gone, Lester's asking about you. Kalinda thinks she's safe for the next five minutes--let's do some tequila shots one last time for the road. Anyway, while we never get to read the letter, Kalinda says it's a confession (of what, I'm not totally sure--about Bishop?) that Alicia can use to get off the hook (for what?) and she should give the note to Lester. Alicia has the quote of the episode: "A great thing happened when I lost the election. I gave up." She doesn't care what anyone else thinks any more, she threw that shit overboard. "It's nice not to care." She missed drinking with Kalinda though! Kalinda says she's never been very good at talking, but she does need to say this: "My time with you as my friend was the best I ever had, and I'm sorry. I'm really sorry that things got messed up." "I wish we had the chance to do it over again," Alicia says. They drink once more. "I'll never see you again, will I?" Alicia asks*, and Kalinda says she doesn't think so. "That's too bad," Alicia says, and whispers a "bye" as Kalinda leaves. (Later she sees that fake Kalinda that's going around in the bar, but that's not her.)
* as presumably Julianna Margulies is doing a happy dance inside for the same reason, maybe she should win an Emmy for that?
Lester shows up at Alicia's one more time after Kalinda fails to show up for Bishop, and Alicia whips out the letter where she stashed it in the kitchen, fires up her oven, and dramatically sets it on fire in front of Lester. Why did you do that? I didn't want you to have it. What did it say in it? It said goodbye, Mr. Lester. Goodbye!
In her final scene, Lester is attempting to get someone to wait on him to get another phone when Kalinda returns his. She realized that if Bishop is leaving the business and giving it all to Dexter, what's the point in meeting him if he has no power? Don't test MY power, Lester says. Why not? Because Bishop has people like me working for him! Kalinda is all, btw, that flash drive had notes on YOUR employment, but I didn't turn it over to the state and I could change my mind on that. No bluff.
Lester is all, "What is it with all these tough-talking women?!" Why can't they just be demure?! Fine, I'll say I didn't find you, don't make me a liar by coming back. And...are you sure you don't want to go into business with me? (Hah.) "We could dominate!" No, she's good. Kalinda puts on her sunglasses and struts out of our lives forever, to badass music.
Who Will Alicia Partner Up With? At the beginning of the episode, Finn says he'll partner with Alicia. The sexual chemistry continues, but Finn bails early on bar activities because he can't go there. He's dating his ex-wife, trying to make things right. By the end of the episode, he bails on the partnership and presumably, the entire show. Darn it.
Just as Alicia is moping that she doesn't want to be alone, Louis Canning knocks on her door. You were looking for a partner?
THE END.
Okay, before I finish: Right around the start of the episode, my mom calls to tell me Alicia is pregnant! I am all WHAT? She slept with that Johnny dude once! With Peter's political plans? Holy shit, what's going to happen now? I am all, how do you know this, it hasn't even aired where you live yet (I have early prime time)?, but never got an answer to this and I quickly kicked her off the phone to watch the rest.
She calls me at the end of the episode. "Alicia never came up pregnant," I said. Uh...apparently she was referring to my cousin. I was all, "excuse me, you call me up right when The Good Wife's on and tell me Alicia is pregnant, what do you expect?"
So anyway: GRRR, that was even more annoying than the slow-ass traffic I was in trying to get home to watch the show. Also, Alicia Florrick is not pregnant. That is all.
The whole lack of Alicia/Kalinda scenes up until now sucks, but it's honestly heartening that so many fans care so much about a friendship between two female characters.
posted by chaiminda at 3:50 AM on May 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by chaiminda at 3:50 AM on May 11, 2015 [1 favorite]
In enjoyed that Washington Post article about the supposed feud between the two actors and it pretty much sums up my feelings about the whole thing, which is that whoever caused the problem should grow up and let them work together for the good of the show.
I guess that conversation at the bar was supposed to have meaningful subtext between them -- hey, we don't get along in real life or in our play actor life, do we? -- but I don't think you want people distracted from the plot of your tv show by the supposed real life drama between your two performers. Or do you? Is that the way ratings work now? I thought that kind of sucked. To me it was not fulfilling.
Finding out what was in the note -- a confession of turning on the drug lord by Kalinda -- was also not fulfilling. THAT is what prompted Alicia to cry and cry and cry? I just don't buy that she has all these feels about Kalinda anymore, not after two seasons virtually apart. Or was she just crying because she was having such a shitty day and now THIS? In which case I'm frustrated at her even more because Kalinda -- you know, your old friend Kalinda -- her life is in danger and you don't seem to be doing anything to find her and help her. Besides occasionally whinging to Cary as if Kalinda's well being is just his problem and not yours, even though Kalinda has helped you through terrible stuff even when you weren't getting along (e.g., finding your missing daughter, 'member that Alicia?).
A lot of what built the real heart and soul of the show is gone. Will flirted with corruption, but he was smart and loyal and loving and he had an interesting push/pull relationship with Alicia. Gone. And now Kalinda. Alicia's marriage is broken, she has no one to love, and she's partnering up with a lawyer who has doublecrossed her on multiple occasions in the past.
I'm a little angry at the writers. They should not have built up the last scene between Alicia and Kalinda because it wasn't all that. If you notice, I don't even think the two look one another in the eyes when they are in the same frame together, only, one assumes, in the side shots.
I did like Alicia's confrontation in the bedroom with Peter about how Grace would say he could run even if she didn't want the intrusion into her life because she wouldn't want to disappoint him, and Alicia's realization that she was doing the same thing and she wasn't going to do that anymore. And telling Peter she didn't want him to run. That felt real to me.
posted by onlyconnect at 12:37 PM on May 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
I guess that conversation at the bar was supposed to have meaningful subtext between them -- hey, we don't get along in real life or in our play actor life, do we? -- but I don't think you want people distracted from the plot of your tv show by the supposed real life drama between your two performers. Or do you? Is that the way ratings work now? I thought that kind of sucked. To me it was not fulfilling.
Finding out what was in the note -- a confession of turning on the drug lord by Kalinda -- was also not fulfilling. THAT is what prompted Alicia to cry and cry and cry? I just don't buy that she has all these feels about Kalinda anymore, not after two seasons virtually apart. Or was she just crying because she was having such a shitty day and now THIS? In which case I'm frustrated at her even more because Kalinda -- you know, your old friend Kalinda -- her life is in danger and you don't seem to be doing anything to find her and help her. Besides occasionally whinging to Cary as if Kalinda's well being is just his problem and not yours, even though Kalinda has helped you through terrible stuff even when you weren't getting along (e.g., finding your missing daughter, 'member that Alicia?).
A lot of what built the real heart and soul of the show is gone. Will flirted with corruption, but he was smart and loyal and loving and he had an interesting push/pull relationship with Alicia. Gone. And now Kalinda. Alicia's marriage is broken, she has no one to love, and she's partnering up with a lawyer who has doublecrossed her on multiple occasions in the past.
I'm a little angry at the writers. They should not have built up the last scene between Alicia and Kalinda because it wasn't all that. If you notice, I don't even think the two look one another in the eyes when they are in the same frame together, only, one assumes, in the side shots.
I did like Alicia's confrontation in the bedroom with Peter about how Grace would say he could run even if she didn't want the intrusion into her life because she wouldn't want to disappoint him, and Alicia's realization that she was doing the same thing and she wasn't going to do that anymore. And telling Peter she didn't want him to run. That felt real to me.
posted by onlyconnect at 12:37 PM on May 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
Hah, there are ex-husbands and ex-wives who have gotten divorced during the run of a show and have still managed to work together without these shenanigans. It really makes me think pretty bad things of Julianna M's behavior, even with as little information as we have because it sure does sound like it's all her instigation.
posted by jenfullmoon at 1:56 PM on May 11, 2015
posted by jenfullmoon at 1:56 PM on May 11, 2015
The whole Kalinda thing was not only distracting this season, it made me wonder if there are MORE feuds that we'll have to deal with next season. For example, Alicia barely shared any scenes with Cary or Diane this season, and it almost seemed like they brought in new characters (Johnny, Marissa, etc.) just to give Alicia someone to interact with.
I hope they straighten out for S7.
posted by mmoncur at 2:02 PM on May 11, 2015
I hope they straighten out for S7.
posted by mmoncur at 2:02 PM on May 11, 2015
I get that Alicia is adrift and all that, but partnering with Louis Canning? Seems preposterous and ill-advised, and not likely.
Even if the two actresses were actually together for the bar scene, they minimized the time together - basically just long enough for the two-shot. All the over the shoulder shots were doubles, or we would have seen their faces.
I've been frustrated at how the apparent off-screen drama has affected the on-screen one. It is impressive that no one has ever talked, but the circumstantial evidence is more than enough. All that's left is where to point the finger, and logic would suggest that the star is the more likely culprit. Which places the producers in a difficult situation.
It's a shame the off-screen drama also overwhelmed the plot about the secret facility, which was inspired by real life events in Chicago. That could have been a bigger story arc, I think.
posted by pmurray63 at 2:54 PM on May 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
Even if the two actresses were actually together for the bar scene, they minimized the time together - basically just long enough for the two-shot. All the over the shoulder shots were doubles, or we would have seen their faces.
I've been frustrated at how the apparent off-screen drama has affected the on-screen one. It is impressive that no one has ever talked, but the circumstantial evidence is more than enough. All that's left is where to point the finger, and logic would suggest that the star is the more likely culprit. Which places the producers in a difficult situation.
It's a shame the off-screen drama also overwhelmed the plot about the secret facility, which was inspired by real life events in Chicago. That could have been a bigger story arc, I think.
posted by pmurray63 at 2:54 PM on May 11, 2015 [2 favorites]
I thought the finale got off to a good start. Peter "running for President", loved Alicia's reaction to burst out laughing and then her considered response, Wallace Shawn being quietly menacing, the case of the week (have we seen that client before?) and the stake-out, the cuckoo bird in the nest, and then it inevitably went off the rails.
Finn's last scene definitely felt like an exit scene, why show, WHY??? Don't say it's because of Downton, those episodes are finished filming or near enough. He's been dangled in front of us since Will died as a potential love interest and now he's been snatched away.
The official Alicia/Kalinda meeting face-to-face... what everyone else said, meta-dialog and stilted acting. I'm ready to believe it was green-screened as well if only because the scene was so unconvincing. Vanity Fair has a comparison of this scene and the Alicia/Finn at the bar scene. In the latter, Finn's face is recognizable in the foreground.
It's not like I'm going to stop watching, especially since next season will be the last [sic] but, with all the acting talent and great back-story, I just want it to be the best it can be.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 5:52 AM on May 12, 2015
Finn's last scene definitely felt like an exit scene, why show, WHY??? Don't say it's because of Downton, those episodes are finished filming or near enough. He's been dangled in front of us since Will died as a potential love interest and now he's been snatched away.
The official Alicia/Kalinda meeting face-to-face... what everyone else said, meta-dialog and stilted acting. I'm ready to believe it was green-screened as well if only because the scene was so unconvincing. Vanity Fair has a comparison of this scene and the Alicia/Finn at the bar scene. In the latter, Finn's face is recognizable in the foreground.
It's not like I'm going to stop watching, especially since next season will be the last [sic] but, with all the acting talent and great back-story, I just want it to be the best it can be.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 5:52 AM on May 12, 2015
Been clicking around a bunch in reaction to this episode; some parts (case drama! Diane screen-time! ELI!) felt right-on, but other bits felt off.
I've been in the "put us out of our misery" camp with Alicia/Kalinda's relatioship, and I'm at least glad there's no more worrying that Kalinda will be OK. (I wouldn't have put it past them to have Bishop kill her, so I'm glad Kalinda got to stroll off set in her boots and big-ass sunglasses.) I've been trying not to fall down the hole of "Alicia-Kalinda-truthers" wondering whether that final scene was a composite... we'll probably never know what happened exactly with the internet-troll-fed "feud," but the fact that every other cast member has wonderful things to say about AP and when asked to describe JM they just say "hard worker" feels, um, dark.
TWinbrook8: It's not like I'm going to stop watching, especially since next season will be the last [sic] but, with all the acting talent and great back-story, I just want it to be the best it can be. Exactly.
Well, in one of the interviews with the Kings, I read they are hoping to get Marissa back, which would almost make it all worthwhile.
posted by Zephyrial at 11:28 AM on May 12, 2015 [2 favorites]
I've been in the "put us out of our misery" camp with Alicia/Kalinda's relatioship, and I'm at least glad there's no more worrying that Kalinda will be OK. (I wouldn't have put it past them to have Bishop kill her, so I'm glad Kalinda got to stroll off set in her boots and big-ass sunglasses.) I've been trying not to fall down the hole of "Alicia-Kalinda-truthers" wondering whether that final scene was a composite... we'll probably never know what happened exactly with the internet-troll-fed "feud," but the fact that every other cast member has wonderful things to say about AP and when asked to describe JM they just say "hard worker" feels, um, dark.
TWinbrook8: It's not like I'm going to stop watching, especially since next season will be the last [sic] but, with all the acting talent and great back-story, I just want it to be the best it can be. Exactly.
Well, in one of the interviews with the Kings, I read they are hoping to get Marissa back, which would almost make it all worthwhile.
posted by Zephyrial at 11:28 AM on May 12, 2015 [2 favorites]
One more thing: I just could shake the feeling this whole season that the storyline kept lighting the fuses on bombs that never went off, or spent time developing stories that amounted to nothing in the end:
posted by Zephyrial at 11:32 AM on May 12, 2015 [4 favorites]
- Florrick Agos Lockhart
- Alicia running for SA
- Kalinda's letter (oh wait the letter IS important, oh wait it's not)
- FINN
- Everything to do with Bishop (I guess you could argue that his storyline was necessary for Kalinda's departure... but still.)
posted by Zephyrial at 11:32 AM on May 12, 2015 [4 favorites]
It's too bad Kalinda turns down Lester's offer to work together (even if it is entirely in character and appropriate, not to mention whether the offer is even genuine), because I would watch that spin-off show.
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 12:16 PM on May 12, 2015 [5 favorites]
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 12:16 PM on May 12, 2015 [5 favorites]
One thing I felt weird about was the ripped-from-the-headlines aspect of the Chicago "black site"
(previously on mefi) and the way they really watered it down. I understand that maybe they didn't want a single, finale episode about police torturing people, but that's what they chose to refer to, and then they also chose to (in a way) make light of it.
posted by jjwiseman at 2:12 PM on May 12, 2015 [1 favorite]
(previously on mefi) and the way they really watered it down. I understand that maybe they didn't want a single, finale episode about police torturing people, but that's what they chose to refer to, and then they also chose to (in a way) make light of it.
posted by jjwiseman at 2:12 PM on May 12, 2015 [1 favorite]
Confirmation that yes, that scene was faked.
"Margulies and Panjabi did not shoot that scene together, I have come to learn. Body doubles were employed for the single shots, and the two-shot was spliced together in post-production."
Though the writer doesn't cite where they got that from and there's still no official confirmation.
posted by jenfullmoon at 9:58 PM on May 17, 2015
"Margulies and Panjabi did not shoot that scene together, I have come to learn. Body doubles were employed for the single shots, and the two-shot was spliced together in post-production."
Though the writer doesn't cite where they got that from and there's still no official confirmation.
posted by jenfullmoon at 9:58 PM on May 17, 2015
That is absolutely pathetic. I'm really disappointed in the directors/writers of this show for doing such a ridiculous thing.
It's bad enough that one or two actresses have a grudge and aren't willing to be professional about it, but the way the show dealt with it is shameful. If they really couldn't work together they should have just kicked out Panjabi 2 seasons ago so we could move on instead of having all of these ridiculous contortions to make it look like the characters get along.
posted by mmoncur at 7:05 PM on May 18, 2015
It's bad enough that one or two actresses have a grudge and aren't willing to be professional about it, but the way the show dealt with it is shameful. If they really couldn't work together they should have just kicked out Panjabi 2 seasons ago so we could move on instead of having all of these ridiculous contortions to make it look like the characters get along.
posted by mmoncur at 7:05 PM on May 18, 2015
I find that shocking, jenfullmoon, and I hope that fact comes out to the wider population. I'm angry at Julianna Margulies now, as she is the one with the power in that relationship, surely. What a faking faker.
posted by onlyconnect at 8:51 PM on May 18, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by onlyconnect at 8:51 PM on May 18, 2015 [2 favorites]
The sad thing is that the behind-the-scenes drama has been more interesting than the actual show this season. Last season, with all of the drama of Will's death and the NSA surveillance stuff, I didn't even pay attention to the fact that Alicia and Kalinda were never in the same shot.
posted by mmoncur at 9:29 PM on May 18, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by mmoncur at 9:29 PM on May 18, 2015 [2 favorites]
The Good Wife Creators Break Silence on 'Kalicia'-gate.
When asked why they faked the scene, they literally respond "Josh [Charles] wasn’t really killed. We faked those gunshots." Everyone's taking this one to the grave, or at least the grave of the series.
posted by yellowbinder at 12:47 PM on August 19, 2015 [2 favorites]
When asked why they faked the scene, they literally respond "Josh [Charles] wasn’t really killed. We faked those gunshots." Everyone's taking this one to the grave, or at least the grave of the series.
posted by yellowbinder at 12:47 PM on August 19, 2015 [2 favorites]
That's incredibly lame. They act like the storytelling was important, but the we-can't-be-in-the-same-room nonsense drove the storytelling, and in many cases ruined it.
Here's hoping the Kalinda-free Season 7 will be better. I hope JM doesn't have any more weird grudges with the cast, and if she does lets just replace her with Elsbeth Tascioni and be done with it!
posted by mmoncur at 10:44 PM on August 19, 2015 [6 favorites]
Here's hoping the Kalinda-free Season 7 will be better. I hope JM doesn't have any more weird grudges with the cast, and if she does lets just replace her with Elsbeth Tascioni and be done with it!
posted by mmoncur at 10:44 PM on August 19, 2015 [6 favorites]
Ugh. (THANK YOU for posting this, by the way.) That interview answered all of my questions, and also none of them. All I feel like I really know is that the Kings are terrified of Margulies. Also I found it condescending to equate "Well, we faked those gunshots too and you didn't mind!" Gunshots are special effects. Two people talking to each other in a room is acting plain and simple, and seems to be a fair baseline to ask of our TV dramas.
Then again, I suppose I was never going to be really satisfied with anything from the Kings. Unless they said, "Yeah, that sucked, didn't it? That storyline got messed up and we were never able to fix it. Please believe us now that we've torn off the bandaid of the Kalinda relationship, the show will be really good again." Instead what they said was, "We knew what we were doing all the time!" Grumblemumble.
posted by Zephyrial at 3:13 PM on August 20, 2015 [3 favorites]
Then again, I suppose I was never going to be really satisfied with anything from the Kings. Unless they said, "Yeah, that sucked, didn't it? That storyline got messed up and we were never able to fix it. Please believe us now that we've torn off the bandaid of the Kalinda relationship, the show will be really good again." Instead what they said was, "We knew what we were doing all the time!" Grumblemumble.
posted by Zephyrial at 3:13 PM on August 20, 2015 [3 favorites]
Seriously, why did the Kings even bother to do an interview? What Zephryial said.
posted by jenfullmoon at 11:33 PM on August 20, 2015
posted by jenfullmoon at 11:33 PM on August 20, 2015
>All I feel like I really know is that the Kings are terrified of Margulies.
Ken Levine says there's an adage about the power dynamic between showrunners and stars: The first season, the actors work for you. The second season, everyone works together. From the third season on, you work for them. He was talking about sitcoms, but I have to believe that it's equally true on dramas.
posted by pmurray63 at 8:05 AM on August 31, 2015 [5 favorites]
Ken Levine says there's an adage about the power dynamic between showrunners and stars: The first season, the actors work for you. The second season, everyone works together. From the third season on, you work for them. He was talking about sitcoms, but I have to believe that it's equally true on dramas.
posted by pmurray63 at 8:05 AM on August 31, 2015 [5 favorites]
(Just wanted to note down that Kalinda's "I'm good" at the end felt sort of cringey. They really like that phrase on this show!)
posted by nobody at 4:23 AM on June 28, 2016
posted by nobody at 4:23 AM on June 28, 2016
That was so badass how Alicia handled Lester. Love it.
Couldn’t Diane have explained to Simone Canning that it’s a simple conflict of interest problem? “Simone, we’re pleased with your work but we just fired a named partner for ethics issues so even the appearance of conflict of interest is unacceptable at our firm.”
posted by Monochrome at 6:45 PM on September 15, 2020
Couldn’t Diane have explained to Simone Canning that it’s a simple conflict of interest problem? “Simone, we’re pleased with your work but we just fired a named partner for ethics issues so even the appearance of conflict of interest is unacceptable at our firm.”
posted by Monochrome at 6:45 PM on September 15, 2020
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Creators respond to the finale (Washington Post)
Did they actually film the scene together or was it all green screen?
Archie Panjabi says: ask the producers.
posted by jenfullmoon at 11:27 PM on May 10, 2015 [2 favorites]