Friday 29 January 2010

The Good Wife – Another Good One

Every now and then a show comes along that just plain blows you away.

When I first heard about The Good Wife, I thought "great, another mediocre show to replace a long-loved-but-cancelled show (yes, I'm still morning Journeyman and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles!).

After watching the first episode I still had my doubts - too many courtroom/law firm backstabbing shows over the years tends to give the "meeh" feeling.

Heck, even the title put me off (every writer knows the value of an eye-catching title, or ought to anyway).

But what Juliana Margulies has done with The Good Wife is simply awesome! The dignity with which her character, Alicia, deals with her husband's serial adultery and allegations of fraud and abuse of office left me truly gobsmacked. As a friend put it (paraphrasing), "her eyes convey a thousands words without once opening her mouth". The show also produced neat little twists that kept me on the edge of my seat and left me yearning for more.

I wasn't surprised at all to learn Ms Margulies has won both a Golden Globe and a SAG award in the past week. I loved her as George Clooney’s love interest in ER, but she’s truly extraordinary in this role.

Watch the preview segment below for a taster...



... and if you’ve seen it and love it the way I do, pray with me that this isn't another show that the networks cancel after one season!

Have a great day.

Maya

10 comments:

  1. Hi Maya! Yup, I agree with you. Wholeheartedly. I watched the pilot and loved it and last night saw the first real episode. The writing is really good and tight, and Juliana is such a good actress. I'm recording the lot! Good post about it, and I'm so glad she's getting the recognition she deserves for it. Mr Big is acting his socks off too. I've also been enjoying Wallander with Kenneth Brannagh. Its gritty and fascinating because of the location (Sweden) which on occasion looks like a different planet. Really evocative.

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  2. Yayyy, great to have a fellow TGW fan, and yes, I shamelessly paraphrased you, Sally! Nodding on Mr Big's acting. Archie Panjabi (the female investigator) is also fab, and as a fellow Brit, I have to take my hat off to her for landing a brillian role.

    Wallander - I've heard of it, but am resisting it for the moment or I'll never get any writing done! Love KB, although haven't seen him in anything for a long time.

    Word on the street is Season 2 of TGW's been commissioned, so double yayyy!

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  3. I seem to be leaving letters out of my post. I meant "mourning" in my post and, of course, "brillianT" in my comment. Pardons all round.

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  4. I have this sitting on my laptop waiting to watch it but have got slightly sidetracked by Silent Witness! It sounds like I'll really enjoy it. With my legal background, I do enjoy a good drama :-)

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  5. Really hope you do, Jo. Love it to pieces already!

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  6. Oh yes Maya, I should have mentioned the female investigator. She'd make a great romance heroine, she's quietly sarcastic (always a personal favorite) and understated but FAB! Jo, you should watch it now, you'll love it.

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  7. Forgot this was on (old age - I forget a lot these days) but caught up on 4 OD after reading your post - brilliant. Thanks for the reminder.

    :-)

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  8. I don't watch a lot of TV and haven't heard of this one. But I am sick of one season shows you get wrapped up in and then they're gone. Like New Amsterdam. Loved that show. Or Life on Mars as it was written to ONLY be one season. Makes me not want to start watching a new show.

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  9. You're welcome, Suzanne. Happy to share! Any show that makes me want to dig deep to find the emotion in my own writing is a winner in my book! *She says, just to make this remotely writerly* LOL!

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  10. I soo know how you feel, Jasmine. I could list a long number of shows I've loved and lost through network executives' whims, but I won't bore you with it. I saw the 1st ep of New Amsterdam but missed the next eps, so I didn't get too invested in it before it was cancelled, thank God.

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