In October, I reviewed The Practice. Now it`s time to take a look at Boston Legal, compare the two related series, and crown the best «legal TV» option. As was the case with The Practice, I approach this observation session blindly; I had never seen an episode of Boston Legal before. Let`s dive in. I can`t believe they fired Monica, who must be one of the most beautiful actresses of all time, even when pregnant. Admittedly, the Spader/Mitra chemistry was also good. This seems to be the case with David E. Kelly`s shows – women come and go, and men only leave when they want to. Before the execution, Shore and Hall meet with Borns. What happens is one of the most heartbreaking scenes I`ve experienced in a televised legal drama.
After the lawyers received the appeal that the Court of Appeal rejected their argument, Borns told them, «I`m going to be strong as a hero, you`re watching.» Borns then makes a veiled plea as a question: «Do you want to watch?» Also, I agree with you about Mitra/Spader chemistry, but I understand why they parted ways. Happy monogamous Spader is not as interesting as amoral Spader, and leaving Mitra did not leave much for the amoral Spader. I don`t think so. I know it`s a bit unfair to the three newcomers, as they were spliced in the remaining episodes for the first few episodes of this season. It made them feel like they were in a completely different company. It didn`t help that it was completely unrealistic for Bowen`s character to ask the two new junior employees to handle their personal divorce case. I never liked Potter very much as an actress, but I think she left (in part) because she was pregnant, and it would be difficult to write or film about her pregnancy. Stay tuned for my next column. After reviewing The Practice and Boston Legal separately, I will compare them directly. Like several other iterations of rights-related television (including The Practice), Boston Legal was founded by David E. Kelley. The comedy-drama premiered on October 3, 2004 and ran until December 8, 2008.
As mentioned in Part One, Boston Legal is a direct spin-off of The Practice. To maintain some continuity, several characters from this series – James Spader as Alan Shore, William Shatner as Denny Crane and Rhona Mitra as Tara Wilson – play prominent roles in the first season of Boston Legal. Shore and Crane also appear throughout the series. I haven`t seen «Ed,» so I can`t comment on that. Julie Bowen was fine in «Lost,» but I think she`s worse than Potter in «Boston Legal.» Maybe it`s because it`s too cute, as you suggest. Anyway, I think Potter plays a lawyer more convincingly. The episode quickly switches to Crane, Poole and Schmidt`s partner, Shirley Schmidt (played by Candice Bergen), who consult Miriam Watson (Shelley Long). Watson faced a jury trial the following week for having charges of sexual conduct for pay — paying a man to have sex with her «hundreds of times.» I wasn`t too interested in this act (for reasons I`ll explain later), so I`ll just go hunting: the company takes over the case, and the defendant is informed that her only defense is to argue that she suffers from a disease – namely, nymphomania – that limits her ability to form the required intent. to commit the crimes. Crane knows the judge (a virgin), and there is a conclusion that Crane (and/or Watson) bribed him with a date to get a directed verdict. I found Bowen particularly good in the opening scene, and the advantage of her softer side is that she counterpoints the hard edges of most of the other characters.
OTOH, I found the final scene of Potter a bit superficial. The biggest problem with the show is that it has to find something for each character in order to pick a tone and stick to it. As usual, my first stop was the Ninja episode, the site where I found the list of Boston Legal user rankings for the best and worst episodes of the series. According to the database, the 17th (and final) episode of the first season was voted the best. I was excited to be able to start at a relatively early stage of the show, as opposed to somewhere in the later seasons. Luckily for me, all five of them are currently streaming on Amazon Prime in case I`d like «Death Be Not Proud» and want to watch more. Monica Potter (left to right), Mark Valley, Candice Bergen, James Spader, William Shatner, Rhona Mitra and Rene Auberjonois in Boston Legal. Photo by Robert Trachtenberg / Disney General Entertainment content via Getty Images. My main complaint, however, would be that both stories are too heartbreaking. I understand how to add the plot of nymphomania to soften such a weighty issue as the death penalty, but I don`t think the dichotomy fits. Some situations should simply not be taken lightly, and the state-sanctioned murder of a human being is one of them.
The loss of Tara seems like the dumbest casting change I`ve ever seen. The producers of this exceptional program did everything they could imagine to kill it, and it surpasses them all. The chemistry between Tara and Alan was exciting and funny, and the stupidity of this gesture drives me crazy. One of my sons, who also loves the show, is just as stunned as I am. The episode ends with a close-up of Shore`s face as he watches in shock as the needle approaches. The episode begins with a short introduction. From there we are greeted by Shore. I feel my skin crawl a little bit every time I see Spader, no matter the environment. Maybe it`s just a trauma from my younger years when I saw him play the villain in the hip movies of the 80s (Less Than Zero, anyone?).
With this caveat, I don`t see what Bowen brings to the table that Potter didn`t bring. This was especially evident in today`s episode, which picked up on the ongoing plot of Lori Colson`s sexual harassment complaint against Denny Craine (played by William Shatner). Potter is simply a better actor than Bowen in my opinion and has shown more emotion and depth in his short scenes than Bowen has done in the entire season so far. Boston Legal is an acceptable legal television offering. Its main strength is the great wealth of acting talent offered by the series. Many heavyweights deliver their star power, and even lesser-known players carry their weight if nothing else. The guards accompany Borns to the death chamber and he asks if he can say his last words. When he has the chance, he announces: «I don`t know if I did it.
But if I did, I`m sorry, you know? He was told that it was time to «move on now,» but he did not comply; He fights. He defies the officers who put him in stirrups and straps. He`s fighting as hard as he can, and it`s painful to watch. As it should be. I`ve always loved Bowen (especially on «Ed» and «Lost»), but I`m always afraid she`s too cute to fit into the show. I think it comes down to the fact that Boston Legal is on the air for price and prestige, but subsidized by pro-audience shows. To keep it on the air, they had to make it affordable in every way possible. «According to Harriet Miers, who would be next| Main | My wife and I are seeing Monica Potter in Boston Legal for the second time and have never seen an actress use her eyes to express the feelings she has in the various scenes. She`s amazing and I was glad she left because of pregnancy and nothing more. As a lawyer, I loved the show and the fact that there was little reality. James Spader and William Shatner in Boston Legal.
Photo by Carin Baer/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images. Matt, I know you have Monica Potter, and sometimes I found her character a little bit amazing in the last season. In fact, when I wrote this post, I kind of had in mind to you. Shore and Hall spent the next day trying to convince the prosecutor and governor to help them, without success. Shore`s arguments before the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals are passionate and extremely well-founded, but they also fail. Bonus: The episode includes an informative explanation of the Texas Court of Appeals system. And if anyone cares, unlike The Practice, I like Boston Legal`s theme song. He has a little pep. Last season, ABC shortened «Boston Legal» by about four episodes and postponed them to extend Season 2.
Meanwhile, the producers got rid of Monica Potter, who played young partner Lori Colson; and Rhona Mitra, who played junior associate Tara Wilson.