Review: ‘The Good Wife’ Off to Great Start

by John P. Hanlon

The new CBS program “The Good Wife” received a lot of press attention when it premiered several weeks ago, partly because of its novel subject matter. The show explores the life of a wronged political spouse who returns to the workforce after her cheating husband is sent to prison.  The show’s plot invited inevitable comparisons to many contemporary political spouses who have felt the glare of standing by their cheating partners in the media spotlight. Since its premiere, the show has quickly established itself as a smart and entertaining program that is not afraid to explore politics within the legal system and outside of it.

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Although many politicians from both political parties can be compared to the husband, played by Chris Noth, an obvious comparison springs up in the premiere episode as the lead character, Alicia Florrick who is played by Julianna Marguiles, returns to work as a lawyer. One of her supervisors, played by Christine Baranski, bluntly says to her, “Not only are you coming back to the workplace fairly late but you have some very prominent baggage.” She then adds, pointing to a picture of current Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, “But hey, if she can do it, so can you.” Furthering the perception that the lead couple can be compared to President Bill Clinton and his wife, a recent article about the program from The Hill quoted one of the creators of the show offering a “suggestion” to a director about the character of the cheating husband. That suggestion was “Imagine Bill Clinton in prison.”

Admittedly , The Hill article did point out another reason for Clinton’s inclusion in the premiere. That article noted the following:

Though Secretary Clinton might seem an easy (if not overused) target, the inclusion of her image in the first episode of “The Good Wife” is more than just a tongue-in-cheek lick at old wounds; the Kings said they wanted to depict “those who broke the glass ceiling and women who came afterward”  and, of course, “still have it be entertaining.”

In the weeks since its premiere, the show has been smart in creating professional and personal realms for the main character to inhabit. At home, Alicia is trying to support her two children who have had to deal with the ramifications of their father’s actions with the assistance of her mother-in-law. At work, Alicia is trying to prove herself to her bosses while dealing with an inter-office rivalry with a young lawyer. Fortunately, for the audience, the lead character is very well-written. She is not a cold heroine bent on vengeance or driven by anger; nor is she a wronged victim trying to regain her self-esteem.  She is a strong woman who, when forced to emerge from the shadow of her husband, fights to prove herself inside the courtroom and outside of it where people often know her because of her husband’s well-publicized misdeeds. 

The program has not steered away from political discussions especially in the legal setting. In one episode, two of the top lawyers at Alicia’s firm argue over the case of a young rich kid accused of rape, which one of the lawyers compares to the Duke Lacrosse case. In the same episode that same lawyer is excited when he sees that the case is going before a judge known for his liberal tendencies — who after a hearing on the case casually asks for a moment of silence for mass killings in Darfur. The show is sharp in its ability to show how legal cases can often be viewed through a political lens by both lawyers and judges. The show can be political but it is not ideological, at least thus far, a quality that I admire about the program. 

One of the strengths of the program is also its strong cast. Julianna Marguiles is both sympathetic and engaging as the wronged spouse.  Additionally, there are several other solid television actors who play supporting roles on the series. That list includes Chris Noth (“Sex and the City”) as Alicia’s husband, Christine Baranski (“Cybill”) as one of Alicia’s supervisors, Josh Charles (“Sports Night”) as another supervisor, Mary Beth Peil (“Dawson’s Creek”) as Alicia’s mother-in-law and Matt Czuchry (“Gilmore Girls”) as Alicia’s work rival. All of those actors add to the quality of the program and it will be interesting to see how their characters develop.

It is a timely coincidence that this program started just a few weeks before The Shriver Report received a lot of attention for its analysis of the influence of women in this country. In many past political scandals about a husband cheating on his wife, the wife has often only been seen in a supporting role standing next to her husband after his flaws receive public scrutiny. In ”The Good Wife,” the wronged spouse is given a chance to prove herself apart from her husband’s political career and she fights to prove that she is more than just a victim. 

Since its premiere, the show has also been proving itself and succeeded in that task with an  engaging and entertaining program that should not be kept out of the spotlight.


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Posted Nov 1st 2009 at 5:33 pm in Reviews, Television | 402 Comments