Illegally entertaining
Rebecca Barry Hill explores the enduring appeal of TV law shows
Remember when Alan Shore made his famous plea to apathetic Americans? “If the people of this country have spoken, the message is we're okay with it all,” said James Spader’s Boston Legal character. “Torture, warrantless search and seizure, illegal wiretappings, prison without a fair trial — or any trial, war on false pretences. We, as a citizenry, are apparently not offended.”
The memorable — fictional — speech screened 11 years ago yet its sentiments could apply today. The prescient statement perhaps goes some way to explaining the enduring appeal of the TV law show: on one hand, a light distraction from the woes of the world, on the other, a mirror to the ethics we practise as a society. Not to mention a cautionary tale, educating couch potatoes on what would happen if you, say, got caught hosting a cockfight at your house or decided to sue God for the death of your husband ( typically bizarre cases from Boston Legal), without having to sit through all those dull exams. TV has seen no shortage of legal series, from
LA Law in the 80s, to Law & Order’s sprawling seven franchises to the heightened world of How
to Get Away with Murder, all of which dramatise the dry realities of the courtroom. What keeps TV producers and writers – and viewers – coming back for endless riffs on the genre? Like the eternally popular hospital drama but with slick suits and heels rather than ugly scrubs and crocs, the good men and women of TV law exist in a world of high stakes. Conflict is the heart of all good drama and it’s in abundance in the courtroom. A life hangs in the balance, their guilt or innocence dependent on the sharpness of mind of the one representing them. Then there’s the fascination of seeing two contrasting worlds side by side, one of privilege, education and earnest adherence to the rules juxtaposed with the sidelined, the maligned and the plain evil.
It’s not just Hollywood churning out top legal entertainment, of course. The Brits are powerhouses of crime drama, with some of the most memorable courtroom scenes coming from the likes of Broadchurch, Kavanagh QC, Midsomer Murders and Prime Suspect. Even little old law- abiding New Zealand delved into the courtroom with the 90s Kiwi series Street Legal, which ran for four seasons and starred Jay Laga’aia, Sara Wiseman and Charles Mesure. Here are a few other reasons why legal dramas keep on giving.
THE GOOD GUYS AND THE BAD GUYS ARE INTERCHANGEABLE
Take Patty Hewes ( Glenn Close) from Damages. Ellen Parsons ( Rose Byrne) thinks she’s landed her dream job working for the toughtalking, fearless attorney but soon discovers there’s more to Patty than meets her scrupulous lawyer’s eye. Patty takes on high- profile cases, going after corporate bullies, suggesting her sense of justice for the underdog is well intact. But she soon reveals herself to be a calculating Jekyll and Hyde character, possibly responsible for the death of Ellen’s fiance, and now after Ellen too. You’re never quite sure why she keeps Ellen around in season one, treating her almost as her daughter one minute, and her adversary the next. Their cat and mouse game is endlessly compelling, right up until when Ellen becomes an FBI informant and the two wind up against one another in court. Patty Hewes is one of the most manipulative yet complex female characters we’ve seen on screen.
THEY TALK SMART
Then there’s the prospect of watching characters who are smarter than you and me combined. In the first season of Suits, we meet Mike Ross, ( Patrick Adams), who can remember everything he’s ever read, a skill that allows him to pass the bar without stepping foot in the Harvard law school. But it’s his mentor, Harvey Specter whose charming repartee and Confucious- like sayings never fail to impress.
“Charging bull always looks at the red cape, not at the man with the sword.”
“So I'd say the ball's in your court, but the truth is your balls are in my fist. Now I apologise if that image is too pansy for you, but I'm comfortable enough with my manhood to put it out there.” “You don’t send a puppy to clean its own mess.” “I refuse to answer that on the grounds of I don't want to.”
And my personal favourite, “Would you like me to thank your face with my fist?”
THEY ALLOW YOU TO LEAD A NORMAL LIFE
While shows like Suits appeal to those who love keeping tabs on their favourite characters’ interpersonal woes, legal dramas also appeal to the TV viewer who appreciates a good procedural, one that allows you to dip in and out of a series at whim, without having to be up to speed on whether or not the partners or colleagues are having an affair ( thanks Ally McBeal). Arguably one of the most successful procedurals – and the longest running drama in TV history – is Law and Order. And while it had big- names in the likes of Sam Waterston, Chris Noth and Jerry Orbach commanding some of the show’s big egoed characters, each episode centred around a law case. Not just any case either. The show became famous for finding its inspiration in real legal arguments. This made it all too easy to slip into an episode even if the show was well into its 20th season, without worrying that you’d missed all the character developments. For writers and producers, procedurals no doubt solves the headache of having to continually remind the audience of character dynamics. Likewise, in
Matlock, which ran from 1986 to 1992, defence attorney Ben Matlock solved a case each episode, exposing the villain in dramatic courtroom scenes.
WOMENRULE
Whoever said females were maligned in Hollywood has a point but perhaps they should tune into a legal TV series. Law dramas are where you find females with way more power and smarts than the leader of the free world. If there’s anyone who can trump the conniving Patty Hewes it’s The Good Wife’s Alicia Florrick. Sure, season one saw her assume the role of victim, the cheated- on but supportive spouse who goes back to work as a lawyer to provide for her family and finds herself having to start out at the bottom, in competition with colleagues half her age. But Emmy- winning star Julianna Margulies created a character who wielded her power with dignity and grace. Over seven seasons she grew more powerful and independent, matching the gravitas of her boss Diane, ( Christine Baranski), and eventually becoming equity partner. In How to Get Away
with Murder, Viola Davis plays Annalise Keating, a charismatic lawyer and law professor who represents some of the hardest crims of the lot. Then there’s Suits’ Jessica Pearson ( Gina Torres) as the top dog at a major law firm, Alex Cabot, ( Stephanie March), the sharp- shooting assistant district attorney from Law & Order,
and Ling Woo ( Lucy Liu) on Ally McBeal, whose snappy demeanour was one of the best reasons to watch the show. ( Well she had far more substance than the titular character, whose flightiness and fondness for tight skirts didn’t exactly endear her to feminists.)
Finally, we can’t forget Judge Judy, the nononsense family court judge who presided over a real, televised courtroom. Everybody knows — you don’t mess with Judy.
THE MEN ARE LAWFULLY GOOD TOO
Denny Crane of Boston Legal was William Shatner at his quirky best, once demonstrating his arguments over gun control by dressing up as a minuteman with a musket. Louis Litt ( Rick Hoffman) of Suits ( visiting New Zealand this month), must be TV’s most infuriating gameplayer. And John Turturro’s depiction of eczema- suffering, underdog court lawyer Jack Stone, ( a role originally destined for James Gandolfini,) in The Night Of, was pitch- perfect. Likewise, Saul Goodman ( Bob Odenkirk) was so memorable in Breaking Bad with his shady interpretation of the law and floppy hair, he got his own spin- off in Better Call Saul, following his life as criminal lawyer Jimmy McGill before he took on his tradename representing Walter White. Some legal TV stars have even been lucky enough to strike lightening twice. Take John Laroquette, who played prosecutor Dan Fielding on the very funny 80s sitcom Night Court and returned to the screen as Carl Sack
in Boston Legal ( and a guest role on Law & Order SVU). And Chris Noth from Law & Order and its spin- off Criminal Intent shone as Peter Florrick in The Good Wife. Even the world’s top legal show scriptwriter David E. Kelley, himself a former attorney, turned his tricks of the trade into several hit shows, starting out as a writer on LA Law and moving on to hit shows The
Practice ( which ran for eight seasons), and its immensely popular spin- off, Boston Legal.
THEY TACKLE THE BIG ISSUES
Rape and sexual politics frequently appeared as themes in The Good Wife, as did crimes of a sexual nature on Law & Order, SVU, a show that does a great job of balancing the professional and personal lives of its main characters. For instance, the case of a child who went missing in the middle of a wild party his mother was hosting led Mariska Hargitay’s Olivia Benson to reflect on her own role as a parent. Meanwhile The Practice’s Bobby Donnell ( Dylan McDermott) was always on the cusp of moral ambiguity. His Boston law firm was often desperate for work, meaning he was frequently tempted to take on clients who were clearly guilty or whose crimes were so heinous bigger firms would reject them. Law & Order and Criminal Intent looked at the justice system from the criminal’s perspective.
Then there was Night Court, which tackled the toughest cases of all: rejected prom dates, scary Halloween costumes and abducted cats.
THEY MAKE THE LAW SEXY
Legal shows bring new meaning to the term “courting”. The power suits, the sharp negotiating, the simmering tension … and who can forget LA Law, the show with TV’s biggest shoulder pads? Its stars lived up to the wardrobe, presented as “invincible courtroom warriors who could do no wrong” as one US critic put it.
Without this classic, there probably would be no Damages or The Good Wife — the original schooled viewers on the ins and outs of the legal profession, and made countless fans want to hit the books. It also memorably popularised the sex technique term “Venus Butterfly”.
If the rumours are true, a reboot is due this year, in which case the television legal drama will have come full circle.