With the dust settling over the results of the Golden Globes, we at The Edge take a look at the shows nominated for Best Television Drama, and why they are worthy of the big award. This time, Editor, Rebecca James takes a look at one of the smaller shows which seems to be gaining momentum, The Good Wife.
The Good Wife focuses on Alicia Florrick, a Chicago lawyer who is forced to go back to work after her husband, States Attorney Peter, is arrested for bribery and corruption. It follows as she goes to work at law firm Lockhart, Gardner and Bond as a first year associate, as she gets to grips with practising law, whilst dealing with the fall out of her husband’s appeal and his infidelity with a prostitute. Inspired by many of the political sexual scandal of recent years, The Good Wife could have easily pandered to the most common denominator, presenting a desperate, reliant wife. Instead what develops as the narrative continues is a diverse cast of characters, and some truly intriguing legal cases. The legal complexities and moral dilemmas presented throughout the show’s weekly episode, combines with very well written long running storylines to create a show which is compelling and compulsive.
Julianna Margulies is undoubtedly the highlight of the show – as the central character Alicia, Margulies creates an emotionally nuanced performance, combining the anger of a wife at her husband’s infidelity with the raw strength and desire to support her family. While her performance is outstanding, she is supported by a uniformly stellar cast. Archie Panjabi and Christine Baranski both join with Margulies to create a core of female characters who are uniquely powerful and interesting as women and as characters, something which is unfortunately still a rarity. Likewise, the male members of the cast each hold their own, rounding out the world created by the show as realistic and raw.
Now into its fifth season, and with two Golden Globe nominations, and a stunning 35 Primetime Emmy nominations, The Good Wife shows no sign of slacking off. Rather than falling into a rut of formulaic episodes where the ending is predictable, The Good Wife continues to maintain the high quality drama. This ability to keep the show fresh and exciting elevates The Good Wife over many of the crime and legal shows currently on the TV.
The Good Wife is avaliable to catch up on Netflix, and Season 6 airs on More4 on 29 January 2015 at 9:00pm.
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