(S04E19) "No more soda pop!" - Judge Clark Brown
Remember last week, when Alan and Denny made the joke about moving to Wednesdays? Remember how much I loved it? Well, I feel exactly the opposite about this week's version. Last week, the joke was so quick , it could have easily been missed. This week it was about as subtle as Denny Crane himself, Plus, it had the added bonus of already being done.
I don't know what was more underwhelming, the guest appearance of Christine Ebersole or her lame cloned meat case. For a show that has had awesome guest actresses like Missi Pyle, Gail O' Grady and Betty White, the star of Rachel Gunn RN is not an impressive get.
As for the case, I admit that I know nothing about the use of cloned animals as food, but I find the entire thing laughable. How can eating cloned beef and pork be any worse for you then what is already being sold at most supermarkets? I say stick a label on the package and if people want to eat the cloned meat, let them. There are plenty of Americans who would gladly ingest a non-procreated steak, if it only cost 99 cents.
Looking at everyone involved in the case, it makes perfect sense. The demented, libidinous lawyer, the senile judge and the frustrated opposing counsel wondering why he's the only one making sense (played flawlessly by Tim Omundson, BTW.)
You know, for a show that is in danger of being cancelled, Boston Legal sure does some stupid things. Last week, Alan argued passionately in front of the Supreme Court. This week, he's helping his rich boss make a point to her idiot nephew. Clearly, the state of Massachusetts is in need of some tort reform. Besides, I can think of five or six better reasons to sue the Democratic party.
Wolfgang Blitzkrieg? Really? Is there anyone on the planet who found that funny? If so, my daughter is performing in her school's talent show and I'm sure you will find her act hilarious. When did BL start using funny names and wacky wigs to entertain us? More to the point, is there such a thing as a Boston Legal fan who also takes FOX News seriously?
I tuned out on the entire DNC story after being hammered by the political message of Alan and Shirley's argument. To be fair, I agree with most of what was being said, but I kind of resent hearing it from Hannah Montana's brother.
This episode was disappointing, to say the least and pure crap to say the most. The only saving grace was seeing Denny in love. It gave us all a chance to watch Shatner be funny and lovable, also seeing him ride that horse was really cool.










Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
5-01-2008 @ 9:15AM
Christian said...
I think you are being overly harsh here. But I get your point and I agree: This was not a good episode. Even Alan Shore couldn't humour me this time...
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5-01-2008 @ 9:29AM
Scott T said...
Ebersole is one of the leading lights of Boardway. And she was very good last night. Perhaps it wasn't one of their best -- but its still one of the very best shows -- now -- or ever.
That scene where Alan and Shirley argue over the campaign was brilliant.
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5-01-2008 @ 10:06AM
HD Guy said...
I'm usually not one to be critical - but if you're going to review television programs for a living - you may consider paying attention to the content.
The point about safety concerns of cloned meat were clearly laid out - as well as the all important "ick" factor in which the FDA does NOT require any labeling of cloned meat at all. Unfortunately, the FDA has been corrupted by politics and people suffer and die because of it.
As to the DNC - the points are all valid - but unnecessary. The only people who believe the super delegates would be stupid enough to override election results favoring Obama - are the Clintons. She fought hard - but it’s just not gonna happen in 08.
Boston Legal is an above average show - I just wish more people paid attention to the points being made about the state of affairs (right, wrong or otherwise) rather than its casting merry-go-round.
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5-01-2008 @ 11:02AM
Leslie said...
Clearly the author of this article knows nothing about Ebersole's multi-decade career on Broadway. She's an exceptionally talented luminary of the theatre who happens to make a few bucks (alas, the Theatre never pays very well) on TV, and who can blame her. It wasn't her performance that was weak last night; it was the grandstanding script that sounded more like what the teleplay writers wanted to say (their own personal political statements) rather than anything organic coming out of ANY of the characters' mouths. It's hard for even excellent actors to rise above weak material.
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5-01-2008 @ 11:18AM
mattS said...
My wife and I disagree with 75% of the positions, rants, lectures, etc. on this show. However, we watch every week because of the great characters and quirky humor that usually works out well. Maybe we're exceptionally tolerant of differing opinions or maybe the show is good enough to be enjoyable to people who disagree with it's themes.
This was a weak episode, but the show should get renewed.
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5-01-2008 @ 11:32AM
Harold Kurtz said...
I always find the Boston Legal episodes a hoot. Sometimes they push the envelop but imbedded in their insane and unorthodox views there is much truth and honesty. I would be terribly disappointed if the show were canceled.
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5-01-2008 @ 11:37AM
Jennifer said...
I don't actually watch this show but heard about it because I actually work for a company that clones livestock.
I am so sick and tired of the media and shows like this who keep on furthering myth and misperception about agricultural innovation. It's bad enough when you have traditional activist groups distorting truth and now a growing natural foods and organics market that also has a vested interest in perpetuating myth in order to drive the sales of their higher priced products. It's really aggravating when a team of writers don't bother to do research and keep the engine going.
For a plot device, using a suit about a rancher suing the FDA? um right, if anyone were going to try that it would be some anti-technology activist group who masquerades as just looking out for you and me.
Also no one is looking to clone livestock and then turn around and kill it for eating. It costs way too much to clone an animal and you'd no way get that amount out of a carcass value. They clone their best breeding animals to use in their breeding programs. It's the sexually reproduced offspring of those animals that would be used as food animals. There's zero difference in those offspring from any other offspring. They don't need more anti-biotics or hormones but hey organic and all natural marketers are applauding you. Way to go script writers over at Boston Legal. You're certainly doing your part to have realism be a part of your storyline. Not.
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5-01-2008 @ 11:57AM
Michael Couvillion said...
Isn't Wolf Blitzer a CNN reporter?
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5-01-2008 @ 12:09PM
MacGuffin said...
No the best BL episode. Even the fourth wall jokes were bad.
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5-01-2008 @ 1:35PM
Oreo said...
I like this episode. The fact than Denny has no clue if he won or lost is funny, and making fun of the democrats is always nice. :)
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5-01-2008 @ 1:37PM
Jessica said...
I, too, think you are being overly critical. Even a weak show of BL is way better than most crap on TV.
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5-01-2008 @ 1:53PM
Piper Voge said...
The Wolf Blitzer thing was funny, because it was a dead on spoof. Not the best episode but even their weakest episodes are better than some of the crap that has already been renewed.
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5-01-2008 @ 1:57PM
Mark said...
The problem is, all the positions, rants and lectures have come drown everything else that is so wonderful about this show. First, I started skipping over Alan's diatribes. But that's a slippery slope. Now, the shows pile up on the Tivo as I try to summon the strength to endure more. Ultimately, they may not even get watched. I kills me that it came to this for me. This was my favorite show OF ALL TIME.
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5-01-2008 @ 2:20PM
chgosaint said...
Wow - some reviewer must have eaten a bad piece of meat to be this nasty. The meat and FDA thing was clearly spelled out -- pay attention. Cloned meat does not have the naturally occurring antibodies in bred cows that prevent infection -- that is one of the reasons there are problems with it. Labeling does matter -- look at the kurfuffle over irrariated foods.
Christine Ebersole is not a "get"? You mean the TONY award winning actress who is also always a perennial Tony nominee in virtually every role she has ever done? It wasn't her best work, but even her worst work is better than 90% of everything else on television.
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5-01-2008 @ 2:20PM
chgosaint said...
OOPS - irradiated
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5-01-2008 @ 3:16PM
MERVE-THE-PERVE said...
I thought this episode was ok. I don't really watch it for the cases, just the actors and the comedy. I did agree with them about the delegates voting the way they are supposed to. Why even have the damn primaries if they are meaningless. I really don't care which one wins, but I think they should go by the will of the people in any party election, even if the people voted for Carrot Top. And the Superdelegates should not be allowed to be bought. I also like how these characters poke fun at tv. How they mention they are moving on the schedule, what they did during the strike, how new characters are supposed to appear in the season premiere and not the 2nd episode. I hope they don't cancel it. It's better than anything they will replace it with. Plus they regularly win Emmy's on this show.
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5-01-2008 @ 3:17PM
Jason said...
Uh, yeah, it was better than you think. I'm not saying it's the best BL ever (it's not), but it was still better than every "reality" show and most of the scripted ones. Am I biased? Yes. Do I care? Not in the slightest.
These are important issues being explored, as the show does most weeks. With the meat issue, you're right that a lot of people would buy cloned meat if it were cheap. But is it good for us to be doing that? I don't think it would be very beneficial right now; let's do some more research and perfect/improve the technology before we send it to market. Once it's ready, then we can start working on feeding the starving third-world countries before worrying about ourselves. We'll be fine, right?
As for the DNC stuff, it was quite important to put that debate out there as well. I only watch a little bit of news each night, so I guess I don't feel quite as inundated as the type who puts on MSNBC/CNN/FNC all day long (hi mom!). As someone who voted for Obama in the IL primary, I'd like to think my vote actually means something come convention time, that the (non-super) delegates will vote based on their district's results. The supers can do whatever they want, that's why they're there. At least the first round of voting, if Clinton decides to make a fight out of it. It wasn't necessarily the most entertaining stuff ever, but this is the future of our society being decided here; it's a little more relevant than Idol or even the whodunits that were going on at the same time.
And as for the fourth-wall jokes, I was falling out of my chair with laughter. The first scene dovetailed beautifully from the end of the balcony scene last week. One of the best teasers ever, perhaps second only to Jerry singing with the theme tune. And did I hear something about a "homegrown who can cancel you at any second" out of Denny at the end? Great stuff. The audacity that DEK and his staff has, to do this insane stuff, and to make it work so well every time, is almost unfathomable. It's one of the big reasons I watch the show.
"Wolfgang Blitzkrieg" = Wolf Blitzer. On CNN, not FNC. If you watched any of the endless primary coverage, you'd realize that Blitzer was dropping the line about CNN having the best political news team in TV almost every time they cut to him. So this wasn't much of a stretch.
The only thing that really irked me at all was seeing the Shat on the damn horse. I was at a Star Trek convention in '96 (yes I admit it, but hey, I was 10!) and he was one of the speakers that day. He went on for almost an hour talking about his horses, and riding horses, and spending time w/ Nimoy riding horses... Ugh! I got that sickly feeling when that scene started, and I quickly knew why.
This and Lost are the only shows I watch on ABC (I guess I can add Scrubs for the fall). I'm not going to be adding any new network shows to my stable these next few years, so I may not be watching anything there after Lost finishes (I don't see BL lasting another 2 seasons, even though I want it to). Yes, I'm only one viewer, but those "one viewers" start to add up eventually. This is among the top tier of network shows at present, in my opinion, and I feel it should be allowed to continue. I can see I'm not alone.
And what was so bad about Christine Ebersole? She was fine! Don't go nitpicking for problems; realize the difference between writing and acting. The character wasn't the best-written, but she did well with the material she had.
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5-01-2008 @ 5:58PM
Nathaniel Teager said...
I think that the review is too harsh.This episode was probably the weakest of recent BL episodes,but it still had some nice moments.As for the possibility of cancellation,it could be argued that there is the contract issue,but BL is a great show,with good ratings.The change from Tuesday to Wednesday had an impact on the ratings (which,as far as the after the WGA strike episodes are concerned,were better than previous episodes).However,we should wait for the last two episodes to have an accurate picture.I really hope that BL will be renewed for a fifth season.
Ratings "The Court Supreme":10.52 million viewers
"Indecent Proposals":7.33 million viewers
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5-01-2008 @ 9:17PM
R said...
Harsh review, but it won't change the fact the writing is still better on this show than most all others. Jennifer, who works with cloning livestock, get a clue. I want to know what's in EVERYTHING I eat and I want it labeled. It's a great storyline, so we can all have a conversation about it. Do you think the FDA does a great job, or our government really cares what you eat? NOT!!!
Fourth wall jokes are great and especially when Boston Legal does it. Smart of BL to do them about changing time slots cause ABC hardly ever advertises. Absolutely brilliant. Shame on ABC for not doing more for this show and advertising so many other shitty shows.
Hysterical to see chubby Shatner ride his horse and imagine that he really is a horseman. The shows can't always be "the best", but this show still beats out most others. Make ABC renew this show so we can laugh, learn and enjoy.
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5-02-2008 @ 11:58AM
amy said...
Did no one notice the uncanny resemblance of Shirley's nephew "Mitchy" to Charlie McCarthy??
I expected him to sit on her lap at the end of the show!
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