The Good Wife: "Boom De Ya Da" - The Doomsday Trifecta

"Boom De Ya Da"

Season 4, Episode 11 | Original Air Date: January 6, 2013

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This week, I'm writing from a hotel room in Los Angeles.  I'm here on vacation, and while I've embraced a life without deadlines for the next 10 days, the reappearance of Louis Canning and Wendy Scott-Carr has forced me throw my Zen out the window.  These two are shaking up just about everything on The Good Wife.  Toss in Clarke Hayden and it has suddenly turned into the doomsday trifecta.

For "Boom De Ya Da," I'm looking at the four most gasp-worthy moments, all of which are still sending me through the roof.  Once I get these off my chest, it's back to vacation, while humming Houaida Goulli's rendition of "I Love the Mountains."

Disease: Found in Pools and Law Offices Nation-wide

Personally, I love when The Good Wife takes things out of the courtroom.  Other offices?  Love them. A character's home? Can't get enough.  This week, we found ourselves at a not-so-little hotel on the prairie.  Deep in the Minnesota woods, Alicia and Louis Canning went head-to-head over some foreclosed property containing vacant swimming pools serving as breeding grounds for West Nile-infected mosquitos.  As someone border-line terrified of contracting this insect-borne disease, I was both intrigued and horrified about this case.  What I learned: Never jump a fence into a yard with a pool.  Message received.

But I digress.

Alicia (clad in what can only be described as a stunning cherry red blazer) and Louis (buttoned up in a brown three-piece number), spent the majority of the episode waiting around for a client who was missing in action 90% of the time.  Fortunately, with Alicia and Louis, there's never a dull moment.  As creatures of habit, these two fall into old rhythms better than best friends at a reunion: Louis lies, Alicia buys in and then figures out Louis foiled her (again), at which point she turns things around and serves him a juicy slice of humble pie.  It's deliciously predictable in the lease predictable way possible... if that makes sense.  I mean, there's nothing Louis says that I believe, no matter how convincing.  I only make one exception, and that's when he discusses his ridiculously lovely wife, Simone.  He seems completely genuine about her.  Everything else is a bust.  The only part I never see coming when it comes to Louis is why exactly he lied and how he always seems to get away with it.

Stick with me here.  Remember in "Parenting Made Easy" when he stole paperwork from Alicia's briefcase when she was dealing with Grace's disappearance?  First, he pretended to care and then he blatantly stole files.  Win, lose or draw, Louis Canning never fails to surprise me... or creep me out.

Of course, that's why he's amazing.  And, also, apparently how he's managed to acquire ALL of Lockhart Gardner's debt.  Say what?!  I did not see this coming at all.  I feel as though I'm more prepared for the zombie apocalypse than I am for Canning to be the firm's new creditor.  Forget the "De Ya Da" - let's just go with "Boom."

Side note: Did anyone else wonder why the woodland hotel was surrounded by trees donning their brilliant autumn colors?  Don't get me wrong, I love to watch leaves change, but I'm pretty sure it's winter in Minnesota.  If there's one thing I learned from watching the Ingalls homestead for nine years, it's that snow falls in that state in January.

Clothes, Incidentals and Sleepovers

Knock, knock.

Kalinda stands at the door with Alicia's clothes in one hand, a wine bag in the other.

  Alicia: "I miss drinking red wine at three in the afternoon."
  Kalinda: "I miss this."
  Me:"Eeeeeeeeee!" <insert clapping>
  Kalinda: "I'm sorry."
  Alicia: "I know."
  Me: *Sigh* "We're all sorry..."

Next morning, Kalinda is on the phone to Will while Alicia puts on her coat

  Me: "They just had a sleepover! They just had a SLEEPOVER!"

Best. Scene. Ever.

Okay, maybe not ever-ever, but definitely one of the best of season four.  Thank you, Good Wife Writers, for giving me one relationship for Alicia I can get behind.

The Raid

She's back.  Wendy Scott-Carr.  We knew she would be - she's too good/evil not to lurk in the wings.  How she got another contract to work in Cook County is beyond me, but she's smart, resourceful and most of all, determined to end corruption in the government.  Like Canning, I'm skeptical of her intentions.  Her battles often go from a business objective to a personal vendetta overnight.  Also, while she postures about unbiased practices, I'm pretty sure she's still after Peter (and maybe Will for that matter).  As it turns out this week, she's also after Eli Gold.  It was only a matter of time.

While Diane tried to scare WSC, it backfired like a car making a getaway in a dirty alley.  Wendy saw the threat and raised her by filing a warrant to seize all of Eli's files from the firm.  Now Eli's looking for a new lawyer and Lockhart Gardner is tangled in what's sure to be another scandal, as though Clarke Hayden needed another reason to hate the whole lot of them...

Cary Agos: Tutor

Okay, hate might be a strong word.  He doesn't hate Cary.  Or, he didn't, until Cary told Will, Diane and the faux-judge with the gavel, he was tutoring Clarke for 10 hours a week for the Bar exam.  Once again, color me surprised.  Clarke looked immeasurably hurt when he found out Cary felt he had to tutor Clarke for the security of his job, not out of the genuine friendship he thought they had forged.

I felt terrible for both Clarke and Cary.  First off, Cary is always placed in these situations where he has to testify for someone at Lockhart Gardner.  It's a good thing he's honest and loyal.  For Clarke "you use illogical passion for winning at all costs" Hayden, he was under the impression he and Cary were building a serious friendship.  The truth is, I kind of thought that, too.  While what happened was unfortunate, I worry Clarke won't be able to forgive Cary.

Now the firm has five short weeks to figure out their finances and rid themselves of pesky Clarke forever.  It's just too bad the new creditor is Canning... and that their landlord is Maddie Hayward.  Who thinks these two are going to give Lockhart Gardner a break?  It looks to me this business just got personal.