"Waiting for the Knock"
Season 4, Episode 5 | Original air date: October 28, 2012
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Lemond Bishop: He’s suave, he’s sophisticated and
he’s smart. Did I mention handsome? Well, he’s that, too. Best of all, he’s a father who loves his son
to limitless bounds – an admirable quality that would surely challenge the top
spot for Chicago’s Most Eligible Bachelor list.
Of course, the reason he’s eligible is because he had his wife
offed. Oh, and he’s a drug king pin.
Fortunately for me, I can’t get enough of Lemond
Bishop and his shading dealings. That
could be one of the reasons I loved this week’s episode. The Good Wife’s now classic roaster of
criminals I adore is ever-growing (and can I just say I would pay a lot of
money to see Sweeney and Bishop share a jail cell? A lot.
Like illegitimate juice bar a lot).
“Waiting for the Knock” was one of the better
character development episodes of the season so far – in my opinion – so this
week my commentary will look at things from an individual perspective. Get ready for ‘Cary Agos, Big Brother’ and
‘Will you want me to do what? Gardner.’ As always, I invite you to take to the
comments section at the end and let me know your thoughts on this week’s
episode!
Eli Gold – The Man Who Wants the Shirt off your Back. Literally.
Picking up right where we left off, Eli was, once
again, fully ensconced in a case of reputation management. It’s probably a good thing he didn't know
Alicia was off sharing tea with a drug lord, otherwise he probably would have
had a complete meltdown. But I digress. With Maddie hovering at the party, Jimmy V
lurking behind his computer and Peter shaking hands and holding babies, Eli was
bound to get caught up in more than he could handle. We've seen Eli scramble before, but it’s a
place he doesn't like to be and a place he doesn't handle particularly well.
What I find to be interesting about
Eli this season is how he is using his Lockhart Gardner connections to further
Peter’s campaign. Alicia is just an aside
in this whole thing. He is building a
network of unexpected Florrick campaign allies – Kalinda investigating off the
side, Will getting pulled into the crux of problem-solving – it’s something
unexpected that could have some very interesting repercussions down the
road. Eli is already close to unearthing
the Kalinda/Peter fiasco and the more he pulls in people close to Alicia, the
more he’s building an ‘I owe you’ network.
Peter can already see this going badly – you can tell simply by his
reactions every time Eli shares something good that has happened
because all the things that are going right are coming from Alicia’s little
corner of the world.
The fact is, Eli is paid to mitigate risk and keep
up an appearance of cool, but sometimes the campaign trail isn't so kind. Sometimes you need to take extreme measures.
Will you want me to do what? Gardner
Having nowhere left to turn in the case of ‘Jimmy V
and the blog post’ Eli called Will. Will? Wait.
Did that just happen? Whipping
out my ‘things I didn't see coming list,’ I put this at the very top. Ever the professional, Will did what he could
for a client (while, wearing another great semi-casual Saturday outfit *sigh*) –
it’s not personal, it’s business – but unfortunately this business just got
very personal. Even though we only had
the chance to look at Will’s face for a minute, his expression told a story of
epic proportions. It went something like
this:
Out of everyone you know, everywhere in the world, why did you call me? ME. Seriously Eli, weren't you there when we all got out of the elevator in The Dream Team? It was awkward. And not just because Patti Nyholm's baby was running around. I know you remember this - you pretended like it was a surprise party for Kalinda, who, by the way, also thought it was awkward. You know Peter and I don’t really get along and that Alicia and I have shared a little love in the afternoon. Okay, you don’t know specifics, but you intercepted my ‘I love you message’ so you know I’m not the first, second, or 45th person you should be calling. Glen Childs would have been a better choice – and that’s saying something. Sure, I know I’m good at intimidating the media – I've done it before (and I think I've even had a few dates come out of it), but it’s not something I want to do to help Peter. Also, did I mention I’m still in love with Alicia? Right, so there’s that, too.
Kalinda Sharma and the 100 Meter Dash
For the second week in a row Kalinda’s head has
been back in the Lockhart Gardner game and in “Waiting for the Knock” she was
even able to juggle Nick’s creepy shenanigans while finding a rotting body in a
trunk (the latter she did while chasing a motorcycle in her 5 inch heels – not
an easy feat, ladies and gentleman, not an easy feat).
While K’s ability to sniff out a corpse is second
to none, what I was most impressed with this week came during her interactions
with Nick. First, her ability to keep
her professional cool during the meeting about his skeezy tow truck business and second, her candor
and strength when telling him she’s a different person than he once knew. I mean, sure.
She went from Laila to Kalinda; from being married to a man to being
flexible with everyone and from making omelettes to shooting tequila. My words to Nick: You've got to get out of dodge - she’s not the same.
Also, you’re not the first person who has loved her only to have their
heart broken. Take a number.
Perhaps the most interesting development in Kalinda’s
story line came as a result of Nick (hallelujah, he’s doing more than pulling
knives and inappropriately licking ice cream) and the fact he ransacked Lana’s
apartment, only to find a shrine dedicated to Kalinda. Me + notebook = I didn't see that
coming, take II. The one photo Nick was able to
snatch from the apartment was of Kalinda and Eli talking – someone was clearly
lurking in the bushes, watching K’s every move.
I’ll confess to being intrigued about where this is going. Is Lana
keeping these pictures because of personal or professional reasons? She’s always really liked Kalinda, so are the
images the product of an obsessive love, or are they because of Lockhart
Gardner’s close ties to Lemond Bishop?
Now the tables are turning on Kalinda. Where she was the one using people, it
appears that now people are turning around and using her. At least she has Alicia, who is saying caring
things like, ‘stay safe,’ which, while making Nick lose his mind because he thinks
K is in love with Alicia (a likely observation – I mean Alicia is the only person
to ever have made Kalinda cry), is also a great development of the new K &
A relationship. There’s no room for Nick
in Kalinda’s life anymore. She has
Alicia.
Alicia Florrick, Belle of the Ball
When last we saw Alicia she was taking time away
from sharing her office space with Cary to visiting the straw poll to show her
support of Peter. Making the rounds, we
had the chance to relive Alicia’s encounter with Jackie and her roach-infested
wine, only to be followed up with Jackie calling Alicia ‘the belle of the ball.’ While viewers might agree with that
statement, Jackie has never been so kind.
Even Maddie, who doesn't know Jackie, thought the statement to be boldly
sweet.
Before having the chance to see Jimmy V’s blog go
live, Alicia was whisked off to Lemond Bishop’s Chicago mansion (which, I might
add, I want to model my dream home after.
This man knows how to decorate.
Or, he knows who to pay. Either
way, I loved it). We haven’t seen Alicia
be able to use her caring, nurturing side in a case much lately, but it’s
always interesting when we get to see that side of her. She is a smart, hard-hitting lawyer, but unlike
many of the other associates we encounter on the show, Alicia has a distinct
sense of empathy that makes the audience relate to her. Diane can be caring, and we've see this, but
Alicia has a calming warmth and the ability to put people at ease, even during
the most challenging of times. Watching
her interact with Bishop’s son, Dylan, reminded me why Alicia Florrick is one
of my favourite characters on television, and why Julianna Margulies is one of the
best actors around.
Cary Agos, Big Brother
With all hands on deck for Lemond Bishop’s case,
Cary was pulled in with everyone else to get to the bottom of the FBI’s new-found interest in this drug king pin.
Legitimate business, illegitimate business, tomato, tomatoe. The one thing Cary has always been good at is
working as a part of a team and this week that was taken to a whole new height
when he got himself arrested just to get the FBI’s search warrant. Oh Cary – I’m so glad to see you back in
action. I just wish we would have seen
who had the opportunity to bail you out.
Meanwhile, Cary was wrapped up with all kinds of
things this week when he wasn't in handcuffs. Making the highlight reel:
- Cary watching Kalinda and Nick interact in the elevator bank at Lockhart Gardner – he knew something was up – investigators and clients don’t usually shove and talk so close they are near kissing… but then again, it is Kalinda, so like many things involving her, Cary was willing to let it slide.
- Cary pulling Clarke Hayden into the Bishop investigation. As it turns out, Hayden really enjoys using his accounting skills to crack a case. This week, that came in the form of footnotes in some unbalanced books from a juice bar in a gym. It was like all-too-twisted Nancy Drew mystery, but Hayden loved it. He was almost happy. In fact, when he sat down with Cary to talk about his involvement in the case, he was downright gleeful. For whatever reason, Hayden has taken to Cary like a moth to a flame. It’s strange though – where one would think Hayden would be acting as a mentor to Cary, it’s actually the other way around. Cary is the one playing the role of big brother. Cary is inspiring Hayden to be actively involved and not just provide commentary from the sidelines; Cary is the one giving him career tips and encouraging Hayden to be more at the firm.
What’s next?
First, a preview: "The Art of War"
Maddie Hayward has pulled her support from Peter’s
campaign. It was a good two episodes
while it lasted. I’m sure her
contributions paid for the shirt Eli wrote Jimmy V’s number on and maybe
Jackie’s bug-infused Malbec. While she
wants to continue being Alicia’s friend, I’m beginning to sense a new plan
afoot. With no other female candidates
in the running, and Peter being dragged back into the media under the veil of
another sexual indiscretion, I can’t help but think Maddie might just throw her
hat in the ring. I’m not entirely sure
where that’s going to put her relationship with Alicia, but my money is on
‘strained.’
Also up next week: Judge Abernathy and Judge Kuhn
are back in Josh Charles’ directorial debut.
Color me excited! Judge Kuhn has
previously loathed Will and Judge Abernathy has kept the bar raised when it
comes to quirkiness. The two of them
together is sure to be an outrageous adventure.
Is it Sunday yet?
Related to this Post:
- Lemond Bishop gets carted off to prison while Josh Ritter plays in the background…
