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It seems
like yesterday when Zach was driving down the interstate with Alicia relaxing
in the backseat; Kalinda was sitting at her front door with a gun tucked in her
white arm chair and Will was getting ready to come off of suspension. Remember those days? Things were so… so… up in the air. Somehow 21 episodes have passed since then
and now we’re back to living with what’s sure to be an unbearable hiatus. Oh yes, and things are more uncertain than
ever. I love how the more things change
the more they say the same.
The best
part, in my opinion, is that “What’s in the Box” delivered on everything it
promised to, including rendering me speechless on more than four occasions. A few weeks ago, a friend coined the hashtag,
#TeamPaperBag and I was quick to jump aboard that ship. Hyperventilating aside (because we all know
that happened), “What’s in the Box” was the perfect set-up to what I’m already
anticipating will be an electric season five.
Now, if only we didn’t have to wait until September. Oy vey.
What am I supposed to do until then?
Fortunately,
that’s a problem for another day. Let’s
dive into “What’s in the Box” by looking at this episode's four best scenes and how they’ll
impact season five.
Warning: Spoilers/predictions/excitement
ahead. If you haven’t watched “What’s in
the Box” yet, you need to – and on repeat.
A minimum of three times is recommended.
This week I’m
not going to do a full recap. Why? Because I’m assuming everyone has seen the
episode. If you haven’t, see above
warning. There are dozens of great
recaps out there, so if you need a play-by-play, check out my April 29 news feed for some suggestions.
For this
year’s finale, I decided to make things memorable by watching it over in
London, UK. Okay, that wasn’t planned,
per se, but it happened and now I’ll always have that ‘where were you when’
moment to look back on fondly. It’s like
how people remember where they were when world events happened - like Will and Kate's royal wedding (Disney World) or the Toronto Blue Jays winning the World Series (at home, in front of the television). Of course, I
would have been happy with ‘couch’ being my answer, but instead I have ‘hotel
room in London.’ Not a $7,800 hotel room, mind you
(oh season two finale, how I still love you), but I’ll take it.
When it
comes to the best and most memorable moments/scenes from “What’s in the
Box,” I struggle not to write, ‘everything,’ though don’t think I’m not
tempted. It’s for this reason I waited
hours before writing this, as my initial discussion would have read: “I’m sorry
what? Wait. No. Really?! No. Yes. What?
Where?! That did not just… what the?” See, we all win with me taking a breather.
Top Four Scenes
(in no particular order… at least that I’m willing to admit to)
1) The Car: Need I say more? Who am I kidding? Yes I do!
Alicia +
Will + Car = pure magic! Lately, we’ve
watched Alicia struggle with her feelings for Will, and now, in the calm of a
late, misty night, she brings everything back up. Her feelings, she admits, she can’t escape,
but she doesn't know what to do. The
logical answer is to kiss. And they
do. From my little corner of the world,
fireworks are flying and I’m over the moon.
After the world’s most adorable forehead touch, Alicia asks, “what do we
do?” Before Will can answer, Diane
knocks on the hood of his car.
Thankfully, Will’s windshield is fogged up to the max (like the car Rose
and Jack found themselves canoodling in aboard Titanic) and Diane seems to have
missed everything. While I’ll confess I was
looking forward to her fist of furry and a rage-filled speech, there’s
something nice about knowing everything doesn't have to be a complete mess for
these two each step of the way. Before
they exit the car the following, what I hope will eventually be monumental,
remarks were made:
Will: “When this night is over, we talk.”
Alicia: “We can’t...”
Will: “To hell with bad timing. We talk.”
To some,
this conversation might not mean much, but I feel as though I could get my Ph.D
in “Gardner/Florrick Communication.” I’ve
studied these two for four long years. I've earned it. The key here, from my perspective, is Will taking the lead. Back in season one, Alicia told Will she
needed a plan. Unfortunately, through it
all, that’s the one thing he’s never delivered.
While I’m not dismissing Alicia’s sometimes spazztic decision-making when it comes to Will, she gave him the Lincoln Logs and he has yet to build
the cabin.
Here’s to
season five – a season with some good timing and maybe, just maybe, some new
developments to inspire Will to conceive a plan. Come on Team Gardner, we’ve got this!
2) A Backroom Payoff: Saying goodbye to Jackie’s better
half?
It has been
awhile since we saw Jackie’s caregiver/lover/special friend, Cristian, and I
can safely say I’ve missed him. While I’m
not entirely sure what his relationship with Jackie is, that’s part of why
I enjoy him. Really, I like him more
than I ever liked Jordan, and I saw him much less. He’s mysterious but charming and has an air
of whimsy I can’t help but appreciate. The
best part? He’s not going anywhere.
Sure, Eli gave him a personal cheque from
Peter for $25,000 to get lost, but what Jackie wants, Jackie gets and Cristian
isn’t going anywhere. He just happened
to get a nice bonus. After shaking hands
with Peter and announcing that he’s staying, I had a feeling of impending doom
for our new Governor. Is Cristian really
bad news? Is he working his way into the
Florrick family for more than just the benefit of Jackie (because, let’s face
it…)? I would love to see more Cristian
in season five - on a cruise ship, as a life guard, or locking death stares
with Peter and Eli. I feel as though
Cristian could be the genie in the bottle I've been looking for when it comes
to Jackie and Peter – is it possible he could bring them both down? I don’t know… yet… but I’m willing to
strategize throughout the summer.
3) What’s better than a ballot box? A septic tank truck, that’s what.
Oh Jim
Moody, campaign cronie and devious political navigator. He has skills, I’ll credit him that, but when
it comes to flying under the radar, he needs a little training from
Kalinda. Starting the episode, he plans
to send a rogue septic tank truck into a neighbourhood high on Kresteva to
deter them from heading to the polls. I
mean, he has a point – only the most dedicated voter would preserver through
the smell of raw sewage to cast a ballot.
Oh, and New Yorkers. Having been
one, I can say, ‘that’s a day in the life.’
Bring on the septic tank!
The Florrick
campaign had issues bigger than poop to deal with however, not the least of
which included a tampered-with box of ballots.
Our favourite 18-year old spotted the issue-laden box while getting his
first taste of democracy and quickly documented it on his phone. Before long, it was off to an emergency trip
to court with the entire Lockhart Gardner team in tow. Remembering I’m not here to do a recap, all I’ll
say is this: the ballots were in, they were out and they were in again. Oh, and Patti Nyholm was representing
Kresteva because apparently drug manufacturers like Republicans. Jordan resurfaced to be annoying and was
quickly caught in a lie (because no one messes with Eli Gold and Zach Florrick –
no one!). The case was solid and I
thoroughly enjoyed how it tied to the foundation for the episode:
the election.
The thing
is, everyone has a vested interest in Peter becoming, or not becoming,
Governor. By now we all know he won
(and if you didn’t, now you’re caught up), but the story doesn’t end there. Will Diane be given the opportunity to become
a Supreme Court Judge? Are her ties with
Will still too strong? Who will be the
next State’s Attorney? Could it be the
esteemed Wendy Scott Carr (can you even IMAGINE?) or someone new altogether?
Perhaps
most intriguingly is the fact Will was given video footage showing Jim being
the one behind the fraudulent ballots.
Will had the chance to seal Peter’s fate… but he didn’t. Why?
Will Peter now owe him something?
The fact is, the ballots – the actual numbers – don’t matter. It’s the fact a campaign worker was willing
to rig the election. That Eli Gold was
behind it and the Peter Florrick would allow it to happen. Will has the chance to be the whistle blower
on Peter’s ethical compass. Like Kalinda’s
husband, this footage could be gone forever, but then again, maybe not. If you were Will, would have thrown Peter
under his own campaign bus, or would you have done what was best for your
client for the meantime? Either way, I
see this as leverage. For what I don’t
know, but that’s not important now. I’m
a fan of a stacked back pocket.
4) Florrick, Agos and Associates, coming fall 2013
If there’s
one scene in four years that has made my head explode, it would be this one:
Alicia dialing the phone from the bathroom and asking the person on the other
end if they still want to talk. The
answer, we learn, is yes, and Alicia heads to her apartment to meet her
caller. At this point, I was losing my
mind. Sadly, there’s an actual picture
of this – my head in my hands, gasping and covering my face while peeking
through my eyes. My written reaction? “I’m
shaking! She escaped! The campaign… Please tell me he shows up!” Once again, it’s a good thing I’ve taken a
few hours to process.
Of course,
I was wishin’ and hopin’ and thinkin’ and prayin’ that she had called Will, but
in hindsight I can see the flaw in my plan – we were already gifted with a
perfect Team Gardner treat and another would be like Santa coming twice in one
night. I mustn’t be so scene-greedy in the future. No, this was, dare I suggest, an even more
perfect moment. Cary was at the door and
all Alicia had to say was “I’m in.” The
firm of Florrick, Agos and Associates is no longer a dream – a dream I’ve
thought about for years – it’s a reality that will be born in season five. My question? What made her finally decide to make the move? Was it not wanting to be *just* the 'first lady of Chicago?' Was it about opening or closing (bah!) the door on Will or was it about something else altogether?
What will
this mean? First of all, Alicia has to
leave the firm and so does Cary. That’s
going to be a disaster – but, let’s face it, completely amazing. David Lee is going to lose his mind. I hope he’s in a costume when it happens –
that would be the icing on the cake. Diane
might not care that much if she’s gone, but I anticipate Will might have
something to say about things. That
said, Alicia leaving the firm eases some of the complications surrounding Will,
specifically when it comes to him being her boss/colleague. Once he gets over things though, good timing
might stand a chance for once. These two
have a history of getting heated in the courtroom (flashback: Red Team, BlueTeam) and part of me thinks that might translate into other rooms, too. Blast!
I just made a promise not to be greedy.
But… right?!
Second, it means Colin Sweeney is going to be the firm's landlord. Oh yes, that just happened. He'll follow Alicia to the ends of the earth and if that means cutting Cary a deal on rent for free legal services for two years, then, why not? I mean, it's creepy. But that's what's both delicious and disgusting about Sweeney. I love how torn he makes me feel. Still, at the end of the day, I can't help but be excited we'll get more of him in season five. Who knows what kind of shenanigans will be brewing!
The End... For Now
And so,
that’s that. We’re out for another
season, and what a ride it has been. Thank you to everyone who has joined me on the
adventure this year – I’ve enjoyed every minute. To new friends and old, I appreciate your
support and readership. Each of you has
truly made my season four magic. As for
me, I plan to keep writing and speculating on The Good Wife throughout the
summer, so stay tuned and, as always, please sound off with your comments. Your passion for the show fuels my passion
for the show and I have to say, I think we've got a great thing going on here. Dare I say, 'good timing?'
Cheers!
