Note: Do not read on if you have not yet seen Season 4, Episode 16 of CBS' "The Good Wife," titled "Runnin' With The Devil."
Praise The Kings, there was no election storyline in this episode of "The Good Wife" and guess what -- it was a solid and very entertaining one. "Runnin' With The Devil" saw the return of Lemond Bishop and the introduction of Charles Lester, played by the wonderful Wallace Shawn. How fun was he?
The main case, a continuation from the episode "Waiting For The Knock," saw Lemond Bishop jailed and awaiting trial. He sent Charles (Wallace Shawn) to work with Alicia and Lockhart/Gardner to reinterview witnesses. The government -- represented by Audra McDonald as Liz Lawrence, one of Alicia's old schoolmates -- kept having witnesses recant their statements. Coincidence? They never said it explicitly, but Charles was going around making threats. Yes, lovable Wallace Shawn was going around and intimidating some of Lemond Bishop's top men. It was great. He got to enough people that the government had to drop the case and Lemond was free to go be with his adorable son.
"When did you sell your soul?" Audra McDonald as Liz was very fun to watch. She was a great foil to Alicia, especially because the two have history and Liz was used to show just how much Alicia has evolved. It has been quite a journey for our "Good Wife," one that is destined to become a TV classic.The other running story of the episode centered on the various aspects of Lockhart/Gardner. Diane and Will realized they never celebrated being free from bankruptcy, the firm got a new investigator and Cary started telling clients he was going to start his own firm. What the what!? Yes, Cary is on his way out, or at least making the moves. I would love to see Alicia go with him. Having the action spread across Lockhart/Gardner, the State's Attorney office and a new firm would be fun ... or a total mess.
"You have a sidekick now, Batman." The firm hired Robyn, a blonde, unassuming looking new investigator. I'm really looking forward to seeing the dynamic between Robyn and Kalinda. There were a few hints at what's to come, but with this show, you can never be too sure.
Oh, Kalinda and Cary also did it. Viewers didn't see it, but the morning after hallway chit chat (and smirks) were all too telling. "OK, that's that," Cary said after greeting Kalinda in the hallway.
The lack of election story was so very refreshing. I hadn't realized how much it bogs an episode down. The episode benefited from having the majority of the characters centralized in one place, not off doing four or five separate things. As for the guest stars, the writers should be planning the returns of Wallace Shawn and Audra McDonald.
Gasp Count: There was one slight one after Cary and Kalinda had their morning after encounter.
Some other things:
"I've never seen clothes like this."
Will singing the "Growing Pains" theme song.
"You know what I've thought about you since school? Nothing."
"The Good Wife" airs Sundays, 9 p.m. ET on CBS.
Follow Chris Harnick on Twitter: www.twitter.com/chrisharnick
