Note: Do not read on if you have not seen Season 3, Episode 21 of CBS's "The Good Wife," entitled "The Penalty Box."
Ladies and gentlemen, "The Good Wife's" "The Penalty Box" was not the strongest episode, but it will forever be remembered. Boring stuff then the meaty goodness that was Kalinda/Lana, the return of Cary and Kalinda/Alicia.
The main case of the episode: Judge Cuesta enlists Lockhart/Gardner to defend him when he's put in the penalty box for a case from his prosecutor days. This A plot really should have been B or C. Sure it gave audiences the chance to look at the methods of defense attorneys from a different light than "The Good Wife" normally allows, but the clunkiness hindered the episode.
"Welcome back to the dark side." Robert and Michelle King should write a guide book for other TV writers in how to develop relationships. The evolution of Cary and Alicia as rivals to friends to rivals again and back to colleagues/friends has been one of the joys of "The Good Wife." From the scarf petting to the scene from "The Penalty Box" at the bar, it's truly something to witness. Cary is back at Lockhart/Gardner and now that he's no longer competing with Alicia, I can't wait to see how they interact in Season 4. Even with the promise of a clean slate between Will and Cary, something tells me it's not going to be smooth sailing for Cary returning to the halls of Lockhart/Gardner.
"Your FBI friend is going to get you killed." Lana has put Kalinda in Lemond Bishop's crosshairs. Any "Good Wife" fan knows that is a terrible thing. Lana's meddling -- I mean, investigation -- really scared Kalinda. In an effort to put a halt to it and basically save her life, Kalinda seeks out Lana. Then, in true Kalinda fashion, she turns on the sex. Here's "The Good Wife," pushing networks standards, again. Gotta love that. In the midst of all the sexy times, something clicks with Kalinda. At first, I thought it was her realizing she was using sex to get what she wants, the thing that broke her and Alicia up. However, could it be that she actually cares for Lana? After all, the vulnerability started to show after Lana said she had been after Kalinda for two years.
"Could you please keep your pants zipped?" Diane Lockhart is all sorts of wonderful. Forget the line of home furnishings, "The Good Wife" should release a line of Diane's broaches. Even when Diane is just hanging in the background, Christine Baranski remains fierce.
Kalinda and Alicia, bar buddies again. It was the moment we (I mean, from what I read on Twitter, I know I'm not the only one) have been waiting for. Alicia tricked us into thinking she was going to ice Kalinda and then BOOM, she turned that chair. I'm going to assume they did a tequila shot and nothing anybody can say in the comments will sway me otherwise ... unless you are Robert or Michelle King.
Gasp count: Three. There was also some flailing when Alicia turned that chair around. And yelling.
What did you think of the episode? Who would you take on a deserted island? Happy to have Cary back?
"The Good Wife" airs Sundays, 9 p.m. ET on CBS.