I was watching Craig Ferguson the other night (of course) and he and his guest were talking about TV shows in the fall line-up, and they confirmed the rumor I had heard earlier in the year that yes, Boston Legal will be back, but for it’s last season.
Damn.
Trust me when I say I never thought I would become attached to a show starring William Shatner and James Spader. I haven’t liked James Spader UNTIL Boston Legal (always before he impressed me as a mealy-mouthed little weasel acting bigger than his britches, and yes, there’s an element of that left in him here), and NEVER did I think he was sexy. Still don’t. And William Shatner? Yeah…pass. But these two are dead-on perfect in their roles in this show.
I looked forward, each week, to Spader’s character’s closing arguments. Seriously. Looked. Forward. To. Them. And it’s been a long wait this summer.
Given the current political goings-on, I thought I’d show a couple of examples of what it is I will so sorely miss about this show when it’s done.
The first embellished with relevant images and facts by www.PuppetGov.com:
We The People vs. U.S. Government (5:15)
And if that doesn’t stir your righteous indignation as an American citizen, check out this 10-minute clip of Alan Shore (James Spader) in front of the (simulated) Supreme Court. If you’d rather read, have a look at this Law.com article written by Tony Mauro about this episode.
Granted, this is television, not reality. In reality, no lawyer would ever have gotten away with what Spader’s character “gets away with” saying to the Supreme Court. But isn’t that the point, at least in part, of this episode?
Whether I agree with the political views presented by the show or not, whether I can tolerate Shatner and his character’s ridiculousness or not, and whether I believe either of these arguments represent what does or could actually happen in a courtroom in this country today, I know this: David E. Kelley gets a thumbs up from me for having the balls to speak his mind and challenge what he sees wrong in our government, and I will sorely miss Boston Legal once it finishes this final season.
