The season 4 finale of The Good Wife aired last night and it’s safe to say that the landscape for next year is going to look very different. The big gamble that Alicia has taken with her career is going to have a huge impact and I for one am thrilled by this move. While it is clear where Alicia will be working when The Good Wife returns in the fall, it is more ambiguous when it comes to matters of the heart. The first half of the season was a bit of a let down with the story involving Kalinda’s ex-husband, more financial peril for Lockhart Gardner and underutilizing the wonderful Maura Tierney as Peter’s big rival. Thankfully the ship has been steered and the latter half has been a return to form as they have created conflict at work and with the love triangle that has never threatened to overshadow the rest of the story.
The case of the week in the finale was linked to the election and involved a lot of running around, switching sides and sleep deprivation and in the end the result of the case had no impact on the victor; the polling data had been incorrect and Peter won by a much bigger margin than expected. The outcome had no real bearing on the results but it did give an opportunity for Alicia and Will to discuss the kiss that has reignited past feelings. This discussion was unresolved and ended with more intense smouldering and making out, part of which was interrupted by Diane and I’m sure she has some thoughts about this hook-up. It’s this sexual desire that leads to Alicia’s decision and when she heads back to her apartment away from Peter’s victory party it’s easy to assume that she is meeting Will as she nervously double fills her glass of wine. We have already ended one season on Alicia and Will getting together and so I was pleasantly surprised to see who was knocking on the door.
It’s Cary! Alicia tells him that she wants to be part of the new firm and Florrick, Agos and Associates is a go. With Alicia on board it means that they get a discounted office space (but also have to provide Colin Sweeney with free legal service for two years and so they’re definitely making a deal with the devil) and I would imagine some of Alicia’s other clients will come with her. What they don’t have is Kalinda and I bet Cary will regret having that conversation with Robyn (though I really like Robyn so I hope she is back next year). Over at Lockhart Gardner they will be losing Diane too as with Peter’s victory this now makes her a State Supreme Court judge and so it will be looking a little bit empty on the employee front. Essentially it’s Will, Kalinda and David Lee; now that sounds like a fun trio.
What does sound like a lot of fun is the potential conflict that will come from this move and the thought of Alicia and Cary in court going up against Lockhart Gardner has me clapping my hands with glee (which makes typing this sentence harder). We have seen how in tune Alicia and Will are when they are working on a case together and I’m sure it will get just as explosive when they’re on opposing sides. We saw this in the mock trial and this episode featured the screaming argument that led to the passionate kiss.
Where does this leave them romantically? This decision to leave the firm and join Cary is partially motivated by this renewed sexual tension with Will as it has been distracting her and putting her in kind of a fever dream at times. By putting physical distance between her and Will it means that this temptation might be reduced. Alicia is pushing him away by doing something that will hurt him both professionally and personally and he will probably see this as a huge betrayal.
This move isn’t a random flight of fancy and Alicia’s dissatisfaction with how things are run over at Lockhart Gardner has been brewing since they were all offered equity partner and then had it taken away. Yes Alicia got made a partner, but since she has been sat in the management room she has seen how ugly things can be when it comes to the big decisions and this combined with her Will situation means leaving is the smartest option.
In one respect Alicia has made the choice to stay with Peter and they definitely are comfortable and relaxed in the conversation in the hotel room after Peter’s victory. When we return they could be living together as husband and wife after renewing their vows, but Will is still going to be there even if they’re sat at different tables in the courtroom. Will is also in possession of video evidence that shows that some of Peter’s people did in fact tamper with votes and another scandal would surely end Peter’s political career. This evidence would definitely hurt the two people who Will cares about the most; Diane and Alicia. It could end up being like the voicemail of love and dangle there as the elephant in the room that we know could bring everything crashing down. Will really doesn’t care about Peter, but I’m pretty sure he would do anything for Diane and Alicia even if Alicia has shown that she isn’t always loyal to Will.
The phrase game changer gets used too often when it comes to television plots, but on this occasion it feels appropriate as this decision by Alicia will change the whole dynamic of the show and I am really excited as to the new wealth of storylines that will come from this shake-up.
What did you think of The Good Wife season 4 finale? Are you looking forward to seeing Alicia against Will next year?
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