I’d assumed the reference to Trump’s election in episode one had been tacked on after most of the series was in the can, but no – here we find Diane’s new firm losing contracts to a rival firm that backed the buffoon. And just to make things even more topical, we’ve got a case about Syria.
Diane’s amiable doctor client has been assisting with surgery in the war zone via Skype. So far, so noble, until he’s charged with supporting terrorism. The case initially seems to hinge on whether he knew the identity of his patient, and when he cranks up his laptop to finish the operation after leaving court it initially feels like things are going Full Homeland.
However, Diane and Lucca aren’t so quickly defeated. After all, the state hasn’t actually proven the patient is a baddie, and our doctor is code-bound not to abandon anyone mid-surgery. Things become messier still when it emerges the teenager – a US citizen – was in Syria trying to bring home his ISIS fighter brother home. A noble motive, but thanks to a Supreme Court precedent it’s not enough to keep our medic on the right side of the law.
The case also provides Lucca with the opportunity to flirt with the opposing counsel, although when I say “flirt with” I really mean “be rude to” – my only minor gripe so far with The Good Fight is that Lucca seems to have been slotted into the sassy-emotionally-unavailable-brown-lady role vacated by Kalinda. I’d like to see her have a laugh or a proper social life at some point. Anyway, all of that’s actually just a further distraction from the real drama … the US Government’s plot to smoke out their ISIS target then blow up him and everyone around him. Yikes.
Meanwhile, the firm’s in danger of losing a big client to another minority-owned business that cosied up to the new president during his campaign. I’m not entirely clear why they really needed a bona fide Trump supporter to do the wooing back, as opposed to a good liar, but our old friend Julius duly stuck his neck on the line. He now risks being ostracised, but perhaps he can form a support group with Diane (incidentally, her nemesis Barbara was rocking an excellent suit in this episode).
And lastly, poor old Maia’s trying to unravel the mess her relatives have made while keeping on the right side of the law. Fortunately she has access to the services of Marissa (aka Grace.2), who can turn her hand to just about anything but is especially skilled in the art of total bullshitting. Like father like daughter – I do hope Eli will be popping into the office for a visit soon.
Shona Craven 