It felt a lot like normal on The Good Wife Season 5 Episode 7, despite the fact that half of the staff has departed Lockhart/Gardner and formed their own firm.

People are still annoying me no end, but we got a break from the more detrimental behavior and had an interesting case to investigate.

In a really nice turn of events, Will was acting admirably and fully focused on his firm instead of his midlife crisis. He was the man we all understood Alicia to fall for and the voice of reason among people still running amok.

All over the two firms, things were not at all what they seemed. I'll just get my disappointment out of the way right up front. Lockhart/Gardner was being sued for an adoption case in which the child was returned to the birth parents and they needed Alicia's testimony to help them win. 

Somehow, instead of the case being about the couple who lost a child, it was all about covering their asses - even when it became clear that one of the negligent fourth years was involved in a bribery scheme to keep one of the parties related to the birth parents silent from exercising their rights to stop the adoption. 

That it came down to that fourth year being so crooked that he lied under oath during a deposition to say that Alicia had given him the order to make the bribe on behalf of Lockhart/Gardner, and that they subsequently went on and rewarded him with a partnership was completely disheartening. Diane was right in the middle of that fiasco, obviously still aching from what was done to her by Peter, and being driven by the always poor decisions of David Lee.

The best thing to come out of all of that was that Clarke Hayden, who Alicia and Cary called in to help them get a grasp on their financial situation, was impressed enough with their firm and what they are trying to do that he offered his services as an attorney free of charge until they are in the black. Coming from that man, that's pretty impressive. He'll be a very formidable opponent to Lockhart/Gardner, which Florrick/Agos needs with all of their proprietary information heading out the door with Edelman.

Meanwhile, Will had his hands full with a young man who was pulled over for a bogus DUI charge in the hopes of getting a DNA swab for a completely unrelated murder case. Jeffrey was a client of Alicia's, and I don't know if that's why Will felt so compelled to help him or if he just needed to wrap his head around something other than all the gossipy dirt about the firms for a while, but it was great to see him doing what he does best.

Kalinda was on the case and her first instinct was that he was the killer. Will thought differently. After Kalinda ruled out Jeffrey's transgendered uncle and an unknown half brother as familial DNA matches, Will learned that the DA's office had Jeffrey's match at 100% with the victim. The kid seemed so genuine in his appeals to Will that he did not know the girl, so there will be more to the story. I'm wondering if Will might appeal to Alicia for help on the case given her personal knowledge of the client.

In the course of tracking down information on the possible suspects, Will ran into Owen and after talking with Alicia, Owen's eventual course of action was to tell Will Alicia only started her own firm to get away from him. We all knew that, and I think Will did, too. I just wonder what state of mind he was in after hearing it. The episode when Alicia and Will finally talk will be amazing. Season finale?

Cary was far more impressive this week, as well, and Florrick/Agos finally felt real when they all stood behind Alicia after she learned she may be responsible for the entire $6 million Lockhart/Gardner was being sued for if they determined she was the Partner of Record on the case. That's what a firm does. They don't do what Edelman did.

It wouldn't surprise me if somewhere down the line Lockhart/Gardner didn't decide to drop the dead weight they have with the David Lees and the Howard Laymans of the world and the two firms rejoined to be like a bionic firm. Lockhart/Gardner/Florrick/Agos & Associates. That's a firm that would rule Illinois. I think the two of them apart will do fine, but the two of them together - leaner, meaner, having trimmed the fat - would be a true force to be reckoned with. 

The other story of the evening was slightly disappointing in that Zach decided a fist fight would take care of getting naked videos of his underage sister off of the Internet. At least some of the computers in the house were being hacked to spy on Grace and her new status as the hot Governor's daughter.

That's great. There are videos of her that you can buy access to, probably download, and then re-upload somewhere. Zach and Grace just kept it to themselves because they're cool like that, and so computer savvy. A few punches to the gut of the ratter and it's all good. It doesn't actually work that way. What's out there is out there and not bringing in the authorities just lets pedophiles have access to Grace in very compromising positions.

I thought Alicia and Peter's kids were smarter than that. Did that shock anyone else? Sure, they want to pretend they're adults and can handle situations on their own, but surely they know pornography is a much bigger deal than they made it out to be.

Finally, where has Peter been? He went all Rambo for his family on The Good Wife Season 5 Episode 5 and then he just disappeared into the night. How many commitments does Chris Noth have that he can't even make an appearance after a bombshell episode like that one? What is the state of Alicia and Peter's marriage? Owen said it's not set in stone. It's not set at all.

Will was definitely the hero of the week, and rocketed to the top of the list after a horrible display of behavior. It appears he'll be bringing that back into the office again, but he gets recognition when it's due.

Chat about this week's return to normalcy in the comments. Was it welcome? What surprised you the most? 

Carissa Pavlica is the managing editor and a staff writer and critic for TV Fanatic. She's a member of the Critic's Choice Association, enjoys mentoring writers, conversing with cats, and passionately discussing the nuances of television and film with anyone who will listen. Follow her on X and email her here at TV Fanatic.