The Good Wife

Bad

Episode Guide

There were dueling cases this week on The Good Wife. First, Alicia had to defend a man she was sure killed his wife. He was found not guilty, but was now being taken to civil court by his step-daughter.

Dylan Baker was outstanding in this guest-starring role, creeping us out with his egomaniacal character. By the end of the trail, he was found innocent because evidence seemingly pointed to his accusor: the remains of his wife were found on his step-daughter's property.

But we certainly got the impression he did it. Like a solid show that respects its viewers, however, The Good Wife didn't feel a need to give us the answer.

Mamie Gummer also guest-starred as the lawyer that opposed Alicia on the case, initially making a great impression on the judge with her innocent act, but eventually being overwhelmed by the evidence and the pressure.

The other case of the week featured Peter: his trial began. Peter's lawyer impressively discredited the prosecution's star witness, the prostitute that slept with him and also claimed she was being paid to keep quiet about various investigations at the DA office. But the episode still ended with Peter facing a dilemma:

Childs said he'd let Peter go home - Alicia had earlier made it clear he was welcome back home, but only in the guest bedroom for now - as long as the guilty verdict remained intact. This meant Peter would be a free man, but would never be able to practice law again. Will he accept the chance to avoid jail and be with his family, or take his chance that he can win the case?

The other storyline of the episode felt a bit weak: Diane had Kalinda purchase her a gun because a killer she had convicted was not out on parole. But Diane almost felt too powerful with the weapon and returned it to Kalinda because she didn't trust herself and because she believed in strict gun laws.

This plot just didn't receive enough time and could have been cut.