For The People Season 1 Episode 5 Review: World's Greatest Judge
Paul Dailly
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Judge Byrne is one of the good ones.
On For The People Season 1 Episode 5, the judge was forced to make some big decisions that had the potential to make or break his career.
It was clear from the get-go that Nicholas was going to be at the forefront of the hour, and I was totally fine with that.
Being a new series, I get the need for some of the secondary characters to be established. The case was laughable, and I immediately sided with Nicholas about it.
But that wasn't enough for the case to be thrown out. There are laws in place for a reason, and while Nicholas did not want to send a man to jail for ten years for carrying 57 grams of Class A drugs, he had to.
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That said, it was apparent there was a reason for Nicholas change in demeanor. How could a man who sent hundreds of thousands of people down for the same thing without so much as batting an eyelid in the past suddenly take issue with it?
That's what I asked myself several times throughout "World's Greatest Judge." The reveal that Nicholas sent someone away who died was somewhat predictable, but it served as a sound reason for his struggle.
In Nicholas' eyes, he's sending people down who need to be rehabilitated. But the moment these people leave the courtroom, what happens to them next is out of his hands.
His speech to the man he sent down at the conclusion of the hour was enough to soften up even the hardest of people.
It connected with me in such a big way, and that's because the show was making a statement about how the justice system is flawed.
The man was being sent away for something that many would consider a misdemeanor, and then there are the child killers of the world that could get less time.
It was a hard-hitting case and just another reason why I love this show. The cases may not be perfect at the best of times, but having all of these issues we the viewers don't think about is what makes it so engaging.
We do need more from Nicholas down the line because his increased presence was felt throughout the episode.
I wasn't a fan of Allison's case in the slightest. It didn't help matters that the man she was defending was the most unlikeable person, like, ever.
He oozed charm and charisma to the point that I thought he was trying to sell me some crates of his fake ass wine. The only good thing about it was that it gave us some more wonderful acting from Jasmin Savoy Brown.
The reveal about the watch being fake made me wonder whether Allison's parents were not as wealthy as we were being led to believe.
It would have made for a way more interesting storyline if Allison did not comment on the fact that she was there when they bought it.
Then again, there's also the possibility that she wasn't present for the big purchase and didn't want to admit to Sandra that there was something sketchy about her parents.
Speaking of sketchy parents, there's more to Leonard's mother than meets the eye. I liked that we got some more goodies about Leonard's past, but all of the developments with the payouts makes me think she's not to be trusted.
Leonard may be one of those people who wants all the power in the world, but something tells me he's going to have to go up against his mother at one point and that's when we're going to see the real Leonard.
Him admitting to his mother's face about feeling like a prop in all of her campaigns was very telling. He never got the love he needed from his mother growing up because she was too busy trying to make things happen.
Leonard seeks validation in everything he does, and that's very likely down to his mother's detached approach to parenting him.
Related: For The People Season 1 Episode 3 Review: 18 Miles Outside Roanoke
As much as I'm still not enjoying the chemistry between Leonard and Kate; it was evident that Kate was keeping her guard higher than Tina's hair after Leonard shutting her down on For The People Season 1 Episode 4.
Okay, For The People Fanatics. I'm going to leave it to you guys now. What did you think of the cases? Do you like the variety of them?
Hit the comments below.
Remember you can watch For The People online right here via TV Fanatic. Get caught up with all the latest developments right now!
For The People continues Tuesdays on ABC.
Paul Dailly was an Associate Editor for TV Fanatic.Follow him on X.
