Marissa Gold was one of my favorite characters on The Good Wife, and I was thrilled that she moved on to The Good Fight.
Now she’s in New York, and her reintroduction on Elsbeth Season 3 Episode 6 is the plot point I’ve been waiting for all season.
I’m not sure about her new role, which made her as morally ambiguous a character as her father, but I can’t complain about her being back.
Marissa’s Mayoral Candidate Campaign Turned Into a Matchmaking Service
It was ironic that Marissa’s interest in helping Alex become the next mayor of New York aired two days after the real mayoral election.
Some critics of Mayor-Elect Zohran Mandami said he didn’t have enough experience to be mayor, so it was especially weird to hear that comment come from the fictional mayoral candidate.
I liked that Marissa added some politics to Elsbeth.
Although this show is usually far more lighthearted than The Good Wife, the entire franchise until now has been about the intersection of politics and the law, and it wouldn’t make sense for Marissa to show up without her strong political opinions.
Of course, politics was almost secondary to her storyline, which involved matchmaking Elsbeth and Alex, although she also decided to make them look like a couple because she thought it would be good for Alex’s campaign.
Elsbeth didn’t appreciate being used for political points, but I couldn’t help thinking that Marissa genuinely wants the two of them together, especially after they hit it off.
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And of course, Alex had a connection to the fire department, keeping the running joke alive that firemen are always attracted to Elsbeth, who generally does not return their interest.
This mayoral election storyline is probably a longer-term arc, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Alex has some unsavory connections.
I think I read somewhere that there’s more to come with the Judge Crawford story that was so abruptly ended last year.
Assuming I didn’t dream that, Alex could have some connection to Crawford that will blow up in Elsbeth and Marissa’s faces.
Even if it’s not that, I can’t shake the feeling that he’s dirty somehow, or at least has a very big skeleton in his closet.
Seemingly perfect boyfriend material usually does, especially in shows where politics is a big part of the backdrop.
Gary Was One Of The Most Obvious Suspects Ever, But It Was Still Fun For Elsbeth to Trap Him
I especially love that William Jackson Harper played the villain.
I know him as Chidi from The Good Place — the only character who I didn’t instantly believe was really in the Bad Place.
It’s traditional for mystery shows to make the bad guy an actor who is known for playing a good guy, and I enjoyed Elsbeth’s decision to do so this time.
Of course, Gary was one of the most obvious killers Elsbeth had ever run across.
His whole plan was incredibly sloppy, and there were so many reasons to suspect him that Captain Wagner didn’t argue for once, instead assigning someone to work with Elsbeth.
Of course, he chose the most annoying detective in the squad room, and he did it mostly because it stopped Rivers from taking Julia to lunch, but it was still a step above trying to convince Elsbeth that she was wrong.
Elsbeth Got a Huge Clue On The First Meeting
That was all it took for her to figure this mystery out.
Her doctor friend oh-so-casually mentioned that he could have sworn that the victim only had an oxygen tank for the purpose of getting the table she wanted at restaurants, and that clued Elsbeth into the fact that there had been foul play.
And of course, she met Gary immediately before that, and he made a lot of noise about the arts being under attack.
Gary’s obviousness was due to his conviction that he was smarter than everyone else and that he was justified in killing Dolores because she was ruining his magazine, which was barely staying afloat.
He got his comeuppance way before he was finally arrested.
The Reading Of The Will Was One Of The Most Ironic Elsbeth Scenes In The Series’ History
Gary killed Dolores for her non-existent money.
Do you love the Columbo-style mysteries on Elsbeth or do you prefer those episodes that go for a traditional mystery?
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I never laughed so hard as I did at the fact that his murder netted him a collection of terrible poetry and a few hundred dollars… and that that was the victim’s entire estate.
Crime literally did not pay in this case.
That was Gary’s karma — and also the beginning of his downfall.
Although it looked to Rivers like Gary’s motive disappeared with his dreams of inheriting a fortune to keep his business alive, Elsbeth knew that his belief that he would give himself a windfall was the perfect reason to kill and set about proving it.
I especially loved the trick Elsbeth played to get Gary to confess.
I Knew Gary Was Being Played As Soon as That Doorman Gave Him That Message About a Warrant.
But I’m not a narcissist who thinks I’m smarter than everybody, and I’m not trying to hide evidence of a murder, either.
It was fun watching it play out. The more the trap closed, the more overconfident Gary got, and his downfall was sweet.
I especially loved it when Elsbeth revealed she’d lied to him only after he’d confessed. Idiot!
What did you think?
I’ve said more than enough; now I want to hear your opinions about Elsbeth Season 3 so far. Add your thoughts in the comments and share this article with your friends so they can join in.
Vote in our poll below to rank the episode.
If you enjoyed this article, check out our coverage of Only Murders In the Building, which has a similar vibe. You might also like our thoughts on Watson, the other big CBS mystery show.
Elsbeth airs on CBS on Thursdays at 10/9c and streams on Paramount+ on Fridays.
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