Lurching Out Of Adequacy: The 2015 The Hulk Vs. Ultron Ornament Is An Abject Failure!

The Good: Not overly expensive, General details of the sculpt
The Bad: Underdetailed on the coloring front, Poor balance, Lack of finer sculpted details
The Basics: The 2015 The Hulk Vs. Ultron Hallmark ornament from The Avengers: Age Of Ultron is overpriced, poorly balanced, and poorly colored for the subjects it represents.


When it comes to evaluating holiday ornaments, there are few I dread like ones based on a subject that is "live action" and it ends up looking horribly animated and phony. Unfortunately, the 2015 The Hulk Vs. Ultron ornament based upon The Avengers: Age Of Ultron falls into that category. The irony is that both The Hulk and Ultron in the film are virtual characters, but they were animated to fit seamlessly into the real world shots in the movie. Sadly, the ornament is nowhere near as detailed or colored as precisely as it ought to be in order to match the quality of the best Hallmark ornaments based upon subjects from the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

For those unfamiliar with it, near the climax of The Avengers: Age Of Ultron (reviewed here!), the transformed version of Bruce Banner tries to duke it out with the robot Ultron only to discover that his strength is not enough to dent Ultron's vibranium limbs! It is the Hulk fist raised as he comes down to do a power punch as Ultron grabs the Avenger's shoulder that is the subject of the incredibly simple ornament.

Basics

The The Hulk Vs. Ultron ornament recreates the furious Avenger and the robot bent on world domination in solid plastic. The ornament, released in 2015, is a poor recreation of the heroic character and his adversary as they appeared in the blockbuster film The Avengers: Age Of Ultron. Unfortunately, the characters are not presented with nearly the same level of sculpted or coloring detail as the special effects team at Marvel put into their endeavor. The Hulk Vs. Ultron ornament features the two virtual characters grappling with one another. Hulk looks like he is descending into a punch, while Ultron looks like it is rising up to punch the Hulk back.

Alas, the detailing is not enough to make it worth the $19.95 original issue price, at least for fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The Hallmark The Hulk Vs. Ultron ornament is made of a durable plastic and has both characters in an action pose. The Hulk Vs. Ultron ornament measures out at 3 3/4" wide, 3 1/2" tall and 2 1/4" deep. The ornament lacks finer sculpted details; The Hulk does not actually look like Mark Ruffalo version of The Hulk and Ultron is not sculpted with most of its finer details (though his head fins are present in a vague, underdeveloped, way). The Hulk has sculpted toenails, but not fingernails.

The coloring for the ornament is done in monotones. In other words, The Hulk’s skin is one color; unlike the promo materials, this ornament's skin is monotonal green. There is no subtlety or shading that makes this ornament distinct. Similarly, Ultron is cast in a gray paint with a vague metallic quality to it, instead of the bright, clean silver of Ultron from the film. Ultron is highlighted well-enough with red and black accents, but otherwise the coloring for ornament is a bland recreation of the character.

Features

As a Hallmark Keepsake ornament, The Hulk Vs. Ultron could have a function like a sound chip or light effect, but does not. This is just an ornament, a high-cost option, compared to the ornaments that have sound chips. This The Hulk Vs. Ultron simply hangs.

Balance

As with all ornaments, the intent of the Hallmark Keepsake The Hulk Vs. Ultron ornament is to be hung on a Christmas Tree. And for those creating the ultimate Marvel Universe Christmas Tree, The Hulk Vs. Ultron is not at all essential, especially in this version. The ornament has a steel hook loop embedded in the Hulk's shoulder. From that hook, the The Hulk Vs. Ultron ornament hangs in such a way that he leans heavily toward the Ultron side. This makes it look like both characters are falling at inorganic angles. In other words, it looks lopsided, not dynamic.

Collectibility

Hallmark Keepsake began delving into the collectibles market in 1991 with Star Trek when it introduced the exceptionally limited edition original U.S.S. Enterprise ornament (reviewed here!). Since then, Hallmark has gotten into every major franchise from Disney to Twilight to the Marvel Comics universe. This The Hulk Vs. Ultron ornament was not at all limited. I would not bet, given how the other Marvel ornaments have met demand without leaving a lot of people wanting, and how little it looks like the cinematic version of The Hulk Vs. Ultron, that this will not be an incredible investment piece. Given how expensive the ornament is with its initial release price, it is unlikely that it would be of value to investors, especially as it would be a tough sell to expect anyone to pay more than that release price!

Overview

The Avengers: Age Of Ultron might thrill fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but Hallmark's rendition of the battle between The Hulk and Ultron is nowhere near as exciting.

For other Marvel Hallmark ornaments, please check out my reviews of:
2014 War Machine Iron Man 3 ornament
2014 Hulk Smash! ornament
2014 Captain America from Captain America: The Winter Soldier
2014 Web-Slinging Wonder The Amazing Spider-Man 2
2013 Iron Patriot Iron Man 3 ornament
2012 Captain America The Avengers ornament
2012 Iron Man The Avengers ornament
2012 Thor The Avengers ornament
2012 The Amazing Spider-Man ornament
2011 Spider-Man ornament
2011 Thor ornament
2010 Defender Of Justice Iron Man 2 ornament

2.5/10

For other ornament reviews, please check out my Ornament Review Index Page!

© 2015 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Avengers In, Avengers Out, Avengers In Again: The Avengers: Age Of Ultron Barely Reaches Average!

The Good: Performances are fine, Generally good direction
The Bad: Unrelenting effects sequences/splintered cast makes for a strangely underdeveloped couple of hours.
The Basics: With The Avengers: Age Of Ultron, Joss Whedon has a rare stumble into mediocrity that advances the Marvel Cinematic Universe into a particularly unthrilling direction.


I have been worried lately that I will never again fall in love with a new work of art. I listen to a lot of music, watch and review a lot of television and movies and I try to experience food on multiple levels when I am introduced to new culinary delights. Having critical standards has led to a number of conversations around my house between my wife and I. She has voiced a concern that my idea of a "perfect film" is virtually unattainable and when I spend a significant amount of time after a viewing trying to find something wrong with a movie just to not give it a perfect ten, I am actually delivering a contrived rating that works to deny perfection, as opposed to celebrate it.

With The Avengers: Age Of Ultron, I fear no such contrivance. The Avengers: Age Of Ultron was easily the film I was most unabashedly excited about seeing this year, so it was the one I was also at the greatest risk of rating high based on prejudice in favor of the film. The irony for me is that X-Men: Days Of Future Past (reviewed here!) last year came with so much less hype and delivered such a vastly superior film that I was not genuinely prepared for how mediocre The Avengers: Age Of Ultron actually was.

To his credit, Joss Whedon had a herculean task at hand when he penned and directed The Avengers: Age Of Ultron. The Avengers: Age Of Ultron is a sequel to Whedon's The Avengers (reviewed here!) and the marketing department at Marvel Entertainment/Disney has worked overtime to leak its forthcoming schedule of Marvel films. Joss Whedon had to try to top a superhero team origin story that brought together disparate heroes and made them into a group that could fight a single villain and his incredible army. Where do you go after that?

The problem Whedon faced conceptually within the narrative of the Marvel Cinematic Universe was that he had one film to introduce and defeat a new villain that could hold his own in the imagination of the viewer with Loki (the adversary from The Avengers), while servicing a sprawling cast of established heroes and making that work within the confines of the stories told since The Avengers. From a studio, practical moviemaking point of view, Whedon had to wrestle with reorganizing characters so the franchise could survive if significant actors decided to leave when their contracts came up and that meant adding new cast members to the mix. With all those pressures upon him, Whedon had to write an entertaining super hero story that could entertain and set up the next, known, installments of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

That's a lot of balls in the air for anyone and the only real hope for the Marvel Cinematic Universe comes in the promises made outside the actual film The Avengers: Age Of Ultron. Writer/Director Joss Whedon has promised that The Avengers: Age Of Ultron will have a slew of deleted scenes and unseen footage when it drops on Blu-Ray. One has to hope that there will be a director's cut because as it is, The Avengers: Age Of Ultron is something of a mess.

At the core of my issue with watching The Avengers: Age Of Ultron is the fact that so much of it felt like it had been done before that I kept waiting for the movie to begin, to get engaging, to thrill me, to show me something new, to surprise me, to . . . well, you get the picture; I just kept repeating and rephrasing things without actually saying anything fundamentally new. The Avengers: Age Of Ultron feels a lot like that. In fact, were one to do a double-feature, one suspects that if one dozed off at any point in the Chitauri attack on New York City in The Avengers and awoke at virtually any point in The Avengers: Age Of Ultron, they would feel like they were in the same movie.

The Avengers: Age Of Ultron goes from one sprawling, fast-paced, CG-encrusted action sequence to another to another to another with breaks that are surprisingly uninteresting. Much of The Avengers: Age Of Ultron is like watching The Avengers blended with outtakes or b-roll footage from Iron Man 3 (reviewed here!). It is chaotic, warlike, easy to lose track of and takes a long time to get through before it gets to anything truly good. And in the quiet, character-building moments, The Avengers: Age Of Ultron focuses on the least-impressive Avenger, belabors the set-up to Captain America: Civil War and entirely jerks the audience around. We'll come back to that.

What is it about? The Avengers: Age Of Ultron follows in the wake of Captain America: The Winter Soldier (reviewed here!) with The Avengers - Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Hawkeye, Black Widow, and the Hulk - working to clean-up the problems left in the world from the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D. In Sokovia, they hit upon the motherload: Baron Strucker and Dr. List have a laboratory where they have the scepter Loki used, along with corpses of Chitauri vessels and two powerful (for lack of a better term) metahumans. When the Avengers break in to put an end to the H.Y.D.R.A. lab, the twins Pietro (who has superspeed, much like The Flash) and Wanda Maximoff (who is not actually magical, but has the ability to influence neurons in the brain to make people see things and has telekinetic powers over matter and energy) escape. As the battle for the H.Y.D.R.A. base is winding down, Wanda returns and uses her powers on Tony Stark, who sees a nightmarish image of the Earth under attack by legions of the creature/ships that attacked New York City with the Chitauri.

Their mission successful and the scepter recovered, the Avengers return to New York City and Avengers Tower where they plan to put the problems that have been lingering behind them. The recovery of the scepter will allow Thor to return it to Asgard and remove the lingering influence of Loki from Earth, the destruction of Strucker's organization and lab effectively decimates S.H.I.E.L.D.'s biggest enemy (which removes a big psychic burden from Captain America). Only Tony Stark is not over-the-moon thrilled about the campaign. While studying the scepter, Stark realizes that the glowing piece at its tip is not a brainwashing device, but rather a complex program or neural network, comparable to (but vastly more complex and alien than) Jarvis (Stark's A.I.). He pitches an idea to Dr. Bruce Banner; they can use the alien a.i. in their mothballed planetary defense project, Ultron. Bypassing the rest of the group, Stark and Banner activate the alien intelligence and then go off to a party celebrating the victory of the Avengers over the Earth's enemies. While they party, the alien a.i. kills Jarvis and takes control of the Avengers's robotic army (a collection of flight suits much like those in Iron Man 3, which are now serviced through Avengers Headquarters).

After the main party, the a.i. reveals itself as Ultron by attacking the Avengers using the Avengers robots. Calling for human evolution through the extinction of the Avengers, Ultron disappears into every computer on earth when his robotic body is compromised, but in the attack, his forces make off with the scepter. Needless to say, the other Avengers are pissed at Stark and Banner (especially Thor, who now has to try to find and recover the scepter yet again!) and they soon become terrified that Ultron will break into computers that have nuclear launch codes and obliterate the Earth. Ultron makes a new body and heads with the Maximoff twins (who want nothing more than revenge upon Tony Stark for the death of their family) to the African nation of Wakanda. There, Ultron acquires Vibranium he needs for his nefarious plan and when the Avengers track him down, they are set upon by Wanda and Pietro. Wanda influences Captain America, Thor, and the Hulk before she is stopped by Hawkeye. Shaken, the team retreats to a safe house where they try to figure out what UItron wants and how to stop him. Their brainstorming leads them to Dr. Helen Cho's skin-growth machine where Ultron is attempting to create the entity that will be the downfall of the Avengers. But in the process, Wanda sees Ultron's plan and his idea of peace comes through an extinction-level event and she (and her brother) are forced to choose sides in the battle for the fate of the planet.

Writing out the plot for The Avengers: Age Of Ultron actually makes the movie sound really interesting and engaging. On screen, it didn't seem as awesome, though (much like the way some of the plots to Star Trek: Enterprise sound pretty good, but then when one turns on the show and the characters start talking, the dialogue and acting are so bad, it doesn't matter what is going on, the show is virtually unwatchable the way it tries to tell the story). The film opens with a big battle, montage/regroup/party, post-party battle, characters argue, Wakanda battle, moody safe house scene, extended climactic battle. It's a lot of fighting. And, try as he might, Joss Whedon and the special effects department don't have a lot they can do that hasn't been mined by The Avengers and Iron Man 3 (Whedon had a real disadvantage in that Ultron's robot army is basically made up of shiny silver Iron Man-style suits).

So, it comes down to character. Tony Stark gets one or two quips (they've been in the trailers), Bruce Banner is predictably conflicted, and Nick Fury pops up for a dramatic speech just at the right time. But Ultron never pops - he's General Grievous from Revenge Of The Sith (reviewed here!) meets any generic Decepticon. Ultron is the real shock; he's such a monolithic villain. Even James Spader voicing him cannot make him seem less generic and, therefore, entirely un-frightening. Will The Avengers unite to find a way to stop Ultron? Gosh, I hope so. Come to think of it, if they just crashed the world's power grid long enough for every computer in the world to actually shut down, wouldn't that have stopped him?! The point being, it would be a surprise if the Avengers couldn't stop Ultron more than any real revelation that they can.

Of the new characters, that leaves Wanda, Pietro, Vision, and Laura. Wanda and Pietro are motivated by a sense of revenge that is adequately explained in The Avengers: Age Of Ultron. It's not so satisfactorily explained to make viewers feel satisfied when Pietro doesn't kill Tony Stark in the film's first twelve minutes. Seriously; Pietro stands, watching the completely vulnerable Tony Stark take possession of the scepter when all he had to do was run over at super-speeds, kill his family's mortal enemy . . . movie over. Vision is engaging to watch, but is just about as generic as Ultron. And Laura . . .

. . . Laura gives Joss Whedon an excuse to keep Hawkeye in the mix in The Avengers: Age Of Ultron. Hawkeye is, as the film openly acknowledges, an archer in a team that includes a super soldier, a demigod, a trained assassin, a raging lab experiment, and an armored weapon equivalent to a small army. So, Hawkeye is given a sudden, abrupt, backstory and when the Avengers arrive at Laura's safe house, it humanizes the archer and gives the viewer an emotional root. And Whedon uses all the momentum with Hawkeye to set up one of his famous reversals and it would be truly nitpicky to say that doesn't work. Whedon pulls off his final-act reversal with Hawkeye and that is one of the few treats of The Avengers: Age Of Ultron.

Of the big three (Thor, Iron Man and Captain America), The Avengers: Age Of Ultron is unfortunately fractured. One has to guess that a number of the scenes Whedon could put back into the film center around Thor and his large chunk of time away from The Avengers entering the mysterious pool and leading to the resolution that brings him back. Thor sits out a surprising and significant chunk of The Avengers: Age Of Ultron. That gives Tony Stark and Steve Rogers a lot of time on screen to disagree. Rogers is, reasonably, pissed because Tony Stark does in The Avengers: Age Of Ultron exactly what Pierce did in Captain America: The Winter Soldier; he tried to anticipate world problems and stop them before they ever occur. Stark's characterization here makes sense: he is reeling from fear that Earth cannot protect itself and he doesn't want to debate with the team the merits of having a global defense system. When it goes wrong, Rogers climbs off his high horse to yell at him and Stark yells back. But the conflict between Stark and Rogers never quite boils up to the level where it would create a credible schism to result in Captain America: Civil War. In fact, while the conflict between Stark and Rogers is essential for that, Whedon takes a big crap on the writer who has to create that film with where he leaves Stark. And while Rogers moralizes, he's essentially the same guy we've been seeing. This time, he's already so disillusioned from S.H.I.E.L.D.'s actions in The Avengers and Captain America: The Winter Soldier, he doesn't seem particularly surprised when one of his teammates screws him (and humanity) over.

The other big character arc in The Avengers: Age Of Ultron is just a colossal mindfuck for fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. After finally figuring out how to make The Hulk interesting and truly work, The Avengers: Age Of Ultron belabors a romantic relationship between Bruce Banner and Natasha Romanoff (Black Widow). Mortgaging the chemistry Romanoff and Rogers developed throughout Captain America: The Winter Soldier, The Avengers: Age Of Ultron teases a "will they or won't they" through most of the film. The result is particularly unsatisfying, if for no other reason than that Joss Whedon (who is both incredibly intelligent and remarkably personable, at least in interviews!) perpetrates the stereotype that incredibly smart people are emotional idiots. Bruce Banner can be absolutely brilliant, but to offset that, he can't have enough emotional maturity to face his demons, ask for help, or accept the compassion and love of someone who fits him surprisingly well.

The acting in The Avengers: Age Of Ultron is good. But, that's it. The Avengers: Age Of Ultron is not bursting with big emotional scenes that allow the actors to actually do much in the way of stretching. In fact, newcomer (to the franchise) Elizabeth Olsen is given the character with the biggest emotional journey. Wanda transitions from angry to triumphant (her smile at seeing Tony Stark shaken after she mojos him is wonderful) to horrified when she realizes Ultron's plan is embodied well by Olsen's performance. Olsen has good emotional range for her eyes, posture and body language to sell the conflicted emotional states of Wanda well. Sadly, Aaron Taylor-Johnson is not given as much in the way of big moments to make Pietro pop.

So, Joss Whedon had a tough task with The Avengers: Age Of Ultron and the fact that he has already said there is much more to the movie than viewers will see in the theaters virtually guarantees a time when he admits that the theater version is not the film he intended to make. The Avengers: Age Of Ultron contains noticeable narrative gaps, some troubling gaffes and a "ho-hum this is *supposed to be* adventure" feel to it that makes one wonder if more will actually be better when the longer version is eventually revealed.

5/10

For other movie reviews, please check out my Film Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2015 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Ponderous And Slow, Lincoln Was Certainly Not The Best Picture Of 2012!

The Good: Amazing cast, Decent concept
The Bad: Weird characters, Very slow, Dull direction
The Basics: Vastly overrated, Lincoln is little more than a political process story with one of the weirdest characters in recent memory.


When it comes to Oscar Pandering Season, there are several films that have counted on a “shock and awe” approach to getting nominated. I was actually quite thrilled that last year, Argo (reviewed here!) won the Best Picture. I was happy because, for the first time in quite some time, the winner was not a December release that was counting on the fervor of award season to get nominated. It was a smart, well-developed film with all the aspects that make for a great film worthy of the Best Picture honor. There were a number of films last year that I did not manage to see prior to the award ceremony and the one I wanted to see most was Lincoln .

I’m over that now. Having sat through Lincoln, I was surprised by how very little I enjoyed it. Lincoln is a great example of a film with an amazing cast with a story and characters that does little to allow them to actually rise to the heights of their talents. But more importantly, Lincoln does what something like The West Wing (reviewed here!) was often too smart to avoid doing; it shows the full intricacies of a process story. Behind the scenes of politics is often disappointing, but (as Lincoln proves adequately) it is even more often boring. Not so much about Abraham Lincoln, Lincoln is about the harrowing process of getting the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution (abolition of slavery) passed. It’s a lot of wheeling and dealing and it is not at all exciting or even particularly engaging.

Two months after Abraham Lincoln’s re-election to the Presidency of the United States of America, the American Civil War is stretching into its fourth bloody year. After visiting the Front, Lincoln returns to Washington, determined to get the House Of Representatives to pass his Amendment to the Constitution that would Constitutionally abolish slavery and create equal rights under the law. Lincoln explains to his cabinet that the Amendment is necessary to both ending the Civil War and avoiding the legal quagmires that the Emancipation Proclamation created.

As Lincoln meets with his visiting son, the President’s lackeys Bilbo and Latham, try to sway the few Democrats they need to pass the Amendment through patronage and bribes. With envoys of the Confederacy approaching to talk peace, Lincoln and the chief advocate for equality in the House, Thaddeus Stevens, work desperately to pass the Amendment . . . regardless of the consequences.

The story is far less a character study, which is what makes Lincoln so pedantic. Instead, it is a blend of Abraham Lincoln characterized as a meandering weirdo, unable to keep real focus or make a point concisely, and long stretches of political process. The personal aspects of Lincoln are most frequently part of subplots illustrating Lincoln’s relationships with his son Robert – who stands up for himself to enlist – and Mary Todd (who spends time acting appropriately unbalanced). Neither of those subplots are particularly compelling.

More than the writing, I blame this on the direction. Given how the movie poster for Lincoln is a tight shot of Daniel Day-Lewis as Abraham Lincoln, close and craggy-faced, it is astonishing how little Spielberg actually goes in for the close shot. Yelling, in a quiet conversation with Elizabeth Keckley, and seldom else does Spielberg go in for the close shot to actually allow Day-Lewis’s performance occupy the screen. As a result, the viewer is left disconnected from Abraham Lincoln and Daniel Day-Lewis’s odd portrayal of him.

As a result, it is Tommy Lee Jones as Stevens who actually steals Lincoln (as much as such a theft is possible). Stevens is principled and smart and he represents a focused strategist in the fight to pass the Amendment. Tommy Lee Jones plays Stevens as passionate and aged beyond his years, making for a compelling performance. And Steven Spielberg actually puts the camera close on him to make him more than just a setpiece in a large room.

Lincoln is a lot of talking and I can enjoy a good movie that is filled with people talking. But Lincoln is seldom interesting characters saying any compelling, intrinsically human, truth. Instead, far more often, it is a bunch of old white men bitching about the process to pass a vote. For this particular story, there need not be such a quality cast; the impressive cast here cannot rise to the occasion to make it engaging.

For other historical dramas, please be sure to visit my reviews of:
Gandhi
All The President’s Men
Frost/Nixon

4/10

For other movie reviews, please visit my Movie Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2013 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Boston Legal: How I Survived The Bush Years. . . Now A Set Of Coasters.

The Good: VERY funny, Very timely, Interesting characters/formula.
The Bad: Character additions (and subtractions) make for an erratic series, Very dated, Very formulaic.
The Basics: Boston Legal entertained me during some rough political years, but now David E. Kelley's last real success sits idle because it was so tied to the specifics of that time.


I am a proud liberal and a fan of the works of David E. Kelley. But as I sit contemplating the Boston Legal complete series bundle pack, I am unsurprised that ABC Home Video has not sprung for a sleek, interesting series pack which would do justice to the series. For all five years of it, I watched Boston Legal and it became an invaluable tool in making me feel like I was not alone and true freedoms in our democracy in the United States were not, in fact, dead. But now, only three years after I mourned the show's passing on television, I find I am less able to get into it and hardly excited by it when I try for a marathon viewing.

The reason for this is simple. Despite my love of the overall series, Boston Legal is very erratic season-to-season and it both became mired in what it was and tried to live in denial of another aspect of what it was. Put simply, one aspect of Boston Legal was that it was a formulaic law dramedy with quirky characters making a mockery out of Bush-era politics and saying what the liberals in the United States wished their ideological leaders would have the balls to stand up and say. The aspect of itself that it tried to deny almost every year was that it was the show with the most mature (in age) cast on television, so they tried to dilute their talent with youth. In a cast dominated by regulars William Shatner, James Spader, Candice Bergen and Rene Auberjonois, Taraji P. Henson, Justin Mentell, Rhona Mitra and Lake Bell would enter and depart because their characters didn't fit the paradigm or corporate culture of a serious, older law firm.

The Boston Legal Seasons 1 - 5 pack is a simple bundle pack consisting of the standard DVD releases of:
Season 1
Season 2
Season 3
Season 4
and Season 5 without any additional bonus features, discs, or incentives.

Boston Legal is the story of five years at the Boston law firm Crane, Poole and Schmidt. Brilliant lawyer Denny Crane hires the largely unethical lawyer Alan Shore to boost the law firm's reputation and bottom line. Shore clashes with the more professional Paul Lewiston, Brad Chase and Denise Bauer and develops a flirtation with senior partner Shirley Schmidt. Denny Crane, in addition to never losing a case, comes to believe he suffers from Mad Cow Disease and turns to Alan to help him in his personal life. While Alan gets Denny help for his early-stage Alzheimer's, Alan finds other projects to keep himself busy, like fighting Bush-era Constitutional violations and helping out Jerry Espenson, a sufferer of Asburger's Syndrome.

While Denny and Alan become the best of friends, they frequently disagree on the politics of cases they try, which range from a girl suing her school when she gets AIDS because her education was limited to "abstinence only" to suing Big Pharma for taking advantage of senior citizens. The firm represents a client from the Sudan who sues the U.S. for not stopping genocide there and schoolteachers fired for not teaching Creationism in their science classes. And on and on, after a point always ending with Denny and Alan on the balcony at the law firm drinking their scotch.

Boston Legal has a lot going for it. First, it is a rare show that illustrates two men in a growing, largely healthy relationship with one another. Despite the fact that Denny is largely a conservative homophobe and Alan is a very heterosexual liberal, the men get along and even get to the point where they can tell one another they love each other (because they know they don't mean in a homosexual way). That level of maturity in the characters and in the writing is an exceptional thing to see and it has largely been absent on television since Boston Legal went off the air.

As well, Boston Legal has great writing for issues. Writing about the legal implications of the Defense of Marriage Act, the "war on terror," the Iraq War, the No Child Left Behind Act and Bush blunders worked wonderfully to create a series of counterpoints to the . . . well, news during the latter half of the Bush Administration, but now, with some distance they lack the urgency of the time. In other words, Boston Legal spoke articulately at a time when no one was speaking with particular elocution in American politics and now it seems less necessary or vital.

Moreover, I wish that were remedied by great characters. Now, the show has some appeal for the five minutes per episode spent on actual character issues, but the characters were hardly always likable and, frankly, most went underdeveloped because the show was so issue-oriented. Even so, it is worth noting that the major, enduring characters of the series included:

Alan Shore - Having left Young, Frutt and Berlutti, he becomes friends with Denny Crane and sets up a strong record of winning cases. However, he begins to suffer from word salad, night terrors and other psychological disorders that make him vulnerable, requiring him to rely upon the unreliable Denny for both advice and companionship. He pulls out all of the ethical stops to win cases and even circumvents the law to save his friends, including Shirley when she is kidnaped,

Shirley Schmidt - A strong feminist partner, she and Denny once had a very real romance, but she returns to Crane, Poole and Schmidt in Boston because Denny and Alan have gotten out of control. She assigns cases and keeps Denny and Alan in line while advancing personal causes of her own, like taking cases that help to keep abortion legal,

Paul Lewiston - An efficient, older partner, he is responsible for keeping the bottomline rising and accepting cases for the firm that will keep the place both profitable and prestigious. His daughter is a drug addict and requires help and compassion that he has an awkward time delivering,

Brad Chase - One of the firm's rising stars when Alan starts, he is much more serious than most of the lawyers at the firm and he is very concerned with the letter of the law and the prestige of the firm. He spars with Alan and Jeffrey Coho, competing for Denise Bauer's affections,

Denise Bauer - One of the few women who does not find Alan Shore irresistible, she tends to be more pragmatic. She gets into an unlikely relationship with Brad,

Jerry Espenson - An associate at the firm who works on finance law, who suffers from Asberger's Syndrome, he is befriended by Alan when he is treated poorly by the firm and responds by taking Shirley hostage. Over the years, Alan helps him get his job back, get treatment and even stabilize his relationships . . . much to Denny's chagrin,

Clarence - A transvestite who is initially represented by the firm until they realize he has a law degree himself. Alan, Jerry and Clarence have a few adventures which inspire jealousy from Denny,

and Denny Crane - The wacky litigator who relies on his celebrity to astound juries. He is a big supporter of George W. Bush and manages to see the talent in Alan Shore. He comes to rely upon Alan each time his heart is broken and when he needs medical treatment for his Alzheimer's, which is growing more and more problematic.

Even now, Boston Legal is a jewel for the acting. William Shatner has amazing comic delivery as Denny Crane and he sells his character's absurd beliefs in George Bush's policies amazingly well. He has great on-screen chemistry with James Spader's Alan Shore and the two play off one another as one of the great odd couples of television history. Backed by actors like Candice Bergen, Rene Auberjonois, Christian Clemenson, John Laroquette, Mark Valley and Julie Bowen, Boston Legal is one of the richest casts television ever had . . . even if it changes frequently.

In fact, more than when it was on the air, Boston Legal when viewed as a body of work suffers because of how executive producer David E. Kelley had to try to pander to the Studio's whims. The cast frequently is shaken up with younger faces who bring marginal acting abilities and have little chemistry with the more focused and mature performers. And, in the end, that combined with the very dated nature of the caseload at Crane, Poole & Schmidt make this more a sign of the times than a timeless television classic.

For other television series' that made their debut on ABC, please check out my reviews of:
V - Season 1
Lost
Invasion
Once & Again - Season 2
Once & Again - Season 1
Sports Night

6.5/10

For other television reviews, please visit my index page by clicking here!

© 2011 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.

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Dead Before Its Time, Too Short A Season Undermines The Great Boston Legal Season 5!

The Good: Consistently funny, Wonderful acting, Great characters
The Bad: Few episodes, Light on DVD bonus features
The Basics: With only thirteen episodes and few bonus features to acknowledge its passing, Boston Legal Season 5 ends the story of the law firm of Crane, Poole and Schmidt.


[This review was originally written shortly after Boston Legal was canceled. I liked the tone of it, so I've kept the tenses as they were in the original. Enjoy! - W.L. Swarts]

I remember when Boston Legal was canceled; I ought to, it was just four months ago. I had been busy for the week between episodes and when the two-part series finale aired, I had not seen any promos announcing that. So, I sat confused at the end of the episode waiting for the preview of the next episode until my mother told me that that was the series finale. I began to swear something fierce at that point, enough that I made her blush. I hate losing friends and familiar characters. For some very trying years, the characters on Boston Legal were constants and losing them saddened me; the show went before its time.

Dropping now on DVD, the fifth and final season is a testament to the strength of the writing of David E. Kelley and shall remain a product of its time. And it is not entirely like I did not know the show was being canceled; the writing was on the walls, the allusions were being made within the show, but when the final episode plays, fans will be eager to see how the fourteenth episode of the fifth season plays out; there are so many big changes, it will be exciting to see how the show continues. But alas, Boston Legal Season 5 has only thirteen episodes and despite the wonderful new directions for most all of the characters by the finale, the potentials are not actualized.

The law firm of Crane, Poole, and Schmidt is humming along fighting the good fight in the waning days of the Bush Administration when lead partner Denny Crane's borderline Alzheimer's begins to develop into the full blown disease. As his friend Alan Shore wrestles with the potential of losing his best friend, juggles ex-lovers and contemplates an Obama Administration, Denny pines for Shirley and finds himself slipping further into disoriented states. As the firm closes ranks to protect Denny and the firm, Shirley and Carl grow closer and Jerry lobbies once again for partner, getting an unexpected ally in the process.

Catherine Piper returns and the cases the firm takes continue to tread toward the bizarre and counter-reactionary even as the elections heat up. Carl aids Shirley's granddaughter in a legal problem and opens up to some of the absurdities around the office and on Thanksgiving a dinner at Shirley's changes everything. As the economy worsens, Crane, Poole, and Schmidt becomes financially unstable and an old friend returns with a bailout plan that no one is comfortable with.

Boston Legal is a legal dramedy that featured the most mature cast on television and in its fifth season, the show finally unabashedly embraces that fact. For the first time in years, the series does not try to shake things up by adding new, younger cast members. Instead, this season the series is remarkably stable with its (mostly) over fifty cast (the obvious exception is Tara Summers, who still holds her own with veterans John Laroquette, Candice Bergen and William Shatner). In the fifth season, Boston Legal embraces its status as programming for a more mature audience, including a hilarious moment in "Juiced" where Carl represents Catherine in suing networks for not programming for the aging boomers when Carl breaks the fourth wall.

In addition to being comfortable with exactly what it is, Season Five of Boston Legal becomes very comfortable with being a product of its time, eagerly anticipating the Obama Administration and railing against those who voted for John McCain. Here there is an appreciable irony; when Boston Legal began, the intent was for the show to focus on civil law, but it soon became the lone series on television railing against the legal abuses of the Bush Administration. Cases, however, quickly evolved from workplace law into legal arguments against the policies of the Bush Administration. And there is no escaping the show's bias; the lone conservative character on Boston Legal is the one who is, literally, crazy!

In the fifth season of Boston Legal, the show races toward its end, it becomes a bit more experimental, including not having a case for the "Thanksgiving" episode, which instead serves as a round robin on social issues of the day and moves into intense character conflicts. Outside that, though, the show continues to challenge the authority and institutions that prevent the actualization of freedom in the early part of the new millennium. Cases include actions against the lawyers of the firm as Denny gets busted for carrying a concealed weapon, Alan and Denny are charged with adultery in Utah, Alan is busted for betting on a case, and Jerry assaults a man who mocks him at a coffee shop.

But largely, the cases are political and Boston Legal uses its time to make a series of referendums on social issues, often in unexpected ways. So, for example, an abortion case actually sets Alan and Shirley against one another when Shirley becomes troubled with Alan's absolutist pro-choice, pro-abortion stance. Jerry finds himself in the uncomfortable position of suing a sperm bank to find out if his nephew might be dating a biological half-sister! The firm takes on Big Tobacco (again), gun laws, the death penalty and pharmaceutical companies.

Throughout the fifth season, Boston Legal rails against unjust policies with a wit and sense of humor that makes it consistently and enduringly funny. For sure, it is a product of its times, but it transcends just the times by having a humor about itself that is clever and not limited to legal humor. So, for example, when Denny and Alan go to Utah, there are farcical moments where they tent swap with a woman who has been making eyes at them most of the trip. Still, as the show races toward its end, the cases become more personal for the lawyers and they get into the influences of foreign businesses, the problems with big pharma's methods and even gay and lesbian civil rights.

In the fifth season, Boston Legal, the show is populated by familiar characters and here is how the show finds the regulars (or irregulars) of Crane, Poole, and Schmidt:

Alan Shore - Wrestling with issues regarding two ex-loves, one who needs him to defend her husband, one representing the opposition in a case he is working, he soon finds himself relying more on Denny. As Denny's health turns and the financial future of the firm is put in jeopardy, he looks to do some charitable work and realizes that the closest person in his life is Denny,

Jerry Espenson - Functional enough now to legitimately fight for partnership, he appeals to Denny to sponsor his advancement and is shocked when Denny agrees to help . . . for an odd price. He and Katie work closer together and become troubled by the concept of private prisons and the abuses that occur there,

Katie - Supporting Jerry more than striking out on her own, she revises her long-held beliefs about relationships to let him in more. She is frustrated with the way Jerry begins to stand up for himself with violence, though,

Shirley Schmidt - Troubled by Denny's declining mental health, which brings up many of her own issues, she comes to rely a lot more on Carl. Fighting with Alan about abortion and working to keep her granddaughter's record clear, she finds herself defending Catherine Piper in court and looking into an uncertain future,

Carl Sack - The bearer of bad news, Carl soon discovers that the economic downturn means that Crane, Poole and Schmidt is hemorrhaging money, despite winning their cases. He and Denny work together to keep a correction's officer out of jail when a botched state execution becomes a mercy killing. He throws caution to the wind and advances his relationship with Shirley,

and Denny Crane - As he begins to lose perspective on a weekly basis, the worst case scenario is confirmed; he is showing the early signs of Alzheimer's Disease. He comes to rely on Alan and tries to buy his way into a test drug program but soon finds a more interesting and extreme way of getting treatment!

For the two-part finale, Rene Auberjonois reappears as Paul Lewiston and it is a case of "I never knew how much I missed him until he returned!" Auberjonois is a great actor and his return to Boston Legal for the final two episodes is a true gift.

By this point, the acting on Boston Legal is polished and to comment much on it would be redundant. Earlier seasons have illustrated Shatner's comic chops and Laroquette squeezed effortlessly into the cast in the fourth season, illustrating his ability and the rest of the cast's ability to accommodate a newcomer. Christian Clemenson has his beats down perfectly as Jerry and James Spader mastered Alan Shore before the series even began (in the final season of The Practice). Candice Bergen is given moments to reassert her greatness in episodes like "Roe" where she gets to put a twist on Shirley's character in the abortion debate. Boston Legal had the most mature cast on television and the result was a series of polished performances that consistently knock the socks off viewers with the professionalism and sense of comic timing the actors utilize.

On DVD, The Complete Fifth Season of Boston Legal is light on extras. There is a feaurette that looks at the entire series and there is a commentary track on the finale which manages to be more than just Kelley and the cast complaining about the premature death of the series. With only thirteen episodes, viewers have every right to complain; this is a pretty expensive boxed set for so few episodes.

Still, the cast and creator of the show make good use of the final thirteen episodes and this boxed set is pretty essential for those who love great legal dramas and smart comedies. Truly, this was killed before its time, but as the characters themselves noted, an Obama Administration certainly offered them less fodder to work with. Through that lens, this is a nice bookend to some legally dismal years in the United States and if the worst thing about the end of the Bush Administration is the loss of Boston Legal, perhaps that is a price worth paying.

For other works featuring Christian Clemenson, please be sure to visit my reviews of:
Veronica Mars Season 1
The West Wing Season 3
The Adventures Of Brisco County Jr.

7.5/10

For other television reviews, please check out my index page by clicking here to find an organized listing of what I have reviewed in this area!

© 2011, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.

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Date This! Boston Legal Shakes It Up For "The Complete Fourth Season" On DVD!

The Good: Wonderful new cast members, Great character work, Interesting cases
The Bad: Lack of impressive DVD bonus features, Dated.
The Basics: Even with only twenty episodes, the addition of John Larroquette to Boston Legal infuses the fourth season with life and zest that makes the DVD worth buying!


[This review was originally written in June of 2008. I enjoyed the narrative voice of it, so I decided to keep in intact. Enjoy!]

Last Tuesday, I lost a friend. I lost a good, dear, and beloved friend on Tuesday at 11 P.M. and the worst part about it was that I didn't know I was losing it until it was gone. Having heard the rumors that the fifth season would be its last, despite the many allusions the week before, it was only when the final credits rolled on Tuesday's double-long episode that I realized Boston Legal was over. It has been a long time since I have sworn as vehemently and articulately as I did on Tuesday. So, the only balm I had was picking up Boston Legal - The Complete Fourth Season on DVD. The twenty-episode season is one of the stronger boxed sets to appear following last year's writer's strike, but now as I contemplate it, I just wish there were more.

In its fourth season, Boston Legal is once again plagued by the network-demanded standards of trying to sex the show up by bringing in younger cast members. Once again, the attempt did not work and by the end of the season, only two of the new characters remained. Fortunately, they were good and decent characters and the show entered its final season with one of its tightest casts ever. But this season saw the addition of John Larroquette as Carl Sack and Tara Summers as Katie Lloyd to enhance the cast and the arrival and departure of Taraji P. Henson as Whitney Rome and Saffron Burrows as Lorraine Weller. And despite the distractions from the rearranging of the cast, the absence of Rene Auberjonois as Paul Lewiston, and the formulaic feeling to the show, Boston Legal makes for a great DVD set for the fourth season.

In the fourth season, Crane, Poole and Schmidt is restructured, largely to keep the mentally unstable Denny Crane in check. Carl Sack arrives from the New York office and instead of pacifying the firm, the eccentricities of Clarence and Jerry begin to wear him down and his romantic relationship with Shirley Schmidt causes Denny to become more unstable. As well, Alan is plagued by the hiring of lawyer Lorraine Weller, who has incredible sexual power over him.

The cases in this season have a tendency to pit the lawyers of the firm against one another at various points, like Alan and Shirley arguing opposite sides of a case and a season finale that has Alan and Denny debating patriotism and dissent in the courtroom. Clarence gets into trouble with his mortgage rates, Jerry is sued for sexual harassment, Denny is sued for firing a fat lawyer. But some of the cases are absolutely brilliant, including one involving a young woman who sues her school for teaching abstinence only education when she gets HIV as a result of how sex education was taught to her. Shirley and Alan sue a delegate for changing their vote in a primary election and Alan goes to the Supreme Court in defense of a mentally retarded man who is being sentenced to death for sexually assaulting a girl. As well, Carl soon reveals that despite their winning record, the firm's books are not balancing and without some cases that make real money (instead of just shaking things up) Crane, Poole and Schmidt is in serious trouble.

The cases are topical and timely, the characters continue to evolve and Boston Legal has a number of high points in the fourth season. As well, by this time, Denny and Alan end each episode out on the balcony, smoking cigars, drinking and waxing philosophical. I don't drink and deplore smoking, but I love the scenes and they contain a camaraderie uncommon in television.

I'm a fan of Boston Legal, but it is in rewatching the series on DVD that one comes to realize how repetitive the show is. As with the prior season, the biggest changes involve the rotating characters and in the topical cases taken by the firm. Indeed, David E. Kelley is the loudest writer on television today fighting the policies of the Bush Administration and the Congressional ineptitudes that allow them to persist. The cases that seek to raise the public debate about the War On Terror (a fired officer who was honest about his homosexuality sues in this season), the use of patriotism as a means of control, and the fluctuating housing market keep the show fresh and one of the defining programs of the mid-2000s.

What this means in the long run is that the boxed set of "Season Four" will be best as a historical document, save for the important development of the show's characters. With the current Administration on its way out, one suspects Boston Legal took its curtain call at an appropriate time (though as a liberal I would have liked to see Kelley's work outlast Bush's!). Still, there is enough in the fourth season that it is punchy and truly great.

That would not be possible were it not for the characters. Boston Legal has interesting, clever characters who make the show worth watching each week. In the fourth season, the principle characters include:

Alan Shore - Breaking up with his Judge girlfriend, Alan finds him powerless to resist Lorraine, whose advances and manipulations soon strain his relationship with Denny. Alan attempts to resist Lorraine, but his word salad returns, much to everyone's chagrin. As Alan and Denny become distant, he also pushes away Clarence and Jerry. Ever the malcontent, he goes up against Shirley and Denny and nabs a case with the Supreme Court arguably to benefit his ego,

Shirley Schmidt - Watching her father suffer from advanced Alzheimer's Disease, Shirley sues to be able to euthanize him. Energized by the presence of Carl, she continues to fight for women's rights in the courtroom,

Carl Sack - Transferred from New York City, he is a straight-laced, intellectual powerhouse who tends to side with Shirley, whom he is deeply in love with,

Clarence - Terrified by Carl Sack's arrival and Claire's departure, he begins to butt heads with, then later befriend Jerry. No longer relying as much on his alternate personalities, he and Jerry become a more overtly comedic duo,

Jerry - Returned to the firm, Jerry begins to litigate more and he finds himself working well with Katie, who seems to enjoy the eccentricities he exhibits as a result of his Asberger's Syndrome. Feeling threatened by Clarence's place in the firm, he soon begins to spend more time with Katie and less with Alan,

Lorraine - A brilliant lawyer, her part seems to be cause for Denny and Alan to fight (whatwith Alan demanding Denny not have sex with her, right before she takes Alan in the office) and to manipulate Alan,

Katie - Fresh out of law school, this British lawyer is hired and soon finds herself working closely with Jerry. Kindhearted and good, she becomes his source of strength,

Whitney - Arriving with Carl, she is a straightlaced lawyer who cannot stomach how odd most of the lawyers at the firm are,

and Denny Crane - Furious over Alan having a relationship with a woman and that Carl and Shirley are dating, his agitated mental state continues to be of concern to the partners. He takes on a murder case while angry at everyone and it appears his perfect-win record might be threatened by that decision! Still, every night, he and Alan find their way to the balcony at the law firm to put the personal and professional issues in context.

A big reason to pick the fourth season of Boston Legal up on DVD is the amazing cast. Gary Anthony Williams and Christian Clemenson play off one another beautifully as Clarence and Jerry, respectively. As well, Tara Summers (Katie) and Clemenson have amazing on-screen chemistry and they play off one another that makes both of their characters that much more believable. Saffron Burrows is a fair addition to the cast and one feels like she might have been robbed; her character of Lorraine fills a niche that has been played out, especially opposite Alan Spader's Alan Shore. Indeed, Burrows is more or less plagued with playing the character Parker Posey briefly played the prior year.

That said, it is the over-fifty cast of Boston Legal that makes the season truly rock. While I missed actor Rene Auberjonois, John Larroquette is an amazing choice to replace him and Carl Sack quickly becomes one of Larroquette's most impressive roles. Unlike his smarmy, career-making role on Night Court, here Larroquette is decent, straightlaced and . . . adult. And Larroquette is completely convincing. And William Shatner continues to impress as Denny Crane, though this season he is mostly just refining the role that reinvigorated his career and publicly announced his comic genius to the world (Star Trek fans knew it from his convention appearances for years before the general populace did!).

On the DVD, though, it becomes clear that one of the best performances of the season is coming from Candice Bergen. As Shirley Schmidt, Bergen presents a powerful argument for death with dignity in the episode where Schmidt sues to let her father with Alzheimer's be euthanized. Bergen is a powerful mix of strongwilled and ballsy and deeply human and hurt by the decision she is making and the way she must make it. Bergen sells the episode and it rivals her best days on Murphy Brown and reminds viewers how incredible a woman of intelligence in power may be.

As with the prior seasons, though, much falls on James Spader to keep the show engaging and powerful. As Alan Shore, Spader tends to use "Season Four" to trot out the "Best Of Alan Shore." So, for example, Spader has played Shore with word salad before. One suspects that jumbling up words like that is a real challenge for an actor and Spader handles it masterfully. But we've already seen him do it in the past. He is at least as good this time around, but largely he is hitting the notes he has before and the pleasure of watching comes more in the character than Spader's consistent performance of it.

Fans of Boston Legal will enjoy this season and it serves as a pretty incredible document for the failure of the Bush Administration and television executives to dominate the philosophical arguments used to sell their lousy policies. It's a shame there is only one set more to come.

For other works featuring John Larroquette, please visit my reviews of:
Southland Tales
The West Wing - Season Two
Star Trek III: The Search For Spock

8/10

For other television program reviews, please visit my index page on the subject by clicking here!

© 2011, 2008 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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The Ever-Changing Cast Of Boston Legal Changes Yet Again For Boston Legal - Season 3!

The Good: Decent characters, Interesting stories, Some truly inspired acting
The Bad: Moment when it's too silly, Too topical to hold up, Lack of decent DVD extras.
The Basics: An almost complete lack of DVD bonus features prevents a truly great - if very caught in the moment - show from making a decent DVD release.


I'm certain someone will correct me if I'm wrong, but it sure seems like Boston Legal had the most mature cast on television when it was on the air. In its third season, now on DVD, Boston Legal's youngest regular cast member was Constance Zimmer (at 35/36) who was added for the season. The peculiar thing about Boston Legal is that it seems obsessed with attempting to get a bigger market by continually introducing younger characters, who end up dumped by mid-season. "Season 2" (DVD set reviewed here!) was the worst featuring two new characters fresh out of law school. Why David E. Kelley and his team believe they must continue this foolish experiment in casting eludes me, but I try not to focus on that.

With the third season of Boston Legal, there is a lot that is far better to attract the attention of the viewer. In this boxed set, featuring all twenty four episodes, the firm of Crane, Poole and Schmidt, is once again hired to take on cases that hit close to home for American viewers. Over the course of the season, cases involving organ harvesting, people placed on the no-fly list by Homeland Security, victims of rendition and torture, and patenting blood that could cure HIV. In addition to the zany, there are the usual murder cases where the firm is turned upside down and against each other.

I'm a fan of Boston Legal, but it is in rewatching the series on DVD that one comes to realize how repetitive the show is. Indeed, there is not much in this boxed set that has not already been done in season one (DVD set reviewed here!) or season two. The biggest change is in the characters and in the topical cases taken by the firm. Indeed, David E. Kelley is the loudest writer on television today fighting the policies of the Bush Administration. The cases that seek to raise the public debate about the war, rampant homophobia, the use of torture, and the lack of universal health care make the supposed dogma of Michael Moore look like an intellectual appetizer. Sadly, Boston Legal is more likely than not to depress avowed liberals as Alan Shore, Denny Crane and Shirley Schmidt seem eager to make the cases that never seem to be made against the U.S. Government. That's unfair; in the last few years, many of the most controversial measures of many of the most controversial new laws have been struck down by the courts, which has just led Congress to pass (or renew) the laws with fewer loopholes. Sigh.

So, other than making the viewer think, inflaming liberals and depressing anyone who wishes that reality did not call for such artistic expression, the third season of Boston Legal is likely to lose its punch should the United States ever manage to pull itself out of its current backwards circumstances. That is to say, Boston Legal is an incredibly timely show. The cases fought in the fictional courtrooms provide the legal and ethical backbone for change or rebellion. But they are also arguing cases that are so extreme (like in "Guantanamo By The Bay" where Alan sues the government for torturing his client) that they would not have been plausible as debate or entertainment during, say, the Clinton years. As a result, when things like the Geneva Conventions are once again applied to the military of the United States, and the concept of torturing another human being once again leaves the public's fear-driven mindset, the episodes are less likely to resonate.

For now, though, they are pretty impressive, albeit somewhat preachy - especially considering the older audience that is likely to enjoy the show is also one of the strongest demographics against the current direction of the government. But more than a series of topical cases executed with humor and flair by the attorney's of the weirdest law firm on earth, Boston Legal is about those who make up the firm. In the third season, the principle characters include:

Alan Shore - After being left by "the Squid" (introduced at the end of the prior season), Alan begins to focus his attention on Jerry Espenson, whose awkwardness and intimacy issues prevent him from forming any other meaningful relationships. Alan assists Jerry on cases - which makes Denny jealous -, bends the law to save Shirley's life and finds himself defending Denny when the senior partner has his fat smuggled overseas for alternate fuel research. Late in the season, he finds himself getting involved with a judge,

Shirley Schmidt - Sued by ex-husband Ivan for the affair she had with him, Shirley spends most of the season cleaning up the messes of others. She is captured by a murdering client and soon after finds herself in her usual state of wondering whether Denny can handle practicing law for much longer,

Paul - Is he even in this season?! Seriously, he shows up . . . but is seldom used,

Brad Chase - Continuing his "friends with benefits" relationship with Denise, Brad soon finds competing with new partner Jeffrey Coho irritating. He decides to take the plunge with Denise, when she finds out she is pregnant,

Denise Bauer - Following the apparent death of her wealthy love, Daniel Post, Denise renews her interest in Brad, but finds herself more attracted to the irritating new partner, Jeffrey Coho. When she gets pregnant and determines Brad is the father, she looks to Brad for her future,

Claire Simms - A new associate, she jumps in at the firm defending Clarence and soon finds herself strangely attracted to him. She works to find her niche and while she originally comes off as distant, she soon is revealed to have a real heart,

Clarence - A recurring character who later joins the firm, he is painfully shy and takes on a female persona to adapt and interface with much of the real world. It is soon revealed that he is an adept lawyer and Claire brings him aboard to help her with cases,

Jerry - Recurring frequently and usually as opposing counsel, Jerry Espenson tries to overcome his painful shyness and Asberger's Syndrome by taking on other personas that allow him to adapt. His friendship with Alan leads him to fight legal battles better and he eventually comes to Shirley with an odd request,

Jeffrey Coho - A new partner brought in, he seemed to occupy much the same niche as Alan with his apparent insensitivity toward all, but secretly harboring a very real humanity. Jeffrey tries the first major case of the season, a murder trial wherein the wife of a judge is killed, and soon finds himself hooking up with Denise. When she ultimately rejects him, he leaves the firm (which is notable because most of the characters who leave the show simply disappear),

and Denny Crane - He begins dating a dwarf who turns out to be the daughter of a woman he formerly had a relationship with. As Denny goes through a rocky romance with Bethany, he takes comfort in the stability of his relationship with Alan. Still scatterbrained, Denny is forced to face his past when the son of a former client takes the firm hostage.

Indeed, the episode that deals with the hostage situation, "Son Of The Defender" is especially clever, melding footage from a 1957 episode of a show called "Studio One" in order to present flashbacks involving a younger Denny Crane (William Shatner). That departure makes for a very special episode and it is a shame it did not win the Emmy this year (it was nominated). It's a clever concept and the execution is flawless making it one of the few episodes in the boxed set likely to hold up over time.

And the real gem of Boston Legal that makes it worth watching and/or picking up on DVD is the acting. Boston Legal features a pretty amazing cast. This season, newbies include Craig Bierko (who I only knew from the terrible Scary Movie 4), Constance Zimmer, and Gary Anthony Williams. They are all good, but the seasoned cast is mindblowingly good. Indeed, Rene Auberjonois's best moments of the season come early when he is paired up with his Star Trek: Deep Space Nine costar Armin Shimmerman for some real tongue-in-cheek scenes. William Shatner reaffirms his ability to dominate using comedy and while there is little new in his performance this season, it's still refreshing to see him entertaining as a comic actor. Candice Bergen is given the chance to do something real different with the abduction storyline she is given and she reminds the viewer of just how amazing and versatile she can be. After all, robbed of all body language - she spends an episode tied to a chair - she still performs an emotive, fully-expressive performance that is incredible.

But it falls to James Spader as Alan Shore to keep much of the program interesting and watchable. Where season two gave Spader a chance to stretch his acting wings through a series of obstacles for Alan (like him becoming afflicted with word salad), season three finds him slowly re-establishing his confidence as his character evolves out of the often smarmy characterization he possessed in the earlier seasons. Spader uses the relationship between Shore and Espenson to infuse more humanity to the character and this gives him a chance to perform more subtle emotions and it works!

The DVD set includes scant bonus features, in the form of two featurettes, one on the judges, one on the defendants. These are pretty disappointing for the money, prompting more causal fans to simply stick around and catch the show in syndication rather than buying it on DVD.

But honestly, the time to buy this set is now. It's hip, it's relevant and it's entertaining. It won't be long - one hopes - before it is simply historic. And when that happens, this set will be a disappointment as it does not even provide the fans with commentary tracks.

For other works featuring Mark Valley, please check out my reviews of:
Fringe - Season 1
Once & Again - Season 2
Once & Again - Season 1

6/10

For other television set reviews, please visit my index page by clicking here!

© 2011, 2007 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.


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Addition of Youth Makes For A Less Strong Verdict On Boston Legal Season Two

The Good: Very funny, Good characters, Excellent acting, Decent foreshadowing
The Bad: Addition of younger cast members and some guest characters
The Basics: When Boston Legal returns for a second season, it is plagued by young people, annoying recurring guest stars and a dramatic tendency that undermines the humor.


Boston Legal's first season earned the television show several acting nominations for Golden Globe and Emmy awards, so when the series returned for its second season, it seemed writer David E. Kelley came out of the gate firing. As a result, one would assume that Boston Legal - The Complete Second Season would be more of the same from season one (DVD set from season One is reviewed here!). Fortunately and unfortunately, that is not the case. Fortunately in that some of the weaknesses of season one are not present in season two, unfortunately in that the series takes on all new problems.

Starting of with a bang in defending a woman who possibly murdered her older, wealthier husband, the firm of Crane, Poole and Schmidt is tugged every which way by the antics of Denny Crane and Alan Shore. Shore finds his time invested in aiding Catherine Piper, whose new friendship with mother-killer Bernard leads her to be a drain on Alan. Denny, for his part, continues to fear Alzheimer's and Mad Cow and worries that his genius in the courtroom is ebbing as his friendship with Shore increases.

The firm takes on new associates, like Denise Bauer, Garrett Wells and Sara Holt. They become embroiled with personal affairs with clients and family members and each other. Who will be made a new partner at the firm becomes a huge issue when Alan Shore begins to lobby heavily for the quirky, socially-awkard but brilliant "Hands." And the significant lawyers do more traveling.

And it's funny, but it's also a lot less solid than the first season. While the humor might well hold up better over multiple viewings than in the first season, there are a great deal more moments that are serious or outright disturbing in Boston Legal - The Complete Second Season. So, for example, in season two Alan Shore finds himself losing someone important to him and he begins to suffer from night terrors, a fear of clowns and he begins to experience word salad (which is often a harbinger of schizophrenia). Shirley Schmidt finds herself in the company and pursued by her ex-husband Ivan Tiggs. And newcomer Denise Bauer finds herself falling in love with a terminally ill man.

These are most certainly not happy, amusing storylines. The characters expose their dark sides this season as they try to win cases and explore life outside the office. Alan's fears not withstanding, he finds himself in a friendship with Jerry Espenson ("Hands") who is one of the most painfully awkward individuals ever committed to celluloid (he suffers from an adult form of autism). In order to win a case, Brad finds himself torturing a priest. In order to save his daughter, Paul intervenes and has her kidnaped to rehab. These are difficult and not funny things to watch.

Added to the mix are younger cast members. While Julie Bowen replaces Monica Potter in the cast as the fairly generic, initially cold blonde, she starts the season (and continues it) with a mature sense of character that works. In fact, Bowen as Denise Bauer replaces both Potter and Rhona Mitra and that works out well. What does not work out as well is the addition of Justin Mentell and Ryan Michelle Bathe as Garrett and Sara. It's almost like ABC could not stand having such a mature cast and thought what Boston Legal needed was younger people. Fortunately, this experiment does not last long.

Indeed, the best moment for Catherine Piper (Betty White's recurring character) the entire season is when she puts Garrett in his place and takes over his office for her sandwich making operation. We never see Garrett again after that and that's just fine with me. Outside the problem of new, young cast members brought on for inexplicable reasons in a show about an established, successful law firm, Boston Legal - The Complete Second Season suffers from devoting too much time to characters that do not work so well, who exist on the periphery. Unlike Jerry Espenson, who plays off Alan Shore and gives an opportunity to expand the depth of Shore's ability to care for another human being, characters like Catherine Piper and Bernard Ferrion serve only to distract from characters the viewer cares about. Similarly, Denny's new fiance, Beverly, does not so much add to Denny's character (though her leaving gives for some great Shore-Crane scenes) as distract from it. Similarly, Ivan Tiggs is more of an annoyance than anything that makes one appreciate Shirley Schmidt more.

What does work is the acting. It's no surprise that Christian Clemenson won the Best Supporting Actor award for his portrayal of Jerry Espenson. Clemenson takes a difficult role that could easily fall into parody and rules it with by creating one of the most socially awkward, painful to watch individuals ever seen on television. There are moments when Clemenson's performance is so heartwrenching as to make the viewer feel guilty about laughing at him because his antics are based in such a serious pathology.

Rene Auberjonois is given more to do as Paul Lewiston and that is a relief. He's such a talented actor that to see him be emotional in the scenes with his character's daughter (played wonderfully by Jayne Brook) is a treat. Julie Bowen immediately creates an articulate and serious role that slowly reveals a heart that is very alive and hurt in her character Denise Bauer. And Candice Bergen is brilliant as Shirley Schmidt. Outside playing off William Shatner and James Spader with style and comic timing that mirrors their own genius, Bergen gives real fear in scenes with Christian Clemenson and empathy for the conflicts of her heart with Tom Selleck (Ivan Tiggs).

Of course, the show is ruled by Alan Shore and Denny Crane, played by James Spader and William Shatner. Shatner continues to reveal his comic abilities as the befuddled, yet brilliant Crane and this season he is able to bring even more humor in by moments where his character breaks the fourth wall. James Spader is able to stretch out dramatically more this season in his contacts with Christian Clemenson and the demons his character begins to reveal. His ability to take the smarmy, unethical Shore and evolve him into such a brilliantly plagued individual is in no small part due to Spader's acting abilities.

And when the show is funny, it is funny. It holds up well over multiple viewings on the humor front. Situations like Denny shooting his therapist (and the ensuing lawsuit) can be replayed many times and still get laughs. But essentially, what Boston Legal is about are characters. Here is how season two finds the principles:

Alan Shore - Soon loses Tara to another man and another law firm and finds himself despondent. He begins to suffer from night terrors, speak in word salad and go out on increasingly bigger limbs for the few friends he has in the world,

Brad Chase - Competing less with Alan, Brad begins to work for the fast track to partner, which comes through winning cases with unethical and surprising twists,

Paul Lewiston - Tracks down his estranged, drug-using daughter and discovers he has a granddaughter, which inspires him to work less and make family a greater priority,

Shirley Schmidt - Having to balance the wacky antics of Denny Crane and Alan Shore with guiding the new lawyers, she finds herself suddenly susceptible to the advances of her ex-husband,

Denise Bauer - Arriving in the firm after a particularly rough divorce, she immerses herself in the strange cases thrown at her and finds kindred spirit in Brad,

Garrett Wells - Shows up, does a few lawyerly things, leaves because we don't care about him,

Sara Holt - Shows up, tries a few lawyerly things, leaves even quicker because we care even less about her,

and Denny Crane - While juggling cases and Alan's new neuroses, Denny finds time to be a brilliant lawyer, worry about his health and fall, in love with the woman he believes will be the new Mrs. Denny Crane.

And Crane and Shore end the episodes on the balcony smoking a cigar and drinking. It's an adult show, so one might forgive them their adult legal vices. Sadly, it's a shame that David E. Kelley perpetrates the trappings of material success with those scenes (which are among the series' best character moments) rather than challenging them (outside a weak ending to an episode where the women have a balcony moment and reiterate how stupid smoking is).

This is a much harder to recommend season than the first, though it has its moments of genius and is still quite amusing and quite good.

For other works with Julie Bowen, please check out my reviews of:
Horrible Bosses
Weeds - Season Four
Lost

6.5/10

Check out other television reviews I have done by clicking here to visit the appropriate index page!

© 2011, 2007 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.

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