(Season 6, Episode 3)
As the Backstreet Boys once said, “Quit Playing Games With My Heart.” It appears as if FX has settled on a new formula for airing The Practice — one weekend on, one weekend off. Kind of frustrating, considering the fact that I’m trying to keep a regular diary going here. With only two episodes airing every other weekend, I’m thinking it might be overkill to devote a diary a week to one episode. Instead, it looks like we just became a bi-monthly. I recommend sending replica William Hinks (Michael Emerson) severed heads to FX by the boatload in protest.
6.3 “Liar’s Poker”
Two mysteries solved in one fell swoop. By missing the third episode of this season (thanks again, FX!), I found myself lost in the “Jimmy’s addicted to gambling” plot that cast Jeffrey Tambor as his bookie, Sid. And as an added bonus, I found out the back story to the Ken Walsh (Bill Smitrovich) and Judge Wilcox (Richard McGonagle) flare-up from last time. How very expedient.
This episode found Jimmy working off a sizable gambling debt in trade … not that he has much trade to trade. Anyway, I was surprised that he was upfront with Bobby about the situation. My impression from the following episodes had been that he’d lied until he couldn’t anymore. I give him credit for being honest, at least for a little while.
I didn’t quite understand Sid’s desperation to keep all of the $100,000 from his ex-wife when he was already paying her $6,000 a month in support. Granted that’s a year-and-a-half’s worth of support, but if he can afford that much a month, clearly he’s not living in the street.
Bad move by Jimmy telling Sid to step-off, but then I know from having seen what’s next that in the end the good guy (or rather Jimmy) wins out. Still, not very smart.
Lindsay was in her zone, living on planet incompetence as she sought a sweetheart deal for her client Martin Jenks (Joshua Harto), who was on trial for murder. Her negotiation skills include little more than, “Come on … no fair!” and produce results in-line with those exemplary abilities.
But I also can’t defend Lowe’s actions, who pled the case out after learning that his lead witness had died before taking the stand to testify. I’m glad that Lindsay has to carry that guilt with her, because she pushed her client to take the deal. No kidding that he had inadequate legal representation. When she screamed out in court “You’re a liar!” I almost fell on the floor laughing.
That plea deal was what began the Walsh/Wilcox saga. Walsh really is a dirty scumbag, and I’m glad that there’s a judge out there who’s gunning to take him down. He deserves the worst that the legal system can throw at him, for his tactics, and his utter disregard for the guilt or innocence of an individual.
As an aside, I understand why it’s done in a situation where the defendant is guilty, but when an innocent person agrees to a plea in the face of certain conviction in trial, how can they be forced to give a full confession in order to get their deal? It would be impossible for the courts to make that distinction, but in a purely academic sense, how messed up is that?
Clacked by Aryeh S.
on May 13, 2010 @ 13:00 EST5EDT
