Genre

David Kelley’s hit series The Practice ran for 8 seasons. While it may have started slowly, the show was a huge hit for most of its run. This success led to other hits like Boston Public and Ally McBeal. Unfortunately, the end of this series was a rather tragic tale itself. The last year limped along with about half of the cast having been fired. There were public wars of words waged. As Warren Zevon used to say: “Ain’t that pretty at all”. That final season would have been a total failure if not for the introduction of James Spader’s Alan Shore. This unethical cold character with a heart suddenly drew attention away from the conflicts off the screen and brought the attention appropriately back to what was going on on the screen. Spader pulls it off almost through a sheer act of will. By the end of the year it was apparent to everyone that something special was going on here amid these ruins. As the final story arc played out, Shore would meet Denny Crane, played in an almost self parody style by William Shatner. Man, that cat has more lives than Morris. Here Shatner finds a character that is funny as hell. Crane, like Shatner, appears to be the shadow of the man he used to be. At times he seems to have lost all of his marbles. He’s often cruel and incredibly arrogant. Yet, somehow he’s a very lovable character. Shatner does a wonderful job of balancing these foibles with an amazing touch of vulnerability that has created perhaps one of television’s most memorable characters.

Boston Legal is a lot like The Practice in some ways. The writing is at times pure genius. The same kind of moral and social issues are explored, all using the same ensemble concept from the original series. Still, Boston Legal is very unlike The Practice in almost as many ways. Certainly the Shore/Crane relationship has taken center stage, leaving many of the supporting cast in just that, supporting roles. The show also has a wicked wit to it. It’s sarcastic as hell. The big complaint I have is that Kelly can’t seem to control his own fanatical political beliefs. If the show weren’t just that good, I’d have turned it off after one episode. Free speech is one thing, but I do get so tired of Hollywood attempting to jam their liberal superiority down my throat. Believe it or not, there are some very decent and good folks who happen to support the American President. You simply don’t win people over by trying to paint them as ignorant, or worse, evil. I assure you I am neither.