Genius
By Hank 74
Lennie-9/10
Ed-10/10
Van Buren-8/10
Jack-10/10
Serena-8/10
Arthur-9/10
Supporting Cast-10/10
Plot-7/10
Performance-8/10
Value-10/10
Total-89/100
Notes:
This started out as a dull episode that went very slowly,
but then picked up as we took another twist into the debate about the DP. Let
me say off the top of the bat, this is certainly not in the Savages or Teenage
Wasteland territory.
I don't know how to react to the first part when Lennie
and Ed were talking to two different people separately. I could have been
intrigued, but it was also a yawner, especially with Ed talking to the drunk
author. Speaking of Lambert, I was thinking at the end he might be the real
killer or Jack might go after him for writing the words that encouraged Clay to
do the killing.
The "Order" part was OK, but I was hoping for
more debate on both constitutional grounds and on Clay's request to be
executed. Particularly, I was wanting a Savages or TW moment between
Jack, Arthur, and Serena, not some little thing at the end between DA and EADA.
TPTB didn't do a good job in this part as they should have. It really would
have picked up a stale ep even more.
Skoda was very good tonight. It seems he and Olivet will
be rotating between eps to best fit the circumstances. I though would have been
interested to see what the defense psych experts had to say about his mental
state.
Didn't that line which Ira said to Jack and Serena seem like
a carbon copy of Stone's line in Sonata for a Solo Organ against Dr.
Reberty? It seems the writers must have dusted that up for it be said once
again. I liked Stone's version though. As for Ira, he was good an passionate
arguing why his client is not sane. I wish this defense counsel and other
newcomers we've seen this year can become the new Shambalas, Golds, Pattons,
Weavers, and Mellnicks.
The newer judges are appearing more often, even twice or
three times this season (a la Judge Soloman). At least she wasn't just sitting
there like a log like we've seen in the recent past.
Finally, the premise of this ep reminded me of an S14 ep
idea which I did called "Death Wish." It raised the question of
whether execution is better than life or lengthy imprisonment. Lennie even
pondered this in We Like Mike. But putting that aside, it did raise an
important question about who has the power to take a life and what is that kind
of life for both the killer and victim. I wished Mr. Wolf and company had dug
deeper into the backgrounds of both the racist cabbie and Clay because then
possibly Genius might have better articulated the same emotions we saw
from Savages and Teenage Wasteland .