Fairly Legal

My new show in the USAnetwork lineup. I don't care at for courtroom dramas, so when Fairly Legal was being advertised I couldn't help but roll my eyes. Then I was on hulu.com and out of boredom watched it... and was pleasantly surprised ^_^

Kate Reed (Sarah Shahi) used to be a topnotch lawyer but due to circumstances revolving around a mysterious case in her past and then the recent death of her dear father she decides to become a Mediator instead. As such she takes on various cases, some silly and some very dramatic and she strives to bridge the gap between the two parties and come to a resolution.

USAnetwork has surprised me for the second - no - for the thrird time! In 2009 I saw the ads for Royal Pains and rolled my eyes because I didn't grow up watching medical dramas. Then I watched the shenanigans of the Lawson brothers and became hooked on the crazy world of concierge doctors in the Hamptons. Next, last year I heard about a division of the FBI cracking down on white collar crime and was then introduced to Agent Burke and the reformed thief Neal Caffrey as they round up dangerous crooks. I didn't think I'd care about the rich and powerful being stolen from but then this unorthodoxed-modern day Robin Hood and Little John team-up showed me that saving the bacon of the upper class can crazy exciting too!

So now here I am watching Kate Reed unite fiances over lost engagement rings while saving the future of a kid mixed up in his cousin's darkside and all to the tune of various theme songs from The Wizard of Oz! That's right, metaphorically, Kate is Dorothy Gale in this mixed up world of lawyers and subpenas, trying to find her way home (in this case where she can trust the good of the system again). Four people in her life personify a character from Oz as indicated by a certain ringtone on her phone:

Pesky stepmom =Wicked Witch.
Brother = Scarecrow.
Assistant/sidekick = The Lion.
Ex-husband = The Tin-Man.
Dear late father = The Wizard (whom she calls to get inspiration by listening to his last voicemail).

The episode literally openned with the Witches themesong! After that I was sold LOL. This show has that classic USA flavor, right there with Royal Pains, Burn Notice and Psyche just to name a few. I love how the network takes interesting and sometimes unknown occupations and makes GREAT stories out of them (blacklisted spy, maverick concierge M.D., reformed art thief) so now we delve into the world of the court Mediator.

I'm also happy for Sarah Sahi whom I knew I recognized but at first couldn't place it. Then reading about the show I remembered her from the NBC show Life. She was very straightarrow on that police show and kinda weird, going through things personally and her dad was corrupt or something too. Now she gets to let her wings unfurl and play a funny lawer with great fashion sense and some family secrets to unravel; though she may want to invest in some Nike cuz what with all the impressive running she has to do along the San Fransisco streets I get the feeling her platform heels won't last very long xD.

I look forward to Thursday nights now and if you like USAnetwork television then give this show a go. The network's getting good at female hero based shows too (In Plain Sight & Covert Affairs) and Fairly Legal belongs right alongside them. Its gonna be a great first season!

EL FIN