In November 2022 The good fight said goodbye. At that time, the broadcast of the last episode was interpreted as the end of a fictional universe: the one started by Robert and Michelle King with The Good Wife, the lawyer series released in 2009, with 156 episodes broadcast over seven seasons, and which gave transition to the satirical spin-off with Christine Baranski that would provide another six seasons to the Chicago judicial environment.
Against all odds, a few months later Elsbeth, a second spin-off, was announced. It brings back Elsbeth Tascioni, Alicia Florrick's eccentric lawyer who became a sporadic character in both series: she was in 14 episodes of The Good Fight and 7 of The Good Fight, winning an Emmy for best guest actress for the mother series. . And what do we know about the project pending release?
The good wife had a classic structure: Alicia Florrick had a different client in each episode and, although she did not always make it to court, she did have to defend the case in some way. Later, the series took on another hybrid structure, giving more importance to the power battles of the law firms where the protagonist worked or to the Florricks' political career. And, with respect to The Good Fight, it always had a more serialized and choral treatment, seeking political satire through the dynamics of Diane Lockhart's new law firm.
With Elsbeth, however, it is time to get away from lawsuits and courts. He even leaves Chicago. And the protagonist will be installed in New York to help the city police using her characteristic way of thinking. Does anyone remember the episode that tried to represent how Elsbeth Tascioni's brain worked? Well, that imagination (and seemingly arbitrary interconnection of ideas) will serve to help detectives solve crimes as an outside observer.
His co-stars will be Wendell Pierce as Captain C.W. Wagner, a charismatic and respected member of the force, and Carra Patterson as Officer Kaya Blanke, an ethical woman who soon appreciates what Elsbeth can bring to the table with her quirks.
The move from Chicago to New York seems to obey practical criteria. The good wife and The good fight were two series filmed in New York, since Margulies was only going to star in the initial series if it was filmed in his city. The irony is that, despite the attractiveness of New York, they could not visibly take advantage of the locations it offered, although they did take advantage of the fantastic actors based there and regulars on Broadway stages.
Robert and Michelle King, who created The Good Wife and The Good Fight, are the ones who have developed and written the project, which they have led in parallel with Evil, the horror series that has its fourth season pending broadcast.
No return is confirmed but, as reported by TVLine, the name of Cary Agos, the lawyer played by Matt Czuchry, is mentioned several times in the pilot episode. This seems to indicate that he could appear in the first season, either as a guest or as a recurring character.
The big question, however, is whether Julianna Margulies could make an appearance as Alicia Florrick, taking into account that the character moved to New York, as discussed in The good fight. But it is unlikely.
The actress continues to live in the same city (and, in fact, we have been able to see her recently in The morning show, filmed there) but her salary demands prevent this: she is of the opinion that, if they want her to be Alicia Florrick, she should be paid the same episodic salary as when he worked on The Good Wife, which was about $200,000. And the Kings and the studio are not willing to dedicate this budget item to a guest actress.
But, taking into account how much fun the Kings have recovering secondary characters and the very defined acting market of New York, it is a matter of time before they find a way to justify the appearance of regulars from the Chicago universe in their new setting.
In Spain, Movistar Plus has already reported that it will premiere the first season, which will consist of ten episodes. But it's important to understand where it comes from. In the United States, the spin-off has been commissioned by the CBS channel, which at the time premiered The Good Wife and took the lawyer series as an intelligent and prestigious series for a very conventional grid based on franchises such as CSI, Minds criminals and NCIS.
This explained at the time why The Good Wife had such strong cases: it was designed for general television. This also explains why The Good Fight was able to more explicitly address political and progressive themes: the spin-off was reserved for CBS All-Access, later renamed Paramount, a content platform where a more adult approach was possible.
So, if we pay attention to the channel where it is broadcast on the other side of the pond, it is better to assume that Elsbeth will be a classic police series. It can be seen there starting on February 29 and in these parts, according to Movistar Plus, “it will arrive shortly after.”
