Good fight from good wife

The cast of The Good Fight.

The Good Fight,
SBS, Wednesday, 9.30pm

A spin-off from a very popular show is not always the “licence to print ratings” that writers not willing to let go popular characters or worlds might think it will be.
Television history is littered with “it seemed like a good idea at the time” programs (After Mash comes to mind).
However, although only two episodes into a 10-episode run, The Good Fight seems to have not only found an audience, but a rhythm and ratings.
Set a year after the end of The Good Wife, the new series brings back that program’s spiritual lead Diane Lockhart (the incomparable Christine Baranski).
After announcing her retirement and looking set to ride off into a European sunset, Diane finds herself the victim of a Bernie Maddof-like scam.
All of a sudden, after working hard her entire life, Diane finds herself broke and unemployed.
Desperate for work and no longer welcome at her own old firm, she is thrown a lifeline by a friend at a predominantly African American law firm specialising in representing police brutality cases. Her former associate Lucca Quinn (Cush Jumbo) – the other major refugee from The Good Wife – is already working there. She also finds a job at the firm for her goddaughter Maia (who is also the daughter of the man responsible for her financial dramas).
While The Good Wife was predominantly the story of a scorned political wife, The Good Fight delivers stories inspired by real events including terrorism, cyber bullying, censorship, hate speech and fake news.
Starting with Diane sitting on her own on her couch watching the inauguration of Trump – you know that both we the viewer and Diane the character are about to enter a brave new era and yet it still has the same heart as The Good Wife. This is the baby of original show creators Michelle and Robert, and it shows. The writing is intelligent and the stories relevant, all wrapped up in a little realism and a lot of heart without it being overplayed.
With three strong female leads and a lot of familiar characters popping up, this is at once new and fresh, and yet still familiar and comfortable – like someone re-soled your favourite old pair of slippers!
– Tania Phillips