Across 13 seasons and 216 episodes, this legal drama broke the rules and refused to call it quits

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Just as there’s a particular pleasure in discovering a series of books that keeps you hooked, there’s a joy in discovering a TV series that promises hours of viewing pleasure. It’s the reassurance of a fruitful long-term investment, of not having to wonder “What am I going to watch tonight?” It’s the confidence that you can dive back in and enjoy whatever comes, the comforting knowledge that you won’t be disappointed that you’ve wasted your time on a dud. Plus, with a long-running series, there’s the delicious feeling of knowing that you can binge to your heart’s content or enjoy little nibbles. Either way, satisfaction guaranteed.

The Good Fight begins with Alicia Florrick (Julianna Margulies) standing by her man, a disgraced state attorney played by Chris Noth.

So if you haven’t already had the pleasure, here’s an invitation to a veritable feast, 13 seasons of The Good Wife and its sequel, The Good Fight, whose final season recently dropped on several streamers. And there’s a range of reasons why it’s an excellent choice to warm winter nights. For starters, it’s a convention defier. One admirable US legal drama spawned another, rather than becoming a regrettable example of not knowing when to call it quits. Created by Michelle and Robert King and Phil Alden Robinson, Fight became a bolder variation on the original after shifting from CBS to the streamer CBS All Access: freed from the constraints of broadcast television, it could be more political, and more profane, than Wife.

In 2009, the first series launched with a meaty and topical set-up. A stony-faced woman stands silently beside her husband, a disgraced public official, at a press conference as he confesses his sins. The woman is Alicia Florrick (Julianna Margulies), wife of wily state’s attorney Peter Florrick (a perfectly cast Chris Noth), mother of their two children and someone who has shelved her legal career to support his.

Now her marriage is in ruins, her shame and betrayal on public display as she endures an account of his indiscretions in the full glare of the media spotlight. From there, the newly single mother nervously heads back to work, finding a job through an old friend (Josh Charles) at a Chicago law firm, and The Good Wife grows into a legal drama enlivened by a vibrant ensemble.

Over seven seasons, the producers crafted a template of single-episode cases and longer arcs that developed the core characters and offered opportunities for sparky guest roles. It might adhere to a familiar structure, but the production crackles with energy, resisting the trap of becoming predictably static.

The 2017 spin-off comes with an equally inspired premise as the retirement of law firm partner Diane Lockhart (Christine Baranski) brings not the sunny days in the Provence villa that she’d planned, but the news that her savings have been lost in a Ponzi scheme and she must return to work. Like Alicia, Diane has to start again, and she gets her chance at a firm headed by black partners (Delroy Lindo and Audra McDonald), with a history of championing African-American causes. In Fight, issues of race are prominent from the outset, as well as those of gender in a drama again built around a strong, smart, professionally capable female protagonist who’s privately unsure of herself.

The Good Fight is a spin-off of The Good Wife, focusing on law partner Diane Lockhart (Christine Baranski, right) joining a practice with a history of championing African-American causes.

In both series, the stakes are high as the firms continually battle for clients, fight off competitors and stave off financial ruin. And common to both is the portrayal of the core female characters as allies rather than antagonists. Working in the competitive environment of a prestigious law business, they could be depicted as rivals, constantly jockeying for position. Instead, they’re supportive colleagues who frequently become confidants.

Over the years, there’s been a succession of terrific co-stars, from Archie Panjabi as gutsy investigator Kalinda Sharma, to Cush Jumbo as feisty lawyer Lucca Quinn and Charmaine Bingwa as ambitious fledgling legal eagle Carmen Moyo. In addition, a spirited parade of guest stars – including Michael J. Fox, Dylan Baker, Michael Sheen and John Cameron Mitchell – has injected fresh energy.

Through the final season of The Good Fight, made in 2022, Diane is anxious, her unease directly related to the turmoil of the times. As has been the pattern through the series, she searches for an outlet and a treatment for her anger and frustration. She’s micro-dosed psilocybin, tried axe-throwing and briefly joined an underground activist group. Now she undergoes drug treatment designed to calm her feelings of fear and dismay.

Meanwhile the drama emphasises that the disquiet isn’t only in her mind. There are continuous violent demonstrations in the streets and no one in the glass-tower office has any idea who’s rioting. Is it the Proud Boys or Antifa? The question is never answered, with the show suggesting that it’s irrelevant: what’s being portrayed is a country in crisis, riven by division and poised to erupt. No wonder Diane’s feeling unsettled.

Diane Lockhart (Christine Baranski) gives new meaning to the idea of having an axe to grind with Trump’s America in The Good Fight.Credit: Patrick Harbron/CBS

As the final season portrays the unhappy state of the nation, its courtroom trials also speak to the times. One case debates whether an attack on an avatar during an online game constitutes a legitimate basis for a sexual assault claim. Another sees a popular musician cancelling her tour of Israel following the online backlash and being sued for breaking her contract. As such issues are tackled, you can feel the producers cutting loose, aware that they’re approaching the finish line and upping the playfulness and the absurdity while maintaining a focus on political, corporate and media affairs.

The Good Fight and its admirable predecessor demonstrate how satisfying long-running series blessed with style and substance can be. So if you missed them, here’s your chance to dive right in. Or, on one of those chilly nights where there seems to be nothing good to watch despite the apparent abundance of options, you could start again. One of the advantages of TV right now is that they’re all there: all seven seasons of The Good Wife on Stan, Paramount+ and Apple TV+, and the first five seasons on 9Now. With The Good Fight, all six seasons are on Stan, Paramount+ and Apple TV+, the first three are on Prime, and the first two on 9Now.

Find out the next TV, streaming series and movies to add to your must-sees. Get The Watchlist delivered every Thursday.

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