As a television criticI watch a lot of TV shows. hundreds from them.
I see expensive fantasy epicsgritty dramas, YA romances, Emmy bait, network sitcoms, true crime documentaries, and everything in between. But sometimes she just wants to sit back, relax and watch a good lawyer destroy his opposition in a fancy Los Angeles courtroom.
The meat-and-potatoes legal drama, long a broadcast TV stalwart with series like “Law & Order,” “The Practice,” and “How to Get Away with Murder,” has come to Netflix with “The Lincoln Lawyer” (now airing, ★★★ of four), a new adaptation of Michael ConnellyThe books created by David E Kelley and Ted Humphrey. There is a comfort in the series, that it exists in a universe with well-defined morals and beautiful people. It’s a fast-acting, slickly acted, winning series that isn’t overly ambitious and doesn’t need to be. Its appeal comes from being family friendly done very well, and it’s the kind of series Netflix should be doing all the time.
Previously brought to the screen in a 2011 film starring Matthew McConaughey, “Lincoln” follows Mickey Haller (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo), a defense attorney known for eschewing an office in favor of the back seat of a chauffeur-driven Lincoln. of the city in the original). books, but now upgraded to a sleek SUV). Mickey has been out of the law game for a year after a near-fatal surfing accident left him with an opioid addiction. He is forced back into practice when another defense attorney is murdered and bequeaths Mickey his entire practice, including the murder trial of a tech CEO (Christopher Gorham), which could be the biggest case of Mickey’s career. .
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Mickey enlists his second ex-wife and paralegal Lorna (Becki Newton), investigator Cisco (Angus Sampson) and driver Izzy (Jazz Raycole) to help him find clients as he fights to regain his legal mojo. He is also trying to win back the trust and love of his daughter Hayley (Krista Warner) and his first wife Maggie (Neve Campbell), a prosecutor.
“Lincoln” is so nice in its simplicity. He’s not trying to answer big questions, other than whether Mickey’s biggest customer is innocent. Garcia-Rulfo is a bit stiff at first as the charismatic lawyer, but he quickly falls in love with you as he grows more comfortable and Mickey reveals more about himself. In the series’ climactic courtroom speeches, it’s clear how Garcia-Rulfo nabbed the role. With jokes, sly smiles and a flair for oratory, this version of Mickey can win over any jury. The dialogue is sharp and witty, just like other iconic legal series from co-creator Kelley, like NBC’s “The Practice” or Fox’s “Ally McBeal.”
The series is certainly not perfect. The emotional stakes for subplots could be better presented, particularly in a human trafficking case that Maggie is dealing with. Lorna is less like Mickey’s ex-wife and more like a sister. Some episodes are delayed when the plot moves away from the small cases and Mickey focuses exclusively on his big murder trial.
But still, “Lincoln” is highly entertaining, and that’s all we can ask of it. Netflix is in the midst of a crisis after reporting his first loss of subscribers (200,000) this year, and will soon be changing its tried-and-true strategy for new shows. “Lincoln” is exactly the kind of series that has been missing from the streamer, which already has plenty of expensive, effects-heavy genre set pieces like “Stranger Things” or prestige movies like “Ozark.” “Lincoln” falls somewhere in the middle, cost-wise and star-power-wise, but its quality doesn’t really diminish as a mid-range show.
Goldilocks always looked for the middle option. After a long day, a good episode of “The Lincoln Lawyer” feels good.
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Reference-www.usatoday.com