The Practice virgin’s diary – I’m surprised David Kelley didn’t use the head of ABC

(Season 7, Episode 19)

It’s hard to believe, but with only a handful of season seven episode left, I’m closing in on the final season of The Practice. Crazy, right? Even crazier is the fact that, as of right now, I’m not sure FX even has plans to air season eight. Nothing’s scheduled for next weekend, so I’ll have to wait and see. Can they really be planning to rob me of what I hear was essentially Boston Legal season one?

7.19 “Les Is More”

The most politic way to describe this episode was as a total mess. Jimmy’s old client Grace (Andie MacDowell) suckered the sucker into becoming her second prisoner (alongside CBS head Les Moonves as himself) in her scheme to … get on TV? I couldn’t figure out if she actually had a beef to pick with Moonves, or if she just thought it her best path to the airwaves. What happened on CBS circa 2003?

Could the fact that Becker and/or Yes, Dear kept on getting renewed have incensed her so? The green-lit My Big Fat Greek Life? The very existence of Without a Trace? The fact that Anthony LaPaglia looks like a lost Baldwin brother creeps me out too, but come on lady.

Grace was looking to create her own reality TV by playing Russian roulette with the network exec’s head. In her “logic,” if she was going to do it regardless why would any network feel compelled to pay her? And what was David Kelley trying to say about FOX (and then NBC) when he chose it as the guinea pig offering $4 million for the exclusive rights? He had to know at that point that The Practice was dying, so his safest bet would have been to play nice with all of the broadcast networks … make cable news the soulless bloodsucker.

It was funny that Les had tape over his mouth the entire time. If you noticed, it prevented him from being able to speak, thus limiting his acting to a partially hidden facial expression. Smart move, especially if he wouldn’t have been able to pull off scared — as it was he came across looking mildly amused. But if it was a conscious “trick,” it’s one that many a show should try to employ … sometimes with their main actors.

Then there was the follow-up to last episode’s kiss between Bobby and Sarah Barker (Teri Polo). At first the convict confronted Bobby, and then she paid two visits to Sarah at her office. Sarah’s secretary’s fear was amusing, and she didn’t even know that the convict’s a cold blooded murderer. Or did she recognize her?

Anyway, I totally saw a murder/suicide thing coming. I mean, I know that Bobby and the convict will both be leaving at the end of the season, but I could just feel her killing him and then offing herself … he’s too much of a gentleman for it to happen the other way around. Unfortunately, it was not to be — at least this time. I haven’t given up hope, but I’m guessing that if anyone’s going to meet a bloody, headless demise, it’ll be Sarah Barker. Then the killer could hire Jimmy as their lawyer and they’d be all set!

Clacked by Aryeh S.
on Sep 02, 2010 @ 15:00 EST5EDT