The Good Wife Season 5 Review: Alicia Fiestier Than Ever

*Please note this may contain spoilers for those who have not seen the previous 4 seasons of The Good Wife*

This season sees Alicia and Cary try to break away from the oppressive rule of Diane and Will and start their own firm. This won’t be easy for Alicia given her romantic history with Will and her status as partner at Lockhart & Gardner. Season 5 is full of betrayals and nobody can trust anybody. Expect new cases, old clients and plenty of fresh drama.

Before reading on, why not check out my reviews of the previous seasons of The Good Wife:
The Good Wife Season 1: A Stunning TV Debut
The Good Wife Season 2: Slow Start, Exciting End
The Good Wife Season 3: From Strength to Strength

Alicia undergoes a huge change in this series and becomes feistier than ever before. I have flip-flopped previously in this series between thinking she is seriously kick-ass but then also thinking she’s a little too passive. In this season, she is mostly just kick-ass. There is a huge, and I mean huge, plot twist in the middle of this season that completely changes everything, most of all Alicia. I read an interview with the producers of The Good Wife and that was the reason behind this huge plot twist – they wanted to allow Alicia’s character to develop even more, in a way that wouldn’t have been possible without this twist.

Many other characters also come into greater prominence including Cary, Diane, Robin, David Lee and more. It’s amazing how even though Alicia is undoubtedly the lead character that they have still managed to weave such intricate back stories for all the other characters too.

The legal dramas certainly get more interesting with some new cases but other ones featuring regular clients. What I like about The Good Wife is that it doesn’t glamorise law quite as much as other dramas. Of course, this is still fiction and highly dramatised, but it also shows the harsh reality of a lawyer’s life – long hours and tough cases. Often you’re not defending someone who is innocent, which is difficult, but at the end of the day it’s your job and these guys just have to get on with it.

The cases seem to be getting more and more interesting and have  forced me to challenge my own views. There are cases involving death row, the chair, social media, divorce, abortion – all of which are very pertinent issues in today’s society, making this show all the greater. The Good Wife hits you with a healthy dose of realism, which contrasts with the likes of Suits or How To Get Away With Murder and this legal drama is undoubtedly several steps ahead of the others.

All in all, this would have to be one of my favourite seasons of The Good Wife yet and we ended on yet another cliff hanger. I can’t wait to see where this series is headed as it seems to be picking up the pace quite considerably now. This series achieved massive critical acclaim when it was first aired and is considered by many to be the best season yet. Not one to miss!

Catch my other reviews of the Good Wife below:
The Good Wife Season 1: A Stunning TV Debut
The Good Wife Season 2: Slow Start, Exciting End
The Good Wife Season 3: From Strength to Strength
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Have you ever seen The Good Wife? Are you a fan?

Laura

Founder & Editor of What’s Hot?

Laura is an award-winning travel and book blogger based in the UK. She studied French literature at Oxford University and is now an IP lawyer at a top law firm in London. She was named UK Book Blogger of the Year in 2019 and loves to combine her passion for books and travel with literary travel.