CBSSeven years ago I met a woman named Alicia Florrick. She was clad in a red dress and all over New York. You know the poster I'm talking about. I had just moved to New York City after attending college upstate and eagerly began my "adult life," which of course included TV.
When The Good Wife started, I was there right in front of my TV. I dove head first into the legal and personal drama of Alicia Florrick, her messy marriage, her mysterious investigator, her boss with the sexual tension, her other boss with the fly brooches—her everything. Like I said, I was—I am—hooked.
When the show started in 2009, I wasn't immediately working in the big bad world of TV journalism—that happened early in 2010. An interview opportunity came up for Julianna Margulies for her flick City Island and The Good Wife topics were also on the table. Of course I jumped at it. The interview was right before the episode "Heart" and Good Wife fans know just what happens in "Heart"—Will and Alicia kiss for the first time and Alicia slept with Peter. Of course I didn't know that at the time, but Margulies' teases were tantalizing. I was so nervous, I had my recorder plugged in wrong for the first two minutes and missed portions of the interview.
Fast forward to 2016 and I've spent more time with The Good Wife cast over the last seven seasons than I have with some of my relatives. It's surreal, to say the least. While interviewing Matt Czuchry at the series wrap party, he actually brought up things I do in my recaps, specifically the gasp counts. Again, surreal. To have readers and fans of the show look to me for scoop, to see them value (or not, you know how that goes) my opinion on matters regarding the show is not something that is lost on me. It's something I will always treasure and never take for granted.
Over the years of The Good Wife, I felt like I was growing with Alicia. As she got more comfortable in her own skin both at home and at work, so did I. As she moved up the ranks at work, so did I.
The Good Wife was one of the first (if not first) shows I truly covered from start to finish. Our trajectory in many ways has been parallel. The Good Wife has been there, a constant backbone to major life changes—new jobs, new loves, new lives and loss—never letting me down, never failing to take me into Alicia Florrick's world of eye rolls, stares and CGI sendoffs. That's part of the reason why I fell so head over heels for The Good Wife. That, combined with the stellar acting, writing and casting, made it easy to hitch my wagon to this show.
What will life be like without The Good Wife? There will be less gasps, that's for sure. The show is hands down one of the finest things I've ever seen on TV. A void will definitely be felt.
The Good Wife's legacy is one of fine acting and storytelling and it should serve to inspire shows—both on cable and on broadcast—to take chances, to be better, to aspire to tell stories that fans can invest in, stories that aren't cheap. Respect the long game (talking about you seasons two and five) and respect the fans.
I will miss this show.
The Good Wife series finale airs Sunday, May 8 at 9 p.m. on CBS.