Talk:Boston Legal/Archive 1

Not worried about spoilers

Because of the chemical plant explosion in Romulus, MI, the metro Detroit ABC affiliate did not air the August 9 episode of Boston Legal. (Or maybe they aired at some sleepy hour). I suppose next week they'll air the second episode of the season, and I'll be watching. I don't want anyone to worry about giving me spoilers. Robert Happelberg 22:34, 11 August 2005 (UTC)

The August 9 episode was a repeat of the first episode of Season 1. New episodes begin in late September. ral315 18:39, August 12, 2005 (UTC)

Thanks. Robert Happelberg 18:11, 15 August 2005 (UTC)

Season Two

I made a couple updates (anonymously, oops) that pertain to season two which is airing now; I added Betty White as a character, I agree that she should get a mention if for no other reason than her current major plot involvement.

Should we break apart the characters section into main characters, supporting characters, and regular guests? The opening credits this season list James Spader, Julie Bowen, Mark Valley, Rene Auberjonois, Justin Mentell, Ryan Michelle Bathe, Candice Bergen, and William Shatner as the main cast.

Undoubtedly we'll be seeing a bit more of Rhona Mitra, Rupert Everett, et al.

Why does Julie Bowen's page give her character a different name?

--Cgrocki 23:46, 10 October 2005 (UTC)

For many shows, breaking the section "into main characters, supporting characters, and regular guests" would be an excellent idea. But David E. Kelley's shows tend to have revolving door casts. For example, (this is purely for the sake of example) Tara Wilson (Rhona Mitra) could come into the foreground big time for a multi-episode arc then recede deep into the background later. She could leave the show altogether in season 4 then come back for the last two episodes of the series. Robert Happelberg 21:22, 11 October 2005 (UTC)

Edits

I've made a variety of edits, most of which involved date-specific information that's really no longer relevant. I also switched to a picture without Tara. Tell me if you have any problems with my changes. Ral315 (talk) 05:37, 31 October 2005 (UTC)

Your edits look good. One date-specific item which you left untouched is this paragraph:

Sara

Sara wasn't introduced in the first season, but in the second season premiere. The one who wrote that she appeared in the first season must have confused her with Chelina Hall, who appeared in the last few episodes of season 1 and was also African-American. The character was quite similar, though, just like Lori is similar to Hannah Rose, a Crane, Poole and Schmidt junior partner from 8th season of The Practice, who was also an ex-DA. Ausir 02:59, 2 December 2005 (UTC)

Characters

Could someone add descriptions regular judges (like Judge Brown) to the list of guest characters? Ausir 10:48, 14 December 2005 (UTC)

I cannot find any corroboration that Candice Bergen's character of Shirley Schmidt was ever in any episode of "The Practice." Can this be verified? --Esjones 15:01, 26 January 2006 (UTC)

A quick scan of Bergen's IMDB page doesn't turn up any mentions of The Practice. It's possible the character could have been played by another actress, but I think I would spot every reference to the The Practice on Boston Legal (such as the California judge played by Anthony Heald). Robert Happelberg 15:30, 26 January 2006 (UTC)

No, she never appeared in The Practice. Ausir 12:19, 8 February 2006 (UTC)

I've added information about Chelina Hall to the list of recurring characters. Having appeared in four S1 episodes and at least one S2 episode, I believe she qualifies for inclusion. Please feel free to pare down what I've written, or to add further information based on her S1 appearances prior to "Death Be Not Proud."PattonPending 02:19, 28 April 2006 (UTC)

Monica Potter and Rhona Mitra

Whatever happened? Did they have problems with the producer or something, I loved both characters. Tara maneged to be sexy every single second she spend in the screen and I just loved Lori's eyes and expresion. I'd like someone to explain in the article why the cast changed In such weird way.--T-man... ""worst vandal ever"" 08:03, 28 April 2006 (UTC)

Monica Potter was pregnant and decided to leave because of that. I don't know why Rhona Mitra left. Ausir 08:25, 28 April 2006 (UTC)

Uh, I guess at leats it means Monica will be able to fully dedicate her time to be a mom. It's a shame for the show but good for her, I guess. Thanks for clarifying, Ausir.--T-man, the wise 18:41, 12 May 2006 (UTC)

In progress template

I would like to move the "in progress" template down, I don't like the way it looks. But I can't think of a good place to put it. Robert Happelberg 21:16, 12 May 2006 (UTC)

Honestly, I'd rather have it removed completely. --Hench 22:26, 14 May 2006 (UTC)

I found the perfect place to put it: List of Boston Legal episodes. Robert Happelberg 23:16, 16 May 2006 (UTC)

Star Trek

Maybe I'm just overexaggerating, but is it me or are there lots of Star Trek regulars popping up on this show. Obviously, Shatner and Auberjonois are regulars. Well, on tonights episode, Armin Shimerman was the judge. Have there been others, or am I remembering wrong. And, if so, can we add a brief list to the trivia section? JPG-GR 06:00, 20 September 2006 (UTC)

I noticed this too - although I'm only an occasional viewer of the show (it's on at a stupid time here in Oz) the frequency of seeing former Star Trek actors is something I've commented on to friends before. I also remembered seeing Jeri Ryan on the show and her article tells me she was a guest on two episodes. --lbft 12:58, 25 September 2006 (UTC)

Also, Ethan Phillips (Neelix from Star Trek: Voyager) appeared as the father of the accused in the arc involving the murder of the wife of the judge played by Armin Shimmerman near the beginning of season three. Currently (as of December 2006) Star Trek: Enterprise and Star Trek: The Next Generation are the only iterations of Star Trek not to be represented by an appearance of a primary cast member on Boston Legal. However, the recurring character of Judge Paul Resnik (who has been in five episodes of the show) is played by Michael Ensign who has also guest starred on every modern series of Trek. Also, John DeLancie (Q in the Next Generation as well as Voyager and Deep Space Nine) has appeared on both The Practice and Ally McBeal (both of which exist in the "same universe" as Boston Legal) so I wouldn't be suprised to see him make an appearance in a future show - and I'm sure that if we expanded the search to include the whole of the Ally McBeal / The Practice / Boston Legal universe we could find many more links.

No, you're right, there have been a TON of Star Trek alums on this show. I'd be curious to know if there's a reason, i.e. David E. Kelley is a fan of Star Trek, or one of the old Trek casting directors or producers work on the show. I haven't found anything though

Perhaps it's old acting alums enjoying playing off each other. A similar confluence occurred during Disney's Gargoyles, with a decent chunk of the bridge crew of Next Generation. Perhaps the quality of Star Trek's actors is the key. Disguised by facial prosthetics, the actors must make a connection to the audience largely through eye movements and vocal talent. Perhaps it's simply that so many character actors have appeared on Star Trek while they were largely unknown to the public. Or perhaps they're all trying to overcome typecasting, something at which Mark Hamil has not been seen as successful. --205.201.141.146 19:47, 5 April 2007 (UTC)

Claire is not a main character

She is a gust star, a main character is someone who appears in the opening credits.Puppet125 20:22, 18 October 2006 (UTC)

Labels

I'm not sure if I would call it POV or not but I thought it was worth mentioning. Denny Crane is describe as an "ultra-conservative" in the article but there is no mention that Alen Shore is an "ultra-liberal". Morphh ^(talk) 03:55, 2 November 2006 (UTC)

Criticism

The only source for the criticism section is an article from a clearly bias source that prides "combating liberal media bias". I question the validity of the criticism and worthiness of the information in the article as of now, unless more sources can be named to show this "many groups" statement. --MPD01605 (T / C) 19:54, 2 December 2006 (UTC)

I concur with the above. Unless more sources without such an obvious bias have the same complaints, I suggest removing the 'Criticism' section. ObsidianBlack 22:07, 2 January 2007 (UTC)

Due to the episode "Nutcrackers",

I've learned thinspire, thinspiration, pro-ana, pro-ano, pro-anorexia,... Each of these refer to persons favoring anorexia. Not merely as a controversial subject, but, also as an intentional choice.

Thank You.

[[ hopiakuta | [[ [[%c2%a1]] [[%c2%bf]] [[ %7e%7e%7e%7e ]] -]] 06:05, 6 December 2006 (UTC)

I've just noticed the phrase "Legal Dramedy". Is there an "Illegal Dramedy"? The term "legal" Is so often interjected into phrases, & the illegal profession, lawyers, attorneys, have such a "firm" hold on so much of lingustics,...

How do you feel about "Law Dramedy"?

My gripe. Thank You.

[[ hopiakuta | [[ [[%c2%a1]] [[%c2%bf]] [[ %7e%7e%7e%7e ]] -]] 12:05, 6 December 2006 (UTC)

Transcripts

Does anybody know where one can find transcripts to the episodes ? -Igoruha 21:50, 20 March 2007 (UTC)

Try www.boston-legal.org/episodes

Whats wrong with a trivia section?

i dont see the problem with it. Plenty of TV show articles, movie articles, and other articles in general have one, and i often go straight to that section because i like those sorts of facts. and no, they dont necessarily fit anywhere else. BBnet3000 03:28, 18 April 2007 (UTC)

New noticeboard

A new noticeboard, Wikipedia:Fiction noticeboard, has been created. - Peregrine Fisher 18:02, 1 May 2007 (UTC)

This noticeboard has been deleted per Wikipedia:Miscellany for deletion/Wikipedia:Fiction noticeboard. Please disregard the above post. ~ Jeff Q (talk) 11:25, 9 May 2007 (UTC)

Hidden Text at Top of Article

Is anyone else seeing (well not seeing) the hidden text at the top of the article? The table on the right hides it, does anyone know how to edit it to make the text readable?!--Gottago 11:10, 24 May 2007 (UTC)

re: edits for Cast/Former Cast

• The current/main cast section is sorted by billing in the main credits. Summers, Larroquette etc are sorted by the logical placement, Larroquette is the biggest name after Spader, Bergen & Shatner, so he'd logically be in the second place - this can be fixed up properly once abc make a press release regarding the season premiere. I also think that using dates is more comprehensive, and far neater, then the muddled and unclear collection of brackets that it just was. 58.165.255.115 07:15, 26 June 2007 (UTC)

All new members should remain under the existing cast members until precedence is established by an official source.--Oni Ookami Alfador^Talk|@ 22:01, 30 June 2007 (UTC)

Pharoah nuff - I've updated it just now with the line-up as issued in the ABC press release [1] - the press releases from previous seasons have always had the cast listed in billing order, and seeing as this one does come from ABC I see no reason to assume otherwise.

Shouldn't the show be categorized as a drama-comedy

the title is self explanitory i think, the show is a drama but has strong comedic elements. those elements, in my mind, are one of the things that make the show so enjoyable to watch. therefore changing it labeling from drama to drama-comedy would be a better intro description for it. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.81.196.64 (talk) 10:05, 14 September 2007 (UTC)

I agree. The article doesn't even mention comedy other than in the award sections. --Teggles 08:22, 2 November 2007 (UTC)

The show should be categorized according to what reliable secondary sources categorize it. Rray 11:18, 2 November 2007 (UTC)

Indeed it should, but that doesn't appear to be the case. "Legal drama" is not given a source. --Teggles 07:21, 5 November 2007 (UTC)

Meta and Star trek references

Kindly do not delete this references as they are one of the many reasons for the popularity of the show.The concept of meta references has been put intentionally in the series by the writers. Think about this for a moment. Thanks iquadri (talk) 23:27, 17 November 2007 (UTC)

• The articles are fancruft and absolutely need to go. JuJube (talk) 03:00, 18 November 2007 (UTC)
  • The references to Star Trek and the meta stuff is fine as long as someone includes citations to reliable secondary sources when including them. Otherwise they're original research and need to go. Rray (talk) 05:55, 13 December 2007 (UTC)

Camera zooming in on hands

Surely other people have noticed this. The camera zooms in on characters' hands as they're gesticulating. It's unique in TV, so far as I'm aware, and is thus worth mentioning. I wonder if anyone has some documentation on that aspect of the show. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.100.92.114 (talk) 02:52, 20 October 2007 (UTC)

McGyver did that as well --66.199.78.171 (talk) 03:27, 25 December 2007 (UTC)

Rene Auberjonois

"Mr. Odo" is not listed in the "Starring" section?? This should be changed ... not? -andy 84.149.107.114 (talk) 21:22, 9 January 2008 (UTC)

No, it shouldn't. Mr. Auberjonois is no longer a full-time cast member on Boston Legal. --From Andoria with Love (talk) 21:22, 12 February 2008 (UTC)

References

What happened to the section that this article used to have about the "fourth wall" references?--61.9.138.162 (talk) 04:57, 1 February 2008 (UTC)

• ...and the Star Trek references?CyberTrini (talk) 02:10, 25 February 2008 (UTC)

I don't know. I went back and tried to replace them as best I could, because I think they're noteworthy. Since you're an interested party here, would you please try to locate some appropriate citations to support the allusions/references? I guess a previous editor felt that the claims in the Star Trek section weren't appropriately cited, which seems a bit nitpicky since they're easily demonstrable by looking at related articles and cast lists. Thanks. Bistromathics (talk) 20:50, 14 April 2008 (UTC)

Can there be a new category of discussion about the proper use of the words "ironic" and "ironically"? The transition shots of a building located 12 minutes from Fleet Street is not ironic in the least. If anything, it's irrelevant. At best, it's a tangential coincidence. I hate to be the irony police, or rather, I don't, but someone fix that please? At least make it say 'Coincidentally..." —Preceding unsigned comment added by 198.97.67.59 (talk) 13:38, 10 April 2008 (UTC)

Ironically enough, after reading that very sentence, I dashed over here to the talk page, to see if anyone else had brought it up. I'll change it to read "coincidentally," or something similar. Brash (talk) 04:13, 16 April 2008 (UTC)

Christian Clemenson

Now admittedly I haven't seen the recent episodes, but I'm pretty certain he isn't in the main cast. He's still a guest star.

-Well, if you havent seen the recent episodes, then how would you know?--61.9.138.162 (talk) 04:58, 11 March 2008 (UTC) UPDATE: The actor Christian Clemenson is part of the main cast. Resources:http://abc.go.com/primetime/bostonlegal/index?pn=index --AKIRA70 (talk) 04:53, 28 June 2008 (UTC)

Not picked up by ABC

I think it needs to be said that Boston Legal was not picked up for a 5th season by ABC. http://www.zap2it.com/tv/news/zap-abcpicksupninefor0809,0,4836035.story 155.69.3.99 (talk) 12:33, 14 February 2008 (UTC)

This doesn't mean the series is cancelled. Not being "picked up" at this point in the season doesn't mean anything since the writer's strike has messed everything up. ABC would have to be brain-dead to not renew this series, which is one of the best written on TV this season. ArcAngel (talk) 17:28, 15 February 2008 (UTC)

So is this show coming back from the writers' strike or is it over? Cromulent Kwyjibo (talk) 01:21, 26 March 2008 (UTC)

According to IMDB, the next new episode will air April 8th, with 5 more new ones after that. ArcAngel (talk) 01:43, 26 March 2008 (UTC)

Looking for help writing an article about the spin-offs and crossovers of this series

I am writing an article about all of the series which are in the same shared reality as this one through spin-offs and crossovers. I could use a little help expanding the article since it is currently extremely dense and a bit jumbled with some sentence structures being extremely repetitive. I would like to be able to put this article into article space soon. Any and all help in writing the article would be appreciated, even a comment or two on the talk page would help. Please give it a read through, also please do not comment here since I do not have all of the series on my watch list. - LA @ 16:13, 16 March 2008 (UTC)

RE: Former main cast members section

I have made the following changes to this section:

Rene Auberjonois was only part of the main cast for seasons 1-3

Monica Potter and Rhona Mitra weren't part of the opening sequence in any season two episode, they were, however, credited with special appearance roles.

Betty White was never part of the main cast as she was never in the opening titles, she was always credited with a guest starring role.

--James Duggan 07:53, 24 September 2008 (UTC)

Political?

I've just seen 2 episodes and a preview for a third and it seems very political. And that politics is very real world and concrete, not abstract like most shows would be, if they were political at all. (Eli Stone is political for example in that there are issues discussed, but not actual real world politics like the presidential election) I was wondering if the show was always like this? I would think that would be part of the description of the show- something that the series was notable for. It seems like besides the summery, this article is a little bare bones. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.56.242.121 (talk) 04:33, 11 November 2008 (UTC)

2008 election

"The series had a story line where someone was fired because they voted for Sen. John McCain." Now, I just saw that episode. I don't think that's a fair summary of it at all. --Steven Fisher (talk) 20:42, 23 November 2008 (UTC)

I agree and deleted that section. Not only is it a random blurb about 1 episode, it completely misses the point of the episode. I'm not sure what its purpose was.

Canceled?

So is the series canceled or not? Katyism (talk) 00:42, 26 November 2008 (UTC) It has been announced that this is the last season, of course things could always change but it seems that way. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.141.239.112 (talk) 08:06, 26 November 2008 (UTC)

Star Trek References ?

Trough the season there are references to Star Trek - such as Denny Crane saying in the final episode of the third season "I was once the captain of my own starship !" to the press - and also a lot of the guest (Jeri Ryan, Armin Shirmerman) or regular (Rene Auberjonois) are coming from the Star Trek... Wouldn't this be worth mentionning here ? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.57.236.80 (talk) 02:41, 7 December 2009 (UTC)

Also, in episode 203 Finding Nimmo, Alan quotes a book he's reaing and tells Denny that the sea lice are referred to as "cling ons". To which Denny responds, "Klingons?" —Preceding unsigned comment added by 119.74.144.193 (talk) 04:26, 27 December 2009 (UTC)

re-runs?

Does anyone know if there are re-runs on any channel? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.125.103.136 (talk) 23:26, 6 January 2009 (UTC)

Yes. The ION Network (cable or satellite) is running them in prime time. Also, at least the first four seasons(and now maybe the fifth) are available on DVD, sometimes at the local video store of national chains and certainly at the two big online ones. Hope this helps. <MusicalMan, too lazy to log in, sorry> —Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.22.66.69 (talk) 21:15, 24 January 2009 (UTC)

Continuation?

Is anyone aware of information regarding any future plans (or definitive lack thereof) for the show's cast/storyline? I know the final episodes had numerous meta-references to speculation about the future of the characters ("maybe on another network"), but I haven't heard anything absolute. Dansiman (talk|Contribs) 04:58, 26 January 2009 (UTC)

Request for comment on articles for individual television episodes and characters

A request for comments has been started that could affect the inclusion or exclusion of episodes and characters, as well as other fiction articles. Please visit the discussion at Wikipedia_talk:Notability_(fiction)#Final_adoption_as_a_guideline. Ikip (talk) 11:33, 29 January 2009 (UTC)

\

4th Wall Section almost all OR

The section about breaking the fourth wall is almost all OR, and should be mostly removed. With the exception of the concept, and a couple examples, that are provided in the one site given, nothing else is sourced. 99.17.105.194 (talk) 06:35, 17 May 2010 (UTC)

Done. I only recently discovered the page, but taken care of. Thebladesofchaos (talk) 09:10, 21 June 2011 (UTC)