Harry's Law - American Girl

Network: NBC
Time: Wednesdays, 9:00-10:00pm
Cast: Kathy Bates, Nate Corddry, Karen Olivo, Christopher McDonald, Mark Valley

WARNING: MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS

Summary (from imdb.com): While Harry is on vacation, her trip takes a frustrating turn when the small town of Langford, Ohio impounds her Mercedes Benz for violating their "Buy American" law. Harry, with Oliver at her side, challenges the town's law and is pit against a young, homespun attorney and the engine behind the law, Langford's mayor, Franklin Chickory. Meanwhile, Adam represents the Chens, a Chinese family whose daughter was stolen because of China's one-child policy and adopted by American parents. With Cassie's help, Adam hopes to win custody for the Chens.

Review: There are still a lot of things wrong with Harry's Law. It's preachy, probably overly so. The characters are all, without fail, long-winded and high-minded. Harry is belligerent and downright unlikeable at times. They got rid of Jenna and Malcolm. It's aimed at an older audience outside the golden demographic, thereby putting its ratings in the toilet.

None of this matters to me.

There were two main plots to this episode. The first was Harry and Oliver's story. Harry, on her way to go quail hunting, was pulled over in Langford, Ohio. They impounded her car because she was in violation of their "Buy American" law. Harry, being Harry, found this law to be ridiculous, and she drafted Ollie to help her fight it.

This is where they tended to get a bit preachy, as both Harry and Mayor Chickory made long speeches from the witness stand extolling the virtues and freedoms of America. I can't imagine this kind of behavior would be permitted in a real court, but no one stopped them here (except for one blundering objection from Doogie Howser, Esq.). Harry believed that part of the freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution gave her the right to drive a Mercedes wherever she wanted. Also, that a "Buy American" law would ultimately be catastrophic for the country if other nations decided to retaliate by not buying American-made products. Chickory defended his law by saying that only allowing American cars would create and provide more jobs for Americans. Ultimately, the judge sided with Harry (as well he should, since her name is in the title of the show, and Chickory's name was almost forgotten on IMDb).

Call me a sucker, but I like the preachy stories, especially the deeply political ones that deal as much in ideology as they do practicality. At its most basic level, this story questioned just how deep the right of free expression goes, and whether an individual town or state can infringe upon that right for what they believe to be the common good. There wasn't really a right or wrong answer to the case and, while I was happy with the end result, I was more intrigued by the arguments each side made than what the judge ruled.

The B story began with Adam's ex-girlfriend Chunhua returning with a Chinese couple. Four years ago, their second child had been abducted by the government and sold into adoption. They had finally tracked her down to Ohio, where she was living with a black couple and their other daughter. The Chens wanted to fight for custody of their daughter, and Adam enlisted Cassie's help to try and win her back.

From the moment this story was introduced, I knew it couldn't end well. No matter how you cut it, one set of parents was walking away without their daughter. In this case, the judge--a black woman adopted into a white family when she was a little girl--ruled in favor of the Thomases, under the belief that a six-year-old girl shouldn't be ripped away from the only family she's ever known, though she stipulated detailed visitation instructions.

I had a major problem with this ruling. At one point, early in the episode, we're introduced to the little girl, and we watched as she saw her biological parents for the first time in four years. While they were agonizing that they no longer remembered her or their native language, she turned to them and, in perfect Chinese, told them she remembered who they were. This seems to negate the entire argument (that was made multiple times by multiple people) that the child shouldn't be taken from the only family she's ever known. If she remembers her biological family, then the Thomases aren't the only family she's ever known.

I also feel like this story would have been a little easier for me if the show could possibly have cast some less talented actresses. Even the little girl was great, ranging in emotion from stoic and scared to bubbly and singing at the top of her lungs. The judge was phenomenal, playing just the right mix of heartbroken by her job and professional. And the gut-wrenching sobs from Mrs. Chen when she was told her daughter was to stay with the Thomases made me feel like my insides were being ripped out. If just one of the guest stars had been a little less good, maybe I wouldn't have bawled like a baby at the end of the episode.

I know Harry's Law has struggled to find ratings this season, but I can't help hoping for a miracle. Maybe NBC's anemic line-up will continue to bleed so much that Harry's Law won't look bad in comparison. Maybe ratings will begin to spike. Maybe they'll suddenly decide they care about the over 50 demographic. Because no matter its faults, Harry's Law is a good show that makes us think each week a little harder than we did the week before.

Rating: 4/5

Favorite line:
Harry: "I'm white, I'm rich and I'm Republican. That makes it legal for me to mistake you for a quail."

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