The 21-Year-Old Legal Drama Masterpiece with 86% on Rotten Tomatoes
Way back in 2004, movie actor James Spader unexpectedly pivoted towards the small screen by fronting a legal comedy-drama called Boston Legal. The show was to redefine what legal shows look like in the 21st century, with its irresistible mix of eccentric characterizations, topical storylines, and comic undertones.
After five seasons of consistently superb television, Boston Legal rightly took its place among the best shows about lawyers ever made. In fact, there’s a strong case to make that no other legal drama in history has been as funny or clever as this one.
One of several lawyer shows created by David E. Kelley, arguably TV’s most celebrated developer of procedural dramas, Boston Legal stands out specifically thanks to its unique brand of humor, as well as its meticulous approach to the minutiae of the legal profession. What’s more, the show features a level of social commentary that few other procedurals can match.
None of the unique aspects of Boston Legal would have been possible without the inimitable characterization of Alan Shore, the central protagonist of the series who’s played to perfection by Spader. While he may have his faults, it’s difficult to think of a TV lawyer more lovable and entertaining than Shore.
Boston Legal Is One Of The Best Legal Dramas Of All Time
James Spader in Boston Legal season 4 episode The Court Supreme
In retrospect, it’s no surprise that Boston Legal is considered the best lawyer TV show of all time by many critics and fans. With the talents of James Spader and William Shatner in front of the camera, and screenwriters such as Jonathan Shapiro working alongside David E. Kelley behind the camera, the show had all the ingredients it needed to succeed.
When it was first aired, however, the series was just a spinoff of Kelley’s previous legal drama The Practice, and was taking a risk by betting its success on a character who’d only featured in this parent show for a season. The Practice didn’t feature Boston Legal’s experimental blend of dark comedy and procedural drama, either.
As much as Kelley was already established as a major player in the genre, he was going out on a limb with this spinoff, which could scarcely afford to fail given the stature of its key cast members. Nevertheless, the creator and head writer of the series was onto a winner.
Boston Legal Was As Good As The Practice – If Not Better
If we’re comparing The Practice and Boston Legal as lawyer shows, the latter undoubtedly comes out on top. Not only is it sharper and funnier than its forerunner, but its central character, Alan Shore, is far more compelling than anyone who appeared in The Practice before him.
Shore is arrogant, neurotic, prone to bizarre phobias, and intensely difficult to work with. He’s also an ingenious defense lawyer with a sound conscience, who’ll do whatever it takes to stand on the side of justice, even if that makes breaking the law. The many facets of Shore’s personality make for wonderfully entertaining viewing.
He’s perhaps the most outstanding – and unorthodox – courtroom orators in TV history, too. Shore’s appearances in court set Boston Legal apart as a show that’s both more accurate and more humorous in its approach to the law than legal dramas playing for cheap thrills.
How Boston Legal Compares To Modern Legal Dramas
james spader and william shatner as alan and denny in boston legal
For a start, Alan Shore’s friendship with his mentor and drinking buddy Denny Crane has clear parallels with the relationship between Mickey Haller and David “Legal” Siegel in The Lincoln Lawyer. Denny and Alan may land themselves in more trouble with clients and legal authorities, but they share the same kind of maverick spirit as Mickey and Legal.
The key difference between Boston Legal and its successors of the streaming age is that the show primarily follows a traditional “case of the week” format, whereas the likes of The Lincoln Lawyer have a continuous plot carried between episodes within a season. Still, it pushed the boundaries of tone and characterization like no other legal drama before it.
There Might Never Be Another Show Like Boston Legal
james spader as alan shore in boston legal
As with the classic crime comedy show Monk, which premiered two years before Boston Legal, it’s tough to imagine another series along the same lines becoming successful today. The cozy atmosphere of the comedy-drama and its format of self-contained weekly storylines belong to the age of network television.
Meanwhile, Goliath and The Lincoln Lawyer have laid the blueprint for legal dramas of the streaming age. They might be more thrilling than Boston Legal, with equally intriguing central characters. But they aren’t quite as funny or charming as this masterpiece of procedural comedy-drama.
Boston Legal was one of a kind when it first aired 21 years ago, and it remains so today. James Spader is better known today for his roles as Raymond Reddington in The Blacklist and Robert California in The Office. But Alan Shore could well be his most brilliantly enigmatic character of all.
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