A couple of days ago, one of my students said “When are you going to update your blog?”  (You know who you are, Derrica.)  I thought about how busy I’ve been with midterms, but that’s not really an excuse because she’s had midterms, too, and still manages to check the blog!

I have been meaning to write a few lines about the new ABC legal show The Deep End.  I’ve watched it from the beginning and think it’s a good fit for the ABC Thursday line-up because the tone matches Grey’s Anatomy and The Practice, two series I don’t watch regularly but have seen.

The Deep End is set in LA and feels a little like a cross between LA Law and House.  I know that sounds weird.  It has the location and legal context of the former and the focus on first years under the tutelage of mentors like the latter.

I think The Deep End is fluffy but mildly entertaining.  The stakes (and the production values) are lower than another new legal drama, The Good Wife.  The characters are “types” rather than individuals.

The legal storylines are greatly simplified, and do lawyers really spend this much time out on the street investigating and interviewing?  It’s hard to believe that this firm runs on three senior partners, a company fixer, and a bunch of brand new lawyers.  Where are the rest of the paper pushers and support staff?  How do these attorneys fresh out of law school end up in court on serious cases minutes after their arrival at the firm?  How do they always succeed?

I like my drama with at least a little edge.  The Good Wife, Mercy, and of course the recently concluded Men of a Certain Age are new shows that deliver for me this season.  This preference for complexity (and the suggestion of realism at least on some level) is not a new predilection for me.  I always preferred ER to Chicago Hope, which premiered at the same time, and to shows like Grey’s Anatomy that came later.

Okay.  I’ve updated the blog.  Now, for all of my students who’ve been waiting for me to push aside the work and see Shutter Island (you know who you are – and especially you, Laura), I’m going to try to get there tomorrow!