'Boston Legal' Shines With Fifty Year Old Footage of William Shatner

shatner_defender.jpg

Boston Legal has always been a particularly good show, even if it has become so by positively highlighting some characters while treating others as lame ass idiots. One has to feel for the plight of Mark Valley's Brad Chase on the series who's gone from formidable fixture of strength of bumbling buffoon spending no time in the courtroom and the entire last episode stuck in an air vent. And for Julie Bowen's Denise Bauer who's gone from ass-kicking, intern-belittling powerhouse to sappy second string softie. Even Rene Auberjonis has taken a back seat at crane Poole $ Schmidt.

Even with all that seemingly negative change, the series continues to shine particularly with this week's episode entitled Son of the Defender in which a man William Shatner's Denny Crane defended along with his father in 1957 shows up with a gun held to his back by the very son of a man supposedly killed by the man Crane proved innocent back in 1957. The man takes Crane Poole & Schmidt employees hostage and forces them to re-enact the 50 year old trial. Because Shatner has been around forever and has been a TV and film fixture for so long, footage from his 1957 appearance in the TV pilot The Defender was able to be incorporated into this week's episode.

The writers did a wonderful job tying Shatner's appearance in the 50 year old legal drama together with the current Boston Legal episode in a way that lent true sentiment to the episode's plot line. Couple that with some tremendous acting by Shatner and and an always amusing secondary plot line with James Spader's Alan Shore and you get grade A television.

by Steve Hall    Apr- 3-07   Click to Comment   
Topic: Good, Opinion, Television   

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Comments



Comments

Thanks so much for putting this up. I tried to go through Shatner's bio on IMDB last night - and I read the info on "The Defender" but I didn't know if that was the episode or not.

Posted by: Lee Coursey on April 4, 2007 7:17 AM

brilliant, and fun, integration. Got to love Boston Legal!

Posted by: lukeMV on April 4, 2007 9:03 AM

Gotta admit with everyone on this one and say I looove Boston Legal.

Posted by: Jeff on April 4, 2007 9:59 AM

I found it particularly touching not only for the story line itself (and the great Billy Joel song), but for the poignance of seeing a young Shatner, just beginning his acting career. A terrific episode of a usually strong show.

Posted by: Malcolm on April 4, 2007 11:02 AM

I found it particularly touching not only for the story line itself (and the great Billy Joel song), but for the poignance of seeing a young Shatner, just beginning his acting career. A terrific episode of a usually strong show.

Posted by: Malcolm Woods on April 4, 2007 11:03 AM

I found it particularly touching not only for the story line itself (and the great Billy Joel song), but for the poignance of seeing a young Shatner, just beginning his acting career. A terrific episode of a usually strong show.

Posted by: Malcolm Woods on April 4, 2007 11:07 AM

I found it particularly touching not only for the story line itself (and the great Billy Joel song), but for the sweetness of seeing a young Shatner, just beginning his acting career. A terrific episode of a usually strong show.

Posted by: Malcolm Woods on April 4, 2007 11:08 AM

I wonder if Malcolm found it touching.

Posted by: B on April 4, 2007 11:35 AM

That was pretty cool! This show has good acting and good writing. They did an excellent job of tying the plot line of last nights episode into the old footage! Shatner's the man!

Posted by: Nick on April 4, 2007 2:20 PM

I LOVED that episode and was wondering where they got the old footage of Shatner. Thanks for posting!

Posted by: Danielle on April 4, 2007 4:28 PM

Great show. Great episode. Great use of a non-bloated Shatner.

Posted by: saphron jenkins on April 4, 2007 10:18 PM