Paramount Plus
Let’s Talk About ‘The End of Ginni’:
- Liz appears on a Chicago morning show and makes some pointedly honest comments about Clarence and Ginni Thomas that don’t please a few people.
- With Dr. Bettancourt still out of town Diane is taking her treatments with Dr. Schuman, but instead of a high she gets more paranoid in the doctor’s presence.
- Marissa is put on alert by the FBI that since the man who targeted her father is still unknown, she needs to consider her best options for protection.
- Ri’Chard takes on a case of a ‘push-nup’ which involves a pregnant wife being financially compensated for her time carrying, delivering and nurturing the baby because she’s giving up her own career for the time being.
- The wife’s lawyer arrives and it’s the one and definitely only Elsbeth Tascioni, who took up glass blowing during lockdown.
- Liz gets a call from someone claiming to be Ginni Thomas, asking her to apologize for her comments, but is it a prank or are they actually bonding over Below Deck: Sailing Yacht?>.
- Marissa decides to buy a gun and goes down a rabbit hole of panic, believing that a new Civil War is on the horizon.
- Carmen has very little to do except become obsessed over a sticker on the ceiling of the elevator.
We didn’t lose any characters on The Good Fight this week, but we did see the return of a fan favorite in what might be her last appearance — Elsbeth Tascioni. But even though she may not return, actress Carrie Preston will, directing an upcoming episode. Marissa took some of the spotlight this week in the aftermath of her father nearly being murdered in the last episode, while Carmen again gets nothing to do but obsess over a sticker someone left on the ceiling of the elevator (it did turn out to be an abbreviation for a Nazi motto, so that could become important especially as after she tried to scrape the one sticker off, someone came and plastered the entire ceiling with stickers). The riots still rage outside and Dr. Bettancourt is still out of town, causing Diane a bit of anxiety during her treatment. And a crazy case unites Ri’Chard, Diane and Elsbeth against an unlikely adversary.
Marissa & Jay
With Eli Gold’s would be assassin still at large and unknown, the FBI has advised Marissa to consider options for her own safety. They don’t laugh when she suggests being less Jewish would help. With Jay assuring the men they will work together on her security, Marissa tells him she wants to buy a gun. But the rising racial and anti-Semitic tensions in the outside world have Marissa on high alert, noticing she’s being followed by two men while out for lunch, and finding information online that suggests the country is on the verge of a new Civil War. Jay tries to talk her down from that particular ledge — it is the internet, after all — but while walking her home one night they spot the same men following her. Jay tries to distract them but it turns out they are an FBI security detail assigned to follow her … but no one bothered to tell her? The men try to arrest Jay, but a lawyer and a group of people wielding cell phone cameras descend on them, noting the agents never identified themselves, and that Jay is a private investigator licensed to carry a gun, so if they want to avoid this incident being made public they should uncuff Jay and apologize. Following the incident, Jay asks the lawyer who they are and where they came from, but the man’s answer is cryptic, just telling say to think about wanting to know more and handing him a card with the number 377 on it. A black van pulls up and the man gets in and leaves as quickly as he arrived. Jay takes Marissa to a shooting range to train her in how to handle a gun so she can be licensed for concealed carry, but she surprises him with her prowess — she was in the Israeli defense forces after all. But while she remains on high alert, looking for people wearing green shoelaces — a symbol of the members of the group placing those Nazi-inspired BUB stickers all over the place, Jay decides he wants to know more about the people who helped him. Stepping out of the building, a black van pulls up, Jay gives his number and he is admitted into the van. The same man is there, but he is sitting with a woman who asks him what he wants. ‘Competence’, he replies, to be part of a group of people who know what they are doing with their passion and anger, standing up for themselves. She identifies herself and the other man as the leaders of The Collective, a group of friends who can make things better. So what can he do to help them? Jay thinks for a second and tells them he’s an investigator. They have investigators, so she is ready to dismiss him but asks again what he can do for them. Jay thinks and replies that he can train people to use firearms to get the concealed carry licenses. That appears to be a trait The Collective can use.
Ri’Chard, Diane & Elsbeth
Paramount Plus
Ri’Chard is handed a case involving a ‘push-nup’, which is some kind of contract between a pregnant woman and her husband to be compensated for her pregnancy. Ri’Chard is baffled by this, and is further baffled with Elsbeth Tascioni blows into the office with the wife’s demands. Ri’Chard tries to counter with the couple’s original pre-nup, but Elsbeth has her own files to counter his counter. Ri’Chard begins to understand this isn’t really about the pregnancy, it’s about property and assets, namely a vacation home and crypto currency investments. Ri’Chard seeks advice from Diane and when she accompanies him to his office and finds Elsbeth there, the two squeal with delight. Elsbeth ends up commiserating with Diane and they simply agree to give the vacation house to the husband and the crypto to the wife. Their agreement is further complicated by the arrival of another lawyer, Matt Brittel, who is there to represent … the fetus, which puts Elsbeth now on the defense with Ri’Chard and Diane. And, just their lukc, they have a pro-life judge (and a group of pro-life hecklers in the gallery) who decides that the fetus is indeed a baby and has the same rights as anyone else, so the case can proceed. But then it becomes evident that Brittel isn’t really representing the baby, he’s representing the grandparents and a generation skipping trust that Carter, the father, had borrowed from heavily for his failed crypto investments. Now the three are faced with the prospect of suing an unborn child — Liz advises Diane to not do that — but she gets a better idea. Diane and Elsbeth ask the court to appoint a conservator for the unborn child. Brittel says he is the baby’s lawyer, but Elsbeth points out that he is the lawyer for the baby’s trust and it appears that he has been putting his own agenda ahead of his client’s, grossly overcharging the grandparents for his services. After successfully arguing that the fetus is a child, he now says there is no child. Diane points to the mother’s pregnant belly. Even the judge reverts to using the word ‘fetus’ but now Elsbeth and Diane keep pressing that it is a child. They need the conservator because the child isn’t competent, yet, to handle her own affairs. He argues that he is acting as the conservator but Diane says he is not acting responsibly or in the best interest of … the child. The judge pauses and then issues her judgment that fetuses have certain inalienable rights, and therefore the motion for the conservator is granted. The crowd applauds, Elsbeth gives Diane a lower-case ‘yay’ and Diane said she needs a shower after that.
Liz
Liz makes an appearance on a Chicago morning talk show where she makes some disparaging comments about Clarence and Ginni Thomas, noting her participation in the attempt to overturn the election and how absurd it is to think he didn’t know anything about that. After the interview, Liz spots a White cameraman, who uses his finger to point and shoot at her as if it was a gun. That prompted Liz to call Jay and tell him it’s time to beef up security around the office, and he agrees, as does Diane. That night, Liz gets a call from an unknown number, and the woman on the other end claims to be … Ginni Thomas. She heard what Liz said on TV and wants her to apologize. Lix doesn’t believe the woman at first, and calls the number the next day. She gets a voice mail again claiming to be Ginni but she doesn’t leave a message. That night while having dinner and watching Below Deck: Sailing Yacht with her son, the woman calls again. Liz is still unsure but she sounds legit. ‘Ginni’ even knows what show she’s watching and what season it is. Liz freaks a little but asks Ginni a couple of personal questions that only she would know the answer to. She first asks Ginni about the religious cult she was in, the name of the cult. Ginni says she doesn’t want to talk about it and Liz says thanks for confirming this is a prank call. But … she does answer and it’s the right answer. Liz then asks the name of Ginni’s deprogrammer, and she gives her a name including the guy’s nickname. Liz seems to be sold but she asks Jay to do some digging because she had no idea if the name was accurate. Jay had to do some digging but he came up with a name and it matched what the woman on the phone said. The two continue their nightly conversations, and Liz tells Diane what’s been going on, believing that this Ginni person seems lonely. One of the things they talked about was Ginni’s wish for her husband to retire so they could travel and see the Grand Canyon. Diane suggested if nothing else, Liz should absolutely convince Ginni to talk her husband into retirement, preferably before the election.
During another of their nightly chats, Ginni asks Liz about her love life. Liz talked about her ex, the police officer, and then began to ease into the subject of Ginni working on getting her husband to retire. Ginni asked if she’d dated anyone else in the last year. Liz was hesitant but answered that she had, but wanted to know what she was getting at. Ginni said she just wanted to know if Liz was following her own advice. Ginni asks if Liz had dated anyone funny, and the light began to dawn on her. ‘Ginni’ then said ‘Clarence’ was there and wanted to talk to her and she immediately knew the voice — it was Del. He was pranking her for a new comedy show he was working on, and he, ‘Ginni’ and puppets were outside her door (apparently Del is working on his own version of Crank Yankers). Del asks if they can come in and Liz says that depends on if she signs a release. Liz slams the door in his face, and Del begs to be let in because he’s a Black man in a white neighborhood with a bunch of puppets. Liz exacts her revenge by having Jay call Del to notify him that he is organizing Del’s New York offices — they’re unionizing.
What did you think of this episode? Give us your thoughts in the comments section below.
New episodes of The Good Fight stream Thursdays on Paramount Plus. Use Hotchka’s affiliate link to subscribe and try it for free!
Share this post
