Is The Good Fight woke?
The Good Fight (2017)
TV Show
Released: January 1, 2017
Wokeness Score
9/10
Activist / Didactic
The story exists mainly to deliver a woke ideological lecture. Themes are heavy-handed, preachy, and feel forced or unnatural. Entertainment value is secondary, and viewers frequently feel lectured or alienated.
Key Summary Points
- Pilot opens with Diane reacting in horror to Trump's inauguration, framing the series as liberal resistance.
- Centers on a historically Black law firm with storylines on race, police brutality, #MeToo, and liberal hypocrisy.
- Features direct-to-camera monologues, satirical attacks on conservatives, and heavy Trump-era political commentary.
Wokeness Analysis
The Good Fight is a direct spinoff of The Good Wife that relocates its liberal protagonists to a historically Black law firm in Chicago, explicitly framing the narrative around resistance to the Trump presidency and progressive social justice causes. The pilot opens with Diane Lockhart watching Trump's inauguration in horror, setting a tone of liberal outrage that permeates the series. Storylines routinely incorporate ripped-from-the-headlines elements such as police brutality lawsuits, #MeToo scandals, critiques of liberal hypocrisy on race, ICE policies, and satirical jabs at conservative figures portrayed as cartoonish foils. Creators have described the show as examining 'the racism of liberals' while centering an ensemble with prominent Black characters, a lesbian protagonist, and strong female leads navigating systemic issues. Over its six seasons, the legal procedural format serves primarily as a vehicle for political commentary, with episodes featuring direct addresses to camera on topics like punching Nazis, PAnon countering QAnon, and examinations of white privilege within progressive institutions. Conservative critics note the heavy-handed portrayal of right-wing characters as racist or Islamophobic and the overall partisan framing that prioritizes ideological messaging over balanced storytelling. While some episodes touch on internal liberal contradictions, the dominant thrust remains didactic advocacy for progressive values, making entertainment secondary to social and political lecturing. This aligns with descriptions of it as TV's most political drama of the Trump era and a resistance-era fever dream.
Plot
The Good Fight follows Diane Lockhart, a veteran liberal lawyer, after she loses her savings and position due to a financial scam involving her goddaughter Maia's family. Forced to start over, Diane joins Lucca Quinn at the prominent Chicago firm Reddick, Boseman & Kolstad, a historically Black practice. The series blends legal cases with broader political and social themes, tracking the firm's lawyers as they navigate personal and professional challenges amid the post-2016 election landscape. It explores issues of race, gender, power, and institutional hypocrisy through high-stakes cases and ensemble dynamics, running for six seasons from 2017 to 2022.