The Good Wife : I LOVED the ending! Here's my analysis:

I thought the ending was great.

This is how I see it:
She left Peter. She's chasing after Jason, who has decided to vanish because he just can't deal with her crap. She's fantasizing about Will, who's being so nice to her, because she's making it up in her head. She was a complete idiot for not snatching him up every chance she got.

No man for Alicia. She's now single.

She screwed over Diane, big time. I'll bet money Lucca is furious at her too for bullying her into doing her dirty work. She's ruined her relationships with two wonderful women who only wanted to be her friend/colleague. Carey is giving TED talks.

No friends for Alicia. No friendly colleagues for Alicia.

Zach is in Europe. Grace will be in CA. She'll be childless too.


Her day-to-day important people have left her, or she's pushed them away. She's still got her mother & her brother who will always love her. Which is a good thing. Grace adores her. Alicia is not a monster, and she's still worthy of love. She's just a bit of a *beep* and like Will said to her, "My god, you don't even know how awful you are!!!"

She'll be fine. She'll go work for Canning, and nurse her hurt feeling by getting a new boyfriend. But she totally got what she deserved in the end!

She absolutely got what she deserved in the end. I totally agree. As soon as Diane got up and left the court room I was hoping she'd find time to slap Alicia before the credits rolled.

a large # posters on this board who wanted alicia to end up happy because they pictured themselves as her could not appreciate this

Or maybe they know things you dont. Like what NPD or PTSD mean, and the character ending did not take real human reactions in consideration after all the effort of doing so before just because the writers were married to their original ending, even when they originally though it would only last one season.

Cinematic wise, the ending was pure crap.

I would not call it 'Crap' and I definitely did not love it. It was a Matzoh Ball, and it just sat there. It was like they didn't want to commit to any real ending except for the moment Peter reaches for Alicia and she walks away. It took us 6 years for that point? Reminds me of the Seinfeld Finale in that it seems to only deal punishment for roads not taken.

Yes, real life rarely has an Ironic or Happy Ending. If I want Real life rubbed in my face I can turn off the TV and go outside.

(Spoiler Alert)The Confederacy LOSES the Civil War!!!!

Frankly I would have preferred the Seinfeld finale here. Just make the final episode a semi-clip show and bring back a bunch of old characters (Kalinda, Finn, Matan, Lemond Bishop, Glenn Childs, Wendy Scott-Carr, Ruth Eastman, Judge Kluger) to testify against Peter and show old clips for no good reason at all. At least that would have been entertaining. It's not like the last couple of episodes used up every minute they had to build up an ending.

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Well-said, dudestein! I felt unsatisfied by the ending, but this show always has been quirky. I also appreciated a previous poster's reference to PTSD; Alicia seemed to be reeling during much of the episode. She felt clear-headed enough to seek evidence and to stand up to that putz of a prosecutor. I felt sorrier for Peter because I don't think he did it; he just took one for the family. Alicia came across as damaged goods, a woman who still grieves over a broken marriage and a lost opportunity/death of a once and possibly future lover. I'm not sure she and Will would have worked as a couple. Jason seems like someone who avoids commitment, so that relationship seemed doomed, though Alicia keeps telling herself that's what she wants. She finds it hard to sustain relationships, probably because she never figures out what she wants from life. Alicia needs a good therapist and some alone time.

Put puppy mills out of business: never buy dogs from pet shops!

Well said as well!

I felt like I did when I lived through my first Earthquake and felt the earth move under my feet, nothing was safe, secure or permanent. Alicia's professional Relationships failed continuously. New job, new firm, new partners. She bounced like a pinball into a new failed professional relationship. That was an analogy of her personal relationships. Zack virtually disappeared from her life. Daughter sought a life with a spiritual bend outside of family. Alicia's relationship with Brother, Mother and Mother-in-law were dodgy as well.

All unstable ground under foot!

(Spoiler Alert)The Confederacy LOSES the Civil War!!!!

Love the earthquake analogy! I've only been through long-distance tremors, but they can make one feel upended in so many ways. I have some friends and relatives in similar predicaments; it's rather sad and frustrating to watch in the real world. No wonder I felt addicted to this show; I just realized it reflected so many people I know.

Put puppy mills out of business: never buy dogs from pet shops!

Zach and Grace don't hate their mother but both of them are disappointed in her

Diane had every right to slap Alicia and I cheer when it happen

I agree with this, and is pretty much the same conclusion I came to as well. She did indeed get what she so deserved, and it was made very clear , the finale would not be the "happy every after" ending.

They don't hate her. She has pissed off Zach; he's moving because he's in love. Grace is not even starting to get annoyed with her, she's asserting herself. There is no hate in either child for their mother.

I loved the ending as well. I thought it did everything it set out to dobrought closure to many of the stories, leaving each ending open for interpretation and discussion. That's what good storytelling does.

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I too liked the ending and feel that Alicia got a lot of what she deserved. However, you left out something very big in her future, the possibility of her taking Peter's place as governor. Eli was already planning for her to have a career in politics.

I don't think she will though; just because Eli said it doesn't mean he can convince her. She's really used to telling Eli no, lol! She was disgraced after she was forced to step down from States Attorney (I think that was the position? I honestly can'y remember) and she didn't do anything wrong. I doubt she'll want to run for any office again. That's why I think she'll go work for Canning.

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I too liked the ending and feel that Alicia got a lot of what she deserved. However, you left out something very big in her future, the possibility of her taking Peter's place as governor. Eli was already planning for her to have a career in politics.

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Yes, that's what I was thinking too. Does anyone here think she just might go back with Peter?

I agree. Even though the narrative seems to suggest that the reason that made her finally seek divorce was Jason, I think the turning point was Ruth visiting her in the office and warning her that she wouldn't have a future in politics if she remains attached to Peter. Alicia is quite ambitious and walking back to the stage rather than out (as Diane did) hints that she's going back to the limelight, to Eli, to politics. The way she fought so hard and alienated so many friends to keep Peter out of prison but out of politics also suggests that she has an eye on running for office. Keeping him out of prison would liberate her from the role of the supportive wife visiting her imprisoned husband and from her marriage.

What annoys me most is the representation of Diane as the holy victim. I think she is the most manipulative character who hides behind her liberal classy facade but is as thuggery in her approach as Will. She was always willing to sacrifice anyone for her own ambitions; Will, Alicia, Carey, Lee, the women rights groups, and even her own husband.

Ok. To all you who are of the opinion that she " got what she deserved". I did not like her putting Diane's husband on the stand but she learned at Diane's knee, so Diane should realize that she taught her well. That Alicia was relentless in the defending of her client was learned behavior. Not pleasant but not surprising. He is her client and her children's father.

And as for deserving all the ill will of all around her: what has Alicia ever done but subvert her own true desires for the benefit of her cheating husband and her children, who were often unaware and occasionally ungrateful. She walked away from Will and later regretted it. It is entirely possible that Jason was correct that she might have felt a duty to Peter if he went to jail.

So many times she has not done what she wanted, or said what she really felt. Now that she finally was doing so, fans turn against her ( as a character, yes I know she is not real)

I thought that she might be sought out to take the offer of the governshio or running for it for the sake of the party, and for once, say no and walk away. And be happy for crying out loud. The woman has only been allowed to be happy briefly, with Will. Then her sense of duty to her children and all that caused her to turn away, and after that, asked for his commitment, and Eli stole that opportunity. And then Will died.

She could have rolled the dice with Jason and perhaps been happy, but at least have no regrets. For once!

But, no. The Kings pulled a Sopranos and gave us no clear answer, just a figurative and literal slap in the face.

Not amused.

^ This.

I'm a woman, Mary. I can be as contrary as I choose. - The Dowager Countess (Downton Abbey)

This x2

x3

x4

X5

And by the way, this must be posted somewhere but, this from the creators: " In the end, the story of Alicia isn't about who she'll be with; it's about who she'll be." http://www.cbs.com/shows/the_good_wife/news/1005197/the-good-wife-creators-say-farewell-spoilers-/

You say "x5" but then post a link to a story by the writers that directly refutes the OP's post lol. Who she is, is not an honorable person as the OP was arguing. The writers confirm that in the link you shared.


"If it doesn't make sense, it's not true." Judge Judy

I think Alicia deserved the slap from Diane, and deserved to knocked off her high horse after the last several seasons. But I agree she's someone who constantly put the desires of her family before her own. Unfortunately that was her downfall again with Jason. It's a frustrating ending with its lack of resolution, but it makes sense, and I can see why the Kings baited us with all that "happily ever after" nonsense only to poke holes in its illusion, to remind us that professional success comes at a personal cost. Happiness for Alicia is not beyond possibility, however, and I think we have to choose to accept the ending as Alicia's definitive abandonment of Peter, and as a signal of Alicia's internal strength.

But careerwise I would've liked to know what came of her. I doubt she works with Diane, and if she's not the next governor or whatever, then what? Back to running her own boutique firm? Working with Louis Canning?

x5

Your description of Alicia is fantastical, not based on what occurred. She clearly, slowly but surely, devolved into a selfish user. Her sacrificing for her husband and kids was a long ago reality; she hasn't done that in quite a while. She sh*t on Cary, Diane, Kalinda constantly. She used Peter. She dismissed her kids (even admitted she didn't even like them once). She became as sneaky, backstabbing, and conniving as the next person, namely her husband. I think it's clear from the finale as she was walking out, that she will continue to play the game. She will NOT leave Peter, she will continue to use him and oblige Eli's dreams of helping her obtain more political power. She was slapped, cried, then put on that fae of strength and walked out of there like a boss.

And this:

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But, no. The Kings pulled a Sopranos and gave us no clear answer, just a figurative and literal slap in the face.

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There was absolutely a clear answer. Not only did the writers explicitly state it (another thread has the direct quote in which they state "she is now her husband"), but the finale made it clear how things ended. There is no redemption for her, at least not yet. She pushed away good people: Jason, Diane, Cary, etc. and will now walk fully into her selfishness. What the finale did more than anything is expose the calculating user that was always on the underbelly of the "good wife" faade. It's just that now, unlike before, she is free to embrace it and exploit it.


"If it doesn't make sense, it's not true." Judge Judy

I agree with you, Eli will be working to save her butt from a sex scandal before long. That is why her pleasuring Jason under the table in a public place was about.

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I did not like her putting Diane's husband on the stand but she learned at Diane's knee, so Diane should realize that she taught her well. That Alicia was relentless in the defending of her client was learned behavior. Not pleasant but not surprising. He is her client and her children's father.

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So Diane got what she deserved?

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And as for deserving all the ill will of all around her: what has Alicia ever done but subvert her own true desires for the benefit of her cheating husband and her children, who were often unaware and occasionally ungrateful. She walked away from Will and later regretted it. It is entirely possible that Jason was correct that she might have felt a duty to Peter if he went to jail.

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Actually, Peter still wants her, but she doesn't want him. Her kids still love her, they're just becoming adults and leaving the nest. Those that she treated well are not giving her "ill will." SHE walked away from Will. That's her fault. She played around with Jason. That's her fault.

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So many times she has not done what she wanted, or said what she really felt. Now that she finally was doing so, fans turn against her ( as a character, yes I know she is not real)

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She should have the whole time. I didn't turn against her when she finally decided to steer her own life. I cheered her on! But she still didn't really follow through with anything. She waffled.

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I thought that she might be sought out to take the offer of the governshio or running for it for the sake of the party, and for once, say no and walk away. And be happy for crying out loud. The woman has only been allowed to be happy briefly, with Will. Then her sense of duty to her children and all that caused her to turn away, and after that, asked for his commitment, and Eli stole that opportunity. And then Will died.

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She has only allowed herself to be happy once. That's all her own doing. She should have left Peter in the first episode. Her and Will would have been married by now. She shouldn't have left the firm in her 4th year. Her actions have consequences, good and bad.

I don't say she got what she deserved because it's all bad; her life is not all bad. She has a career (she's still partner at the firm), money, an apartment, her health, and her family (mom, brother, and great kids). She doesn't have a man, she got slapped in the face by her partner, and she has no friends. Her kids aren't there anymore because they've left the nest.

I loved the ending too, but see it as much more abstract than your analysis.

Yeah I liked the ending as well!

Will did NOT say how awful she was. He said she was un-self-aware. Not the same thing. It's important to know what he said. She doesn't know herself.

Ah, I wasn't clear. When Will was still alive, and he found out that Alicia was leaving and stealing clients, he confronted her. It was then that he said how awful she was.

I hated the ending. It left everything up in the air and wrapped up nothing.

Are we looking at the opening to 'The Good Candidate'?

Ambiguous at best, the ending..and rather disappointing, for me anyway.

The Good Wife became everything her husband stood for- ruthless, cunning, selfish, and willing to step on the shoulders of her friends in order to get what she wants. And the fact that she truly didn't understand why Diana was furious with her showed the depth of her self-absorption. She and Peter deserve each other.

Best analysis yet.

I always thought she and Peter worked better together over time than she and anyone and I think you hit the nail on the head. She became him. All her sense of morality and self righteousness, and she used Peter as he used her. And in that she became more like him than we know Alicia would ever like to think about. The ending was kind of a mess(I wasn't really ever invested in she and Jason or the entire trial with Peter) but I understood what they were trying to do and it kind of makes sense.

On a side note, I was never really a shipper for Will and Alicia but I really enjoyed those scenes last night. And I loved how he basically told her how she lacks self awareness. But it did remind me that these two had really strong chemistry. I still think Chris Noth was JM's best acting partner on the show but I think she had the best chemistry with Josh Charles.

Thanks for the compliment.

I was never crazy about Will, but his appearance last night acted as a vehicle to show Alicia the road she has traveled the past few years. But more importantly, last night's episode showed how everyone in her orbit had a hand in forming her. The self-absorbed mother, Diane the cutthroat uber-lawyer (until she met her husband), Will the sly wheeler-dealer who broke rules in the quest for winning, Eli the Enabler, ambitious Peter, Canning the manipulator, and competitive Cary. She ended up being pretty unlikeable in the end by taking the worst of these characters, not the best.

The final movie Alicia made - getting Luca to cross-examine Kurt kinda confirms she would be excellent at politics. Thus justifying Eli's faith in her.

Bring it!

I'm not getting why posters think Alicia deserved to be slapped by Diane.

Ok Peter is a client. Why wouldn't Alicia do anything and everything to get the advantage in getting him off or a reduced sentence. Sorry if her husband looked bad during his testimony but it's a trial. Diane slapped Alicia because ultimately she knew Alicia is ruthless or will do what it takes to save their client in this case Peter (who is still the father of her kids) so Diane slapping her is more like an admission that Alicia is a better lawyer.
Another thing that I don't like about Diane slapping and don't get why posters think she deserves it. It's very unprofessional and makes women seem weak.
Men are cutthroat all the time and get thrown under the busReally Diane. Woman up and accept that her boo was going to look bad during his testimony and grilling.
It happens in court.

what Jordie?

I agree, the slap was unwarranted and emotional, unprofessional by Diane. In the end she is weaker than Alicia, simple as that.

This post is only for people who watch The Good Wife as it contains spoilers but essentially, the way I see it, they gave it a Gone with the Wind ending, in the sense that it took losing every man that she felt were so necessary in her identity and self worth Will, Jason, her husband, the rugged man who loves her but does not wait, the frankly my dear I don't give a damn slap it was all necessary, removing the constructs to show she can now stand on her own like Scarlet O'Hara at the end of GWTW.

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The whole Diane slap and Kurt affair thing seemed extremely contrived in the circumstances. Diane felt slighted because Kurt was thrown under the bus twice.

He originally gave a favourable testimony on his preliminary findings because Diane had asked him to and he had some leeway to manoeuvre. Then he was cross-examined and it was suggested that he oversold his findings, motive being his wife was Diane. Then when the bullets were found, he had no choice but to reassess his findings because the proof was in the pudding so to speak. And now the defence turned against him and he alluded to some affair (which we don't even know happened or not). Let's face it. Lucca might have just talked about an affair just to be scandalous when we have no idea whether or not he DID have an affair. Now THAT would be unethical and I would say it crosses the line of protecting one's client. Lawyers also have duties to witnesses and to the public at large. Diane was upset because whatever happened, whether it was true or not, Kurt's reputation was irreparably damaged because of the suggestion itself.

All in all, it seemed to me like the writers wanted to work a slap in the finale and made up this whole Diane-Kurt story just to get the final slap.

Viewers may want to recall Diane's game-playing with right-winger R.D. (Oliver Platt), where she herself used the identical ploy Alicia did by bringing in R.D.'s own gay son to win the case.

In fact, Diane had to remind R.D. that he'd ordered her to pursue the case zealously, and damn the torpedoes.

At least R.D. didn't slap her when she did her job.


"You must not judge what I know by what I find words for." - Marilynne Robinson

Agreed completely. Diane slapping Alicia made no sense and it was completely unprofessional. It was a violent slap too, not something simple. You slap someone in the heat of the moment when you are worked up emotionally. This was a calculated, aggressive, and unemotional and that didn't fit with Diane's character. If her husband Kurt had an affair, why does she take it out on Alicia? Lucca cross examined him not Alicia.

It is perfectly in keeping with Diane's character. Just because something is calculated doesn't mean the calculation isn't influenced by emotion.

The series spent a great deal of time showing that Diane, like Alicia, has been self-deluded. Diane is aggressive and calculating and quite often emotional, despite her self-image of equanimity and rationality.

Diane's self-delusion extends to her idealistic appraisal of Kurt, who is only too happy to accept it. Diane looked to Kurt as a beacon of integrity in contrast with her corrupt, dog-eat-dog world. Of course the reason she takes out her anger on Alicia is because Alicia shattered her comforting illusion. No more beacon of hope, no perfect husband; he's not so much better than the rest.


"You must not judge what I know by what I find words for." - Marilynne Robinson

I think you're jumping to conclusions here. When did we see Kurt have an affair? His only fallibility was being influenced by his wife to oversell his preliminary analysis about the bullets the first time. That's the only imperfection we do see.

Everything else points to him being "perfect" in terms of his character. Do you mean to say just because Lucca cross-examined him on his alleged affair that somehow you take it as a FACT??

We do not "see" Kurt have an affair. We do not need to, because we hear implications that he had one. Holly as good as tells Diane:

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DIANE
So, you're a competitor of Mr.
McVeigh's?

HOLLY
More of a friendly competitor.
I was one of Kurt's first students.
His favorite, as he's constantly
reminding me
Oh, I like your necklace.

DIANE
Oh, thank you.

HOLLY
I have one just like it, but smaller.
Kurt and I were at a gun show in
Wisconsin and we were talking
about the generational shifts in
the science. You know, there's
old-school ballistics and new,
and Kurt believes that you can't
teach an old dog new tricks, and
I just kept telling him, "But you're
not old."

---

Kurt was willing to sell his business to Holly for a song. There was no time pressure to do so. His excuse was blatantly lame, deliberately made so. Diane doesn't even know. She says "He may not know, or he may just want out fast he's a proud man. He doesn't want his wife telling him he's undervaluing himself." All these rationalizations, when really it's a gift to his girlfriend.


"You must not judge what I know by what I find words for." - Marilynne Robinson

Well thanks for the quotes. I still think it's rather presumptuous. All I see/interpret is a girl who's flirting with the boss who likes the attention. But that's all there is to it. I don't even think Diane was suspicious at the time. All she said was something along the lines of "you're easily taken by blonde Conservatives" or something like that. She hardly felt threatened or suspected an affair from what we see.

I took him undervaluing the business to his general lack of sophistication in finance and business valuation and being influenced by the girl. I don't interpret it as an affair per se but of course you are free to make your own interpretation. I just don't see it. He was reluctant to renege from the "deal" because they shook on it (even though nothing was in writing).

When we think "affair" sometimes we tend to think only about sex, but in this case there is evidently not just was an emotional element in play, and it has a crucial role.

Holly rubbed Diane's nose in it. Diane wanted to see what she wanted to see mere flirting. She'd idealized her husband, set him up on a pedestal as a counterweight to her world of cynicism and dishonesty. So, she rationalized away his selling his business for a song. Nobody does that, and his excuse was intentionally made to seem lame. All of this was overtly signaling an ongoing emotional alliance between Kurt and Holly.

Actually, it's all coming from Kurt. Because there is something else. Holly was clearly a mercenary character. Extremely passive-aggressive with Diane. Same in court, where she gave lip service to Kurt's achievements, then showed no compunction about tearing him to shreds in front of his wife. Her show of respect for him was clearly just that, a show. Holly had a significant ego, fancying herself as replacing the "old dog" who couldn't learn new tricks. There is a sense that much of this was calculated on her part. She seduced Kurt, which eventually led to the opportunity of obtaining his business cheap.

Again, an ongoing emotional bond. Sex doesn't even have to be a continuous part of the relationship to make it "a relationship." Infidelity isn't limited to secretly lusting; it can also be secretly loving.


"You must not judge what I know by what I find words for." - Marilynne Robinson