Crime, Television, Trials

Standard Of Review: An Open Letter To NBC To Renew 'Trial & Error'

Trial & Error undoubtedly improved over the course of its first season, and it deserves a second.

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Trial and Error NBCDear NBC,

I have been a fan of your low-rated comedies for a long time. Of course, I also watched your megahits like Seinfeld, but I was one of the few people that tuned in to Community from the very first episode to the last, and I was a religious viewer of Parks & Recreation. I even watched Andy Barker, P.I.! It is with that background that I humbly request that you renew your legal comedy Trial & Error for a second season (surely you have seen every episode, but if not, this letter will contain spoilers for the entire season).

I will freely admit that I do not think Trial & Error – which depicts the defense of Larry Henderson, an eccentric poetry professor from rural East Peck, South Carolina, by young New York attorney Josh Segal – is a great television show. I do not feel as passionately about its potential renewal as I did about another legal comedy: The Grinder, which was sadly cancelled by FOX last year. As you will see from my letter, there is plenty of room for improvement in a potential second season. But virtually every comedy takes a while to find its form; Trial & Error undoubtedly improved over the course of its first season, and is definitely funny enough to get a second season.

In my initial review, I criticized Trial & Error for punching down rather than up, as supporting characters Dwayne Reed and Anne Flatch were often so clueless and wacky that I wondered how they actually functioned in society. Anne in particularly was initially defined solely by the many disorders from which she suffers (such as face blindness or laughing uncontrollably in inappropriate situations), which quickly became tiresome. But to the show’s credit, it focused less on Anne’s disorders as the season progressed. In fact, she has several good moments towards the end of the season, such as when several different characters in a row confess to the murder – in a Spartacus-esque moment – but Anne breaks the chain by stating that she did not murder Larry’s wife. In another scene, Josh makes the questionable decision to put Anne on the witness stand as a character witness, but she comes through by delighting the judge with a pitch-perfect rendition of Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You.”

Admittedly, too much of the show’s humor is still premised on Dwayne’s stupidity. For example, Dwayne explains that he is confident that 8 X 8 = 1000 because he “carried the two in [his] head.” In another scene, Dwayne storms into the wrong house, guns blazing, to arrest someone. However, even though I do not like the concept of humor based on the intelligence level of rural South Carolinians, Steven Boyer is definitely funny when he reads these absurd lines with such conviction, such as indignantly screaming that a potential suspect is a monster for not having cookies in his house.

Trial & Error did find ways to mine comedy from East Peck’s citizens that didn’t lampoon their stupidity. For example, in one late episode, Josh, Dwayne, and Anne attempt to obtain information from a coroner who speaks in such a thick accent that Dwayne and Anne have to translate for Josh. After Josh hears his information, he responds with the Yiddish phrase “oy gevalt,” which Dwayne and Anne in turn do not understand. I hope to see more of this sort of creative humor in a second season.

Another reason to renew Trial & Error is the terrific performance by Jayma Mays as prosecutor Carol Anne Keane. I did not discuss Mays much in my initial review, but she really excelled as the season went on as she nailed Carol’s ambition and sexual frustration. In one scene, Josh successfully undermines a key prosecution witness – who happens to be Carol’s boyfriend – due to the fact that the witness had sex with a nurse when he was supposed to be in a coma. Mays is terrific as she initially is able to control her rage on redirect but quickly unravels to the point of throwing her shoe at the witness on the stand.

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Mays also has great chemistry with Nicholas D’Agosto, who plays Josh. I initially thought that Josh was going to have a “will they or won’t they?” type of relationship with Larry’s daughter Summer. But the show pivoted and surprised me with a passionate romance between Carol and Josh, who can’t help himself despite knowing that it is a terrible idea to sleep with the lead prosecutor. This leads to many enjoyable moments between the two as they fight about things related to the case while also bantering about their tryst.

I would be remiss if I did not praise John Lithgow as Larry. Larry is occasionally a dolt, routinely ignoring Josh’s advice and making the worst possible decision. For example, when the jury visits Larry’s house (an homage to a similar moment in the O.J. Simpson trial), Larry shows up wearing the only football jersey he owns, which of course is O.J.’s. However, Lithgow imbues Larry with a real sense of sweetness, such as his desire to protect his daughter even if it means he will go to prison. In the season’s final moments, after Josh decides to stay in East Peck and is hired on another murder case, Lithgow gives the perfect facial expression as he softly smiles and quietly leaves the law office. Lithgow’s presence also enables him to reunite with Third Rock From the Sun star French Stewart (where has he been?) in an amusing guest role as a consultant hired by Josh to teach Larry how to be an effective witness.

If you do order a second season, please tell the writers to find a more creative way to parody recent “true crime” entertainment. Carol suffers an allergic reaction on her feet, just like John Stone on The Night Of. When Larry calls Josh from prison, Josh hears the same recording that played whenever Adnan called Sarah Koenig on Serial. And the ultimate resolution of Larry’s case – that an owl actually killed his wife – is culled from the Michael Peterson murder trial. While these nods were amusing, they didn’t really add anything to the story. Instead of merely recreating these moments, I wish the show would find a more interesting way to comment on them.

As you can see, while I admit that Trial & Error is not perfect, it is definitely strong enough to warrant a second season. Because of the many red herrings and the quick pace of the story, it will be easy for non-viewers to catch up between seasons, potentially leading to additional viewers in Season 2. Wishful thinking, I know.

Sincerely,

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Harry Graff

Earlier: Standard Of Review: NBC’s Trial & Error Is A Promising Yet Inconsistent True-Crime Spoof

Harry Graff is a litigation associate at a firm, but he spends days wishing that he was writing about film, television, literature, and pop culture instead of writing briefs. If there is a law-related movie, television show, book, or any other form of media that you would like Harry Graff to discuss, he can be reached at harrygraff19@gmail.com. Be sure to follow Harry Graff on Twitter at @harrygraff19.

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