Kathy Bates is having too much fun

Did you have “Kathy Bates plays a 70-something lawyer in a surprisingly good 'Matlock' reboot on CBS” on your 2024 TV bingo card? Because I certainly didn't!

But these days on TV – with the chaos of streaming and the decline of traditional broadcasting – there's no limit to the Mad Libs-style shenanigans when it comes to what goes on air. And it's even more of a gamble to figure out which remake or reboot of the week is actually good and popular. Or, dare I say, both!

So here we are, and here's Bates, the revered actor and Oscar winner, in a sharp suit and carrying a legal notebook as Madeline “Matty” Matlock in, well, “Matlock” (previews Sunday, 8 EDT/PDT, moved to 9 EDT/PDT Thursday, Oct. 17, ★★★½ out of four). And while it could have been an intellectual property appropriation train wreck (we're looking at you, “Murphy Brown” reboot), it's actually a sweet little legal drama. Bates, 76, is a sweetheart, the cast is charming and the legal stories of the week are engaging. For those missing a “Good Wife”-style crime series in their lives, it might just do the trick. And offer you a treat.

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Because that's what “Matlock” is about this time. Andy Griffith played a disarming and powerful criminal defense attorney as Ben Matlock in the original series from 1986 to 1995, but Bates is not the one who would be described as the most dominant lawyer in the room based on her looks alone.

Her version of Matlock is a seemingly shy, sweet old lady who no one expects to go for the throat. Her Matty is also a lawyer, but a corporate lawyer who is back in the workforce after long years away due to personal trauma. She sneaks into a fancy firm and starts showing the young people what's what, all while pursuing her own agenda (there's a fabulous twist at the end of the first episode that I won't give away, but be sure to watch the episode to the end).

Matty surprises not only the audience and her legal enemies, but also her colleagues and superiors, like boss Olympia (Skye P. Marshall), a black woman and top lawyer who had to work harder than her peers to get where she is in her career. Olympia is constantly at odds with her ex-husband and corporate nepo baby Julian (Jason Ritter, who is good at sucking up). Matty is a thorn in Olympia's side and new career competition for junior partners Billy (David Del Rio) and Sarah (Leah Lewis). Firm head Senior (Beau Bridges) watches the sideshow instigated by Madeline with amused disinterest and appears to hire Madeline for personal fun, but watches her closely.

It's a large cast, but creator Jennie Snyder Urman (“Jane the Virgin,” “Charmed”) has balanced the ensemble well in the humorous and well-paced scripts. In the first two episodes provided for review, there was time to get to know everyone And win two different legal battles. The best crime shows can do both, and Matlock, especially after its big twist, certainly has ambitions as big as some of our best crime shows.

We may not get the sweeping courtroom statements that Griffith often delivered as Ben Matlock, but there's something equally (or even more) fascinating about the quiet competence that comes across in Bates' performance. Her age is an advantage, not a disadvantage. Matty is the sum of her life experience, benefiting from the snap judgments of others. It's always gratifying to root for the underdog, especially one as charming as this.

When Max's Hacks – starring 73-year-old Jean Smart – won a slew of Emmys last weekend, there was a lot of talk about making television for and about people of a certain age. I'd argue that Matlock isn't just for baby boomers. It's further proof that stories about people (and especially women) from all walks of life can be compelling. Matty Matlock can be a hero, just like any of the young guys in the latest Marvel series.

There is no retirement age for good storytelling.

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