Question: how many men accused of killing their wives have appeared in legal dramas? Exactly, far too many. So why is such a cliché revamped so soon on Shark? Simple: because the show's writers have come up with an original take on the subject.
The scenario is strictly by-the-book: the guy's wife is missing, no one knows what happened, and the defendant's sister claims he wouldn't hurt a fly. On top of that, he's a doctor. Having defended dozens of similar criminals, Stark thinks it's a guaranteed victory, until he realizes the shocking truth: the only possible witness in the case is the accused's kid, a little boy who might be too afraid to tell how things really went.
It's this fresh angle that makes the episode interesting - everything else is so damn predictable, from the allegedly impeccable alibi to the "happy family" image the suspected doctor tries to sell. Even the revelation that the missus was having an affair is taken right out of the genre's guidebook. And yet it works, and it's only because of that kid: Stark's attempts to get a confession without traumatizing the child (something even he rejects) mark one of the serial's most touching moments, brilliantly counterbalanced by the sleazy attorney's comments on his daughter's private life:" If I ever see a man coming out of your room in the morning, I'm the one who is going to need a lawyer.". The whole thing risks to go over the top come the climax, but the problem is solved via a delicate, if a tad overused ending. But then again, it isn't the conclusion that matters in a series like this. It's how Woods manages to get there that does.
The scenario is strictly by-the-book: the guy's wife is missing, no one knows what happened, and the defendant's sister claims he wouldn't hurt a fly. On top of that, he's a doctor. Having defended dozens of similar criminals, Stark thinks it's a guaranteed victory, until he realizes the shocking truth: the only possible witness in the case is the accused's kid, a little boy who might be too afraid to tell how things really went.
It's this fresh angle that makes the episode interesting - everything else is so damn predictable, from the allegedly impeccable alibi to the "happy family" image the suspected doctor tries to sell. Even the revelation that the missus was having an affair is taken right out of the genre's guidebook. And yet it works, and it's only because of that kid: Stark's attempts to get a confession without traumatizing the child (something even he rejects) mark one of the serial's most touching moments, brilliantly counterbalanced by the sleazy attorney's comments on his daughter's private life:" If I ever see a man coming out of your room in the morning, I'm the one who is going to need a lawyer.". The whole thing risks to go over the top come the climax, but the problem is solved via a delicate, if a tad overused ending. But then again, it isn't the conclusion that matters in a series like this. It's how Woods manages to get there that does.
