Reasonable Doubt Season 4 Episodes 2 & 3 Recap: Jax Is Back, but Is the Drama?
Reasonable Doubt kicked off Season 4 with three episodes, and Episodes 2 and 3 find Jax determined to get her life back on track. Between her recovery, the firm’s financial mess, and Eric Cropper’s mounting drama, there is plenty happening.
Superwoman
Jax is pushing herself to heal on her own timetable. She refuses pain medication because of her father’s addiction and returns to work two weeks early, only to discover that Corey has dropped her prime client, Eric Cropper. The surprises don’t stop there. Krystal has mismanaged the firm’s finances, leaving them barely enough money to get by. Jax has little patience for Krystal, who is already overwhelmed, and decides to fix things herself by getting Eric back.
She succeeds, but that victory comes with a fresh set of problems. Corey has reservations about taking Eric on again. Naturally, Jax isn’t interested in hearing them. At home, Lewis is supportive, but he is also worried about his wife rushing back to work. In couples counseling, Jax tries to act as though everything is fine. Lewis makes it clear that everything is not fine. He watched his wife get shot and had a gun pointed at him, too. He cannot simply pretend that didn’t happen.
And he shouldn’t have to. Jax may be ready to push forward, but Lewis deserves room to process what he survived. Eventually, Jax’s determination to power through it catches up with her. A laptop falling to the ground in a loud boom triggers a flashback to the shooting, and she breaks down. She later begins taking the painkillers she had been determined to avoid. Meanwhile, Bill quits the firm where he is a partner, delivering a parting speech about its racist ways.
The Case of the Season?
Episode 3 appears to introduce the season’s central case when Eric’s ex-wife goes missing. It also brings a change in format: an on-screen counter tracks how many hours she has been missing. Once the kidnappers call with their ransom demand, that becomes a countdown to the payment deadline.
At first, Eric looks like the obvious suspect. His ex wanted more money and was making demands, giving us plenty of reason to side-eye him. But being an asshole, and Eric is a big one, but assholes are usually red herrings. Another of his ex-wives turns up, adding someone else to consider. Still, it’s his brother’s behavior that catches my attention. When Eric refuses to pay the ransom, his brother gets upset and asks what Eric would do if he were the one the kidnappers had taken.
Hmm. That reaction earns him a place on my suspect list. As time runs out, Eric’s gamble isn’t paying off. The kidnappers mean business. In the final phone call, they tell him he is out of time, and a gunshot rings out. Cue the cliffhanger. We’re left questioning what just happened and boom, the person that you least expect walks into the precinct.
Episode Verdict
Eh. I’m still not sold on this new format. If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it. La La Anthony’s appearances feel like they’re filling airtime, and her performances never give me much reason to invest. I’m also concerned about where the writers are taking Jax’s recovery. Given how the painkiller scenes are being framed, it seems an addiction storyline is on the horizon. I would not like to see it. Jax has been through enough.
I’m giving the season a chance, but these first three episodes haven’t delivered the high-octane drama of previous seasons. Tank’s arrival didn’t change that for me. The episodes were decent, but they weren’t the Reasonable Doubt I’ve been raving about for three seasons.
I’m still watching. I’m just waiting for the season to give me something worth raving about again.
What did you think?
Loved it
Hated it
So/So
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