Suits LA may have seemed like the obvious successor to USA’s Suits, but there’s an even better legal drama on now than both Suits and Suits LA.: CBS’ Matlock. Suits was a huge hit both when it originally aired and more recently, in the streaming era. In fact, Suits was the most-streamed TV show in 2023, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Suits LA did not hit in quite the same way. Although the 2025 NBC spin-off featured appearances from the original cast, such as Gabriel Macht as Harvey, Rick Hoffman as Lewis, and David Costible as Daniel Hardman, the show failed to capture the hearts and minds of the audience the way the original did. Suits LA was canceled after one season.
Luckily, fans of Suits have another option to fill the legal drama hole in their viewing schedules, and that’s Matlock, which is awaiting its second season. The Emmy-nominated Suits replacement is the perfect show to binge before it returns in October.
Matlock Incorporates A Real Life Issue, Unlike Suits
Fans of Suits have to try Matlock on CBS. Like Suits, Matlock follows a new lawyer at a big law firm in New York City and the cases the lawyers are working on, coupled with the juicy drama within the firm. However, Matlock’s overarching premise is based in the real world, making the show that much more impactful.
Although Matty Matlock claims she needs a job at this law firm due to her philandering husband’s death and the fact that she’s the guardian for her tween grandson, she actually wants to work at this specific firm due to their involvement in the opioid crisis. Matty’s daughter died of an overdose, which she believes could have been prevented had the law firm not hidden important documents.
Matty’s mission is to figure out what documents were hidden, why, and who specifically hid them. With the opioid crisis being so pervasive in the United States, Matty’s desire to avenge her daughter’s death is extremely powerful, and it’s no surprise that Kathy Bates was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama Series.
Matlock Is More Realistic & Plausible Than Suits’ Absurd Premise
Both Matlock and Suits are based on lies: Matty’s lying about why she needs this job, while Mike is lying about his Harvard credentials. However, Mike’s lie, unfortunately, isn’t plausible in the real world.
Mike claims he sat for and passed the bar exam without ever having graduated from law school. In the series, this is to show how incredibly smart he is and prove that, despite never attending Harvard (or any other law school), he is, in fact, legally allowed to practice law in the state of New York.
Here’s the thing: you can’t sit for the bar exam in New York without first going to law school, not according to the New York State Board of Law Examiners. Of course, we can and want to suspend disbelief when it comes to entertaining TV shows. However, because the premise of Matlock is so much more grounded in reality, it’s a better watch.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter, New York State Board of Law Examiners
- Release Date
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September 22, 2024
- Directors
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Kat Coiro, Brad Silberling, Gina Lamar, Hanelle M. Culpepper, Jennifer Lynch, Jude Weng, Tessa Blake, Yangzom Brauen, Marie Jamora, Daniel Willis
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Skye P. Marshall
Olympia Lawrence
This story originally appeared on Screenrant
