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Picket Fences

Last night, Amazon announced a greenlight for a new legal series from veteran TV producer David E. Kelley. The series, called Trial, will be a legal drama starring Billy Bob Thornton, William Hurt, and Maria Bello, and is set to debut in 2016. According the the Amazon release, the show is “the ultimate David vs. Goliath battle fought in the 21^st century American legal system. The series follows a down-and-out lawyer (Thornton) as he seeks redemption. His one shot depends on getting justice in a legal system where truth has become a commodity, and the scales of justice have never been more heavily weighed toward the rich and powerful.”

Sounds fun! And it puts David E. Kelly squarely where he’s most comfortable: in the courtroom. With more than 15 television series under his belt as either creator or producer, Kelley has earned his reputation. It will be his first dalliance with producing a show primarily for streaming, however, which ought to be worth keeping an eye on. While he’s been steadily making TV since the 1980s, Kelley is from a generation of TV creators like Steven Bochco, Dick Wolf, and even David Milch, all of whom continue to make TV but the kinds of TV they make is a bit “old school.” Which is a label that sits kind of awkwardly on Kelley’s shoulders in particular, since his shows were always so decidedly quirky and left of center in their sensibility. They seem positively quaint now.

Perhaps this sense of old-fashionedness is why some of Kelley’s best shows aren’t even available on streaming. Perhaps Trial will change that, ushering in a gleaming new David E. Kelley streaming renaissance. It would be nice! He deserves to be remembered more for Picket Fences than Harry’s Law. Here’s a look at Kelley’s TV history, what holds up, what extravagantly bombed, and what is available to stream right now.

L.A. Law (1986-1994)

Kelley’s big break came as a writer on Bochco’s wildly popular NBC series. It remains the sterling example of the sexy-lawyer series, and one particular geared towards women, what with your Harry Hamlins and Blair Underwoods and Jimmy Smitses. Kelley ran the show in its fourth and fifth seasons, before leaving to start Picket Fences. As a template for the sexy-lawyer shows that Kelley would produce in later years, L.A. Law is a crucial piece of TV history, though it is verrrry ’80s.

Available to Stream? Nope. Even the DVDs are hard to come by, once you get past the third season. It’s such a shame to deny streaming audiences one of the greatest credits sequences of all time.

Doogie Howser, M.D. (1989-1993)

This show doesn’t usually get brought up in discussions about David E. Kelley’s career, probably because as a sitcom it stands out from the pack. But there are enough similarities: high-stakes profession staffed by quirky, likeable characters, in this case the likeable Neil Patrick Harris was given the quirk of being a teenager with a medical license. The show was a sensation for a time, and then it ended before it wore out its welcome.

Available to Stream? All episodes are available on Hulu.

Picket Fences (1992-1996)

If you’re looking for the high-water mark as far as quality television in Kelley’s career, it’s probably Picket Fences, which won back-to-back Emmys for Outstanding Drama Series in 1993 and 1994. The show took the quiet-small-town-drama conceit and turned it on its head, delivering something equally stranger and more heartfelt than its trappings would suggest.

Available to Stream? Season 1 is available on iTunes and Instant Video, but that’s the only season that’s even on DVD.

Chicago Hope (1994-2000)

The two things Chicago Hope are most remembered for nowadays are 1) for premiering the same fall as E.R. and immediately being overshadowed as the other network medical drama set in Chicago; and 2) for star Christine Lahti being in the bathroom when she won the Golden Globe for her performance in 1997. It ran for six seasons and over 140 episodes, though, and was nominated three times for the Outstanding Drama Emmy.

Available to Stream? More like Chicago NOPE.

The Practice (1996 – 2004)

Kelley pulled off the ultra rare feat of winning Outstanding Drama Emmys at NBC, CBS, and ABC when The Practice won in 1998 and 1999. This was definitely the darkest show Kelley had done to date — perhaps because he was able to funnel his more comedic impulses into the concurrently-airing Ally McBeal — though there was certainly enough quirkiness happening with nun killers and bug-crushing Henry Winkler.

Available to Stream: All seasons are available on Hulu.

Ally McBeal (1997-2002)

Easily the biggest media sensation of Kelley’s career, Ally McBeal captivated audiences, invented the meme with the dancing baby, launched the (modest) music career of Vonda Shepard, and, most famously, killed feminism. It lasted five seasons and really fell off a cliff well before that, but I don’t think we appreciate this show enough, both for the TV careers it launched Calista Flockhart is currently killing it on Supergirl, not to mention the genius Jane Krakowski) and for its fearless genre-blending and button-pushing. Incidentally, this also won an Emmy for Best Comedy Series, giving Kelley top prizes for all FOUR networks.

Available to Stream? All seasons are on Netflix. The show is more bizarre than you remember; highly recommended.

Boston Public (2000-20004)

This one felt like a younger sibling to The Practice and Ally McBeal, and it certainly didn’t get the attention those shows did, but it lasted four seasons and featured the acting talents of Chi McBride, Loretta Devine, and possible 2015 Best Director Oscar nominee Tom McCarthy.

Available to Stream? No.

Snoops (1999)
Girls Club (2002)
The Brotherhood of Poland, New Hampshire (2003)

Ah, the valleys. These shows (Snoops was cancelled after ten episodes; Girls Club after two; Poland after five) were the clear low point for Kelley’s career, a trio of misses after a decade and a half of hits.

Available to Stream? No. And probably for the best.

Boston Legal (2004-2008)

Basically a way to extend the universe of The Practice, via its James Spader and William Shatner characters, Boston Legal could also be read as an experiment in genre morphing, as the dark and often angry The Practice was molded back into a more classic David E. Kelley quirky-workplace series.

Available to Stream? Only season 5 is available, via Amazon Video and also iTunes.

Harry’s Law (2010 – 2012)

Kathy Bates needed a vehicle for Emmy nominations, and this show certainly was one.

Available to Stream? No, which is strange for a show this recent.

The Crazy Ones (2013-2014)

This show is always going to be remembered more for its proximity to Robin Williams’ death than for Kelley’s work behind the camera. One of those shows that probably was strong enough to have earned a second season but because CBS gets such good ratings elsewhere, it didn’t happen. It would’ve been a moot point due to Williams’ death anyway, but still. If nothing else, here’s hoping it will be remembered for its pilot-episode outtakes with Williams, Josh Wolk, and Kelly Clarkson.

Available to Stream? The first and only season is on iTunes.