Suits: The Statue (7x02)

Yeah, okay. This was a good episode. And it actually fixed some of the things that made me angry about last week's installment, so... good on ya!

Cons:

Rachel took a backseat again. Last week, we learned that she would be taking over the associates, but we didn't get to see that play out. This week, she almost took over a case for Mike but then ultimately didn't, and we didn't get to see her playing bad-ass attorney. What with Mike becoming a legit lawyer, I sort of feel like we've forgotten that Rachel is a lawyer now too.

Harvey and Louis get into another brief tiff in this episode. Louis is whiny, Harvey is a steamroller, they both say sorry and are okay by the end. It wasn't a bad plot thread. I guess I just don't know what they can do with Louis' character at this point to make him more interesting. He's been through the same whirlwind dozens of times and I'm getting really sick of it.

Pros:

Harvey and Mike both got really meaty and cool plot threads this week, although they hardly crossed paths. While I always lament the lack of bromance, I'm actually oddly okay with the two of them focusing on their own stories once in a while. Let's start with Harvey.

We get this wonderful continuation of the theme from last week, which is that Harvey needs to step up and seize control. He decides to do this by bringing in an old friend Alex to the firm. Alex has a huge client that Harvey wants, but Alex demands name partner. Also, taking on this new client means dropping Jessica's oldest client because of conflict issues. Louis and Donna are both against the idea of Alex coming in as name partner, and when Harvey goes to Chicago to talk with Jessica, he learns that she's against it as well.

Meanwhile, Donna is trying to settle in as a senior partner. Katrina finds out, and while she is genuinely supportive of Donna, she's also concerned that in the eyes of the outside world and even within the firm, the title of partner will mean a lot less if non-lawyers can buy in. Katrina expresses this to Harvey. This, combined with Harvey's friction over Alex, makes him realize that names and titles really mean something. He tells Alex he can't make him name partner, but still wants him to come to the firm. Alex accepts. He tells Donna that partner is off the table for her, but Donna counters that she wants to be named COO. Harvey accepts.

So many good things going on here. Harvey makes bold sweeping decisions, gets some push-back, so ultimately changes his mind and adjusts his decisions, all while keeping the ultimate power in his own hands. I love the resolution of the "Donna is partner" thing. They basically ended up doing exactly what I said they should have done last week. She still gets a position of power and import, but she doesn't just bypass the basic rules of law firms to do it. Katrina was a nice surprise here. I love that she supported Donna and congratulated her, and even when she talks to Harvey about her reservations, she is sure to reiterate that she believes Donna deserves this. Katrina's whole reaction could have easily been this gross thing where the women are pitted against each other, but they didn't go that route at all. Yay!

Also, Jessica. I loved seeing her. I know they're doing a spin-off about her job in Chicago. I'm not sure if I'll actually watch said spin-off, but seeing the goddess Gina Torres grace the screen again made me very tempted to check it out. She has a little mini-arc within the episode wherein she shuts Harvey down when he tries to make a big move, but later admits that she was feeling resentful of her loss of power in a way. She knows she needs to let Harvey take his place as head of the firm. However, Harvey doesn't "tear down the statue" of Jessica, as it were. He has no interest in supplanting her entirely.

I mentioned that the Louis stuff is repetitive as always, but I did love the fact that we get to see Louis talk with his therapist. In this case, his reservations aren't about losing power in the firm, but rather about losing Harvey's friendship, something he's worked so hard to get. I want to see this play out more. I'd love to see evidence that Harvey is doing more than just indulging Louis, and see their friendship have a two-way street.

Harvey and Paula! I ca't believe how much I'm actually enjoying their relationship. I think it comes from the fact that this is the first time we've seen Harvey actively and healthily pursuing a romantic relationship with no secrets or stresses weighing him down. He's worked out his crap with his family, he's not committing fraud every day by keeping Mike's secret, and he finally believes he's allowed to be happy. I'm waiting to understand a bit more about Paula as a character, and I'd love for this plot thread with the two of them to be a little less isolated from the rest of the story. I want the others to find out about this relationship!

Moving on to Mike. He takes a pro bono case involving a widower who can't collect the insurance policy after his wife's tragic death because the insurance company claims she lied on her application. Mike runs into a roadblock when he realizes that opposing counsel will prejudice the court against him by bringing up his fraudulent history. He tries to pass the case off to Rachel, but Harvey says no, Mike needs to stand up for himself and take control of the narrative once and for all. So, Mike does. He sets up an interview and he gets his way with the insurance company. They agree to a settlement and it looks like Mike is on the road to stopping people from using his past against his clients.

I'm glad to see Mike taking a case that's in line with what he wants to be doing with his life. I was a little surprised we didn't see the clinic play a role here, as this case is exactly the sort of thing they would take on. In any case, it was nice to see Mike being a do-gooder, and it was also nice to see that the ramifications of his past mistakes aren't just going to poof away with no effort on his part. I like that he managed to strong-arm his way into a good settlement deal for his client, and also managed to make steps in improving his reputation. Go Mike!

Wow, this is a long review. There were actually a lot of things going on in this week's episode, and I quite enjoyed most of those things. I'm not sure I know what this show is about right now, but I'm enjoying the ride as we figure out where to go now that the central premise of the earlier seasons is a moot point.

8/10