Matlock Recap: Matty Tries First Case, Tries to Dodge ‘Human Lie Detector’
This week on CBS’ already-renewed Matlock, Matty most unexpectedly found herself having to try her first case in court — all while dodging the hyper-perceptive gaze of the firm’s hired “lie detector.”
The Case of the Week saw Olympia defending Alex, a young woman who claimed her boss sexually assaulted her at a company party. Matty plotted to get herself alone with Olympia’s phone in a courthouse anteroom, but the client liked Matty’s vibe and asked her to sit next to her in court. Rats!
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The case was going well enough when the defense admitted into evidence a homemade sex tape the client had made with a former co-worker, in which they role-played boss/employee. From then on, Olympia lost the jury, to a point that the firm called in consultant Shae aka The Meerkat aka a “human lie detector” (Jane the Virgin‘s Yael Grobglas).
Matty was thrice confronted by Shae, first about her “dilated pupils, tightened voice” and “perspiring ever so slightly”; Matty chalked it up to nearly ruining the case by grimacing at the client’s sex tape in front of the jury.
Later, Shae flat out asked Matty why she was so “jittery”; but by then, Matty had been tasked with cross-examining Alex’s boss, so she said she was just anxious preparing for trial.
Then, during a mock trial session at the firm, Shae confronted Matty about “not being honest.” Matty replied, “Because I’m faking it!” Meaning, she feels they shouldn’t have taken this case to start with. “In my day,” in a situation like Alex’s, “we avoided the guy. We didn’t get drunk at the holiday party and end up alone with him!”
Olympia found Matty on the terrace after her blow-up, and explained why she did take this case.
“I wanted this win on the books because Alex is messy, and I want my daughter to be able to be messy,” she said. “So put your feelings aside,” she told Matty — just as she had to when, despite her years of experience, she was left no choice but to have Matty finish trying the case.
Matty came off as nervous in court, fumbling for her eyeglasses and such, but slowly, surely, she got the boss to establish that the sort of “good person” he likes to hire could not be “a criminal.” When he then labeled himself a good person, that perjury — via the same rule that allowed in Alex’s sex tape — let Matty introduce the defendant’s expunged past sexual assault charge.
Matty then delivered a winner of a closing, explaining how in her day, “if somebody tried to kiss you in a coat closet, it was a Tuesday. We were a little tougher back then. No big deal.” But then Matty had a run-in with a “big shot lawyer” who “crossed a line” one night in the break room. Afterward, Matty decided to just “stay out of his way,” even if it meant giving up litigation, her love, and instead drafting contracts. “Seemed like a small thing back then. Completely subverted my dreams,” she sighed. “Which isn’t small at all, is it?”
Why did Alex wait so long to report what her boss did? “The real question,” Matty argued, “is, how bad must have it been for Alex to risk everything and finally report it?” Cue $9 million jury award, and a charming, private celebratory dance between Olympia and Matty.
Later, Shae and Olympia shared past secrets, including the fact that Justin once paid Shae, out of his own pocket, to help Olympia win a case. With that in mind, Shae counseled Olympia, “Whatever you’re doing with Elijah, be careful.” And in the next scene, Olympia broke things off with him, saying she needs to be known for her work, and not the subject of office gossip.
As far as Madeline Kingston’s covert investigation this week: She finally got alone with Olympia’s phone, and used the passcode, and then 2FA, to log into Olympia’s computer. When Olympia suddenly walked into her office, a startled Matty spilled coffee on the laptop, ruining it. Except… we learned later, via flashbacks… Matty had swapped in a duplicate laptop to spill coffee on, while secretly whisking away the real one in her tote bag. At home that night, Alfie got to poring over all of Olympia’s files, though he quickly noted one that was not tidily organized like the others.
It was a recording of a voice mail that Olympia’s recently passed father had left her, urging her to, just as she counseled Matty earlier, “don’t just give ’em hell, give them the damn heavens and everything in between!” Matty took a moment to realize she had taken something invaluable from Olympia, but as she’d often been told by her boss, “We’re not friends.”
Want scoop on Matlock, or for any other TV show ? Shoot an email to [email protected], and your question may be answered via Matt’s Inside Line!
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