Gay TV Recap: Boston Legal

In this week's Boston Legal, titled "Do Tell", Denny Crane (William Shatner) is visited by an old friend, General Mark "Fitz" Fitzgerald (Sam McMurray). Fitz has begun re-examining his life after his grandson came out as gay. He realizes, thanks to his grandson, that he's been a bad role model in being closeted and for hiding instead of fighting for civil rights. His grandson has motivated Fitz to finally come out himself, and now Fitz faces being discharged from the army due to Don't Ask Don't Tell. Wanting to set an example for his grandson, Fitz asks Denny and Shirley Schmidt (Candice Bergen) to help him challenge DADT in court.

Shirley is initially discouraged when she learns the case was assigned to Judge Clark Brown (Henry Gibson), who had previously sued an ex-gay ministry for not curing him of his homosexuality as he hoped they would. Shirley manages to turn that to her advantage by repeatedly suggesting he couldn't fairly judge the case and, therefore, goading him into trying the case (which seemed sure to be dismissed) just to prove he wouldn't be prejudiced against a gay plaintiff.

In court, Judge Brown is quick to disregard any arguments that deal with bigotry and prejudice. He demands that Shirley offer practical arguments to allowing gays to serve in the military and she quickly points out that our military's recruiting efforts are strained to the point where they are relaxing their standards but they are also turning away highly-qualified gays. "As a practical matter, the policy stinks," she argues in her closing. "As a moral one, I repeat, how can even one of use not be ashamed and why the hell aren't you?"

I'm thrilled those lines were given to Candice Bergen. She delivers them with a righteous anger that isn't undercut with any of the quirks found in the rest of the Boston Legal cast. I can't imagine anyone else making this argument with the same amount of power.

Meanwhile, the army's lawyer avoids making practical arguments and instead drops hints that appeal to anti-gay prejudices. He describes DADT as merely a wish that gay service members not be "open and notorious" (notorious?) adding that "We wish to strike awe and, yes, a little fear into the heart of our enemy" suggesting (but never explicitly saying) that if gays were allowed to serve in the military, our army wouldn't be effective anymore. The argument nicely mirrors how anti-gay rhetoric talks around stereotypes and prejudices.

For Denny, his friend's coming out is like a betrayal, one that sets him up for a further fall when he sees Shirley kissing another man. Unfortunately, Denny's discomfort with Fritz is mostly set-up. We see much more of him dealing with the truth that he doesn't have a chance of wooing Shirley back. Fitz's revelation only used to make losing Shirley worse for him. Similarly, there's a missed opportunity with Judge Brown. I would have loved to find out how he really felt about Fitz, a man who came out late in life, since the judge was also struggling with his sexuality late in life.

I would also have liked to get to know more about Fitz. He's a conservative like Denny and one who supports our current wars. However, he also says he'd sooner send his grandson to Canada than let him fight in those wars. Kelley hasn't demonized Denny for his conservatism, instead portraying him as an intellectually lazy person looking for the easiest, short-term solution. I wish we got to similarly see the rationale that makes it okay for Fitz to support the war while also believing his grandson shouldn't have to contribute to the effort. Still, kudos to Kelly for hinting at Fitz's contradictory positions instead of making him a flawless hero.

I usually enjoy it when David E. Kelly shows tackle social issues. Kelley is the rare writer who can write characters who hold viewpoints that oppose his beliefs with genuine empathy. He understands where their arguments come from and manages to make his point more convincingly. While "Do Tell" was a solid look at DADT, this one lacked that dynamic, though really I'm only disappointed that Kelley didn't reach the high bar he usually does.

You can check out a clip from the episode below...