'The Good Wife' recap: Go on now go, walk out the door, just turn around now, you're not welcome anymore...

A note to men everywhere: If you've slept with your wife's best friend, you should try to come up with a better explanation than "it was before she was your best friend."

Over the last two seasons, we've seen Alicia evolve from a woman of quiet resignation and introspection into a woman of decisive action. On Tuesday night's episode, "In Sickness," we saw her take the biggest -- and perhaps riskiest -- step yet. Within minutes of hearing about Peter's one-night-stand with Kalinda, she's set up an appointment with a real estate broker (you know, one of those 24-hour brokers they have in Chicago), paid the first three months' rent on an apartment, and packed up Peter's things.

All that's left to do is hand over the keys. Alicia calls Peter, who's still in the middle of his victory celebrations (the phone-call-via-television was a nice touch, no?). For all the build-up, the initial confrontation between Alicia and Peter was brief, almost perfunctory. The bottom line for Alicia? "You slept with my best friend." Peter's defense is lame and entirely misses the point: Alicia's been humiliated one too many times, and whether or not she knew Kalinda at the time, the betrayal still cuts to the bone.

Clearly, though, Alicia is not invulnerable. As soon as she gets home, she has a good cry, but she doesn't wallow in her misery. She psyches herself up with a tough-girl anthem (it might as well have been "I Will Survive"), puts on some lipstick and heads to work, where she goes head to head with the fiercest opponent of them all, Patti Nyholm (Martha Plimpton). Even Diane notices Alicia's assertive new demeanor. "I think you're getting under Patti's skin, so keep it up," she says. The implicit message is that what's bad for a woman's personal life can be a boon for her professional one. Sure, it's a little too neat, but it's also inspiring to see a woman try to rebound from a nasty breakup through means other than ice cream and multiple viewings of "An Affair to Remember."

Of course, the big question is whether there's any chance for a reconciliation between the Florricks. The odds at this point are not great, especially after Peter's and Alicia's second, decidedly nastier showdown. Alicia comes home to find Peter, waiting in their apartment. He begs her to go to marriage counseling, but she flatly refuses, not just therapy but even to allowing Peter to explain himself. I've never liked Peter, but this was nevertheless pretty harsh, maybe even a tad irrational. (And I say that as someone who thinks she should have dumped this dude a long time ago.)

But, as they say, it takes two to tango. Whether or not Alicia was open to hearing it, Peter ought to have responded with some kind of explanation. Instead, he strikes back with some ugly allegations about Will. "There have been three people in this marriage, every moment of the last two years you've been thinking of him," he says. Alicia's got feelings for Will, as we all know, but Peter's recriminations are still largely off-base -- especially the sex part. The confrontation between these two was raw and surprisingly vicious. I truly didn't expect things to turn quite so ugly, but it sure made for riveting television.

After this bitter exchange, it will be hard, if not impossible, for the Florricks to patch things up, but there's still a teensy, tiny opening. We still don't know why Peter and Kalinda slept together, but my hunch is that there will be an explanation that will vindicate one of the parties involved. Peter makes a point to say that Kalinda is "blameless" in the whole incident, which begs the question of why, exactly, Peter slept with her if it wasn't merely the consummation of lingering mutual passion. Or, as Alicia rather indelicately puts it, "Did you rape her?"

The clues are scant, but so far the implication is that Kalinda slept with Peter to procure some sort of desperately needed favor -- maybe to help her hide from that husband she's got in Canada. And if that's the case, I don't see how it could possibly make things better for Peter. ("Oh, I see. You just slept with my best friend because she was terrified that her husband might find her and, well, actual bribes are illegal so sex was the obvious solution. All is forgiven.") The way I see it, Alicia will patch things up with either Peter or Kalinda, not both. So the question becomes: Who's more disposable at this point? Sorry, Chris Noth fans, but the answer to that is pretty obvious. Alicia was able to dodge Kalinda for most of this episode -- except for one horribly awkward meeting outside of Will's office -- but their showdown arrives next week. I'm dying in anticipation.

Alicia's firm decision immediately invites a backlash. First, and least surprising, is the scorn heaped on her by Jackie. She accuses Alicia of poisoning Zach and Grace, and staying with Peter for political purposes only. Alicia tells her to go eat rotten eggs (I'm paraphrasing). It's much harder for Alicia to bear her children's reaction to the news. Zach, who's evolved into something of a daddy's boy this season, also accuses her of sticking with Peter for the sake of the campaign. Grace is less skeptical but tells her mother she needs to "protect" them more. This, obviously, is the last thing Alicia wants to hear, and she breaks down. If the Florricks do get a divorce, it should be interesting to see how the kids respond. Will their loyalties be divided? Will they blame Alicia, especially if they don't know about Kalinda? Hoo, boy, this could get ugly. 

Strangely, the only person Alicia seems able to rely on these days is Eli. He halfheartedly encourages Alicia to seek marriage counseling, telling her that his experience with his ex-wife was not "as bad as I thought." It's clear, though, that Alicia's not open to negotiation. Her decision is irrevocable (and yes, that means it's not subject to change). "You do know that this will look politically motivated," he warns her. It's all done in a thoughtful, rather than a threatening way. With Kalinda out of the picture, it looks like Alicia has a new bestie. Who would have thought?

Now, I haven't spent much time talking about the rest of the episode -- which even featured a (somewhat underwhelming) guest appearance from Aaron Staton, a.k.a. Ken Cosgrove -- because, well, there was just too much going on with Alicia. On "The Good Wife," there's often some sort of implied parallel between Alicia's personal life and her "case of the week." This episode provides a prime example. We've got three women -- Alicia, Patti and Marjorie -- who face undue scrutiny over the decisions made in their personal lives. Marjorie (Marin Ireland) is deemed unsuitable for a liver transplant by a doctor who doesn't approve of her hard-partying lifestyle; Alicia is accused of being an opportunist -- by Jackie, of course, but also by her own children -- for leaving Peter the day after the election; and Patti gets fired for being pregnant. Patti pretty much sums this up the theme of the night when she claims she was being punished "because I have a working vagina."

Something that's not exactly working for me is Cary's undying animosity toward Alicia. At Kalinda's behest, Will and Diane offer Cary the chance to return to Lockhart Gardner as a second-year associate. He rejects the offer because Alicia will be a third-year and, in the final scene of the night, shows up at Peter's office to plead his case. Cary has grown considerably this season, evolving into a character who's both more interesting and more likable than the smarmy operator he was last year. He's not even bothered by Kalinda's dalliance with Peter, and he's happy to return to Lockhart Gardner. So why is he still so mad at Alicia? She's not the one who fired him, after all. His grudge seems forced. Still, the Cary-Peter alliance should prove interesting. Will Cary tell Peter what he knows -- or rather, suspects -- about Alicia's relationship with Will?

I am so thrilled we've got two more episodes to see how this all plays out. There are so many questions:

Is Alicia being fair? Should she give Peter a chance to explain himself, or does it even matter why he slept with Kalinda?  Do you think there's any chance for a reconciliation between Alicia and Peter? Could Kalinda possibly say anything that would make Alicia forgive her -- or Peter? And speaking of Kalinda, what's up with her and the nurse? So. Many. Questions.

What do you think?

RELATED:

Complete Show Tracker coverage of "The Good Wife"

"The Good Wife" recap: Alicia and the no-good, horrible, terrible, very bad day

"The Good Wife" recap: "Once a bad person, always a bad person"

"The Good Wife" recap: So funny it hurts

-- Meredith Blake
Twitter.com/MeredithBlake

Photo: Alicia (Julianna Margulies) confronts Peter (Chris Noth) on "The Good Wife." Credit: CBS

 

Comments

[KT]

Ms. Blake, great review as usual. I cried when Alicia told her children about the separation and how she broke down when her daughter said she had to protect them more. Can we say Emmy performance?

I thought about how this show is called "The Good Wife". I hope this doesn't mean Alicia will take her cheating, egotistical husband back ever. I can't think of any way he could be forgiven.

I also like Alicia and Eli's interaction. Last night's episode was well written and the hour flew by. I am looking forward to this season's last two episodes. Thanks again for the spot-on review.

[Jimmy]

This was one heck of an episode; probably one of the best of the season. It's interesting where they're taking the Peter character. Both he and Cary know Felicia well, which could make for some interesting court battles in season 3. Hopefully, Chris Noth will be sticking around for some more guest shots. Like you, I'm also getting tired of the whole Cary/Felicia battle. The character has made so much progress this season, it was a shame the writers chose to take a step backwards.

[Halofan]

I strongly suspect that for the newly elected state's attorney (or his wife) ANY real estate broker is a 24-hour broker.

Re Kalinda or Peter -- why does either should or need to go? The show has been adept at maintaining characters in the overall framework of the series after fractured relationships (i.e. Cary, Stern etc.) Kalinda is one of the show's best assets, but it would be ill-advised to not take advantage of either Alan Cumming or the Senate campaign storyline and it would be difficult to use either without Peter.

Lastly, I think Alicia absolutely needs the push-pull from both of the other characters. Margulies is a reactive performer and her rapport with Noth and Panjabi is sensational.

[Danny]

What an episode! Agreed with the other comment...JM put on an award winning performance.

[Tweety]

@Halofan,

I'm pretty sure the writers aren't getting rid of Kalinda. The Kings, creators of the show, gave an interview this week where they said the audience responded so well to Cary & Kalinda's kiss that they may explore their relationship more in season 3. Imagine that trifecta - Cary, Peter & Kalinda.....

Also, someone asked with the campaign over, what will Eli do now that he's signed up for 3 seasons and they said political managers often work for law firms in between political seasons, hinting that Eli may become a part of Lockhard Gardner. That sounds fun on so many levels.

I'm still upset for what they did to Alicia/Kalinda's relationship. I hope somewhere along the line they patch things up because they are SO good onscreen together.

[Girlnextdoor]

@Tweety

OOooooOOO! Eli working at Lockhart Gardner? Fabulous idea! I'd love to see that! Eli, Alicia and Kalinda at L/G vs. Peter and Cary at the State's Attorney's Office (all the while Cary and Kalinda are secretly having a Romeo & Juliet/West Side Story behind the scenes relationship)!
Cool, cool, cool.

[grace]

agree with ALL posts and hey! let's not forget mr. canning... he may still be in play by maybe persuading alicia away from LG if things gets too crowded at that firm.

cary and peter are up to no good. looks like peter wants to make alicia's life living hell in court now if he can't have her back since his character is of the spiteful ilk. he showed his truer unreformed self by his petty, superficial and childish Will attack on alicia last night.

wow jackie beared her claws AND fangs too! shoot! what a great bad witch that actress plays. emmy for her too! and eli, gosh i never stop being enthralled by alan cummings' acting and character protrayal. emmy there as well. in fact this show should sweep the awards in every category next year.

it's mature, intelligent and entertaining writing and acting. kudos!

[ABigFan]

Peter is completely clueless about Alicia. A typical male reaction to Alicia's solution to a problem - try and solve it - absolutely no understanding that she is in pain and angry and very emotional and absolutely reacting no matter how cool she appears. Give her time to absorb the shock, hopefully cool off a little, keep communication lines open if he wanted to patch things up (not that i think alicia should) and especially if there is a reason unrevealed as yet as to why he didn't tell her about having sex with K (maybe kalinda has made him promise becos of some deep dark secret)then they can maybe work towards something.

Well guess they wouldn't call it a drama if he wasn't the clueless selfish character that he is - also there is an element of his trying quickly to resolve things because of how it will look publicly i thought.

Interesting this episode shows off two ego centric male reactions : Peter immediately accusing Alicia of having slept with Will (like the only reason she is behaving the way she is has got to be because of another man), and Cary refusing LG's offer becos he cant stand to be seen being junior to alicia.

Loved Alicia shredding Jackie, and thought her restraint handling her was admirable - she could have torn into her so much more but realised Jackie is a creature very much of her generation and subservient to her needs to please her son. But glad Alicia didnt take any more guff from her.

[JK]

So why did Kalinda befriend Alicia in the first place? Why wouldn't she avoid Alicia since she was guilty of adultery with Peter? She must have had some very interesting motive to allow a friendship to develop with Alicia especially since she doesn't have/need such friendships . . . Why was Kalinda so drawn to Alicia -- of all people to hang out with. I would have kept to myself in the law firm.

[KL]

This makes an interesting story, but what I've read is biased. Alicia has feelings for someone else during the last 2 seasons being Will. Once she rushed back to his office for obviously sexual intentions that didn't take place only because Will was absent.

Alicia is not the only one that hurts here, Peter is too. And overall Peter is more injured. The dude cheated, despicable acts, but the thing with Khalinda could have easily been a plastic doll. The man had no feelings for her. Cheating hurts and is an act of betrayal, but being in love with someone or loving someone and that person having feelings for someone else instead is much more devastating. Most people remember how that feels from puberty.

Peter could sense it all along and was hurting continuously for 2 years without saying anything knowing his wife has feelings for another man, and even worst having to live with the uncertainty of of her sleeping with him or not. Feeling bad and guilty he could not even ask about it and showing trust was a way to rectify past mistakes.

That is not a small thing. Alicia begun as the good wife where ignorance was bliss and everything was black and white. But during the course she asked for favors, she used Peter to save her job, she reduced sentences and argued for people she knew to be guilty. And episode by episode moving on to a state where things are not always black and white.

For all purposes Alicia has also been a hypocrit. After Peter's prison and condemnation to the entire public where everyone considers you to be a baddy she did not give him a second chance but turned her feelings to another man. Only circumstances kept her from cheating. In the end she has been unable to forgive, where in fact Peter has changed, and in the last 2 years had done nothing despicable but showed high class and character in all aspects. And he never denied Alicia any help, assistance or understanding.

This story shows how a good wife is slowly forced to turn to something else. Because if a good wife cannot forgive and turns her feelings to another man and kicks her husband out of the house providing no assurance of fidelity, well what more does a bad wife do? Remember that it takes only one to start the war, that was Peter, and he was wrong. But it takes 2 to end it and save the marriage. And if Alicia is not willing to try and save her marriage then she becomes equally at false.

The last two years Peter has done nothing wrong and nothing to weaken the marriage. He was willing to sacrifice his career and everything to save his marriage, something Alicia is not willing to do in the slightest. Peter is ready to sacrifice everything and Alicia nothing. Her continuous argument is the things Peter has done 2 years ago and refusing to accept that he has changed. How long does it take to give a second chance? A decade?

Well pardon me, all i see is a Good Wife that cannot forgive, is not ready to sacrifice anything to save her marriage, has feelings for another man, and keeps punishing her husband for 2 years now all to be filled with continuous hate. How does that make a Good Wife exactly? While Peter helped her career and she has exploited the fact, she was unwilling in more than one occasions to return the favor.

On Peter I see a sinner who has repented, embraced the word of God, has shown understanding, a person punished with guild and remorse, ready to sacrifice everything for his family, not willing to jeopardise his family for nothing including his personal feelings. And when it comes to moral clarity and keeping the lines pure, he has done a better job than Alicia and stayed completely uncorrupted during a campaign that gave him all the reason to slip and he didn't.

Moving from the fact that Alicia is the star of the show, and realising that Peter was bad 2 years ago and not anymore, all Alicia is doing is giving the final blow to the marriage, attempting to reduce Peter to what he was before by not embracing his good change, and by all means she is vindictive. He is not. For the past 2 years only, Peter has been a better husband to Alicia than she was a Wife to him. That is the truth of this story, even if its hard to see things clear of bias.

[Watcher]

I guess my previous post got lost in the cosmos. The condensed version is: Finally! Way to go Alicia. Good riddance to Peter, and Jackie too. Peter is so unlikable to me - self-absorbed, like Mother like son I guess.

The question now is, where does Kalinda go to work??? She can't stay at LG. She can't go to work for Peter. Does the FBI agent parachute in to over her a job again? Maybe it doesn't get resolved in the next 2 episodes. Next week will be a barn burner. We still don't know really the extent/context of what Kalinda was trying to cover up. Maybe it's a compelling enough thing that Alicia can understand eventually. At this point Alicia will build a 10 foot wall
around herself - no love interests for a while probably.

@KL
Wow, I disagree with you point by point, respectfully. Being cheated on is THE worst thing to a woman. The risk for Peter AND Kalinda in not telling Alicia about their fling all along was if she found out on her own she would have to suffer the pain of being cheated on all over again. That's what
happened and you can see the painful outcome.

[KL]

@ author

Cary is mad with Alicia still because she used what he considers despicable acts to deprive him of his rightful place. When the competition was over he was deemed a more capable candidate and he was going to be kept. Alicia turned the tables by using Peter's connection i.e. Eli at the time to sway the verdict.
That was unfair in his eyes as Lockhart was "forced" to fire him and didn't have a choice thus it was not her fault. He is still mad at Alicia because what she earned was what he believes he deserved rightfully and refuses to work under her.
He is mad because he considers her a hypocrit, where she portrays someone where the ends do not justify the means, except of course when the ends benefit herself. "I cannot lose this job, no matter what" was her words, a sentence/attitude that is socially both commendable and required, but morally compromised.

@watcher
The risk of not telling Alicia everything from his "dirty" days is a tricky thing. He may have done more despicable acts during his earlier days. But he is a changed man now. Dwelling into things he has regretted and never to repeat again will only hurt his family and thus he is much cornered in this aspect.

No-one sais what he did 2 years ago is forgivable, and it may as well never be. But what I'm saying is that Alicia now takes the same risk, and is not completely honest either. She has feelings for Will, she has kissed him and attempted for more and kept it secret. She has not in any time attempted or tried sincerely to reconciliate with her husband and attempt and new beginning, rather she is haunted by the betrayal to extreme levels because she has indeed been a truly good wife. Her inability to escape the past however is what begins to corrupt her. If she had a "misdemeanor" of her own, she would be much happier. She cannot erase the "evil", so unconsciously her acts attempt to "balance" it.

When the series started Alicia has an impeccable level of morality. It is unthinkable to her to bend rules, to sidetrack, to move withing gray lines. But her personal life and a job as a lawyer moves her bit by bit to morally questionable lines.

Her capacity for sympathy and empathy reduces continuously. She begins to trust no-one (even if rightfully). She is becoming ruthless and unforgiving. Furthermore she accepts no explanation from Peter, and that is the point where her cup is filled to the point she emotionally needs to "retaliate". While Peter's actions as of late put his family above and his career and personal feelings second, Alicia has been doing the opposite. I'm not arguing whether this is justified or not, only that it seems to be happening.

In the last episode Alicia confronts Peter about something she suspects to be true, his one-night stand with Kalinda. He does not deny it, he does not hide it.
Peter confronts Alicia about Will, but she avoids the subject and keeps on hiding the fact that Peter's accusation is actually absolutely true. Peter has not be shown to lie in the past 2 years. Alicia has lied, even if "indirectly".

In any case, I'm curious equally on how both Alicia and Peter handle things from here onwards. Peter has driven Alicia to a more ruthless state. Will she become "darker" and act without considering repercussions? On the other hand Peter has attempted to change, an attempt not accepted by his wife. Will he be driven to his old ways of morally questionable decisions? What is it really he discussed with Cary at the end of the last episode when he found out he and his wife had differences?

[tarheelintexas]

Once the cat was out of the bag, and Alicia knew what Peter did with Kalinda, that was definitely the end of any chance of reconciliation for at least the next season. That's to be expected. But apparently the producers/writers didn't feel that went far enough. No, what they needed was to have Peter and Alicia's relationship become contentious enough that it would make sense when they become adversaries next season in the courtroom, she with LG and he as the AG. But it just seemed very out of character for Peter to turn on a dime and suddenly accuse Alicia of infidelity herself. It was as if he hadn't learned anything since getting out of prison. But I felt they had developed his character too much to show that he had learned from his crimes in the past two seasons. I really believed his changes. They went to an awful lot of trouble to have him work with the reverend (before the endorsements crap hit) for it all to be ulterior in motive. So this was all just a setup so they could have the great juicy LV-vs-the-state's-attorney courtroom battles that we've all come to love, mostly because we hated Chiles, and we were just waiting for Cary to grow up a little. Speaking of which...

I also thought Cary's whiny reaction to being a year behind Alicia (in title only) was out of character for what he'd become this season, or at least what he'd shown he was capable of being. Too many times this season they'd characterized him as being sympathetic, not just to Kalinda but to LG in general, open to Diane, and then having him ask for a good word with Will. Add in that he seemed increasingly uncomfortable with the culture at the AG office, and everything was pointing to Cary's character having come around to being one of the "good guys" at LG. His continued bad attitude over losing to Alicia was the only thing remaining for him to get over. Why in the world did he think what Alicia did to win the position at LG was dirty and out of bounds?

Lastly, haven't seen any comments on the immensely unlikable Andrew Wiley, and what he did to stalk Alicia, push her and prod her until he got what he wanted, despite her repeated insistence that he leave her alone. So he saw her reaction to the name "Leela". What's he going to do with that information now? Chiles is out, there is no investigation of any kind on this anymore, and even if there was, no one could use her reaction to do anything about investigating what Peter did. All he knows now that he didn't before was that he was on the right track up to that point. He knew there wouldn't be more track to follow beyond that point.

Overall disappointed with the two mischaracterizations of Peter and Cary. They could've still had the puzzle pieces where they need them for next season without having them both do 180s from what they'd become up to this point.

[Watcher]

@KL
Interesting debate we're having. I suspect our difference in opinion is gender-based. My perspective is a woman's perspective because I'm a woman. I hate to be presumptuous but I'm guessing your perspective is a man's. It's easy for us to debate this matter-of-factly and politely because we're not directly involved in the emotional hurricane. Alicia stood by Peter in PRISON, endured public scrutiny and humiliation, was a single parent, and had to be the bread winner and compete at LG against Harvard boy with no family. That's stress. If Peter had 18 encounters with a prostitute and 1 encounter with a co-worker then who DIDN'T he sleep with? There's a big difference between having feelings, and acting on them (though Alicia did kiss Will once). Forgiveness is one thing, trust is another. You're right, Alicia's a lawyer and having to navigate being a lawyer, but Peter's a lawyer AND politician and it shows. I'm not saying he's a horrible person - he seems like a good father. But I for one wouldn't want to be married to him - too much of a glad-handling salesman for me. In my opinion...

[Watcher]

@tarheelintexas
+1 on Wiley for being annoying and a wet blanket. But hey, he sees something mysterious and fishy and he's determined to get to the bottom of it for whatever reason. Maybe he's going to be the one to tee up what happened between Peter and Kalinda. There does seem to a hint of corruption in
the state attorney's office.
and +1, Cary's character is looking like a puppy dog following Kalinda around all the time. Maybe the writers are getting a little burned out, they're entitled.
We don't know Cary's going to use his time at LG for evil with Peter yet. Maybe he's just shopping for the best deal for himself. He could still be in Kalinda's corner. That normal kiss was sooo nice...
Of course now he'll have to compete with the nurse I guess. It's hard to keep track of everyone on Kalinda's dance card.

JM and AP next week will be acting's version of Seal Team Six. Can't wait, though it will be a wrenching episode.

[AnaK]

The whole thing about Kalinda and Peter sleeping together is still implausible to me. That he would have slept with her or any other woman - that I have no doubts about - yet, I don't see him as someone accepting sex instead of bribe, or worse - extorting sex. Kalinda, on the other hand, is unpredictable and uses sex as currency, if it suits her. They are simply mismatched and to see that the climax of the season was built on that... I am a bit disappointed.

I can't say that I would argue the case for or against forgiveness. What infidelity or better disloyalty means and then does to a person hurt by it is a wide, wide field. The hurt is the only common factor, but irrational behaviour... please, do come in. Alicia has simply moved on. She had reservations about it, was hesitant, might have been swayed by the children, or simply had not reached the tipping point. Now she has.

The thing with Cary is also stale. If the writers have a added a few layers to his character, why still let him act as a psycopath? Fixation on Alicia? Does she look like someone who breezes through her days? Or is it indeed a case of the 'working vagina' after all? Too bad.

But I really liked how she handled the first few hours after finding out. The only thing is - when she turned the music loud and put make up on so resolutely, I was sure she was going to a bar. Pick up a stranger, do something wild and irresponsible... Don't they do that any more? Kalinda does.
After that she could decide what to do about Will.

[KL]

@tarheelnitexas

Excellent commentary, agreed on all points.
Cary's case is a single one of pride. But pride a 20 year old has and it does seem out of bounds. While I can explain the reaction and the reason for it, it seems out of place considering Cary's development as of late, and he should be able to be more rational about it and overcome the psychological difficulty of it, if any.
I can justify his reactions. Alicias move was not out of bounds, and he could have done the same if he had the means. He didn't and to him the only way to accept losing is to blame her. Humane in a sense, as this is a reactions to simply make him feel better. I believe almost all people do the same at early age but does seem a tiny bit immature in a sense, which comes in contrast to the solidity of character he has been showing otherwise. So yea to me it is a bit of mischaracterization as well.

[KL]

@Anak
The whole thing between Peter and Kalinda seems implausible to me as well. There must be more to it to make better sense. Peter must have been in a position to sleep with a multitude at his position and could have had the chance more than once, yet he chose a prostitute, where no feelings involved and no direct thought to his work environment (or so he thought). While despicable as it is and shows complete disregard for his family, it is prudent in terms of not having relationships with employees. And Peter does not seem the type to make such mistakes in the office as he comes by as rational and calculating type.

[KL]

@watcher
Indeed. And you are correct in your assumption. Though I don't think there so many differences between genders, perception differs according to character irrespective of gender and I respect all.
For example Jackie is a 70 year old mom loving her son. I do not think she did anything out of place or displayed any bad behaviour per se. Any mother loving her son would have done the same. So praising Alicia for the way she put Jackie in her place, seems a little bit unfair in the way she did it, considering the fact that Alicia would probably have done the same for her son. "you have been a life saver for 2 years, but now you are not needed anymore, so bye bye" was borderline ungrateful in the way it was put. That is why Alicia seems to become more ruthless. Just because she was a victim herself, does not mean she will be justified in victimizing everybody else, even if it just "feels good".

On the other hand Peter confronted Alicia about Will. His mistake was accusing her for having sexual relations. But is that unnatural? If you suspect your husband has feelings for another woman, suspect that your husband loves another woman, and you are in fact right about it, would the thought that he is sleeping with that person never cross your mind? In his mind he believed it to be the case and tried to endure it out of guilt and the things he has done himself. The problem with Peter is that he is "wrong by default" due to his past, but that cannot be the case. People may keep on bringing dirt about him from his past, and Alicia must get past the fact if she intends to forgive him. Something she should have already done, it has been too long.

Furthermore, in the undermining way he was thrown out, without warning or any discussion, and on the day he finally had a glimpse of happiness after 2 years of struggle, is it really so unnatural to feel also angry himself? Its a Godfather 3 case, "just when I was out, they pull me back in".

If it was simply another prostitute it would not be such a problem as Alicia has already got past that (has she?) but now she feels he slept with her best friend (which is not the case per se). Peter has already been condemned by the entire world including himself and still stayed his ground for the past 2 years. What choice does she give Peter, he has changed and she is not accepting his change, what exactly more is he supposed to be doing?

He went bankrupt for the sake of his family during the campaign, and asking Alicia about his other job offer showed sincerity that he puts his wife and family above everything else. And for a man that has been celibate for 2 years, waiting for his wife for 2 years to sleep again in the same bed, he by all means deserves some answers also. Or at least for Alicia to make up her mind whether she indeed forgives whatever he has done 2 years ago or not. She cannot keep playing him back and forth for eternity. To me it is not about right and wrong, it is about choice. If i was a woman i would not want to marry Peter either, knowing what he did in the past it is not easy to trust him.

Peter as a family man he has been top-notch exemplary since he has been back, avoided all dirt no matter the cost to himself and was ready to sacrifice everything for his wife and family. You cannot ask more, in fact I don't think many men fit that profile. So either leave him, or give a second chance and stick with it without going berserk everytime you hear something about Peter's past from here on. Peter has been feeling Alicia was disloyal also, accepted it and still put her and his family as priority. She has to make up her mind as well and not be swayed back and forth constantly.

I do not want to come across as defending Peter, not at all. Just saying that Alicia is emotionally too tormented and it clouds her judgement pushing her to become ruthless, irrational and self-absorbed as at this point as she does not care about how everyone else feels, not her kids, not Peter, not Jackie, not Eli or anyone else. She only cares about how she feels. And at this point the tables turn and it is her actions that sadden the people around her, something that was only true for Peter in the past.

She threw Peter out spontaneously without seeking explanation, without discussing or considering repercussions to her family, and on that aspect she may be a strong independent woman with a mind of her own that retaliates immediately, but I'm not sure how good of a wife or a mother she is. If Peter has indeed and sincerely changed and if we are to accept that he can be granted a second chance, in that case he also deserves better than such attitude.

To me it seems the script does not want neither Peter nor Alicia to be the vilain. Peter is a man that made mistakes, and now paying for those mistakes. How much he has to pay for it is a matter of perception and circumstances. So the script allows a chance for a "happy ending".
Alicia's portrayal against any other decent husband would make her a bad wife. For all purposes she has feelings for another man, puts her job above family, throws out her husband without even talking to him and in most cases refuses to help him in any way.
However she is still considered a somewhat "good wife" and not a bad one only because she has Peter past aggressions against her to compare, because in a sense it is easy to justify her anger. It is a case of "i don't need to be a perfect wife, and my inperfections can be automatically disregarded and justified, because you have not been a perfect husband".

[Fascinated]

Well i guess reading everyone's comments it would appear all our opinions reflect more about ourselves then the fictional characters we watch. Makes me wonder what everyone has been through themselves in the infidelity area - if anyone has been the betrayed or the betrayer that forms so much of the opinions expressed here.

My take is the writers always try hard to portray these characters as human - making mistakes and how they live with them. They're grey, never black and white. Whenever the tone of a character seems out of place i always ask would that character really react like that?

Go to the network website where i think the cary character maintains a blog - certainly adds to how you think of him and his actions.

I really enjoy TGW, it provokes so much thinking.