Elsbeth stars Carrie Preston as the title character, who she originated on The Good Wife and continued The Good Fight. A seemingly scatter-brained, endlessly bubbly personality, Elsbeth Tascioni was nevertheless a killer in the courtroom -- a brilliant savant always able to cut to the truth in the episodes she guest starred in. Now Elsbeth takes the spotlight when she's assigned to monitor a New York police precinct as part of a consent decree. Her skills at finding a winning argument translate readily to solving crime.
In a nutshell, this show scratches my "Poker Face itch" in a huge way. That show, if you haven't watched it, is a Columbo for the modern age starring Natasha Lyonne -- a mystery show where you get the answer every episode, and the fun is in watching the suspect squirm as the "detective" zeroes in. Elsbeth is exactly that model, even including the way Poker Face had a season-long story arc woven in with the "mysteries of the week."
Just as Natasha Lyonne makes Poker Face great, Carrie Preston is the reason to watch Elsbeth. She's really performing a magic trick here, because I'm fairly sure if I met someone like Elsbeth in real life, I would find them quite annoying. But I'm still entertained by the character every single episode. The writing is really brilliant too, in a deceptive way that makes it look more effortless than it really is. Recycling the same formula (with few variations) every week, and keeping that fun, is a real feat.
Two solid co-stars certainly help. TV stalwart Wendell Pierce is the captain of the precinct Elsbeth must monitor... and his character is the real object of Elsbeth's long-term investigation. Carra Patterson is the cop that befriends Elsbeth and accompanies her on her investigations, and the friendship that develops between the two characters is a treat.
The format is also perfect for drawing some fun guest stars. Lots of actors seem to enjoy being the villain of a crime drama for an episode, and the format of this one means you can cast a recognizable actor as the criminal and not give anything away. Season one episodes of Elsbeth have featured Jane Krakowski, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Retta, Blair Underwood, Gina Gershon, Keegan-Michael Key, and Preston's True Blood co-star Stephen Moyer.
Elsbeth isn't the best of the Kings' shows, but then, I don't see them setting out to make "prestige television" here. Instead, they're tapping into something simpler and fun. I give the first season of Elsbeth a B+, and I look forward to having more fun with the second when it arrives.
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