CBS’ Matlock Is a Brilliant Twist on a Classic TV Series

TV reboots have been in vogue for years now, and although these “reimagined” takes are a mixed bag at best, there’s no end in sight for this trend. For every Battlestar Galactica (Awesome!), there’s a Magnum P.I. (Dreadful.)

What makes reboots so tricky is that many of these beloved programs carry a certain amount of nostalgic weight, which has to be perfectly balanced with a fresh take on beloved characters. Modern audiences may have a place in their heart for classic TV shows, but they still want something novel. This is an incredibly difficult maneuver to pull off, which is what makes CBS’ excellent reboot of Matlock so impressive. 

In this new legal drama, Kathy Bates, a stellar ensemble cast, and showrunner Jennie Snyder Urman (the creator of Jane the Virgin) manage to do something every other reboot aspires to do but usually fail to accomplish: it uses the premise of a classic TV series to create something truly original. And much like the program it’s named after, it does so in a folksy and clever way that is undeniably enticing.

The original Matlock series ran from 1986-1995 and centered on the exploits of Atlanta-based criminal defense attorney Ben Matlock (Andy Griffith), who rocked seersucker suits, drove Crown Vics, and had a penchant for lulling witnesses into a false sense of security before delivering an end of episode “gotcha” monologue. While Madeline “Matty” Matlock (Kathy Bates) shares a surname with Ben, this new version both is and isn’t the Matlock fans of the original will remember. 

In the pilot episode, it’s immediately clear the two Matlocks aren’t related. In this universe, the Andy Griffith version is a TV show that Matty frequently mentions. While both Matlocks are lawyers and exude Southern charm, Matty is a 75-year-old widow left alone to raise her 12-year-old grandson Alfie (Aaron D. Harris) after the tragic death of her daughter. In debt yet still skilled, Matty uses her wits to get a job at the prestigious Jacobson Moor law firm.  

Charismatic and clever, the septuagenarian is assigned to work under Olympia Lawrence (Skye P. Marshall), an attorney who takes on challenging cases no one else at the firm views as profitable. Reluctant to have someone on her team who hasn’t practiced law since 1991 but needing the help, Olympia partners Matty with her two young junior associates, Sarah (Leah Lewis) and Billy (David Del Rio). Other major players include the head of the law firm (Beau Bridges), his son and Olympia’s ex-husband Julian (Jason Ritter), and senior partner Elijah Walker (Eve Ikwuakor). 

Matlock has all the ingredients to be another hit for CBS, which isn’t exactly surprising in some ways. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: CBS has a knack for making popular dramas. As expected, all the elements of a legal procedural are accounted for here. A new case solved every week? Check. Romantic entanglements among members of the firm? Check. Multiple storylines that intertwine in an interesting way? Check. A gradual sense of esprit de corps through literal trials and tribulations? Check and mate. 

Matlock is a well-crafted legal drama with an outstanding cast. Skye P. Marshall is fantastic as a powerful woman who has a tough exterior but soft interior. The banter between Leah Lewis and David Del Rio is funny, sarcastic, and fast-paced. And Beau Bridges is excellent as a hard-nosed and sometimes cutthroat leader. 

Jason Ritter (who I love in anything) is underused but incredible as a humorous and kind-hearted man sometimes at odds with both his father and his ex-wife. But it’s Bates who carries the series, and for reasons you wouldn’t necessarily expect. Her character and this show are both more than what they seem. 

Kathy Bates is truly riveting in Matlock. We see Matty bust her ass, get frustrated, curate relationships, laugh, cry, shout at superiors in frustration, and be laugh-out-loud funny (her comeback line of “No Scotch for me unless I’m getting laid” floored me). The character also takes on hard issues like drug addiction, sexual harassment, and ageism, and she does it all with aplomb. After watching the six episodes screened for critics, I felt I knew Matty better than most characters I’d watched for five seasons. That’s how well-crafted the character is and how brilliant Bates is in the role. 

If Matlock were just a legal drama, it would be a good show. But what makes it even better is a subtle undercurrent of connective tissue to the original series. In the premiere episode, Matty points out how easy it is for her to go unnoticed. “There’s this funny thing that happens when women age. We become damn near invisible.”

In the office, Matty’s viewed as a harmless old lady always playing catch up. She’s behind on how technology works and office politics, all while quite literally having to walk briskly to keep up with everyone else. But much like how Ben Matlock used to play possum in the original Matlock series, Matty wants to be underestimated because she came to Jacobson Moore for a specific reason. It’s a spoiler I won’t reveal, but by the end of Episode 1, viewers are in for one hell of a season-long plot twist that perfectly compliments the show’s legal procedural foundation.

Matlock is the type of series that becomes more and more addicting with each episode, and you won’t be able to stop yourself from getting increasingly engrossed in the lives of each of its characters, especially Matty. Keeping the original series’ folksy charm and blending it with completely new ideas makes Matlock addictive fun. 

Matlock premieres Sunday, September 22nd on CBS. 

Terry Terrones is a Television Critics Association and Critics Choice Association member, licensed drone pilot, and aspiring hand model. When he’s not wondering why there hasn’t been a reboot of the science fiction series Sliders, you can find him hiking in the mountains of Colorado. You can follow him on Twitter @terryterrones.

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