Pilot

Love the show. Brings a new style to the show. Kathy Bates is an awesome sweet character in this series. Wish she would have continued on. I think it would have made a good series. Please bring the show back.please please please bring it back. Matlock series has a great up to date feeling of humor and seriousness. Love her as the character, she is an awesome role player into the new direction of the series. A great modern direction towards a wonderful story line in the episodes. Has a great storyline of the characters and humor that grabs the audience attention towards each episode coming into play.

Kathy Bates returns to the courtroom in the 2024 reboot of Matlock, and I'm pleased to report: so far, so good.

This isn't just a retread of the Andy Griffith classic; it's a smartly repackaged legal drama with modern sensibilities, a confident tone, and Bates at the helm doing what she does best: commanding every scene with quiet ferocity and zero fuss.

If you've seen her in Harry's Law (and I did, and liked it), you'll feel at home. She brings a sly wit to Madeline Matlock, paired with enough gravity to keep things compelling. Ep 1 walks the fine line between setup and substance... it introduces us to a corporate legal setting, plants a few intriguing side characters, and gives us a decently layered case to chew on.

The writing isn't reinventing the wheel yet, but it's clean and efficient, with hints of richer character arcs down the road. Direction is solid, and the pacing thankfully doesn't drag.

I'd give the premiere a confident 7.5/10 - good, not brilliant - but there's genuine potential here. If the writers dig deeper into the ethical grey zones and give Bates more room to unleash her layered performance, this could grow into something quite special.

For now, it's a welcome return to courtroom drama done with class. Let's hope the show builds its case episode by episode.

That was the line that Matty utters, as only an Academy Award winning actress could. So believable. And I was genuinely surprised by the ending. I hope it continues with the insider comments and insights. Older women are invisible, even today & this little show played very well. The opening scene that has Matty sneaking into the law firm right under their noses was completely entertaining. I went back to rewatch that scene just to relish the ease of it. Now, i have watched some Matlock, because I am old. It was an entertaining show and Andy Griffith was an established talented actor too. This Matlock is completely different. It has current issues & young actors too. The grandson is very likable. The two young new hirers are very good, believable. I just hope the series can keep it going. So far, it hit the ball out of stadium! Bravo team!

I can imagine the pitch meeting at CBS -why not resuscitate the old Andy Griffith '80s hit TV series with a new version, after all, so many golden oldies have been resuscitated successfully for perhaps nostalgic Baby Boomers out there in TV land (like "Magnum P. I.", "Quantum Leap"). And how's this for a hook -we'll make the folksy old lawyer a woman this time! My musing was off-target, however, as the original show ran on NBC and later ABC -it wasn't a CBS property at all.

This typical high-concept Hollywood gimmick sounds dumb, but as with most properties, the secret is in the casting. Kathy Bates takes the role and runs with it Her folksiness is disarming and makes the pilot episode of her pulling many a fast one to finagle her way into a leading law firm job so much fun to watch. The twists and turns of the case are delightful, with a solid supporting cast fighting (mainly in vain) to compete with Kathy as center of attention. But that's obviously a lost cause -she completely dominates the screen and that spells HIT.

Watching the sneak peek preview of the pilot I was bowled over by the surprise ending which takes the series in a completely different and satisfying direction from the homespun set-up scenes preceding. And having Kathy herself make a Hitchcock (or William Castle?) styled plea to the audience not to reveal the surprise secret to anyone, as the actual series debut is several weeks away, was priceless.

Such a joy to see Kathy Bates back on TV. New show had a great punch for an ending and it was wonderful to see Beau Bridges too. Great way to spend early Sunday night. Super good supporting cast Reminded me a little bit of suits. Like the intergenerational attorneys who were bickering and solving. Really interesting good writing definitely a winner. Definitely will watch this life.

Finally new shows are back on and this one was a good one. I never saw the old Matlock and I'm trying to figure out the ending a little bit which I will not give away, but I really like that surprise welcome back Kathy.