The Magic Bullet – The show begins with Izzy Letts (Jazz Raycole) informing Mickey Haller (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo) that a car is following them. Mickey questions if the car is really following them. She explains the car made the same turn before asking if he is okay with her trying to lose it. When she makes a right turn, the car follows suit. She continues taking turns until the car is nowhere in sight.
Mickey returns to the office to be told by Lorna (Becki Newton) that the LA Times and CNN contacted their office. She suggests he hire a publicist while handing him a pile of messages. He introduces Lorna and Dennis “Cisco” Wojciechowski (Angus Sampson) to Izzy. He asks Cisco if created a list of Jerry’s threats. He tells him the list is on his desk. Lorna scolds him for hiring Izzy to drive him around. He assures her that his gut feeling tells him things about people. They discuss Trevor Elliott’s (Christopher Gorham) murder case. Cisco informs him that there is little information in Trevor’s file. Mickey questions if Jerry Vincent (Paul Urcioli) was going to represent his biggest client ever without a defense. Cisco suggests Jerry’s stolen laptop may have contained something. Loren says she checked the cloud, but nothing turned up.
Mickey asks if there was anything at Jerry’s home. Cisco says his contact claimed LAPD didn’t turn up anything during a search. Lauren suggests he request a continuance during the status conference with Judge Mary Holder (LisaGay Hamilton). He reminds her of Trevor’s refusal to postpone his trial. As he prepares to enter his office, she informs him that he is due in court in Inglewood in less than 45 minutes.
Janelle Simmons (Kim Hawthorne) talks to Maggie McPherson (Neve Campbell) about skipping the prelim and going straight to a grand jury. Maggie says she is trying to keep it quiet to catch Soto off-guard. Simmons tells her to be sure to keep all the witnesses. Maggie looks over the see Jeff Golantz (Michael Graziadei) looking at her.
Mickey studies his next case. Izzy asks if he likes to listen to jazz music. He admits it helps improve his thinking. He asks for her opinion of Jerry. After reminding him that she isn’t expert, she says he seemed all right. He agrees with her assessment. He suggests a good attorney wouldn’t walk into court empty-handed. He receives a call from Maggie to congratulate him on getting Trevor’s murder case. He questions her about the prosecutor, Golantz. She warns him to not go there. He assures her that he isn’t trying to get trade secrets out of her. She reminds him of the case being high-profile before asking who he thinks will get it.
At the jail, Mickey meets with Terrell Coleman (Shwayze) to discuss his case. He reminds him of his charge, battery on a peace officer. Terrell swears he never touched Officer Maurice Grainger. Mickey asks if he is familiar with the defendant. He admits they attended the same high school. He claims Grainger held a grudge against him since the 10th grade for taking his girlfriend. After reviewing his file, Mickey tells Terrell that officers shutdown his illegal t-shirt business outside a USC game. Terrell tells him that Jerry suggested he take a plea bargain for a year or go down for three years. He informs him of his 11-year-old daughter. Mickey studies his file, which reveals the body camera footage is unavailable. When his name is called, he suggests he stay put while he requests a continuance in his case.
Mickey requests Lorna to set up a meeting with Trevor. He says hopefully Trevor can provide him with information for his case. Describing Jerry’s books and calendar are a “mess,” she tells him that she and Cisco will work on them all night. As he walks to his front door, he spots a black SUV parked across the road. When he approaches the vehicle, the driver pulls away.
Mickey discusses the SUV with Cisco who promises to look into it. Cisco informs him that Jerry was paying Investigator Bruce Carlin (Paul Rae). He says Carlin previously worked for LAPD. Mickey asks him to investigate Trevor’s wife’s boyfriend, Jan Rilz (Johann Urb). He describes the police as having “tunnel vision” because they refuse to believe Trevor may be innocent. Cisco asks if he believes the target was Rilz.
Mickey meets with Judge Holder to discuss Jerry’s law practice. She grants his request to access Jerry’s business accounts. He tells her that Detective Raymond Griggs (Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine) made a suggestion about Jerry’s murder not being random. He admits to working with his investigator to search through Jerry’s files to determine if any of his clients threatened him. When he hands her a list of names for the LAPD, she reminds him of a breach of confidentiality risk. He points out that it is legal to give the information to the police if the attorney feels his life is threatened. She regrettably signs the order.
Cisco watches as Griggs and Carlin emerge from a house. After Griggs is gone, he approaches Carlin to introduce himself as working with Mickey. Carlin suggests he is there for information on Jerry’s cases. Cisco says he is only concerned about Trevor’s case. He admits to temporarily working on his case before Jerry pulled him. He denies knowing anything about Jerry’s defense plans. Cisco asks if Mickey is in danger. He claims Jerry began acting strange several weeks before he was murdered.
Maggie is working on her laptop when Golantz enters. When he invites her for coffee, she questions his motive. He assures her that he is concerned about things getting awkward between them, now that Mickey is on Trevor’s case. She reminds him that they just had two dates, which she describes as “no big deal.” He asks what Mickey has been doing for the past year. She tells him that Mickey took a break.
Mickey watches footage of Trevor’s arrest. Lorna tells him Jerry’s business accounts reveal nearly all Trevor’s $625K retainer is gone. She points out that most of the money was deposited into Jerry’s personal account, which they do not have authorization to access. She says an assistant, Wren Williams (Mageina Tovah) of Jerry’s is scheduled to return from Cleveland tomorrow. When she tries to tell him about her relationship with Cisco, he admits to already knowing about it. He warns her of the dangerous club Cisco formerly belonged to. She assures him that was years ago. He admits to being happy for her when Cisco walks in. He tells him about Carlin’s claims of Jerry being anxious before his death. He informs him of Griggs was at Carlin’s house when he arrived.
Mickey tells him about Dr. Arslanian, an expert in ballistics, being involved in Trevor’s case. Lorna admits to contacting Arslanian who claims to have never received Trevor’s file. Mickey is disappointed with Jerry’s inaction. She says he will have to meet with Trevor at the status conference, as his schedule is filled for the week. Agitated, Mickey heads out the door but not before Cisco awkwardly gives him some encouragement. Mickey goes on a rant about high-profile cases and the need to win.
Mickey receives a call from Maggie to ask if he would pick up Hayley Haller (Krista Warner) at school. After he agrees to do it, he assumes she is regaining some trust in him or in a predicament. She doesn’t comment on his assumption. He meets with Griggs to explain how they reviewed Jerry’s case files to come up with the compilation of red flags. Griggs tells her that he doesn’t know what he is supposed to be looking for. Mickey offers to trade the list for information on Trevor. Griggs informs him of Athena’s Temple in LA before asking if Jerry was a gambler. Will denies knowing anything about it.
Lorna is at the beach when she encounters Krisha Gold (Justene Alpert). They briefly discuss Rilz before Lorna comes clean about working with Mickey. When Krisha claims to have refused to speak with Jerry, Lorna informs her that he was killed. She suggests Rilz deserves to have his murder solved.
Cisco suggests Rilz may be involved. While he discusses Rilz’ yoga business in Venice, Lorna adds Krisha’s name. She says Krisha told her that other married women hired Rilz for private yoga lessons. Mickey suggests there might be more than one jealous husband besides Trevor. When he offers to let Hayley spend the evening with Lorna, she has another plan. She wants to set in on his court case.
Izzy asks him about his marriage to Lorna. He describes it as a “mistake” because he had just broken up with Maggie. They file into the courtroom to watch Mickey represent Terrell. Judge Winifred Champagne (Julie Ariola) asks Mickey if Terrell agrees with the 1-year plea deal. Mickey informs her that he will be going to court. He points out there is no police body camera footage. Deputy D.A. Ernest Choi (Eugene Kim) says the officer’s body camera malfunctioned when the incident took place. He shows her a photo from a nearby ATM. Officer Grainger gets Choi’s attention. Choi asks the judge for a few minutes to speak with him.
After speaking with Grainger, Choi agrees with time served. Mickey agrees, but only if the charges are dropped. Choi agrees to throw out the case. Terrell questions if there is an ATM near the scene. Mickey assures him there is, but he has no idea what’s on it. He shows Terrell Haley in the courtroom and suggests he retrieve his daughter before returning home.
Mickey drops Maggie off at home. She asks about Trevor’s case. He reminds her of failing to identify the man she recently went out on a day with. She claims it was an appointment with Haley’s teacher. She suggests they go slow with Haley.
Lorna discovers something while printing some documents. She contacts Mickey to tell him it is possible to access the printer’s memory. She says a motion for continuance in Trevor’s case was printed on the day Jerry was murdered. Mickey suggests it was Jerry’s plan to request a continuance because he never had anything.
Mickey and Golantz meet with Judge James P. Stanton (Lamont Thompson). They discuss a continuance in Trevor’s murder case. Golantz assures the judge that the prosecution would be okay with a continuance. Stanton asks him to explain. He points out that Mickey hasn’t practiced law for some time due to a substance abuse problem. Mickey calls his claim “confidential” and “irrelevant.” Stanton offers him a continuance, but Trevor refuses. Stanton reminds Trevor that he must talk through his attorney. Mickey asks for time to speak with his client in private.
In private, Mickey and Trevor get into a verbal argument. Mickey warns him more time is needed to win his case. Trevor explains how everything he cared about has been lost except for his company. He warns if he doesn’t win the case, all his company’s investments will be lost. He suggests he take advantage of this opportunity, or he will be dismissed. He agrees to represent himself if all else fails. Mickey assures Stanton that he will be ready next week.
Mickey reaches out to Maggie to discuss Golantz. Outside the Athena’s Temple Casino, he asks Izzy what if Jerry visited there because he blew Trevor’s retainer. He suggests Jerry may have been addicted like them. Lorna tells him about Wren visiting the office. He asks if she knows anything about Jerry’s finances. She says it is possible Jerry had a personal relationship with Wren.
Trevor shoots hoops alone.
Wren describes Jerry as a “good man.” Mickey agrees with her assessment of Jerry. She claims Jerry said he had a “magic bullet.” She tells them about Jerry disappearing one night before she left for Cleveland. She admits they were practically living together by that point. She says when she tried to talk to him about Trevor’s case, he warned her that it was better for her to know nothing.
After Wren leaves, Lorna demands to know what Jerry meant by “magic bullet.” He explains it is a term utilized when referring to something that was going to “blow the prosecution’s case wide open.” Cisco reminds him that their searches have come up empty-handed. Mickey assures them that he will find it.
Mickey hands Izzy a device to install. Within seconds, music begins to play. It appears as if Mickey’s Lincoln has a wiretap. A man in a black SUV is listening to their conversation. He orders Izzy to get on the freeway as the episode comes to an end.
The Lincoln Lawyer Review
The show makes some good points, but the court cases are uncompelling. How Lincoln wins his cases is cringeworthy. For example, there is no body camera footage of Terrell’s arrest. Conveniently, Mickey threatens to show images from a nearby ATM camera to the court. Bam, the case is thrown out. It wasn’t a Matlock or Perry Mason moment.
Trevor is the most interesting character in the show. Christopher Gorham’s performance is excellent. At no fault of his own, his lines seem repetitive. Two episodes in, Trevor is still stressing how he lost everything when his wife died. His technology is his legacy. At this rate, I will know his lines by heart before the finale.
The show feels like it belongs on network TV like CBS, Lifetime, or NBC, not Netflix.
It lacks personability. Character development is really slow probably due to the cast being too big. There isn’t enough airtime for the actors to bring their characters to life. As far as onscreen relationships go, Maggie and Mickey are about the extent of it. The other onscreen relationships feel strained, even Cisco and Hayley.
The entire episode was wasted on filler content. Nothing of significance happened, only Terrell’s court case. The scenes with Trevor felt like a repeat. The basketball scene was for sure. They need to fill 10 episodes, right?
I like Neve Campbell. Her experience shows through her performance.
The episode deserves a 5.5. Get more The Lincoln Lawyer recaps here. Support Reel Mockery by clicking on the link.
Jay Skelton is a fan of all television shows and movies. He tries his best to keep up with the latest foreign television shows and movies. Jay loves skinny dipping in the dark too.
