Diksha Sundriyal
Netflix’s ‘The Lincoln Lawyer‘ follows LA lawyer, Mickey Haller, representing all sorts of clients, some of whom are guilty, while others are trying not to land in prison for something they didn’t do. The fourth season throws a curveball at him by placing him in the shoes of his clients, as he has to fight his own case and prove that he is innocent of the charges levied against him. In such difficult times, Mickey relies on the people he trusts the most to get him out of this bind. One of the people he leans on is his mentor and father figure, David “Legal” Siegel. It is the strength of their connection and the love between them that makes the twist concerning Legal even more surprising. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Legal’s Shocking Fate is Revealed at a Critical Moment for Mickey
Since the first season of ‘The Lincoln Lawyer,’ Legal has been a comforting presence in Mickey’s life. He is the one that Mickey turns to whenever he needs advice and guidance, which is not limited to his cases. The duo is so close that Legal usually knows all the ins and outs of Mickey’s life, and does not hesitate to give him a reality check when he needs it or to encourage him and instill him with hope when he seems particularly pessimistic about the world. Another thing that we come to know pretty fairly about Legal is that he isn’t too keen on taking care of himself. His age has started to catch up to him, and he has been in the hospital once and twice now. He clearly has heart-related problems, but that doesn’t stop him from eating what he wants.
At one point, when Legal is in the hospital, he asks Mickey to sneak in his favourite food for him, which the doctors don’t approve of at all. His logic is that he’d rather enjoy life while he has it rather than abstaining from the things he loves to prolong a life that won’t seem worth living. He continues this philosophy, and in the fourth season, we find him at lunch with Lorna, where even she seems concerned about the greasy and unhealthy food he is about to have. Still, he seems alright, and Lorna is not too concerned. Later, when she talks to him, he is on a bus, which reminds him of his early days as a lawyer. She calls him to tell him how she has found a way to help her client, though it’s not a complete win.
He congratulates her and tells her to learn to take whatever wins she can get for her clients, who would otherwise be doomed without her. The conversation ends on a good note, and Lorna moves on with her day. It isn’t until later that she gets a call about him. It is revealed that Legal had a heart attack while he was on the bus, and he did not survive it. This news comes at a point when Mickey has to make a crucial decision in his own case. He can either stay in jail and get a speedy trial, or he can be out on bail and prolong the process. In the midst of this, Lorna tells him about Legal, and he is utterly heartbroken. He knows that if he doesn’t accept the bail, he will not be able to attend Legal’s funeral, which is in a few days. But at the same time, he knows this isn’t what his mentor would advise him to do. So, he goes with the former and returns to prison.
Elliot Gould Might Still Return for the Future Seasons of The Lincoln Lawyer
Legal’s sudden and shocking death delivers an emotional punch for Mickey and his team, as well as for the viewers who’d grown to love the character. With Mickey regularly traversing gray waters in his job as a defense attorney, he needed someone who could anchor him to his morals and show him a path out of the trickiest of circumstances. Legal was that support system, the backup that Mickey could always turn to. But now, it has been taken away from him, and a Legal-sized hole has been created in his life, which cannot be filled by anyone else. The character’s departure was deeply emotional for the cast and crew as well. Co-showrunner Ted Humphrey revealed that “everybody stood up and gave a standing ovation and cheered when Elliott [Gould] shot his last scene.”
Gould loved being a part of the show, and the part about leaving the character behind was also emotional for him. Humphrey revealed that Gould’s ‘The Long Goodbye’ had been one of the inspirations behind the template of the Netflix series, which added a meta-twist to the actor’s casting in the show. What makes this more interesting is that after revealing Legal’s death in the sixth episode, the opening scene of the seventh episode features Legal visiting Mickey in prison and talking to him about his next steps. It turns out to be a dream, but this episode proves that there’s still a way for Legal to be around.
While Legal’s death is final and cannot be reversed, it doesn’t mean that he will stop being a part of Mickey’s life. In fact, as things get more twisted in the coming seasons, Mickey will refer to his mentor’s teaching even more. This means that the show might resort to using flashbacks to give us scenes with Legal and Mickey, where the former gives him a piece of advice that becomes crucial to the latter in his future cases. With this, Gould could return to the future seasons of ‘The Lincoln Lawyer’ and give the audience a way to process Legal’s loss.
Read More: What Happened to Andrea Freemann? Did Yaya DaCosta Leave The Lincoln Lawyer?
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