The Good Fight is everything fans of The Good Wife need in a legal drama

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The spin-off legal drama offers the familiar storyline of corporate malfeasance and legal battles against the backdrop of a major scandal that taints two of its main characters.

Like its predecessor, The Good Fight’s major moments and most delicious drama doesn’t come from its courtroom. Instead, more depth is found in the story arcs that its characters are caught up in – whether it’s the scandal-prone Maia Rindell finding out that her family isn’t what she thought it was or Diane Lockhart’s horror at Trump’s America.

The Good Fight S1-2 is now streaming on Showmax, and here are four reasons you won’t regret stepping into court.

1. Kicks off with a major scandal

Ten years ago, The Good Wife kicked off Alicia Florrick’s rise from a disgraced timid housewife to a top lawyer in Chicago with a major sex and political corruption scandal that turned her life upside down and forced her to go back to work.

The Good Fight pays homage to the original by featuring a major scandal in the very first episode – this time a Ponzi scheme that disrupts the lives of the ready-for-retirement-and-buying-a-house-in-France Diane Lockhart and her fresh-out-of-law-school goddaughter Maia Rindell, played by Rose Leslie (who you’ll recognise as the redhead Wildling in Game of Thrones, and Kit Harrington’s IRL wife).

2. Christine Baranski, an icon

The last time we saw Christine Baranski’s Diane Lockhart she had just been betrayed by long-time friend and colleague Alicia Florrick, an act that earned Alicia a hard slap across the face and ended a friendship before the credits rolled on the final episode of The Good Wife.

Lucky for us, a character as iconic and as layered as Diane is hard to let go of, and Baranski reprises the role in The Good Fight, bringing everything we loved and admired about her. And in case you were wondering, her statement neckpieces are still as bold and sharp as her grit, even amid the political mayhem that The Good Fight so deliciously devours.

When The Good Fight begins, Diane is finally getting ready for retirement but is forced to delay it when she loses all her life savings in a financial fraud.

Picking up her life in an African-American law firm, Diane fights to reclaim her place in a world that has turned its back on her, and renders her somewhat unemployable. The great Diane Lockhart? Unemployable? The Good Fight is wild, I know.

3. Women are the powerhouse

Led by Lockhart’s powerful presence, The Good Fight is headlined by strong women navigating the cutthroat world of Chicago law. The Good Wife’s S7 guest star Cush Jumbo finally gets the screen time she deserves when she reprises her role as the quick-witted Lucca Quinn, still rocking her delicious pixie cut and a personality we’d all like to borrow sometime.

To complete the power trio is Maia Rindell, a rookie lawyer fresh from passing the bar and who is reluctant to take advantage of her powerful family name but instead wants to navigate her law career independently – a path that is shaken by her father’s involvement in a major financial fraud.

There are more women to watch out for – some are fresh faces, some you will instantly recognise, such as the quirky Elsbeth Tascioni, a Good Wife alum. But of course, we must acknowledge notable performances from male characters too, like the dapper Adrian Boseman.

It’s a diverse blend that gives The Good Fight the punch it needs to find its own glory in a space long conquered by The Good Wife.

4. It’s current, political and provocative

The Good Fight thrives on topical events, especially the hectic politics of America as it tackles issues of police brutality, hate speech, immigration and more socio-political issues unfolding right now. No holds barred, the show intertwines real events with fictional plotlines, setting the provocative political tone that has now become its greatest triumph.

Whereas most post-Trump TV shows have simply grazed the surface on the subject matter, or steered away completely, The Good Fight doesn’t shy away from delving into the consequences of the Trump presidency, so much so that the show had to undergo a major rewrite when Trump won the election in 2016.

Even more interesting to watch is how the political realities of America take a toll on Diane’s unshakable spirit and the coping mechanisms she chooses.

What are you waiting for? Stream The Good Fight S1-2 on Showmax now.