Boston Legal is a show that gains its strength from the extraordinary characters of Denny Crane and Alan Shore, and both showed their full potential as both attorneys and comedians yet again here. While it is almost painful to watch the lengths Denny will go to in order to defend his beliefs (which I couldn't help but perceive as more his own than his client's at first), I stand in true awe - or, more truthful to the episode title, Owww) - at the fact that he actually achieves his goal once more. We all know by now that A.D.A. Ginsberg hardly stands a chance against the attorneys at Crane, Poole and Schmidt, but ending a trial before it even has had a chance to begin is new, even for Denny. Especially Denny's enthusiasm when he first learns about the case and his newfound way of mentioning his name by writing it on a pad and showing it to Ginsberg in the courtroom are fine examples of why Denny never gets boring.
Alan has, once again, proved why he's the one to be trusted when it comes to finding creative methods of settlement. Finding Shirley with a truly personal problem, he doesn't hesitate to help without losing his quick wit towards her. The fact that he buys the nude photographs she was afraid of exposing to the public is as uniquely a part of who Alan is as can be. Seeing Shirley in a situation as delicate as this one also helps adding to her character and shows that, brilliant as she may be, she can still have flaws without losing her dignity.
Last but not least, my personal favourite: Paul finally gets a storyline that is entirely his, and René Auberjonois more than fulfills the expectations. It is hardly a surprise that Paul's daughter is still, or again, abusing drugs, and Paul's misery is more than understandable. Throughout the episode remains a vague hope that Paul's suspicion might be wrong, which unfortunately turns out to be not more than an optimistic dream - watching Paul finding Rachel's drugs is more than painful. Brad is nicely involved in this part of the episode, and Mark Valley's performance when Brad dresses up as a drug addict is absolutely fantastic. I hope to see much more of Brad's creative methods in the future. His ethics may seem different from Alan Shore's, but seeing as they both never hesitate to do anything to protect others, their mutual dislike of each other may be based on their alikeness more than their differences sometimes.
All this leaves us with a wonderful episode of Boston Legal that evokes curiosity about the future conflicts and cases at Boston's most famous law firm. All actors are brilliant in this episode, especially the male ones. I give "Shock and Owww!" a 9.5 rating, to leave some space for future brillancy, which without a doubt is to be expected.moreless
