NIGHT COURT IN FIVE JUSTIFIABLY FEWER SEASONS, 2: The Wheels Of Justice

After I posted a proposed Season 1 of a condensed Night Court, anticipating the arrival of the rebooted series, a couple of people noted that the show wouldn't work now, specifically because of the character Dan Fielding, a lecherous lawyer with an assortment of outdated ideals and prejudices (note: not racism ... other than I'm sure institutional racism ... but classism, ableism, and a disrespect to anyone who doesn't fit his norms). I think the show slowly morphs Dan into a three-dimensional person who grows past his prejudices. But in this season, he is The Worst.

Meanwhile, we meet the new baliff Florence, who is then replaced by Roz, who becomes the final member of the permanent cast. We also learn quite a bit more about each character's life outside of the court, ending on a four episode serial that significantly shifts the power balance of the show.

Night Court Season 2:
​The Wheels Of Justice

Serial 1: Wheels Of Justice
(Harry, Dan, Bull, Mac, Christine, Florence, Phil, The Wheelers)

Everything goes wrong at the beginning of this season. A financial crisis causes the city to freeze payroll, the letter of the fails Harry when he wants to do something good, and a judge brought in to replace Harry when he decides to quit Dies On The Stand. Also, Data from TNG shows up as the patriarch of a constantly down on their luck family.


Episode 3: The Apartment
(Harry, Dan, Bull, Mac, Christine, Florence, Quon Le, Leon)

We're skipping most of a season long storyline where Harry takes care of the shoeshine boy from the courthouse. It's a treacly storyline that's kind of a downer. But he does show up in this episode where Harry hosts a birthday party for Dan where Everything Goes Wrong again. A woman from juvenile service, a stripper, the threat of mass suicide, and a magician all figure in to the shenanigans.


Serial 2: The Hurricane
(Harry, Dan, Bull, Mac, Christine, Florence, Art, The Wheelers)

It seems like there were always natural disasters hitting the New York City Municipal Court, and always when it could cause the most chaos. A hurricane, named after Harry's favorite singer,  traps Four Pregnant Women in the court.


Episode 6: Dan's Boss
(Harry, Dan, Bull, Mac, Christine, Florence, Vincent)

This is the first of two episodes that I don't consider great but hit a Night Court trope. Each of them hitting it in a remarkably different way. Look, Dan is a creep. He would justifiably be #metooed out of the judicial system if he were a real person in modern times. He was also a huge bigot (not a racist that I remember, but his class bias and appearance bias were raging). In this episode his boss turns out to be a little person, causing Dan to make tons of short jokes that the audience laughs at, but in the end Dan is shown the error of his ways, and maybe you shouldn't laugh at all those short jokes. Very 80s.


Episode 7: Best Of Friends
(Harry, Dan, Bull, Mac, Christine, Florence, Phil)

In this episode, Dan's best friend from his law school days returns, having had gender reassignment surgery. The jokes are just as distasteful here as they were in the previous episode. The audience laughs along with it. But in this episode, the rest of the characters are Just As Bad. Oh, sure, they try and get Dan to look past his bigotry but each of them exposes their own bigotry in the process. In the end, none of them seem to have really learned anything or changed, other than Dan seems to be less transphobic. Harry and Christine, on the other hand, hide behind false progressiveness, being kind to Chip but viewing Chip as abnormal. 


Episode 8: The Next Voice You Hear
(Harry, Dan, Bull, Mac, Christine, Roz, Buddy)

Harry gets a long lost letter from his mother, and decides to track her down, only to discover that she passed away, after a long stay in a mental hospital. This reunites him with his stepdad, Buddy, who was one of my favorite characters growing up. We also get a new baliff, as Florence has retired, so welcome Roz, the last permanent cast member to join the show.


Episode 9: Giving Thanks
(Harry, Dan, Bull, Mac, Christine, Roz, Phil)

Another cringey Dan-centered story. He saves Christine's life and wants to be repaid with sex.


Serial 3: Dan's Operation
(Harry, Dan, Bull, Mac, Christine, Roz, Phil, Sheila)

There's a sort of arc here about redeeming Dan. When he's hospitalized for an ulcer, he tries to return to work, only to end up in even worse shape. The rest of the crew confronts him about his selfishness and poor behavior.


Episode 12: Earthquake
(Harry, Dan, Bull, Mac, Christine, Roz, Art)

Another natural distaster, another Dan is trapped in an elevator. This time, instead of a queer man who finds him attractive, it's a pair of sumo wrestlers and Roz.         


Episode 13: A Day In The Life
(Harry, Dan, Bull, Mac, Christine, Roz, Sheila)                                                                                                                   
Considered the second best episode of the series (the episode considered the best is a direct sequel to it), the court has just one night to get through 200 cases or all the defendants will be granted amnesty. There's a lot of story packed into this one, including the return of Sheila, the woman who only wants to have sex with Dan when he is unable to have sex.


Serial 4: Her Honor Part 1
(Harry, Dan, Bull, Mac, Christine, Roz, The Wheelers)

It's the time of year when new judges are appointed and Dan is disappointed to learn that he's been passed over but Christine has earned the right to wear the robe. And then it's announced that Harry won't be reassigned.  Shenanigans ensue. This serial is four episodes long, so I've divided it between the end of this season, and the beginning of the next season, just as they did on the original run.