All Rise Review: A Change is Gonna Come (Season 2 Episode 1)

After six long months, All Rise returns with episodes filmed under strict safety standards, and you may want to hold on to something, because this first installment puts everyone through the wringer.

At the forefront are flashbacks to the Black Lives Matter protests of July 2020, which all the main characters find themselves involved in. How they react– and how they are seen by others—identifies issues that they’ll be addressing for a long time.

Lola and Mark’s relationship, the center of the show, is on unsteady ground. Since her arrest protecting a girl from an aggressive cop, he’s handled several things badly, first questioning her own potential guilt and then approaching her experience as Black woman insensitively.

The is the most direct depiction we’ve seen yet of his internal bias. He’s one of the more conscious white men out there, and with time to think may well have been more defensive of Lola. But he can’t ignore his instinctive reactions or how they play into his privilege.

LoMark will be okay sooner rather than later. But Mark has some serious questions to face to get there. I hope this is a sign he’s at the start of a journey of learning and active change. It’s the kind of work we need to see white people doing on our screens.

Meanwhile, Mark is also back in Lola’s court to prosecute Jesse, a young white man accused of attacking Black protesters. We’re leaping straight back into the headlines with zero subtlety. It’s just what we expect and is still so welcome and important.

He’s also facing Rachel on defense and, even though their long friendship is addressed, this still just feels off—even aside from in-court squabbling. Mark has spent an entire season avoiding Lola’s court due to perceived conflict of interest, and now this feels like the norm.

We’ll come back to Lola, but first I must address the most devastating news of the episode. Luke and Emily are on a break. The terms are yet unclear, but like with Lola and Mark, are tied to the protests, where Luke is pulled as a reserve officer.

Just when we get a sliver of hope, Emily finds Sam at Luke’s apartment and leaves us with several concerns. I’m not a big fan of love triangles. I’m even less of a fan of a good character being put in a position to disrupt a favorite ship, which often gets them undue hate.

Luke working to get Emily’s client out of her hotspot prison gives us something more to cling to. It also spreads the devastation when the young mother dies of Covid before her release order can go through.

It’s likely inevitable to have at least one pandemic death tied to the main characters. I wish there was more time for Emily to process it, but it’s soon swept up in the avalanche of events.  The overwhelm holds emotional truth too, but I hope she’s given time to grieve more.

The bright spot in this turmoil is the introduction of Ness, a law clerk helping Lola deal with the case overflow from the court’s closure. She already has no trouble setting Sherri on edge, which hints at fun moments to come.

It’s Ness’s major scene with Lola that seals her place in this show. She’s unafraid both to challenge her boss and to hear criticism of her own perspective. She’s just what we might imagine a younger Lola to be, and there’s so much potential in this relationship.

Even with so much to keep track of, this is Simone Missick’s episode. Lola’s raw breakdown upon making it home after the protests should be at the top of her Emmy submission tape. It comes from personal trauma and the rage of being targeted by a system still so racist at heart.

We can’t unbuckle our seat belts until the Lolacoaster has come to a complete stop, because two final twists take the ride on an intense veer through the emotional spectrum. First, Lola approaches Robin, quarantining in their guest house, to reveal her pregnancy.

Apart from the joyful news itself, this is the strongest evidence yet against going down a road where this marriage suffers at its long-distance status. I can’t imagine them splitting up with a baby on the way and am thrilled their marriage should stay as strong as ever.

In the final moments, a new crisis. There’s video of Lola saying the words “Defund the police” during her arrest. It’s already gone viral on social media, because of course it has.

Right now, this feels frustrating because it’s so obvious the clip is cut out of context. We also don’t exactly need another PR crisis with so much else going on in the moment. Lola will handle it and do so beautifully. But can’t we give her a break?

Other Notes

• Who’d have guessed it would be Emily and not Sherri to be so type A in getting people to follow every strict pandemic guideline? We love her all the more for it.
• I’m thrilled to see Sara’s family. It’s another moment that’s far too brief, but I hope it’s a sign the expanded backstory we’ve waited for is coming.
• Besides the busy storylines, having both new characters and guest stars turned regulars makes for a lot to keep up with. I’m optimistic it’ll balance out and hope it happens soon.  

 

What did you think of this episode of All Rise? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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All Rise airs Mondays at 9/8c on CBS.

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