All Rise Review: Leap of Faith (Season 2 Episode 16)

Save for a miracle or miraculous fan campaign, we are almost at the end of this show. All Rise Season 2 Episode 16, “Leap of Faith,” follows the painful cancellation news with a lot of mess to be turned around in a very short amount of time.

The idea of a single case bringing seven characters in at once should be a highly intriguing one. Emily, Amy, and Rachel all on one side, and Mark, Sam, and Carver on the other, all with Lola at the helm. The potential for dynamics should be endless.

Unfortunately, due to personal business happening outside of the courtroom, a lot of that gets bogged down in the kind of sniping that has long since become tiresome.  The majority of that is tied to continuing Mark and Amy drama.

The tedious nature of this is amplified by how much could be resolved through communication. Instead, one needs space while the other wants to talk and vice-verse—all over issues blown out of proportion by that very lack of talking.

Soon enough, the tension spreads amid the defense. Emily pulls away to defend one young man accused of murder, Amy and Rachel another. With the two former friendly clients now turning on each other, though, there’s at least the potential for intrigue here.

We see more of that with footage that seems to imply the boy defended by Amy and Rachel may be guilty after all. At the end of the episode, Amy alone has access and we’re left wondering what she’s going to do with it.

Recent episodes have brought her moral compass and dedication to her clients to the forefront, but this is a case where the two may be at odds if all is as it seems. I am confident she’ll do the right thing, but there’s a lot of weight to grapple with.

Outside the courtroom…yikes. Lola and Robin struggle with their workloads, Emily has moved forward with Joaquin during an off-screen time jump, and these each come to a head when both Robin and Emily may be called to leave LA.

Robin’s temporary but long-term departure is tied to his FBI work and all but certain. Emily is invited to Miami by Joaquin, an issue decidedly more up in the air. And Choi too, looks to be leaving when he’s unwittingly “promoted” to a new job in a new city.

If all these potential shakeups were happening earlier in the season, it would suggest that All Rise has been planning a natural end to the past two years. Instead, the short notice hints at issues meant to be dealt with in a season that will never come.

It makes the cancellation even more depressing, casting doubt on any hope of a satisfying ending. I’ll save my rant about networks waiting until the eleventh hour to announce cancellations, saying only that this is exactly why that sucks.

And still we must come back to Mark and Amy. When they finally get a chance to talk things out, we see a ray of hope. He lets go of his grudge about her marriage and they exchange “I love you”s. Moments later, she tries to end things.

They overwhelming question here is simply: why? Her reasoning is that she won’t drag him through her pain, but that’s exactly what he’s just offered to do. He refuses to walk away, and she kisses him back. So what’s the point?

The good news is that that the promo for the season/now-series finale decisively implies that they may at last be able to move on to higher ground. Against all odds, I’m hoping their relationship is one aspect of the show to get the final showing it deserves.

Also, while in this moment I feel the episode before this one could have been a far better swan song, there are plenty of moments that remind us that All Rise is a superb show and that, in turn, make it still harder to say goodbye.

In a sign that relationships can feel complex and real without being weighed down by angst, Lisa is poised to take a major and life-changing step forward with Georgia. Her nerves over it are a lovely reflection of how human she is under that poised demeanor.

I’m even more excited about the fact that the hints between Ness and Sam fans have been picking up on for several episodes are real. Again, turn to the finale promo for proof. I am very much on board this new ship and the bisexual representation.

We also get to see careers on the verge of positive change. Sara and Ness are both set up for steps forward while Luke is pressed to choose between a future with the DA and a job offer from August Fox, who could offer a lifelong career in restorative justice.

I’m excited for all three of them, but the idea of seeing an ongoing storyline dedicated to Fox’s work is one of the opportunities I’m most sorry we’ll miss out on. It’s yet another outlet for relevant and timely storytelling, and we know Luke could be amazing at it.

Lola herself does what she can to control this circus and make a bid to be re-elected as a judge. The threat to her career is bad enough, but now I’m just hoping we don’t leave off on a cliffhanger. If nothing else, can we at least end with our heroine right where she belongs?

 

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

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