Difference between revisions of "Suits"
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| − | '''''Suits''''' is an American drama television series created and written by Aaron Korsh. | + | '''''Suits''''' is an American drama television series created and written by Aaron Korsh. It is a legal drama about a fictional New York law firm that follows a Harvard graduate lawyer, Harvey Specter, and Mike Ross, a college dropout with a photographic memory (pretending to have a Harvard law degree). The story primarily focuses on Harvey and Mike solving cases while maintaining Mike's secret. The show ran for 9 seasons on USA Network from 2011 to 2019, and was nominated for several awards including best drama. The show was popular enough to have a spinoff series, ''Pearson'', that follows character Jessica Pearson in Chicago politics. [[File:Suits.jpg|thumbnail|right|Suits TV Poster]] |
==Characters== | ==Characters== | ||
===Harvey Specter=== | ===Harvey Specter=== | ||
| − | A big shot Harvard lawyer working at Pearson Hardman | + | A big shot Harvard lawyer working at Pearson Hardman who is rumored to be the greatest closer in all of New York. He hires Mike Ross to be his personal associate, despite knowing that Mike never went to law school (this is illegal). Harvey tries to win cases at all costs other than by breaking the law. |
===Mike Ross=== | ===Mike Ross=== | ||
| − | Mike Ross works as an associate | + | Mike Ross works as an associate to Harvey Specter at Pearson Hardman. He was accepted to Harvard as a transfer student but was later rejected after the school learned he sold a college math test. He has a photographic memory and the expert knowledge of anything after he reads it once. |
===Rachel Zane=== | ===Rachel Zane=== | ||
| − | Rachel Zane is a paralegal | + | Rachel Zane is a paralegal who works at Pearson Hardman. She is the daughter of Robert Zane. Her dream is to become a Harvard lawyer like her father, but she must first pass the LSATs to get into law school. Her father has doubts of Rachel's abilities as she has been a paralegal for six years. |
===Jessica Pearson=== | ===Jessica Pearson=== | ||
| − | Jessica Pearson is | + | Jessica Pearson is a name partner of Pearson Hardman. She and Harvey have a close trusting relationship as she was his mentor, even funding him to go to law school. She is the only African American, female name partner in all of New York. Jessica is intelligent and cunning throughout the series. Jessica has made many sacrifices throughout her career to get to her position, including personal relationships, having a family, and having to be relentless and portrayed as mean in order to become a well respected woman of power. |
===Louis Litt=== | ===Louis Litt=== | ||
| − | Louis Litt is a Harvard lawyer working at Pearson Hardman. He is the head of associates, including Mike Ross. He bleeds loyalty to Pearson Hardman and produces some of the highest billables for the firm. | + | Louis Litt is a Harvard lawyer working at Pearson Hardman. He is the head of associates, including Mike Ross. He bleeds loyalty to Pearson Hardman and Harvard Law, and produces some of the highest billables for the firm. |
===Donna Paulsen=== | ===Donna Paulsen=== | ||
| − | Donna Paulsen is Harvey Specter’s secretary. She and Harvey have a special relationship that makes them work great together. Donna is known to read people and situations without much context. She met Harvey when he first started working for the | + | Donna Paulsen is Harvey Specter’s secretary. She and Harvey have a special relationship that makes them work great together. Donna is known to read people and situations without much context, and is very important to the firm. Although her position is technically secretary, she does much more and contributes meaningful work to many of the firm's cases. She met Harvey when he first started working for the District Attorney’s office and moved with him to Pearson Hardman when he quit. |
===Robert Zane=== | ===Robert Zane=== | ||
| − | Robert Zane is the father of Rachel Zane. He is one of the name partners at Rand, Kaldor, and Zane. | + | Robert Zane is the father of Rachel Zane. He is one of the name partners at Rand, Kaldor, and Zane, a competing firm of Pearson Hardman. |
===Show Direction=== | ===Show Direction=== | ||
| − | Aaron Korsh is the writer of | + | Aaron Korsh is the writer of ''Suits''. Korsh also wrote for classic shows such as "Everybody Loves Raymond", "Just Shoot Me!" and many other sitcoms. Suits was an interesting choice for Korsh because it is not a sitcom. <ref> https://deadline.com/2019/09/suits-series-finale-post-mortem-recap-creator-aaron-korsh-qa-ending-spoilers-abigail-spencer-meghan-markle-gina-torres-1202745010/ </ref> |
| − | The wardrobes in | + | The wardrobes in Suits is also notable. Harvey dresses in thick ties and looser suites while Mike has a more European style of dressing. This plays into their power dynamic as Mike is a junior associate. Both men wear signature three piece tailored suits. Other cast members in the show such as Rachel Zane also follow this form. <ref> https://suits.fandom.com/wiki/Errors_and_Omissions </ref> |
==Success Of Suits== | ==Success Of Suits== | ||
| − | One | + | One reason that Suits might have been so popular is the aura of sophistication and confidence that Harvey Specter exudes when he walks into a room. <ref> https://standard.asl.org/6269/culture/the-success-of-suits/ </ref>. The shows screams with classy attire, swagger, and overall brilliance. The setting of New York City only adds to the desire for the viewer to be part of the story. |
| − | + | Suits revolves around Mike Ross who is a law associate with a photographic memory. His character forged papers to make it seem as if he graduated from Harvard Law School (the only law school that Pearson Hardman hires from). This is a secret that him and Harvey keep for a very long time. The most gravitating part of the show is the dynamic duo of Harvey and Mike. Their Batman-and-Robin-like relationship makes the show binge worthy, similar to shows like as "White Collar". | |
| − | Another | + | Another noteworthy component of the show is the relationship between Mike and Rachel Zane. They develop a romantic connection which adds to the mystery and desire of the series. <ref> https://screenrant.com/suits-behind-scenes-hidden-secrets-facts-trivia/ </ref> |
==Ethical Concerns== | ==Ethical Concerns== | ||
Revision as of 15:15, 6 April 2021
Suits is an American drama television series created and written by Aaron Korsh. It is a legal drama about a fictional New York law firm that follows a Harvard graduate lawyer, Harvey Specter, and Mike Ross, a college dropout with a photographic memory (pretending to have a Harvard law degree). The story primarily focuses on Harvey and Mike solving cases while maintaining Mike's secret. The show ran for 9 seasons on USA Network from 2011 to 2019, and was nominated for several awards including best drama. The show was popular enough to have a spinoff series, Pearson, that follows character Jessica Pearson in Chicago politics.
Contents
Characters
Harvey Specter
A big shot Harvard lawyer working at Pearson Hardman who is rumored to be the greatest closer in all of New York. He hires Mike Ross to be his personal associate, despite knowing that Mike never went to law school (this is illegal). Harvey tries to win cases at all costs other than by breaking the law.
Mike Ross
Mike Ross works as an associate to Harvey Specter at Pearson Hardman. He was accepted to Harvard as a transfer student but was later rejected after the school learned he sold a college math test. He has a photographic memory and the expert knowledge of anything after he reads it once.
Rachel Zane
Rachel Zane is a paralegal who works at Pearson Hardman. She is the daughter of Robert Zane. Her dream is to become a Harvard lawyer like her father, but she must first pass the LSATs to get into law school. Her father has doubts of Rachel's abilities as she has been a paralegal for six years.
Jessica Pearson
Jessica Pearson is a name partner of Pearson Hardman. She and Harvey have a close trusting relationship as she was his mentor, even funding him to go to law school. She is the only African American, female name partner in all of New York. Jessica is intelligent and cunning throughout the series. Jessica has made many sacrifices throughout her career to get to her position, including personal relationships, having a family, and having to be relentless and portrayed as mean in order to become a well respected woman of power.
Louis Litt
Louis Litt is a Harvard lawyer working at Pearson Hardman. He is the head of associates, including Mike Ross. He bleeds loyalty to Pearson Hardman and Harvard Law, and produces some of the highest billables for the firm.
Donna Paulsen
Donna Paulsen is Harvey Specter’s secretary. She and Harvey have a special relationship that makes them work great together. Donna is known to read people and situations without much context, and is very important to the firm. Although her position is technically secretary, she does much more and contributes meaningful work to many of the firm's cases. She met Harvey when he first started working for the District Attorney’s office and moved with him to Pearson Hardman when he quit.
Robert Zane
Robert Zane is the father of Rachel Zane. He is one of the name partners at Rand, Kaldor, and Zane, a competing firm of Pearson Hardman.
Show Direction
Aaron Korsh is the writer of Suits. Korsh also wrote for classic shows such as "Everybody Loves Raymond", "Just Shoot Me!" and many other sitcoms. Suits was an interesting choice for Korsh because it is not a sitcom. [1]
The wardrobes in Suits is also notable. Harvey dresses in thick ties and looser suites while Mike has a more European style of dressing. This plays into their power dynamic as Mike is a junior associate. Both men wear signature three piece tailored suits. Other cast members in the show such as Rachel Zane also follow this form. [2]
Success Of Suits
One reason that Suits might have been so popular is the aura of sophistication and confidence that Harvey Specter exudes when he walks into a room. [3]. The shows screams with classy attire, swagger, and overall brilliance. The setting of New York City only adds to the desire for the viewer to be part of the story.
Suits revolves around Mike Ross who is a law associate with a photographic memory. His character forged papers to make it seem as if he graduated from Harvard Law School (the only law school that Pearson Hardman hires from). This is a secret that him and Harvey keep for a very long time. The most gravitating part of the show is the dynamic duo of Harvey and Mike. Their Batman-and-Robin-like relationship makes the show binge worthy, similar to shows like as "White Collar".
Another noteworthy component of the show is the relationship between Mike and Rachel Zane. They develop a romantic connection which adds to the mystery and desire of the series. [4]
Ethical Concerns
Femininity in Mass Media
The media has had an issue with the representation of women in the past. Many shows in the past follow stereotypes of men and women. In TV dramas and sitcoms, women tend to be represented more as mothers, nurses, and secretaries while men tend to be represented by dominant roles that display aggression, strength, and action [5]. Suits does a great job at breaking this trend. Many of the characters have traits that do not fit these stereotypical roles. Some very good examples are of characters like Jessica Pearson, Louis Litt, and Rachel Zane. Jessica Pearson is the head of the law firm that Harvey and Mike work at. She is portrayed as an intelligent leader that understands much of the world around her. Louis Litt is a partner at the firm that produces the highest billables. He appreciates things like ballets, mudding, origami, and tennis. Rachel Zane is a paralegal of the firm. Throughout the series, she is shown to make it on her own without her parents’ success, be a part-time employee and student, and an excellent lawyer among her peers.
Racism and Media
Racism has been a major issue with the media since the beginning. Many early forms of entertainment media films portrayed African Americans as savages, ignorants, and potential rapists. White actors would also be painted black to play the roles of African Americans, insinuating that African Americans were not good enough to play their roles. This has had the effect of influencing peoples’ racial perceptions [6]. Suits cast many important supporting characters as African American, most notably Jessica Pearson and Robert Zane. These characters show multidimensional development through their struggles to become who they are today. They are both portrayed as strong respectable managing partners of their law firms.
Ethics of Lawyering
Being a show about lawyers, the show touches over many ethical concepts in lawyering. In our legal system, everyone has the right to representation and it's their lawyer's job to represent them regardless of their personal opinion [7]. However, the ethics of this situation are debated. Is it ethical to represent someone who committed a crime with substantial evidence against them the same way as someone with little evidence for a minor crime? The show does a great job trying not to place bias on viewers on what to do in these cases. For such a popular show, it is important to not impose beliefs on how ethics should be handled to viewers. Suits stay by generally agreed-upon fundamentals of integrity. The main characters never perjure themselves, falsify testimony, or do anything illegal in court. All of the outcomes of cases favor the party that was portrayed to be in the right.
- ↑ https://deadline.com/2019/09/suits-series-finale-post-mortem-recap-creator-aaron-korsh-qa-ending-spoilers-abigail-spencer-meghan-markle-gina-torres-1202745010/
- ↑ https://suits.fandom.com/wiki/Errors_and_Omissions
- ↑ https://standard.asl.org/6269/culture/the-success-of-suits/
- ↑ https://screenrant.com/suits-behind-scenes-hidden-secrets-facts-trivia/
- ↑ Chandler, Daniel. “Television and Gender Roles” http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Modules/TF33120/gendertv.html#E
- ↑ Kulaszewicz, Kassia E.. (2015). Racism and the Media: A Textual Analysis. Retrieved from Sophia, the St. Catherine University repository website: https://sophia.stkate.edu/msw_papers/477
- ↑ Sharon Dolovich, Ethical Lawyering and the Possiblity of Integrity, 70 Fordham L. Rev. 1629 (2002). Available at: https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/flr/vol70/iss5/8
