It looks like Matlock season 2 is going to bring back a popular character in a way that may surprise viewers. What does this mean for Matty?
Matlock has always relied on duplicity and that includes its own viewers. CBS had promoted the show as an update of the old 1980s Andy Griffith series with Oscar winner Kathy Bates as Madeline “Matty” Matlock. The former lawyer was coming out of retirement to join the law firm of Jacobson & Moore, using her age to disguise her smarts.
Just as viewers thought they knew where the show was going, it pulled the rug out from under them. Matty was a rich woman with a living husband and grandson, whose daughter had died of an opioid addiction. Matty was convinced that someone at Jacobson & Moore had buried evidence about the drugs and was searching for answers.
The series has been excellent, showing Matty working her secret search amid various legal cases. The season finale did have colleague Olympia (Skye P. Marshall) discover the truth about Matty and join her crusade, but others are in the dark.
This so far includes Shae Banfield (Yael Grobglas), a recurring character who’s the firm’s jury consultant. Nicknamed “the Meerkat,” Shae is quite skilled at figuring out how a jury thinks, mostly due to how she’s basically a living lie detector. This was obviously a danger for Matty, who was able to use clever wordplay to keep Shae from busting her.
The character returned later in the season with the stunning revelation that she was the reason for Olympia’s marriage to Julien (Jason Ritter) ended as Shae and Julien had an affair. Fans have been hopeful for a return, and it looks like it’ll happen.
How will Shae return to Matlock?
Speaking to TVLine, showrunner Jamie Snyder Urman confirmed Shae’s return with a tease on how she comes back.
“[Shae] will definitely be back this season. But the way in which she enters the story will be very surprising….”
That tease fits the series, which has relied on keeping viewers on their toes. After all, the show made it appear Olympia was completely fooled by Matty’s act, only to reveal she’d been onto Matty for quite a while. It’s thus possible that Shae likewise has had her own suspicions of Matty, she just lacks the evidence.
Shae may also enter not as part of the J&B team but now working for another firm. That could end up becoming a nightmare for Olympia and her team as they know first-hand how good Shae is at picking juries, only now it’s for the opposing side.
There’s also the continuing fallout of the Shae/Olympia/Julian dynamic, as Olympia obviously still holds bad feelings toward Shae over the affair, and the personal problems may be distracting on a case. Olympia doesn’t handle betrayal well, making it unlikely that she and Shae will ever be friends.
The character has been a standout on the series with her flat humor, conniving mind and blunt mannerisms. While fans obviously dislike how she broke up Olympia and Julian, Shae still connects with the rest of the cast, especially Bates. That chemistry is needed for another season and Shae deserves more time in the spotlight.
However Shae’s entrance works out, it’s another reason to be excited about Matlock season 2 with the show building to a big return!
Matlock season 2 premieres on Sunday, Oct. 12 at 8:30 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT on CBS, before moving to Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT.
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