Elsbeth Tascioni had a wild experience in season 2 of her hit show. What could be coming for her in Elsbeth season 3?
When Elsbeth premiered in 2024, it seemed an offbeat idea. Fans of The Good Wife and The Good Fight had come to love Elsbeth Tascioni, the brilliant and wildly eccentric attorney played by Carrie Preston. Her performance even earned her an Emmy award, and her guest-star appearances were fun.
Giving Elsbeth her own TV show was already unusual, but then the decision to have it be a crime mystery series with Elsbeth aiding the NYPD. The show has been a success thanks to Preston’s performance as well as the clever conceit that the episodes open showing the audience who the guest star murderer is. It then becomes the fun of watching Elsbeth figure it out.
The show has become a surprise hit, with a third season coming that may shift Elsbeth up majorly!
What happened to Elsbeth in season 2?
Season 2 was a big shift for Elsbeth. Having wrapped up her investigation of Captain Wagner that exonerated him of corruption accusations, Elsbeth was now welcomed as a consultant to the NYPD, paired with loyal patrolwoman Kaya Blanke, who was hoping to become a detective.
Elsbeth continued to face off against killers and was mostly able to beat them. An exception was Judge Crawford (played by Preston’s real-life husband, Michael Emerson), who killed a man who could have exposed Crawford accidentally killing a woman back in college. Crawford then presided over the trial of the woman he framed for the death.
Elsbeth happened to be on the jury, convincing the other jurors to find the woman not guilty. She was instantly suspicious of Crawford and the pair soon engaged in a wicked fight. That included Crawford exposing Elsbeth’s unwitting culpability in suppressing evidence of a domestic abuser in a past case, muddying her name. Elsbeth was able to free herself from attorney-client privilege so she could testify to the truth.
Crawford kept up the pressure, which also targeted Wagner, Kaya, and even Elsbeth’s son, Teddy, who was visiting her. Elsbeth couldn’t find the evidence of his past crime, but it became moot when the woman Crawford had framed for the murder he committed shot the man dead. Elsbeth was more upset that Crawford escaped justice.
It wasn’t all bad for Elsbeth as during a case, she hit it off with Angus (Ioan Gruffudd), a handsome Scotsman and they had a brief fling before he returned home. She also got to see Kaya graduate to become a full detective.
The last two episodes saw Elsbeth arrested for attempting to pursue a wealthy heir for murder. The hard-nosed judge sentenced her to the very same jail housing several of the killers she’d put away. When one turned up dead, Elsbeth had to solve the crime.
Thankfully, Wagner and Kaya were able to prove that the judge was corrupt, so Elsbeth was freed. It was bittersweet as Kaya had just gotten a transfer to a special task force, with Elsbeth toasting her at her farewell party.
That was all a lot to take in for Elsbeth, so how can season 3 work for her?
What’s coming for Elsbeth in Elsbeth season 3?
The first big change for Elsbeth is being without Kaya. The pair were good friends as well as a fine crime-solving team. Elsbeth will likely get a new patrol officer to aid her in cases. It might be a pack of rotating cops, much like the rotating detectives on the show.
Speaking to TV Insider, showrunner Jonathan Tollins hinted that the fallout of Crawford’s death will reverberate in how Elsbeth approaches cases. It’s also likely that Elsbeth may run into more folks who worked with Crawford and take a dim view of her. We might also see the return of past faces.
"We are not done looking at what happens to some of our people after Elsbeth seems to be finished with them in their original episode.”
Preston herself talked to The Wrap about possible new plots for Elsbeth season 3, which may mean the return of Angus and Elsbeth throwing herself into the job.
“More relationships with people. Seeing how Elsbeth deals with her best friend going to another job — what’s going to fill that void, if anything? Deepening the relationship with Teddy and seeing if there could be more of a romance with Angus (played by Ioan Gruffudd). But mostly, digging into the work. That’s what this show is about — a woman reinventing herself through her work.”
Losing Kaya will shake Elsbeth up a bit and she may throw herself a bit too much into work as a distraction. That could mean a slightly different attitude even if Elsbeth will retain her quirks like those huge tote bags and fashions. It can also mean her dealing with the backlash over Crawford’s death.
It would be good to see more of Elsbeth’s personal life as she’s now used to living in New York. It’d also be wonderful if she meets up with Angus or some other love interest (it’s established Elsbeth has the odd tendency to attract firefighters). She and Wagner can also bond more as friends out of the office.
At least we can be sure Elsbeth will continue to find justice while matching up against big guest star killers to make this show a delight for crime watchers.
Elsbeth season 3 premieres this fall Thursdays at 10/9c on CBS.
Stay tuned to Precinct TV for news and updates.