Summary
- Suits L.A. should avoid copying Suits' photographic memory gimmick.
- Mike's photographic memory was never the most interesting thing about Suits.
- Suits L.A.'s main characters should have no gimmicks.
new Suits show set in Los Angeles following the original series’ massive success on Netflix. The legal procedural, which ran for nine seasons between 2011 and 2019, has outperformed series like Wednesday and Stranger Things on the platform and continues to find new audiences more than four years after it ended.
The new Suits series will have the difficult mission of recapturing the magic of its predecessor. Some things would happen in every Suits episode, meaning there are plenty of tropes Suits L.A. could recreate if it wants to feel like the original show. However, there are only so many elements the new series can borrow from Suits. The L.A. spinoff, which will take place in an entertainment law farm and will star Stephen Amell, Erica Rollins, and Josh McDermitt, will eventually have to find its own tone. For that to work, Suits L.A. should ditch one major aspect of Suits' story.
Suits L.A. Shouldn’t Copy Suits’ Photographic Memory Gimmick
Given all the compelling characters and interesting case features throughout every Suits episode he was part of.
Mike’s photographic memory continued to be used throughout the series, often working as a Deus ex machina that conventionally solved all the problems in the final minutes of the episode. This is something Suits L.A. should not try to replicate. It would be very odd if either Ted Black or Erica Rollins, two of the spinoffs’ new characters, happened to have the same unique photographic memory skill Mike had in the original show. There are many elements Suits L.A. should aim at replicating from the original series, but Mike’s gimmick is not one of them.
Mike’s Photographic Memory Was Never The Best Thing About Suits
Procedurals featuring Sherlock Holmes-inspired characters with a gimmick were a receipt for success in the 2000s and early 2010s, from Monk and Psych to House and The Mentalist. Regardless if the protagonist in question was a doctor, a detective, or a lawyer, this format of procedural in which the case of the week could only be solved with the help of a unique skill that only the main character had worked very well for many TV shows. However, unlike most of its contemporary procedurals, Suits was never really defined by its gimmick.
Not only shouldn’t Suits L.A. give Mike’s photographic memory to another character, but it should not have any gimmicks at all.
The reasons why Suits remains so popular to this day have to do with how well-written the characters were and how interesting the cases of the week were as well. There is a long list of elements that made Suits so good, starting with the chemistry between Harvey Spector and Mike Ross, and the photographic memory is at the bottom of it. Mike didn’t need an absurdly convenient, almost unrealistic skill to justify his character being good at his job, even though it led to some fun moments throughout the show.
Suits Cast & Character Guide
The USA Network's long-running legal drama Suits featured a wide array of acting talent from established veterans to up-and-coming stars.
It seems that Suits underestimated itself by deg the series around Mike’s photographic memory, almost as if it was trying to match what other popular procedurals of that era were doing. Still, Suits quickly grew beyond its original premise, and while Mike’s gimmick was never abandoned, the show became much more than that. A version of Suits where Mike was just very smart but didn’t have an unrealistic photographic memory would likely still have worked, which is why the Suits L.A. spinoff shouldn’t bother with coming up with new gimmicks for its new protagonists.
Suits L.A.’s Main Characters Shouldn’t Have Any Gimmicks
Not only shouldn’t Suits L.A. give Mike’s photographic memory to another character, but it should not have any gimmicks at all. So far, nothing in the official descriptions for Suits L.A.’s characters suggests that there will be anything like Mike’s special ability, which is good news. Stephen Amell’s Ted Black is described as a powerful lawyer who wants to build a law empire in California; Josh McDermitt’s Stuart Lane is expected to be a self-absorbed lawyer, and Lex Scott Davis' Erica Rollins will be a " savvy and strong-willed rising star" who works for Ted Black.
Suits L.A. Cast (so far) |
|
|---|---|
Actor |
Character |
Stephen Amell |
Ted Black |
Josh McDermitt |
Stuart Lane |
Lex Scott Davis |
Erica Rollins |
All of these descriptions refer to the personalities and careers of the Suits L.A. characters and do not mention any type of special skill or gimmick. Granted, there could still be more about these characters that the official descriptions are not revealing. Still, as of now, it seems like Suits’ spinoff show is rightfully going in a different direction from the original show. Suit L.A. can be the answer to the question of what Suits would have been like without Mike’s photographic memory, instead offering a slightly more realistic legal drama.
What Suits L.A. Should Copy From Suits
Suits’ fast-paced episodes, compelling cases of the week, and the chemistry between the main characters are some of the elements Suits L.A. should try to incorporate from the original show. That is not to say Suits L.A. should actually copy the previous series, only that it should not lose track of what made the legal procedural so good. Having a strong set of protagonists with whom audiences can quickly connect will be essential for Suits L.A., especially because there will be a lot of comparisons between the new show and the previous one.
Suits L.A. is expected to premiere in late 2024 or early 2025.
Suits dominating Netflix several years after the show ended means the bar will be very high for Suits L.A. The spinoff will have to deal with a level of expectations that the original show did not, even more so because many hoped that there would be a Suits revival. Whether any Suits characters will appear in Suits L.A. remains to be seen, but this should not be essential for the spinoff to work. Suits L.A. can be a worthy spiritual successor to Suits while also being its own thing.
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Suits LA follows Ted Black, a former federal prosecutor who now represents influential clients in Los Angeles. As his law firm faces a critical juncture, Ted must navigate the challenges of a role he once disdained, balancing moral dilemmas with the demands of high-stakes legal battles.
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Suits is a legal drama series that premiered in 2011, centering on Mike Ross, a college dropout with a photographic memory who lands a job at a top New York law firm despite lacking a law degree. Partnering with one of the city's best legal closers, Harvey Specter, they navigate the challenges of high-stakes cases and firm dynamics.
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