Boston Legal – “Word Salad Days”

Boston Legal Season 2, Episode 12 (2005) features a bigamy case.

In this episode, Alena and Evette share their husband Ray. They live next door to each other, and someone is always home to help the kids with homework or emotional support. Evette works outside the home, and explains the benefit of polygyny for her because she doesn’t have to worry about her kids when she’s out of the house. Alena works in the home raising the children, and explains that polygyny benefits her because she gets released from sexual obligations when she’s too tired. Evette allows her to be alone at the end of the day when she wants, and eases the burden of childrearing into just a full time job, not a solitary 24/7 pursuit.

BELOW BE SPOILERS, Y’ARR!

Bigamy cases in legal dramas have been a recurring theme, one we will explore in this blog. Often, they do not end well or represent non-monogamy well. “Word Salad Days,” however, is an exception. Although the judge certainly rules the bigamy illegal, the characters on the show and the family all speak highly of the relationship. In a romantic gesture that has me wooed, Ray decides to divorce BOTH women rather than remaining preferentially legally married to only one. The show never addresses who was “first” wife. Everyone seems on equal footing.

• Canonically Poly
• Positive Portrayals