13 Best TV Moments Of 2016 (So Far)
4. Marcia's Breakdown - The People V. O.J. Simpson
Given the rich drama that already existed in O.J. Simpson's murder trial - dubbed the Trial of the Century - the need for a dramatised version was questionable, as was whether or not they could do it justice, and present a worthy, captivating tale to accompany the real life one, without it just descending into cheap parody.
The answer to both was a resounding yes. With some great writing talent and a phenomenal cast, The People V. O.J. Simpson - the latest from serial anthologiser Ryan Murphy, given the overarching tag of American Crime Story - became one of the very best TV shows of 2016 so far.
The whole cast was excellent, delivering on-point takes of the real life people they're representing, but bringing plenty of depth so that they didn't just feel like paper tracings, and a mention must go to David Schwimmer repeatedly saying "Juice." But the standout was Sarah Paulson as Marcia Clark, who brought so much to a character who had been vilified at the time of the trial, and completely left behind since.
Her crowning moment came in the sixth episode, aptly titled Marcia, Marcia, Marcia. It's the episode centred on one of the most notorious elements of the trial: Marcia Clark's hair.
Clark strides into the courtroom confident in her new 'do, only for everyone, even the defence team and the judge, to simply stare and call question to it. There's a complete character assassination of her in the tabloids, which is brought up in the courts, and Paulson does a fantastic job as Clark tries to stay composed, but ultimately breaks. The scene's not a pleasant one, highlighting how horribly treated Clark was (though some areas were dramatised) and presenting a critique of how women in such positions are treated compared to their male counterparts, but it's important, and one that should be heading up Paulson's highlight reel for the Emmys.