# Matlock (1986)

> A folksy, cantankerous Atlanta attorney who charges a premium solves murders in the courtroom by spotting the clues everyone else overlooked.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/1984

## Facts

- Seasons: 9
- Episodes: 194
- Episode runtime: 45 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: crime, drama
- Created by: Dean Hargrove
- Network: NBC, ABC
- Cast: Andy Griffith, Clarence Gilyard Jr., Kene Holliday, Carol Huston, Julie Sommars, Nancy Stafford, Kari Lizer, Brynn Thayer
- TMDB rating: 7.2/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0090481/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: mild
- Complexity: simple
- Violence: mild
- Tone: lighthearted, folksy, comforting, witty, dramatic

## What critics say

Viewers broadly regard Matlock as a reliable, folksy courtroom mystery whose early seasons were uneven and whose later seasons were consistently well received.

## Synopsis

Matlock is an American network legal drama that ran for nine seasons on NBC and later ABC. Andy Griffith stars as Ben Matlock, a folksy, cantankerous criminal defense attorney who charges a premium for his services and drives a Ford Crown Victoria, usually wearing his trademark light-gray suit. A rotating team supports him in the courtroom. Each episode is a self-contained murder case: Matlock takes on a client accused of a killing, then uses a sharp eye for overlooked physical clues to expose the real culprit in a dramatic courtroom climax. The format is a case-of-the-week procedural built on a steady rhythm of investigation, cross-examination and reveal rather than a continuing serial. The tone is lighthearted and comforting, with dry, homespun wit cutting through the courtroom tension. Its recurring pleasures are the lead's down-home charm, the satisfaction of a well-timed reveal, and the reassurance that careful observation can unmask deceit. Fans of Perry Mason, Murder, She Wrote and Boston Legal will find resonance in its folksy lead and mystery-driven legal structure.

## Shows like Matlock

- [In the Heat of the Night (1988)](https://ember.film/tv/814)
- [Petrocelli (1974)](https://ember.film/tv/10859)
- [Jake and the Fatman (1987)](https://ember.film/tv/4301)
- [All Rise (2019)](https://ember.film/tv/77015)
- [L.A. Law (1986)](https://ember.film/tv/694)
- [Murder One (1995)](https://ember.film/tv/3064)
- [Diagnosis: Murder (1993)](https://ember.film/tv/2494)
- [Barnaby Jones (1973)](https://ember.film/tv/554)
- [Bull (2016)](https://ember.film/tv/58862)
- [Ally McBeal (1997)](https://ember.film/tv/1396)

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