Review: It's way too much fun to watch Kathy Bates in CBS' 'Matlock' reboot

Did you have "Kathy Bates plays a septuagenarian lawyer in a shockingly good 'Matlock' reboot on CBS" on your 2024 TV bingo card? Because I sure didn't!

But in this day and age on TV − with the chaos of streaming and the decline of traditional broadcast − there's no limit to the Mad-Libs-style shenanigans we'll see when it comes to what makes it on the air. And it's even more of a roll of the dice to find out which remake or reboot of the week is actually good and popular. Or, dare I say it, both!

So here we are, and here is Bates, venerated thespian and Oscar-winner, donning sensible suits and a legal notebook as Madeline "Matty" Matlock in, well, "Matlock" (sneak preview Sunday, 8 EDT/PDT, moves to 9 EDT/PDT Thursdays on Oct. 17, ★★★½ out of four). And while it could have been a train wreck of an intellectual property grab (we're looking at you, "Murphy Brown" revival), it is actually a darling little legal drama. Bates, 76, is a doll, the cast is charming and the legal-plots-of-the-week are compelling. For those who miss a "Good Wife"-style procedural in their lives, it might just scratch an itch. And offer you a hard candy.

Join our Watch Party!Sign up to receive USA TODAY's movie and TV recommendations right in your inbox

Because that's the whole schtick of "Matlock" this time around. Andy Griffith played a disarming and powerful defense attorney as Ben Matlock in the original 1986-1995 series, but Bates isn't who you would pick as the most dominating lawyer in the room just by looking at her.

Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.

Her version of Matlock is a seemingly timid, sweet old lady that no one sees coming when she goes for the jugular. Her Matty is a lawyer too, but a corporate one, back in the workforce after long absent years due to personal trauma. She wheedles her way into a fancy firm and starts showing the youngsters what's what, all while pursuing her own agenda (there's a fabulous twist at the end of the first episode that I won't spoil, but just make sure you watch until the end).

Matty surprises not only the audience and her legal enemies but also her co-workers and superiors, like boss Olympia (Skye P. Marshall), a Black woman and top-notch attorney who has had to work harder than her peers to get where she is in her career. Olympia is constantly battling her ex-husband and firm nepo-baby Julian (Jason Ritter, who does good smarm). Matty is a thorn in Olympia's side and a fresh career competition for junior associates Billy (David Del Rio) and Sarah (Leah Lewis). Watching the Madeline-instigated sideshow with amused disinterest is head firm honcho Senior (Beau Bridges), who seems to hire Madeline as a private joke, but watches her closely.

It's a big cast but creator Jennie Snyder Urman ("Jane the Virgin," "Charmed") has balanced the ensemble well in the humorous and well-paced scripts. In the first two episodes made available for review, there's been time to get to know everyone and win two different legal battles. The best procedurals can do both, and "Matlock," especially after its big twist, certainly has ambitions as big as some of our best procedurals.

We may not get the sweeping courtroom declarations that Griffith often deployed as Ben Matlock, but there's something equally (or even more) compelling about the quiet competence that Bates' performance radiates. Her age is an asset, not a handicap. Matty is the sum of her life experience and takes advantage of the quick judgments of others. It is always cheering to root for the underdog, especially such an adorable one.

When Max's "Hacks" − which stars Jean Smart, age 73 − won a boatload of Emmys last weekend, there was a lot of talk about making TV for and about people above a certain age. I'd argue that "Matlock" isn't just for the Boomers. It's yet more proof that stories about humans (and especially women) across the whole spectrum of our lives can be compelling. Matty Matlock can be a hero just like any of the young bucks on the latest Marvel show.

Great storytelling has no retirement age.