'The Good Wife' Shocker: 10 Thoughts On Why It May Be A Good Thing (Maybe?)

Now that a day or two has passed, I have a few thoughts about Sunday's episode of "The Good Wife ." These musings are not definitive; they're a bit tentative and fluid. What follows is a partial list of reactions, proposals and ideas to Sunday's shocking development . And don't read on unless you've seen the episode, obviously.

The short version of what's below: I'm cautiously optimistic about what occurred on the CBS drama (and Ryan McGee and I expanded on these ideas in this week's Talking TV with Ryan and Ryan podcast ). Actor Josh Charles, who played Will Gardner, will be missed, without a doubt. But overall, I'm leaning toward the idea that his sudden death will give the show the kind of dramatic fuel it tends to use best.

Without further ado, here are 10 reactions to Sunday's episode of "The Good Wife":

1. Alicia is a character who likes to keep all of her options open and who enjoys maintaining control of complex situations. The death of Will takes an option away from her -- an option that she would not have given up, personally or professionally, if she had had a choice. But she doesn't have a choice, and she doesn't have control over the things that may occur now that Will's dead. "The Good Wife" is often at its best when Alicia is uncertain, reactive and trying to regain her balance. She's come a long way from the person she was when the show began -- she's far more competent and collected in tough spots -- hence the need to shake her up to her core.

I hope to write about "The Good Wife" again in a few weeks and share some thoughts on how the show handled the post-Will fallout. Let's meet back here after we've seen where Alicia and company go next.

This week's Talking TV with Ryan and Ryan podcast , in which Ryan McGee and I also talked about "Cosmos," "Surviving Jack" and "Call the Midwife," can be found here , on iTunes, and below.