ELLE

FULL SEASON REVIEW - 8 EPISODES

Elle is truly pink, bubbling with the optimism and determination that made Elle Woods one of cinema’s most iconic lawyers, giving an enjoyable origin story to her passion for justice anchored by a pitch perfect performance by Lexi Minetree even if the series never truly justifies its existence.

Back in 2001, Reese Witherspoon gave one of her most iconic performances of her career as Elle Woods, taking this sorority girl blonde to the most unexpected place imaginable: Harvard Law School. Legally Blonde was not only a box office success, but Elle’s inspiring story made her a feminist screen icon that inspired many female viewers to pursue a career in law. While the long anticipated third film has been in development for years as Witherspoon and her creative team search for the perfect story to bring Elle back to the big screen with, audiences are headed back to high school this summer to meet Elle Woods before she bent and snapped her way through law school in Elle. With a radiant performance from Lexi Minetree who takes over the iconic pink heels from Witherspoon with absolute ease, there is more than enough fun and pink to be had in the Seattle suburbs in the first season of this origin series even if the writing never leaves enough room for the character to grow into the law student audiences love and know.

When young actors take on iconic roles, there is always hesitation because they have to fill incredibly big shoes, and Elle Woods is one of those characters. Witherspoon’s performance helped create one of the most iconic comedies of the 2000s, but not only is Minetree a worthy successor for the role, she embodies every bit of Witherspoon in her pitch performance. Not only is her appearance uncanny to a young Witherspoon, but the way Minetree presents herself as Elle embodies the iconic character in every way imaginable. From the way Minetree holds herself, the way she walks as Elle, to the ease that her comparisons to her life to events of Days of Our Lives roll off her tongue, it feels like you are watching a young Witherspoon reincarnate on screen. But beyond that, it is the endless bubbly optimism, determination and caring nature that Minetree builds her performance around that captures a younger, albeit more naive, Elle that creates a headstrong young woman who will one day take Harvard Law School by storm. With Minetree’s excellent performance at the forefront of the television series, it’s a delight to see Elle Woods once again on our screens… even if it is not in the long anticipated and ever in development Legally Blonde 3.

While there is no dethroning the luminous performance of Minetree as Elle, the supporting cast is just as delightful. June Diane Raphael is a scene stealer as Elle’s mother Eva, delivering constant laughter as Elle’s privileged mother struggling to cope with the move to Seattle and parting her fashion and high society wisdom to Elle, leaning heavily into the blonde stereotype. It's no surprise that Raphael is a brilliant comedic force in this series, while at the same time the caring mother-daughter bond she creates with Minetree adds to the series’ heart. Tom Everett Scott plays Elle’s father Wyatt with an intelligent aloofness that creates a noble character beyond the shallow one scene appearance Wyatt had in the original film, while the young cast members of Chandler Kinney, Gabrielle Policano, Zac Looker and Jacob Moskovitz are all great along Minetree, notably Moskovitz whose small town boy next door charm creates fireworks with Minetree throughout the season.

As excellent as Minetree is as Elle and carries the entirety of the series confidently on her shoulders, the first season of Elle struggles narratively at times. The writing itself is never short of callbacks to the original Legally Blonde film, with mentions of law school, repeating some of its most memorable lines, and even allows Elle’s fashion knowledge to help her to make a discovery that no one other than a blonde could make, which creates a sense of fun throughout the season and elicits some good laughs. The high school drama is entertaining enough, tapping into a young adult love triangle that will no doubt appeal to younger viewers and introduce them to this iconic character, even if the mystery that Elle eventually finds herself in the position to solve feels a little too far fetched for the character and takes too long to get truly going. It is the relationship between Elle and her mother Eva that grounds the series, finding an undeniable heart and helping Elle become her own individual outside of her mother’s shadow that gives the series a character focused purpose even without Eva teaching Elle the iconic bend and snap this season.

But, at the same time, for a series revolving around giving one of cinema’s most iconic lawyers an origin story, the writing falls short in that area. The version of Elle we see in the series never feels too far off from the law school student we first met in Legally Blonde, giving no room for the character to grow over the coming seasons into that unstoppable young woman, nor does it create a narrative that shapes her into that woman. It very much feels like Elle has always been a fighter for justice and the smartest and most underestimated woman in the room, and while she is still that same lovable force of nature, it never justifies why audiences needed a young Elle Woods origin story other than just to be an excuse to visit this beloved character once again.

Pink has always been Elle Woods’ colour, and there is no shortage of it in Elle. From the costume design for Elle and Eva and the set decoration of Elle’s room, the fashion forward and glamour of Elle Woods is never lost. This greatly contrasts to the grey atmosphere of the Pacific Northwest environment of Seattle created by the colourless set, dark clothing and endless amounts of plaid, allowing Elle to stand out even more and become a pink force to be reckoned with. With the series set in the 1990s, the costume team does a great job of capturing the sense of fashion at the time with the costuming choices, while the soundtrack selections perfectly capture the era with lots of memorable songs that activate nostalgia for viewers who grew up in that time era and with Elle Woods.

Following in pink heeled footsteps of Legally Blonde is always going to be an impossible feat, and while Elle does not succeed in all areas, with the wonderful Lexi Minetree leading the series it still remains a delightful return of the beloved character. With a second season already in production, audiences won’t have to wait long to find out what comes next for Elle after that romantic cliffhanger and see the next step in her life towards Harvard Law School, one can hope that it will be a more engaging season of television with more meaningful character work to validate this series’ existence. Charming and pink in every way imaginable thanks to the tremendous breakout performance from Lexi Minetree as Elle Woods, Elle’s first season offers up audiences a fun mix of Legally Blonde nostalgia and high school drama to create an entertaining season of television even if it is never as satisfying as long term fans of the character had hoped for.