Remember when it was just Judge Wapner in the afternoons and mornings were filled with gameshows? Now there are far more judges on daytime TV than there are on SCOTUS and there’s talk of more. A few of the major players (and I know I’m leaving some out):
Judge Judy
Judge Larry Joe
Judge Joe Brown
Judge Mable Ephraim (Divorce Court)
Judge Marilyn Milian (The People’s Court 4.2)
And that’s just a few: I can’t remember the name of the African-American lady judge who’s based in Atlanta or of the host of Morals Court, plus which there’s a court show for relationships and numerous court shows on Court TV.*
Who are your favorite and least favorite judges?
My favorite: Joe Brown. He’s no-nonsense but he does have a sense of humor and compassion and seems very intelligent without buying too much into his own celebrity.
My least favorite: Judge Judy- this harpie’s ego is out of control. “NO! I’m telling you that it didn’t happen that way and you are lying!” (Uh, no Judge, you ‘think’ they are lying- you cannot prove it, you can only suspect.) Plus, she brings the morals of the litigants into play when it’s of no bearing (e.g. “And why did you never marry your baby’s father?” Uh, the case is about a car accident- regardless of how you feel about illegitimacy, why is the question relevant?)
*Two shows that I’d ad if I owned the TV world:
History Court- recreating famous and not so famous cases from history to see if we arrive at the same verdict (an occasional show)
People’s Court of Inquisition- the only show allowed to use torture and spectral evidence to establish guilt.
Marilyn Milian is my favorite. She has a great sense of humor and manages to question people who aren’t the brightest bulbs in the box without putting them down. If she does poke fun at someone it’s with that sense of humor or the litigant totally deserves it. She seems very fair to me. I think it’s cool that she speaks Spanish, too. Judge Joe Brown and Judge Mathis are also pretty good but I haven’t seen enough of them to know which one is which.
Judge Judy is absolutely out of control. As far as I can see, she has her mind made up before the litigants even open their mouths. And she tries to make people feel stupid for mispronouncing words and things like that. And once she’s made her mind up, don’t bother trying to explain to her what she’s misinterpreting. She’s an asshole. I bet she’s meain to waitstaff.
I think Judge Hatchett is the Atlanta-based judge you mentioned. I haven’t seen a lot of her show but from what I have seen it seems to be more intervention for troubled and out-of-control teens along with a few paternity cases than a small claims show. Not my cup of tea.
. . . and don’t forget “SH! SHH!! SHH!! I’M TALKING!!!” It gets old after a while.
Favorite: Milian (for the same reasons AllShookUp mentioned)
Least Favorite: Joe Brown. Yeah, Judge Judy is a bitch, but Brown is just so incredibly boring.
And a slight hijack, but what’s the deal with every judge having a bailiff (is that what they’re called) of the opposite race? I don’t think a current court show strays from this. Is it to appeal to a larger demographic?
I LOATHE Judge Mablean Ephraim from Divorce Court. She’s made a couple homophobic comments in the few times I’ve seen her. (Sorry, I don’t remember exactly what or when they were, I just remember being put off by it).
I do like Marilyn Milian probably the best…I tend to agree with her verdicts and miss the ol’ 5 o’clock afterwork timeslot that let me watch and decompress. I also like the show’s format much better than the others.