Episode
Ally McBeal: The New Day
Overview
Maddie keeps testing Ally for her patience and love, something that doesn't go through Ally's mind until Victor points it out. Ally, on the other hand, is being way too protective on Maddie, confronting her school principal, teacher and classmates. She decides to hire a nanny, but can't find one that is fits her standards (liking Moulin Rouge, for example), so she ends up hiring Victor, who has developed a very good bond with Maddie. As if she didn't have enough going on in her life, Ally is offered partnership on the firm now that John is gone. After a lot of consideration, Richard decided to ask her and change the firm's name from Cage & Fish to Fish & McBeal, which upsets Nelle, who thinks she should be the next partner, not Ally. After going through the firm's books, Ally discovers that they're losing money and have to fire someone to avoid problems. Since neither Richard nor John had the guts to fire anyone, Ally decides to do so. Meanwhile, Coretta and Raymond face each other in
Details
- Series
- Ally McBeal
- Season
- Season 5
- Episode
- Episode 12
- Air date
- 2002-02-11
- Runtime
- 43 min
Episode context
The New Day is Episode 12 in Season 5 of Ally McBeal. It aired on 2002-02-11. The runtime is 43 min.
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Episode 11: A Kick in the Head
10 year-old Maddie Harrington shows up on Ally's door saying she's her daughter. She's the result of a mixup on the egg bank Ally deposited her eggs ten years ago. Since Maddie's father died six months ago, she's been living with her aunt, who sings TV themes on nightclubs for a living. After a lot of talking, Maddie decides to stay in Boston with Ally on a trial basis until they resolve where she will stay. Meanwhile, Richard takes the case of a man who killed his wife after kicking her in the head when he mistook her for a soccer ball. John doesn't think he'll be able to win the case because he can't litigate, but Richard surprises him when he wins.
Episode 13: Woman
Ally decided that in order for the firm to get out of the financial crisis it's going through, someone will have to be let go. She chooses Jenny, who between all the lawyers of the firm had the least number of clients and experience. Glenn takes Jenny's dismissal offensively and decides to quit, taking all his clients with him. Ally accepts his resignation, but Victor convinces her to hire him back since the firm can't afford to lose any clients. Glenn and Jenny decide to start a new firm together and leave Cage, Fish & McBeal once and for all. Now the other lawyers will have to do extra work to make up for the loss. Among the changes Ally is making on the firm, she wants Nelle to be nicer and asks her to perform at the bar, something she has never done before. Afraid of embarrassing herself, Nelle goes to Ling for help. They decide to have backing vocals, a plan that backfires when the singer who was going to dub Nelle suddenly loses her voice and Elaine has Claire Otoms to replace he
More episodes from this season
Episode 10: One Hundred Tears
Ally defends a man who broke into his old house to jump out of his old bedroom window. Harvey Hall believes he can fly using wings he made himself. The house owner allows him to jump from the roof, and Harvey accomplishes his life long dream of flying, at the cost of his own life. Meanwhile, Harriet Pumple tries to find a match for Elaine, Coretta, Richard and John. She matches Elaine with Victor, who would have dumped her if it wasn't for Ally asking him not to. But Harriet can't find a match for John, so the entire office sings "we have to get you a woman" for him. John is profoundly insulted.
Episode 14: Homecoming
Ally decides to take the DNA test after having recurring dreams where Maddie's real parents show up claiming her. Maddie doesn't take that well and escapes to NY to see her aunt Bonnie. Maddie thinks the test is just Ally's way of having an excuse not to love her, but Ally only wants a proof that Maddie is her daughter so no one can take her away from her. The test comes out positive, and they both cry. Meanwhile, a demented woman shows up at Ally's door looking for Vincent, the love of her life who owned the house before Ally bought it. She thinks Victor is Vincent, and he plays along. She has a stroke and dies, and Victor suffers from it even though he only met her for less than a day. Ally also offers Raymond a job at the firm, which he takes. And Claire decides to help Richard reunite with his high school crush, but she had a sex change operation and is now a man, something that shocks Richard deeply.
Episode 9: Blowing in the Wind
Ally impulsively buys a house, to which Dr. Milter concludes is a way of her to take care of herself, since Ally sees herself as a 'work in progress'. Richard gets the others to help paint the house as a surprise for Ally, who hires the handyman Victor to fix the house for her. Meanwhile, Ally handles a case of a man who spent too much money buying gifts for his wife until they went bankrupt. And Jenny has some back problems, to which Coretta recommends a chiropractor who has a special chair. Glenn gets extremely jealous that a chair is giving Jenny more pleasure than him, while Nelle tests the chair.
Episode 15: Heart & Soul
Richard and Raymond are hired to represent Serena Feldman, a 16 year-old girl who will die unless Judge Hall consents her a heart transplant from her convicted father, who is the her only match. Serena's aunt is against the transplant because Serena's dad murdered her mother , and Claire interferes with both her and the judge in order to help save Serena. The case is tough, and afraid his daughter will die after Judge Hall denies the transplant, Serena's father escapes and kills himself. Meanwhile, Maddie is caught smoking and reveals to Victor that she wanted to be suspended to avoid father-daughter day at school. She questions Ally why she and Victor can't be together, and Victor overhears Ally telling Maddie that they come from different worlds. Angry at Ally for being elitist, Victor quits, but Ally goes after him to ask him on a date. In the last minute she freaks out, and Victor is called in for help. Ally is still in love with Larry and thus can't date Victor.
Episode 8: Playing with Matches
Jenny's mom's wedding is approaching, and Ally is shocked when Tim gives her a certain look that suggests a move. She talks to Jenny, and they decide to test him. Ally makes a move on him, and he offers her to have an affair. Surprisingly, Jenny's mom is ok with that, which only confuses Ally more. She's been hallucinating with a 7-year-old boy who keeps saying she's killing him. The boy is a version of Ally from when she believed in love (a conclusion made by Richard), before Billy died and Larry left. Meanwhile, John and Coretta help Kimmie Bishop, who's back suing a matchmaker for saying she's "unmatchable".
Episode 16: Love Is All Around (1)
Ally and Victor find Maddie's nanny dead in front of the TV after returning from their third date. At the firm, Richard assigns Nelle to a case opposite Liza 'Lolita' Bump, a bitchy, young attorney that is so feared that Richard has to get John Cage for the case. Claire Otoms announces her intention to get married.
Episode 7: Nine One One
Ally helps a minister who was fired from his church for not believing in God. Ever since his wife was brutally murdered, he has been questioning his beliefs and he asks Ally to talk to his son. Ally is surprised to see Malcolm again and encourages him to sing at his father's service after he is hired back. Meanwhile, John takes a case opposite a mayor who cancelled the Christmas parade of his town due to a disaster in which people died. Very moved, John proves that Christmas is what they need the most in this time of deep grief. Back in the office, Jenny and Elaine confront each other about Elaine's performance with Glenn in the office's Christmas party.
Episode 17: Love Is All Around (2)
A devastated Claire's goes to Ally for help after her fiancé calls the wedding off. Ally is still shaken with the memory of Larry and isn't sure of her feelings for Victor anymore. John and Nelle try to settle their case, but when Liza lowers her offer, John decide to take her down.
Episode 6: Lost & Found
John makes a surprise return and is shocked after hearing from Raymond that Richard threw a party in his "hole". After confronting Richard, John gives the office a speech, in which he reveals the reason why and where he left to. Raymond gets Glenn and Ally to double date with him and Jenny. It's Jenny's birthday, and everyone forgets it. Glenn is the only one who didn't get her a present, so he sings a very romantic Elvis song at the bar for her. He asks her back, and she accepts. Ally wonders if she should hook up with John, but the ghost of Larry is still present in her thoughts. Meanwhile, Ling poses nude to boost her TV character; Corretta and Richard find themselves involved in a police investigation on a woman who used to marry rich old men for the money
Episode 18: Tom Dooley
Ally is going to the Bermudas with Victor, and welcomes Liza as the firm's newest attorney. Nelle doesn't like that or the fact that she took John's office. Despite being her first day, Liza hires another lawyer, Wilson Jade, whom she was going to partner with on her own practice, hadn't she joined Cage, Fish & McBeal. Nelle and Wilson represent a woman who's suing her husband for sexual harassment, while John and Liza represent Nicole Naples, a woman who's legally married to two different men. Liza and John develop a great chemistry in court, and save Nicole from going to jail. John almost falls in love with Nicole, who's also interested in singing the mariachi with him. And back at the office, Claire is hot for Wilson, who makes an excellent settlement on the case with the help of Nelle (or should we call her Morgan, her real name, which was discovered by Liza - who's actually Debbie!)