‘Emperor of Ocean Park’ Episode 1: One misstep foils Judge Garland’s big plan
Contains spoilers for ‘Emperor of Ocean Park’
Chicago, Illinois: Forest Whitaker appears as Judge Oliver Garland in MGM+’s latest mystery series ‘Emperor of Ocean Park’. The plot revolves around his complicated career as a judge and his sudden death which leads his children on a mission to find the truth.
In the opening scene of the series, Judge Garland dies of a heart attack. As the episode progresses, we get a glimpse into a flashback to 2007 as Judge prepares for the next innings of his life.
Judge Garland aims to become the next Supreme Court Justice in ‘Emperor of Ocean Park’
Forest Whittaker, Grantham Coleman, Tiffany Mack, Henry Simmons and Ora Jones in ‘Emperor of Ocean Park’ (@mgm+)
In 2007, Judge Garland was nominated to become a United States Supreme Court Justice.
He was quite excited as he believed that his decades of hard work would finally pay off. He strongly believed that he would be selected for the prestigious post.
On the day of the nomination, a group of people protested against him, probably for one of his previous judgments.
One placard read, “My body, my choice” while others called him a “liar”, “fascist” and a “sellout”. It is still not clear why people were protesting against him but we believe his recent judgments may be considered biased or regressive by some.
Nevertheless, the judge believed he was right about his decision and walked bravely through the crowd.
What Happened During the Nominations in ‘Emperor of Ocean Park’ Episode 1?
Forest Whitaker (@mgm+) as Judge Oliver Garland in ‘Emperor of Ocean Park’
Senator Edelman seems excited about Judge Garland’s nomination. He cited controversies from the judge’s past to undermine his chances of becoming a Supreme Court judge.
He first brought the case Alonso v. Secure-Tech in which Judge Garland presided. He noted that Garland represented the company that fired an employee who left his position over a suspected carbon monoxide leak.
The senator implied that Garland believed that company policy was more important than an individual’s life. Judge Garland stood by his decision, noting that the senator presented his ruling in a twisted manner.
When that doesn’t work, the judge brings up the connection to Senator Jack Ziegler (Tori Hanson), a former CIA operative turned criminal.
Judge Garland ultimately failed the nomination, and sadly after his death it became the most memorable part of his career.
Did Judge Garland Help Jack Ziegler on ‘Emperor of Ocean Park’?
Torey Hanson (@mgm+) as Jack Ziegler in ‘Emperor of Ocean Park’
The episode doesn’t clearly state why the judge wasn’t nominated but we can assume it was because of her alleged connection to Jack.
The debut episode didn’t reveal much detail about why the judge kept in contact with Jack despite his criminal record. However, this turns out to be the most intriguing part of the plot.
As Addison noted, Judge Garland was loyal but he was not stupid. In the upcoming episode, we hope to find out more about what the judge did and if Jack was involved in his death.
‘Emperor of Ocean Park’ Episode 1 is now available to stream on MGM+