Law & Order: SVU (1 Viewer)

[Keith I]

Is anyone still watching this? I watched it every week when it first ran seven years ago then lost interest in the middle. Only in the past two seasons have I been trying to watch this, but if I miss SVU I try to catch some kind of rerun on USA or the other cable channels it airs on because I am enjoying this season so much.

Tonight's episode ("Blast") was a winner in my book. However, the title is misleading as to where the story heads. Real tension here. I enjoy how it took the initial premise in different directions (L&O is good for this). I didn't know what was going to happen. At first you might think this is another child kidnapping case and we've seen it before but they turn it on its head.

I really enjoyed that the doctor/M.E. Melinda Warner (Tamara Tunie) played a big part, putting Olivia on the sidelines with only a few lines. I also liked the small touches that make you take notice like Stabler lying on the cots in the station as the camera stays on his face for awhile from above; it made me think back to his own broken family.

If you don't want to be SPOILED, don't read the next paragraph/quote. (I'm not using spoiler tags since the show has already aired and people who have seen it might not want to swipe text. People who haven't seen it can just skip it. If the mods want me to spoilerize it, PM me and I'll edit it.)




This is one show where I actually look forward to the next episode. With even some of my other favorite shows, I don't have that feeling sometimes. Maybe it's the standalone storylines that make it more compelling and I'm getting tired (impatient?) of the season-long stories. Or maybe because I have less personal time to commit to season-long storylines.

It's also great that starting with last week's episode, the show is being shown in a 16:9 aspect ratio.

"Presented in W I D E S C R E E N"
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[Elizabeth S]

Keith,

I'm very much still watching this show -- don't think I've missed an episode since it began.

While it's one of my favorite shows, I find I don't feel "rushed" to watch the newest episode BECAUSE it is more of a standalone show. I feel more compelled to watch the latest "Lost" or "Supernatural" right away to keep the storyline "flowing".

I feel "SVU" has excelled in episodes which focused on one of the 2 detectives -- like Olivia's episode where she was talking on the phone with the little girl, trying to find her whereabouts or several of Elliot's episodes dealing with his disintegrating marriage and fits of rage. I enjoy those episodes a lot as they delve further into the character's psyches.

Boy, Munch and Finn sure haven't had much to do lately!

P.S. Just noticed you're in Hawaii, too.

 

[Keith I]

A lot of "cop" shows try to delve into the personal lives but somehow to me many of them just don't click (I started to get really bored with NYPD Blue). I don't know what it is but SVU manages to be thrilling, suspensful, and wonderfully written with all of these things.

I definitely cringe at the crimes. Maybe it's the harrowing aspect of the show, which is depressing: children in danger or murdered. It's a somber theme (which I don't find entertaining at all) but somehow the stories pull me in. I recall old discussions where people said stories about child molestors, abductors, rapists, killers, etc. should not be made into entertainment. While I agree with the theory of that statement, I find it enjoyable to watch only because of the character dynamic and the procedurals.

The focus is starting to stick with Benson and Stabler. Even the ADAs are starting to fade into the background. While I enjoy all the characters, I wouldn't mind if all of them were removed and just Benson & Stabler were left. But I think more meaty stories are still waiting for the other characters.

Hey, I guess SVU connects all the way over here!

 

[Paul McElligott]

NBC's promotion department strikes again. The previews show Olivia going down with a knife wound to the throat. "This is the episode that will change everything."

Yeah, right. Things did change somewhat with this episode, but it's probably a temporary change and, after the way the episode was hyped, it was kind of like, "Big whoop-de-do."

 

[Jason Seaver]

Well, Mariska Hargitay is going on maternity leave, so they had to shake it up somehow. I think the SVU producers are wise to how NBC does their promotions, because a couple years ago they had a nice big garish explosion to promote the episode where Stephanie March left the show, only to stick her in the witness protection program.

 

[Keith I]

I just finished watching the episode after recording it. I agree that the promos were misleading and I agree that if Olivia's slicing was the big issue of the episode, then it should show serious repercussions. But seeing as it wasn't, there should be another big "ooooh" moment.

But seeing as Olivia wanting another partner (after Elliot requests them stop working together anyway), it was a slight letdown. I wasn't shaken up as much as I should be (for a fictional television show) when the boy was killed. It seemed something emotional was missing.

I read that Connie Nielsen is going to be Mariska's replacement while Benson is on "special assignment." That was months ago and things could change. There is no new episode next week, right?
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[Keith I]

The promos for tomorrow show Anthony Anderson as possibly Stabler's new partner. Hmmm. Is this another case of promo sleight of hand? Anthony Anderson???

 

[Jason Seaver]

Give Anderson a dramatic role, and he can be pretty darn good. I've heard good things about his time on The Shield, thought he did OK on Veronica Mars, and really liked him in Hustle & Flow.

 

[Keith I]

I saw Anderson in Veronica Mars and he was indeed okay. I did not see that episode of The Shield and Hustle & Flow.

Tonight's episode ("Fat") was okay, but not memorable. Anderson was okay here again and Benson makes an appearance - waist up or sitting behind a desk - to help with the case using her Computer Crimes connection, where she now works, and to answer Stabler's questions about why she left.

The promo for next week says it will open parents' eyes (child pornography) and will force

Benson to return. Huh? Was Hargitay on maternity leave or not? I don't know the timeline of her real pregnancy with filming so it's interesting that the season finale is coming soon and she's still around.
With NBC doing all the internet predator stories and this storyline, they really want to push the point home.

 

[Paul McElligott]

 

[Keith I]

I just read on E! Online that Connie Nielsen will be replacing Hargitay for a few episodes this new season while Hargitay is on leave. Taking that Family Leave after the baby was born.

Whew, the L&O cast shakeups are really big this upcoming season:

L&O
A first for L&O: female partner for Det. Green (Milena Govich from Conviction); Alana de la Garza (of All My Children) is the new ADA.

L&O:CI
Courtney B. Vance, Jamey Sheridan, and Annabella Sciorra are gone. Julianne Nicholson (also from Conviction) is Chris Noth's new partner, Eric Bogosian (!) will be the new MCS boss, and Theresa Randle is the new ADA.

It might be worth catching the first few episodes just to see how the new casts gel. Hey, that's NBC's tactic as a success!

http://www.eonline.com/News/Items/0,1,19737,00.html

 

[Paul McElligott]

I'll miss Sheridan but I'm looking forward to seeing Bogosian in the role.

 

[Keith I]

Just caught the season premiere "Informed" a week late on USA Network (I think I'm going to watch SVU on Tuesdays instead of Smith; I don't have a DVR) and it was yet another gripping story.

A simple story about eco-terrorists turns into something bigger with Stabler getting injured and Benson in trouble and the FBI and the DA's office getting nervous.

Fin and Munch get all but a minute of screen time. Capt. and Stabler get a few more minutes (as does ADA Novak and ME Warner) but the spotlight is on Benson to allow her character to leave the show for an extended period of time. Dr. Huang is nowhere to be seen.

Special Agent Star Morrison (Marcia Gay Harden) makes a return appearance from last year's episode "Raw" (which is showing right after "Informed" on USA; kind of spoils the reveal that she's FBI).

The recap on TV.com is well-written and is a good read.

http://www.tv.com/law-and-order-spec...776/recap.html

We'll meet Stabler's "new partner" (Stabler: "Don't you mean new 'temporary' partner?" Capt.: "Uh, yeah, okay." Oooooh.) this Tuesday (Connie Nielsen) but not until the end of the episode.
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Wrong thread but I caught both premieres of L&O and L&O:CI with the new detectives (both from Conviction). They were okay. SVU still grips me the most of all the L&O shows.

 

[Holadem]

I don't follow this show much, but did catch this episode last night and immensely enjoyed it. I didn't know it was the season premiere, it was part of an all day marathon on USA I think, so how could that be? Do you mean an older season premiere?

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H

 

[Citizen87645]

I don't watch regularly either but happened to catch the premiere. They could have grunged up Benson to actually fit in with the other eco-terrorists; her apperance made the whole undercover thing unbelievable.

 

[Keith I]

USA Network usually shows the rerun a week later, so this was the latest season premiere squeezed inbetween all the old reruns during the marathon. So watch SVU tomorrow night on NBC and you'll be on track watching the 8th season. The USA Network marathon is the first half of the 7th season last Sunday and the last half this coming Sunday.

 

[Keith I]

I made an error. It seems that the USA Network rerun is shown about 12 days later (over here, at least). So tonight's NBC episode ("Recall") is already the third episode shown this 8th season where Stabler actually works the case with his new partner, Beck. Since I missed last week's NBC episode ("Clock") because I watched Smith instead, I have to check it out this Sunday on USA Network at 11 p.m. HST.

 

[Keith I]

10/3/06 "Recall"

I watched this anyway without seeing the second episode ("Clock") but seeing that wasn't necessary except to see Beck appear to tell Stabler she's his new partner.

"Recall" started off very simple and familiar: women getting raped and beaten and the suspect is a former ADA and current personal injury lawyer, played by "Mr. Nanny" himself Charles Shaughnessy. There are some interplays and exchanges between Stabler and Beck ("What is that accent? European?" "I'm from Denmark." Funny how my wife said she could not understand what Beck was saying. Is that Connie Nielsen's real accent?) and Capt. Cragen's warning to Stabler that Beck's former C.O. dumped her for being overzealous. Beck seems to want to avoid any contact with victims but we find out why later. She made a few mistakes in the episode but came out as the hero(ine) in the end, mainly because she was female and could speak/understand French.

Then the "twist" came in which made the story sparkle. It concerns a possible past victim with a connection to the alleged rapist. Then it becomes a race against the clock as the statute of limitations on rape ends in four days (for a total of five years because, as Munch explains, it would prevent people from falsely accusing others of rape for other reasons).

If you missed this episode, see the replay on 10/15/06 on USA Network.

Uh oh, next week's episode "Uncle" is about (SPOILER ALERT! for e-mail notification messages)Munch's uncle being accused of rape and murder of a mother and her daughter.
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On an unrelated note, I watched L&O:CI before this and it was gripping! Goran and Eames almost get killed. Eames comes back on the job too quickly from her ordeal in the season premiere that her boss asks her, "Is this how you take time off?" The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Sorry for that cliche.

 

[Paul McElligott]

Probably, since Nielsen is Danish, like the character.

 

[John_Lee]

WTF is going on with this show, I thought the trainwreck from a couple weeks ago where Olivia abandons police work to go around to area family kitchens and scold teens for having sex was a one off. Then last night's ep raised the crazy bar several notches. The extended squad porn debate, the rapist with a boner on the stand, the framing of the victims like they're posing for a Charmed promotional.
It's like the cop procedural people are on when they're in a movie where one of the running gags is how shitty cop procedurals are [cough Saving Sarah Marshall cough].