21.10: Relax, Carisi!

The #42Minutes

The Steve Getz case, which we knew somehow culminated with his jailhouse suicide, continues with the squad frantically trying to find Rollins' location after she's kidnapped by Frank Bucci. It takes an abnormal amount of SVU Time to get GPS and cell pings (is it me or doesn't the show's TARU typically come up with locations much more quickly?) which give Bucci time to swap license plates like all good kidnappers, and drive Rollins out of the city. Meanwhile, people in Getz's inner circle start flipping like it's going out of style, and he and his procurer are arrested on the tarmac seconds before fleeing on a private jet. In the squad room, Benson and company are scratching their heads about next moves when Rollins escorts a handcuffed Bucci into the precinct. She's safe but not okay, Bucci gets off easy, and Getz takes his own life, bringing a close to the squad's work but leaving the victims on a path to justice that goes nowhere.

The Verdict

A-

The minus is purely a personal issue. I confess, I've watched too much SVU. Like many of you I've watched certain episodes and seasons over and over again. As a result, many plot "twists" and nuances feel carbon copied from one episode to the next. Corrupt judges, Carisi's suspicion of the higher-ups in the DA's office, a judge who can't sign a warrant, Getz's "black book"--I swear some of the dialogue was swiped from the pages of Manhattan Transfer/Unholiest Alliance.

The whole "black book" thing was left unresolved...will it stay that way like in real life or have the writers mined it for a reason for Tucker resurfacing?

However, considering we already knew the ending and knew Rollins would survive, the episode was well-paced and captivating. Kelli Giddish (who looks alarmingly skinny) was fantastic, and I loved how she was able to both convey terror but also maintain Rollins' cocky, this-shit-is-a-waste-of-my-time  and btw-you-suck-at-hostage-taking edge. Except for that pesky Glock, the bungled kidnapping was kind of adorable at times, especially during the impromptu therapy session in the car. Rollins hits the nail on the head when she finally verbally admits she is her own worst enemy, and, for the first time ever, I had some sympathy for her. Rollins has always been frustrating to me because she fucks up and rarely ever takes full responsibility for what she's done--but in that moment in the car--"I am I guess"--gawwwwwd that was heart-wrenching. Not only does she think she doesn't deserve a nice guy, she apparently has permanently relegated herself to middling detective, probably on account of the multiple dings in her jacket, but she believes she is beyond redemption. I could keep unpacking and unpacking...kudos to the writers for finessing this hostage crisis into something that may be a painful yet revolutionary turning point in Rollins' life and career.

While my affinity for Rollins is on the rise, my opinion of Kat tanks. Do we have to have a moment in every ep in which she "miraculously" figures something out. Oooo, she connected Hanover's office to the cell pings, an important observation, but not necessarily a genius one. And I really want to see Rollins' face when someone lets it slip that Kat briefly entertained the idea Rollins was in on her own kidnapping. Pleeeeeease let that happen!

Annnnd on my continuing list of things I don't care about...we're really taking this whole Noah dancing thing and running with it, huh? Why must it be the core of every single exchange between mother and son? Will dance somehow turn into an SVU case (please, no)?

Did OMB drop off the food before she went to find Rollins?

Wardrobe

I bet everyone was glad to get a fresh change of clothes! Not a dazzling episode for the wardrobe department, but Benson was sporting what looked to be an onyx pendant around her neck as the episode came to a close. Symbolic or simply @svustyle changing up her jewelry?

Quotable

"Just shush." LOLOL Oh, Bucci...nobody listens to him...

"We need a no-knock warrant." And then Garland shoves his way in to the Judge's home. I loved how the chief was written in this episode--dogged, no-nonsense, and unwilling to crumble in the face of the powers that be. A chief-centric episode is coming up, and I wonder if Ellery's comment about Garland not knowing is place will be at its core. 

"Is that okay with you? Officer?" Get it, Carisi! Speaking of not knowing your place...Kat, ouch. 

Is it Next Thursday, Yet?

Captain Benson is being written as confident, steady, decisive, and oh-so I'm-in-chargey which is accurate and deserved. But when she remarked that Rollins' family consisted of the squad and her daughters, it doesn't take Kat to point out that the same can be said for Benson and Noah and that OMB hasn't yet processed Simon's death. With married Tucker's (and Lindstrom's) return on the horizon, I can't help but fear we're in for a soul-crushing Benson breakdown.

Q: Until then, is there anything more perfect that Carisi sparring with Barth in his first trial?

A: No.

Cheers, everyone (but with a soft drink for me since it's my third annual Dryuary...so how about doing me a solid and going easy on the emotions, WL?)

Thought I'd ask...