Nooch.11 Culture Shock

The #42Minutes

What initially presents as a terrorist investigation turns into an SVU case which turns into a a Barba-led trailblazing mission to dismantle "sexist, misogynistic pig" workplace culture. As an enduring, all-encompassing fix, it doesn't exactly work, but, as he put it, "the wheels are turning" and leaked grand jury proceedings end up hitting Optimum Air where it hurts most. Unfortunately the company's financial downfall doesn't seem like it will translate to any far-reaching substantial change (shocker) and will most likely be disregarded as an isolated incident.

The fight continues...

Also, Fin's onto Chief Dodds' shade and the rest of us will be theorizing about the mystery memo for the rest of the winter.

Be honest, how many of y'all have tried to piece together that upside down inside out text?

Assessment

Sorry, guys, but all I could think about in the first minute was filming that scene and people shouting "LEAN TO THE LEFT. OKAY, NOW LEAN TO THE RIGHT. FLIGHT ATTENDANT! DROP YOUR TRAY! SEATBELTS EVERYONE! SEAT! BELTS!"

Fake airplane scenes are cheesy 90% of the time on any show, and this was no exception. Like...while everyone was excoriating Tara for putting the lives of over 100 people in danger I'm thinking, uh, guys, there were 30 tops. And also why are we bothering with locked cockpit doors when future terrorists can use the beverage carts as battering rams?

Sooo...Flight Risk exemplifies my problemo with SVU making a statement about the egregious and unforgivable doings of real-lifers. In case anyone out there was still ignorant about how corporations and businesses establish and get away with maintaining sexist, toxic, and demeaning means and methods of operation, this episode preached it plain as day.

The manual reads:

1. Embellish minor infractions and contextualize them so the victim appears incompetent, foolish, and derelict in duties.
2. Recite laudatory (yet insubstantial) talking points and platitudes such as "I have two daughters" and "I let my assistant have the day off so she could attend the women's march."
3. Disregard and/or trivialize complaints and debase the plaintiffs.
4. Resolve allegations with empty promises and/or monetary compensation (anything that avoids bad press or the legal system)
5. Have confidence in public outrage's ephemeral nature.

This week in OMB WTF faces...

The episode would have been more interesting if...

A. It focused on Barba's culture-changing crusade...he and Benson pushing all the prickly corporate buttons and maybe being told to stand down but they don't (sort of like in Institutional Fail) and Barba's path away from the show is a political one. I really thought at the end he was going to tell Benson he was running for office.

B. NYPD's own culture was called into question and whatever the hell is going on with Benson and that memo unfolded alongside the case against Optimum Air and the episode ends with Benson and Rollins sitting in her office, bewildered, because how in the hell didn't they notice they, too, were under siege by their employer's very own boys' club?

In other news, Rollins is D.O.N.E. with pilot worship.

For the record, CEChauvinist Petruchio, er, Fleming and his Mengele-esque memo made my skin crawl.

Quotable:

"I felt cheap...devalued."
"I could shrug it off."
In a nutshell, the only ammunition women have to fight back.

"Jurors don't like difficult women."
Not only jurors, OMB.

"An interesting marketing strategy if this was the sixties." The scene at Optimum's headquarters and Benson's what-the-serious-fuck reactions were priceless.

"Come tomorrow there's gonna be a new t-shirt...Logan Carter, rapist."
Cue eye roll. Carisi, you nerd.

And in the Dodds (yes, Fin, we want you to cut him) file...

"They don't need Special Victims inventing a defense for her." Fuck you, Dodds and excuse me is this statement not grounds for him to be reassigned? Damn.

"If there's one thing I hate, it's a hypocrite." See above.

There are plenty of openings for Dodds to be a bad guy. Even though he and Benson seem to be in one of their periods of detente, he's not (nor has he ever been) 100% on her side. We needed neither a memo nor interview rumors to know this, but it's nice to be reminded and I'm excited for all of this to play out...

Thanks but no thanks on the welcome back hug, Amanda.

Appearances

Welcome back gray trench and red blouse with the silver clasps and hello camel blazer!

Benson's clearly (and admittedly) exhausted. Did anyone else notice how unenthusiastic she was as Barba presented his grand plans for changing the world?

Petition for the immediate return of bangless Benson. C'mon, people.

Tracking Tucker

What I would've given for a freshly-showered Tucker to come waltzing into the living room while Dodds was there...

And I can't believe Barson Tweeps didn't go ga-ga over this (then again, I probably have most of those people muted)...

Excuuuuuse me but the only hand Benson is supposed to touch when looking at a phone is TUCKER'S!

Head Scratchers

1. Now Dodds is at the apartment? Sheesh. Can I get a fucking invite? I'll tidy up...

2. Is my Cassidy-as-Fin's-Source theory correct? I actually hope not because my stomach turns thinking about how the writers could make OMB buy Cassidy's attempt at redemption and go running back into his arms and that would be so ridiculous and OOC but I really do think these people hate me that much.

Is It Next Wednesday, Yet?

Important, poignant story? Yes.
Gripping television? No.

Loose threads abound, though...

Is Barba's departure temporary or permanent? Punitive or self-imposed? Will Stone be friend or foe? Is McCoy's return Munch-esque or something more meaningful than a cameo? How long will Fin keep whatever he knows from Benson and will his gallant deed end up backfiring? Can I not be constantly dreading Bensidy 3.0?

What the hell else are they going to do to Liv?

In the meantime, would it be possible for OMB to get some fucking sleep in the next two weeks?

Oh, Mother!

The #42 Minutes

Let's work backwards...

Nobody wants to see Mariel go to prison for killing her mother and Barba slips up by stepping into a crowded elevator while talking on the phone. The caller is concerned about the death penalty and Barba agrees that punishment would not exactly fit the crime but he says this in the presence of jurors (c'mon, Barba you didn't notice Miss Funky Blue Glasses of all people?) so a pissed-off Judge Barth declares a mistrial. Barba's in trouble, but a more palatable version of justice is served. We'll see how this factors in to the arrival of Peter Stone in a few weeks.

The case begins when SVU is called to a special needs school to investigate a rape, but the actual crime lies elsewhere, in the actions of Mariel's mentally-ill mother who, had she not been bludgeoned to death, probably would have spent the rest of her life in a hospital. You know it's bad when even the doctor emerges, stunned, from the interrogation room and says, "Uh, guys, this woman is seriously fucked up there's no way she can be held responsible for her actions no matter how egregious they may be."

I paraphrase, of course.

Assessment

Two weeks after the kidnapping, Mother and Son Benson are still reeling from, as Fin called it "road trip with Grandma." Noah doesn't want to sleep alone and he's having Sheila dreams and Liv's having flashbacks and I'm no child psychologist but Eddie-in-jail surrounded by police cars seems to indicate Noah won't so easily forget what happened and OMB will not be able to ignore it away.

The pessimist in me predicted Benson's inner turmoil would be cast aside or minimized, but it wasn't and it was beautifully written and acted.

HOWEVER...

One thing that annoys the hell out of me is when there is too much of a contrived effort to connect the cases with the squad's personal lives. Of course, it's fiction and we only have #42Minutes, so everything's contrived, but there is a glaring distinction between Sheila and Dawn, and Barba and Benson implicitly acknowledging the similarity of the two mothers was a big-time, eye-roll-worthy stretch and if Benson lets that woman back into her life my head will explode and SVU will be down a viewer which isn't such a big deal because ratings are pretty good. My hope is Sheila spends her twilight years in federal lockup and I can't imagine Benson road-tripping for visits.

Ordinarily I find Benson's compassion and gigantic heart endearing, but those qualities occasionally come around to haunt her and my concern for her well-being is manifesting as anger and I really hate being angry at anyone, especially OMB.

Hello, Doc Warner and welcome back, but WHERE THE HELL HAVE YA BEEN? We couldn't get one little line about why we haven't seen her since Season 17 and for someone who was a hashtag subject she sure didn't get much screen time. Since Benson's apartment was open for business, I thought maybe she would join the party but everything I think about this show ends up either wrong or not happening so IDK why I even try anymore.

Safe to say The Little Mermaid won't be queued up in the Benson household anytime soon...or ever.

Quotable:

"The law says she's guilty, but your heart says she's not."
Dear Barba and Benson, the two of you have a combined fifty or so years in law enforcement...buck up...you know at least one juror is going to dig in and refuse to convict.

"Not what he wanted."
"You. Are. Hurting. Her."
PAGING DR. LINDSTROM!

"You're a single mom. You're a full time cop. Your life is not easy. It's okay to say that out loud every once in a while."
Will someone please embroider that on a pillow for Liv as well?

Get with it, Dad.

Wardrobe:

Speaking for the minority, I prefer Benson in her work clothes.

Tracking Tucker...

I'm not EVEN gonna mention Liv sleeping ALONE on the hospital sofa...

Oh wait, I just did.

Maybe Noah will leave Eddie in a taxi in the coming weeks...that elephant is too painful.

Hey! That's Ed's!

Head Scratchers:

1. For once the Rollins-Olivia convos didn't have their typical edginess, but why exactly did Rollins go to Liv rather than mention her initial skepticism about Dawn to Fin? I'm intrigued...maybe we'll get some Finlivia power struggle tension and I have not abandoned hope for a Sergeant Rollins.
2. No Christmas tree?
3. Mariel's Dad...what a punk

Kelli, you so awesome!

Is It Next Wednesday, Yet?

Even though I nearly dozed off a few times  (and, no, not because of the booze), I suppose Pathological's lack of suspense was a needed respite after last week's torture. The episode was more bridge than captivating case--hopefully all this Sheila mess will fade and everyone else can have their turn with drama with Barba apparently next in line for the wringer.


"Some can cooperate...and others prey on each other..."
We'll see how this plays out in the sky next week.

"I don't know what the fuck to do."

Gone Sheila Gone (Finally)

The #42 Minutes

All hands (except Dodds') are on deck for the multi-state Noah-hunt! The detectives' frenzied search begins at the six-floor (but OMB doesn't care if its sixty) Mall of Manhattan and culminates in a rural New Hampshire cabin where sociopath Sheila finally loses it but OMB is there to hug her before leading her out in handcuffs.

In between, Dodds orders Benson to stand down (hahaha) and she and Sheila hang at Sheila's apartment then at the precinct until Carisi visits Awesome Baby and has to inform his Lieutenant that Grandma Sheila was behind this all along. Benson whips around to see Sheila missing from the interrogation room where she was supposed to be looking at sex offender photos. Fin and Liv hurry to Sheila's apartment but find nothing except for Ellie's missing portrait. Carisi and Rollins track the kidnapper's car to a bus station and everything seems really fucked until OMB thinks to involve Sheila's family court lawyer who gives up the name of a PI who leads them to Juan Ortoli, who, like everyone else, was conned by Sheila. Noah saves the day by waking up and running to Mommy only to be shoved safely outside while Benson beats the crap out of Sheila. Oh wait, that's what I wanted to happen. Benson did not beat the crap out of Sheila nor did she snap her neck or perform a police-sanctioned take-down maneuver.

I pity the next perp. Both the empathy and restraint tanks have gotta be about empty.

Assessment

Some (more in the past year than ever before) SVU episodes have such hackneyed, predictable writing that the only saving grace is the acting. The SVU cast has the ability to redeem an entire script due to their sheer talent. Gone Baby Gone doesn't fall into this category, but it came close. (Also...surely someone mentioned the title was not exactly original?)

The people raving about the episode are actually raving about Mariska Hargitay's performance and deservedly so. She was brilliant. It's still early, but if she doesn't get an Emmy nod this summer, something is seriously out of whack in the ATAS. She nailed this episode as both terrified parent and savvy cop. Everyone else was absolutely on point--Barba as devoted yet brutally honest friend, Carisi and Rollins relentlessly pursuing leads, and Fin letting Dodds think he's a loyal soldier.

But THIS WAS NOT A SURPRISE! (Not only had many of us been predicting this outcome since Grandma's arrival, but the opening montage also pretty much let the cat the rest of the way out of the bag) Perhaps  Nooch and Company cared less about keeping her involvement under wraps and wanted the audience to feel Benson's inner turmoil as she realizes and comes to terms with her near-devastating decision to trust Sheila. If that's the case, mission accomplished. I'm still reeling from "I can't breathe" and the Barba hug and gawwwwd I'm giving myself another stress headache. But still...the actual script was disappointingly linear and devoid of genuine suspense (we all knew Noah would be fine and there was nothing more to Sheila's involvement other than...she did it, oh, and maybe that she seduced the lawn guy). 

They could've traded some Sheila-Benson time for more of Dodds running interference or running the investigation and Benson resisting and disagreeing and going rogue.

Or Cassidy could've been involved. 

I hate that asshole.

Re-watch Drinking Game

Drink when Sheila says "I" because remember, this is all about her!

Spoiler: she says "I" 13 times.

Quotable:

"You're not a cop in New Hampshire, just do it." You don't have to ask Rollins twice, Lieu. I loved that scene in the Ortoli house. Well done, detectives.

"You think you've seen emotional, wait 'til I tell her this." Poor Fin. 

#Squad

"You prevent the next mess."

"Maybe you wanted this to work out too much."

I always love Barba, especially when his legal expertise is showcased along with his insight and his genuine (platonic) affection for Benson. He is absolutely right, and, looking back, one has to wonder how this person could not only appear out of nowhere but be subject to so little scrutiny on the part of the Lieutenant who has a wealth of resources at her disposal and could have been alerted to Sheila's nefarious transactions (turning off utilities; draining bank accounts, etc.) earlier. 

I hate to think about Benson's reaction when and if Barba leaves.

My heart...

Wardrobe:

I am chagrined to say I wasn't paying one bit of attention except for Noah complaining once again that something was too big. And was that Ellie's childhood bed he slept in?

Tucker Files

I would take all this family crap a little more seriously if Benson hadn't let Tucker leave or if the breakup was due to an actual reason other than Noah climbing on the counter. Let's face it. At the end of the day the #SVU "family" is but an ephemeral placeholder for the real thing. ALL of those people will eventually leave; they have their own families (even though Fin's seem to have fallen by the wayside). Cute gathering at the end, but that's an every-once-in-a-while occurrence. The Bensons are currently a party of two.

And I will never forgive whoever decided the elephant's name was Eddie.

Unless Tucker returns and "the three of us" live happily ever after. 

Then we're all good. No harm; no foul.

Head Scratchers

1. How did driver's license or passport facial recognition not get a hit on Juan earlier? They had a clear picture of his face.
2. Paid cash for the car but Sheila used a credit card for the car seat? And she also left Noah alone while she bought burgers? And Noah didn't question the black phone screen?
3. Being "in from New Jersey" somehow precludes one from knowing where they were 30 minutes ago?
4. The PI didn't alert anyone when Sheila requested fake passports?
5. OMB went to the cabin alone? I get not wanting to spook Sheila (after all, she had to be getting irritated he wouldn't shut up about Mommy), but, come on. She could've asked for backup on standby without going full on SWAT. That was dumb (and bolstered Dodds' worries she wasn't thinking rationally and I hate when he's right). Carisi and Rollins didn't alert anyone about Juan's cabin BEFORE they went there? OMB didn't clear the perimeter before entering the cabin? Noah didn't wake up at Grandma Sheila's shriek? 
6. And finally...Juan thought he was going to RUN AWAY? LOLOLOLOLOL

Is it Next Wednesday Yet?

Hopefully the Sheila saga is over and we don't have to see her trial or her plea deal or Noah visiting her in prison. 

I don't think the final exchange between "Dick" Dodds and Fin was insignificant. Apparently, the Dodds-Benson Eidteen détente was either short-lived or forgotten (fine with me, I mean, Season 18 doesn't even exist on Hulu so, if it's not there, did it really happen)? I have a hard time believing Dodds wasn't following the squad's movements and had no clue about Benson's whereabouts. And why, when Fin told him she had been at home waiting by the phone...why did Dodds ask if she was alone? I was SO begging and pleading for Fin's response to be "I'm sure Tucker was with her." Yes, I know, I need to let it go.

Anyway...in addition to Benson losing all trust for everyone on Earth when it comes to her son, this Dodds thing could come back to burn Fin and OMB down the line. If, of course, we're doing that whole continuity thing.

For future reference, the only person allowed to call Noah "sweet boy" is his Mommy. 

Winter Finale!

The #42 Minutes

Katy the social media star goes on a date with Andy the fighter and the date ends up with Katy raped and stumbling down a Tribeca street. At the hospital she refuses a rape kit and recants. Suspect Andy himself invites SVU over to his gym, argues the sex was consensual, and shows the detectives evidence of a (paltry considering he's worth millions) extortion attempt. The vic wasn't very vic-ey and the perp wasn't very perp-y (except for the tough-guy MMA fighter persona and, oh, that striated, chewed up and put-back-together ear).

Nobody knows what in the hell is going on, at once Andy and Katy both look guilty and innocent, until all signs point to a double catfish and Mays--something, West Virginia. Carisi and Rollins almost kiss, Rollins sleeps with a random bartender (surprise), Carisi broods, MMA Andy has a heart, and Hillbilly Heather is going to prison for a long time.

Oh, and also, Noah takes a lot of apples to school and he's now missing for the holidays.

Ramblings

Ramblings are a lot better when I have something to bitch and moan about and I do (Sheila) but the actual episode was intense, highly entertaining, and perfectly layered with personal and legal drama. Every character involved in the trial, in one way or another, earned my sympathy. All three of them had fairly harmless initial intents perverted by something beyond their control. Even Heather. I mean, damn, the pressure of being the sole caregiver of a seriously ailing mother? And then, to add insult to serious injury she lives in bumble fuck West Virginia and her wildest dream is doing the Laverne and Shirley thing in New York?

Loved how the characters were written so the audience jumped to assumptions fueled by stereotypes only to have those assumptions challenged and proven wrong

Do we think the writers are familiar with fans? I'd make some crack about the Blue whatever it was shampoo obsession among Katy's followers, but I diiiid kinda whip out the credit card as soon as Mariska tweeted "Terax" and made sure to add express shipping.

I SO hate it when I'm sorta hungover after a night of drinking and almost sleeping with a friend/colleague and considerately buy breakfast and coffee only to witness the one-night-stand leave her hotel room.

Rollins knows THE Monster's stats a little too well which I would disregard except I can't help but wonder if she's gambling again and was I the only one who thought the pain-in-the-ass remark at Carisi as she basically told him to grow the fuck up hinted at a previous sexual rendezvous between the two of them? But then again, if that were the case, why wouldn't they have hooked up in WV? Or maybe they did it once in a moment of weakness and promised to not go there again? But damn writers and actors you're scrambling my brain because "Rafa" and Sonny sure looked happy to see one another. And to circle back for a second, I coulda done without Rollins recalling banging RJ's brains out behind the bar in Loganville and also what's wrong with her mom? Cirrhosis?

Rafa. Ugh.

I love episodes like this. The snark, the banter, the heartache...and the suspense...just really well done.

BUT...

Nobody told me we were playing the Olivia Benson WTF Face Drinking game. Next time, I guess. Except I try to dry out in January. Well, not on Wednesdays I guess.

While we're on the subject of OMB WTF faces, she regarded members of her squad with incredulity multiple times, and it emphasized her isolation...they may have her back but she's not really one of the group anymore. Which is fine. But I don't want her to be alone I want her to be with Tucker because I guaran-fucking-tee you Tucker's retired ass would be tailing Grandma Sheila on her outings with Noah. Lol. Can't you just see him? All cranky and pissed off and disagreeing with OMB's decision but respecting it and...okay I'll stop writing Fan Fiction.

Why didn't Noah SCREAM?

Oh, and for someone who needed translation services (good one, OMB), Carisi sure did have a good eye for where Heather's room was located. 

Quotable:

"We're both new at this." Oh stop it, Olivia. Sheila fucked up. No, she didn't fuck up. That was not an accident. She did it on purpose, selfishly and maliciously, and IDK if she orchestrated the kidnapping or not, but this woman is POISONOUS. While we're on the subject, could the two of them be any more awkward around each other? No joke, I cringe every time they're in a scene together. EVERY TIME.

"Sorry no deal or sorry I hurt you and you'll take the deal?" LOLOLOLOL Andy's doing the right thing (love) but Barba's all like yeah yeah yeah, enough talking let's hammer this out so we can move on.

Noah "ended up in the right ZIP code with the right people." Well, that's all there is to it, right? Except...I gather Sheila's idea of "right people" is her family and I'm 70% leaning toward she orchestrated this whole thing, 20% on the side of it's revenge for something OMB did, and 10% it's Cassidy.

"Nope, not yet, but I still got 10,000 pictures to go through." Oh, shutup Carisi.

"...or he could just move to Hollywood."
"Don't people know porn's free these days..."
Oh, Fin.
And the way OMB looked at him. Surely the actors had to film that scene a few times.

"I'm so glad." Bahahahahaha
I really hope OMB hasn't been spending evenings drinking tea with Sheila when she could be spending them cuddled up with Tucker.

Wardrobe

It's TRENCH COAT SEASON!

Oh, and after Noah is recovered, take that fur-lined hooded coat into evidence and leave it there. Those are gross and the fur gets all matted and encrusted with preschooler crumbs and bits of eraser and glue...it's just disgusting. Thanks.

Tucker Files

This was sunken ship torture in the most serious degree. And I thought "Eddie" and smelling the flowers in the morning were bad.

"Who is the hand?"

OMB struggling to find someone who "has her back" and she can TRUST? (Hint: that person is not B.C. He essentially turned her in to child services FFS. Also, he's a jackass.)

"Looks like there may be a heart somewhere under all those muscles." REMEMBER HOW YOU FOUND A HEART UNDER THAT ornery, rigid, hard-nosed exterior of a certain former IAB investigator? Yeah, me too. Why don't ya give him a call?

Is It Next Wednesday Yet?

Can. Sheila. Just. Go. Away.?

Or die? Sure, Olivia will have to talk to him about death and why Mommy shot Granny and maybe he'll have nightmares but I can handle that. Pleeeeeeeeease can we make a New Year's Resolution that someone else's kid or family can be in peril? It would've made WAY more sense for Jesse to be taken by the people who own Rollins' gambling debt. Isn't it about time for them to get out of prison? Or bring Declan back and out of UC ops and someone takes his kid as payback?

Or, or, or, or....

Happy Holidays, ya'll.

I hope Santa brings each and every one of you a big, red Range Rover.

Or its equivalent.

For Your Emmy Consideration...

The #42 Minutes

Students on a field trip to the Museum of Natural History discover Laurel Linwood, barely conscious, on the exhibit hall floor. As advertised, very little else happens outside of the precinct as Benson works to piece together Laurel's evening so she and the squad can ID the rapist. Fin and Carisi easily find a suspect but they find him dead with a pair of scissors jammed in his face and suddenly Laurel is both suspect and victim (and if this had been an Eidisode there probs would have been bar video of her actively seducing the dude and also most of the ep would've occurred in the hospital emergency room with the detectives bumbling about trying to figure out how to get Laurel to speak).

Sorry.

The more Benson tries to draw out information from Laurel, the details become more convoluted, and we learn both Laurel and her sister are harboring deep-seated trauma. The abuse suffered at the hands of their father spills out over the sister's objections, and even the Lieutenant (who must have by now at least 20 years of SVU experience?), is shocked by the horrifying family secret.

Laurel predicts she's going to prison, but surely any mildly competent attorney would use her obviously fragile state of mental health in her favor. The detectives escort her out leaving a mentally and physically exhausted Benson to collect herself in the dawn of a new, sunny day.

Ramblings:

The episode's art--the camera angles, the lighting, the acting--was superb. Benson sounded like Benson, and surely there were many moments on set when she and Melora Walters left everyone speechless. It was, collectively, an extraordinary performance.

A +
Emmys all around!

Buuuuuuuut....the actual story lacked intensity. Maybe I've watched too much SVU or have too much of a morbid mind or both but as soon as the father's funeral detail emerged I knew he had something more to do with whatever happened to Laurel other than that he was dead. The sister's demeanor was aloof from the beginning and caused me to zero in even more on the father so much so that I doubted myself and snickered, "nope, not him, too obvious."

I suppose the redeeming quality of the script was the broader point about the irrevocable and far-reaching effects of domestic physical and psychological abuse on not only the immediate victim but the entire family. The soul is not dead quote will be tweeted and retweeted and included in bios and GIFed and tattooed...but Benson's ripple metaphor is the overlooked gem of the dialogue.

"...they grow bigger and bigger and bigger destroying everything in its wake...that's what your father did. He threw an insidious rock into your family and it covered all of you."

Speaking of dialogue...

Oh, wait...in my weekly I'm-still-pissed-about-Tuckson commentary...I am convinced the writers intentionally keep poking us in the shoulder with subtle references like smelling flowers and the phrase "collateral damage" which inevitably conjures memories of the masterpiece Collateral Damages and the official unveiling of #Tuckson and the arm grab and the "Ed just give me five minutes" and the "one of you wanna join me" and the hand on the small of her back, and, and, and...

They'll have to pry that ship from my cold, dead hands...

QUOTABLE

"Alone..."

"Hatred..."

"Father..."

"You could not be more wrong."

"I think I'm here to help you understand that. This I know."

Mariska absolutely killed this...she did a remarkable job of showing OMB exuding empathy one minute, struggling to keep her past at bay the next, and then giving in and allowing those demons to bubble back to the surface. Finally she goes all you really have no fucking clue, sister and it was so badass when she flipped off the audio and yanked the blinds closed. I am officially never ever ever taking any stock in a preview ever again, but even though I spent the #42Minutes bracing for OMB to expose a previously hidden wound I did think the juxtaposition of the two women both broken by fathers reemphasized why we love Olivia Margaret Benson so much. She has every reason to wear her damage and demons on her sleeve, but she's turned all that ugliness into a purposeful and heroic life.

"You couldn't get her to say word one." Sorry, Rollins. LOLOLOLOLOL

Wardrobe:

Not much to comment on this week, so let's just admire Mariska a little more.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears 

      Looms but the Horror of the shade, 

And yet the menace of the years 

      Finds and shall find me unafraid. 

It matters not how strait the gate, 

      How charged with punishments the scroll, 

I am the master of my fate, 

      I am the captain of my soul. 

Is It Next Wednesday Yet?

Not looking forward to Sheila absconding with Noah but, then again, maybe Benson or someone else will have to shoot her.

A #Secret Theory

What is the secret?

I've been cynical because the last (canon and aired) secret was the middle name, and I'm still hesitant to get excited about what I see as a hit-or-miss 19th season. However, it's been 24 hours and I can't shake this theory.

Benson's secret being that she was raped is a little too easy.

I think she was unknowingly in the early stages of pregnancy when she was first kidnapped by William Lewis and, as a result of her injuries and the entire ordeal, she miscarried.

This fits into the Benson-as-Mom-Centric arc of the season (even though I think I read somewhere this episode is supposed to be a standalone HargiShowcase), and it ties into her breakup with Cassidy and his subsequent S19 mini-rant about her unwillingness to talk to him. There is just enough lack of S15 detail to leave the door open to this possibility, and imagine how conflicted Olivia would've felt when she learned the news that she'd been carrying a child...and then thinking she was "over it" and wanting to be pregnant only to realize that Brian Cassidy was not and would never be the third piece of that puzzle. Imagine that Benson rock-bottom-ness...how excruciating it must have been for her then how exhilarating to...get her soul back...on Judge Linden's hunch...

I'm sure the more savvy  SVU fans will rabidly toss this aside quickly, but, like I said, I can't stop thinking about it.

But, then again, maybe I've become too attached to This is Us.

Nooch.6: When Not Everyone Is Sorry For Your Loss...

The #42 Minutes:

Natalie Curtis is discovered raped and dead from an overdose in the East Village and the investigation leads SVU from an overly tatted and grilled heroin dealer to a high-end rehab center to a shady sober house, and back again to the rehab center and its seemingly principled yet corrupt director, Dr. Barkley who ends up getting a taste, err, of his own medicine.

I'll never understand the allure of the grill.

In a pleasant departure from the previous five episodes, the case was less a "whodunit" and more of an indictment against the array of nefarious people who prey on addicts and their families.

Sheila continues to linger...but hopefully we're headed for denouement as far as she's concerned. The whole thing has run its course; however, Sheila and the Curtises and Rosemary illuminate and reinforce for Benson the reality that parents can do almost everything right and still be powerless when things go totally wrong.

Ramblings:

Gotta admit, I thought Rosemary (Annie Corley did an a had something to do with whatever Lux was hiding and I also thought Rollins' undercover assignment was going to involve her being a patient rather than an aide on a trial run. Given the way the episode opened, I was sure Amanda was going to be Kristy's strung-out roommate and something a la Sealview would ensue, but...wrong-O! Nice job keeping us guessing Elizabeth Rinehart.

Rosemary did offer up the aide opportunity a little too quickly but I guess people aren't flooding her with resumes for a job like that.

Lucy, I recommend you start looking for other gigs because Grandma Sheila went from awkward tea and convo and no-you're-not-staying-with-Noah to one of Manhattan's preferred babysitters, so Luc, you need to get on the #ByeFelicia train but maybe you're done nannying anyway. While I no longer think Sheila's planning to do anything wicked like kidnap Noah, I am annoyed that suddenly she gets an all-access pass to Benson. Maybe poor Tucker's coffee invite in Chasing Theo was ill-timed and it wasn't Noah-related but stillllll...Sheila calls and Benson drops everything to meet her at, um...the same fucking place as "we've got a good thing going here the three of us"...like, come on set people, you couldn't pick literally ANY OTHER SITE IN MANHATTAN?

I consider all of this felony Tuckson taunting.
Oh, and also, I'm not so sure I woulda sipped that cappuccino. 

And, just so we're clear, three of us is with Tucker, not her.

But, okay, okay, I get it...the story of Natalie sort of paralleled Ellie's in a way and one minute everything's fine and she was playing soccer and Ellie was buying prom dresses and the next minute they're gone...OMB realizes she has compassion for everyone but Sheila and the hand grab was sweet and at least she's at peace with her presence in Noah's life so now can she just be relegated to a few mentions here and there?

Quotable

"I gotta get over it, right?" You recall Ellie left the safe house only to end up found incinerated on the side of a road. And maybe OMB harbors some guilt that someone's worst nightmare ended up bringing her such happiness, but yes, OMB, you gotta get over it.

"Figure out another way in." Ahhh, some Barba-Rollins collusion just like the good old Yates at Green Haven days.

And ya know, sometimes Rollins doesn't have to speak:

Exhibit A

Exhibit B

"Illegal search...illegal search...illegal search..." Okayyyyy, Lieutenant we get it; however I do appreciate you letting her off the hook because after all you forgave Fin for his little extralegal jaunt to Cuba but maybe OMB would like to consider a gentle Come-to-Jesus with those two.

"What are you? A bat?"
"What?"
Poor Carisi.....

"I'm the bitch that's gonna..." Twitter loved this line but I guess I'm in the minority in thinking it was slightly OOC but I know we're all craving badass Benson and that was pretty fucking badass especially since I'm gonna have nightmares about that guy for the rest of the week. Scarrrrrryyyyy.

But then "Find Mr. Stache..."

LOL

Wardrobe

Just when I thought I could love no trench more than her black one...

"You will get nowhere in this field without the requisite drab, heavy sweater."

I don't blame ya, Rosemary, I loved that one, too. 

Is it Next Wednesday Yet?

Well, I'll be looking to see if Noah's room has been rearranged once again because wasn't the door in the wrong place in this episode? And his bed is now against the wall? And he's an infielder who likes the Yankees because, of course, "Eddie's" taken him to a game or two...riiiiight? Because Tucker is totally a Yankees fan.

Before the premiere I sat back on the sofa with a satisfied smile and thought oh good, I won't be brooding over this fucking show for three weeks only to watch the promo for "Something Happened" and how in the hell am I supposed to work and prepare Thanksgiving dinner for twelve people when I'm going to be predicting and unpredicting and repredicting OMB's secret until next, next, next Wednesday?