(Scene begins with a black background as words start to come to light saying "The Last Of The Americans" and a voiceover done by James Faraci saying "In the Internet Reviewer community, The people who review are expressing opinions based on what they have seen and experienced and there are those with similar opinions, This is one of their voices". Clanging noises are heard, fade cut into The Studio where James Faraci The Last Of The Americans works at as James Faraci & Eric Kurtzke walks in dressed as Detectives)
Det. Faraci (Played by James Faraci):
Detectives Faraci and Kurtzke, What have we got? (Cut to the Forensic Scientist played by Brenda Fonseca)
The Forensic Scientist:
Cause Of Death was trying to binge 20 years worth the show in before the 21st season, I'm ruling the cause of death to be malnutrition, but the reason I called you two in was the fact that someone raped the corpses, Semen was sucked out of the men and the hymen of the women were torn post mortem! (Cut to Detective Kurtzke)
Det. Kurtzke:
It appears that it's more than that, I'm noticing wound made before they bought the farm! My guess, a .22 to the back to the ear did all of them. One shot starting here and ending in the wall! (Cut to the CSI Tech team played by John Ross Santos, Ed Champion, Mike Santos, and Andrew Beach as they cut out the chunk of the wall. Cut to Det. Faraci and Kurtzke)
Det. Kurtzke:
This one maybe harder than Chinese Arithmetic might be figuring out who'd do this to these people and why?
Det. Faraci:
The Who is obviously a "Law And Order: Special Victims Unit" fan. There's 20 years worth of the series missing from the Media Collection and now with Season 21 nearly here, the how is even harder. (Fade to black Cut to "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" style opening credits with shots of Sullivan County with credits reading "Starring James Faraci", "Paulo Fonseca", "Rebecca Yaun", "John Santos", "Mike Santos", "Nick Yaun", "Renee Miller", "Olivia Horvath", "Ed Champion", "Andrew Beach" with the performers doing standing poses with the last shot being the Monticello NY Government Building. Cut to the Logo of "The Last Of The Americans" in Law & Order style text. Cut to James and Team TLOTA standing in the Main Lobby. Cut to the Neversink Reservoir as the words "Written by James Faraci" while a soundalike to the "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" main theme. Fade to black and cut to James in his office taking off his Detective garb and his usual clothing)
TLOTA:
I'm James Faraci The Last Of The Americans and the views that I'm about to express are that of my own and some of yours. (Cut to the Opening Credit scene of "Law and Order: Special Victims Unit" then clips of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" play as the "Law & Order: SVU" theme song plays in the foreground James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
As of this post, Law & Order: Special Victims is gearing up for it's 21st season. The series has come a LONG way from the first Spin Off of "Law & Order". This series has become a cultural landmark, having made a household name out of Mariska Hargitay, changed how rape and abuse is looked upon in the media and has become the longest running drama in the history of Television. But how has it earned that distinction? What has kept the show going after tumultuous cast departures, an episode that will never see the light of day and everything else that would've ended a series like this only a few years in? (Cut to James physically)
TLOTA:
Well this will definitely not be your usual Mini-Review/Editorial, I will be talking about subjects I naturally try to avoid when it comes my work because I don't want to alienate ANYONE by going into subjects that divide people like Politics and my views on certain subjects so bear in mind if I say something that may contradict certain things mentioned as to how certain people say and or how they would do things in the real world. So let's get into the whats, the hows and whys as we find the secret that has made "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" the longest running Primetime Drama in TV History. (Cut to clips of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
A lot of people when they talk about the show talk about how they do episodes that are "Ripped From The Headlines". Um... How do I put it gently? When they do that usually they do it from what I would consider the Hollywood Point Of View. One episode in mind comes from something that happened a few years ago. The "Gamergate" issue! In the episode "Intimidation Game" Detectives Odafin Tutuola, Amanda Rollins, Dominic "Sonny" Carisi are at a gaming event when a game that I would recommend as a part time gamer is being promoted a game called "Amazonian Warriors" in which the players were given a chance to change things for the better but the slope headed Neanderthal male games are like "We Want More of the same Violent Games, not something intelimenegnt!" and proceed to become kidnappers and rapists. OY VEY, WHERE DO I BEGIN?! I know gamers who are NOTHING like the characters in that episode. Angry Joe isn't that way, The Angry Video Game Nerd isn't like that and neither is the Irate Gamer or whatever Chris Bores goes by now a days and friggin ICE-T WHO IS A GAMER AS WELL AS A RAP ICON ISN'T THAT WAY. SO WHY DID YOU WRITE GAMERS THAT WAY?! And guess If there ever is another type of situation like the one that, do something intelligent and call in Angry Joe or James Rolfe aka The Angry Video Game Nerd to consult, that way you can get it right.
Then there are the episodes that seem to have a unique political slant like in the episodes "Anchor" & "Info Wars". In those episodes they seem to make a point to make a certain political party, a News Network and their pundits and those who watch them look like the evil empire who believe Rape is good thing and everything that is happening is because we allow the wrong to happen and love to tear the world a new one. WHERE DO I BEGIN?! Okay let's start with "Anchor" in which a Political Pundit is made to look evil even though the guy who did the wrong did it of his own volition. The Attorney defending him tried to make it sound as if the Political Pundit is the cause because of both his right wing political standings and his beliefs that Immigrants should be sent back to their home country. Now here is where I will defend certain people on that network when it comes to Immigration and Immigrants coming to our country and they do not oppose it. They are more than welcome but they also have to be sure to get in the right way. Now onto the episode "Info Wars" in which a Female Political Pundit who looks like a recently dismissed Megyn Kelly who at that point was hired and didn't connect with NBC's audience and I think it was the network's way of letting her know what they think and hope for her which didn't bode well for a well functioning relationship between the two parties. But I digress The Megyn Kelly wannabe is raped by a fanatic and rather than being grateful the Megyn Kelly wannabe is so stuck in her own reality, it makes the case impossible to be done the right way. So much so that even at the end of the episode the Megyn Kelly Wannabe doesn't apparently care and Lt. Benson is DONE trying to deal with her. WHERE TO START?! Okay first off I actually checked out all the news that I could muster and stand without wanting to take a baseball bat to the head. And from what little I saw, Nowhere in her pieces was she anti-rape, nowhere was she as cold and calculating as her Law & Order SVU counterpart (Cut to James Physically)
TLOTA:
But those examples of where the show DOESN'T work. There are a lot of things to like about the show and I'm about to go through 20 seasons worth of a show that has been through more Ups and Downs than any show that's lasted a fraction of the time. So let's do it! (Cut to clips of "Law & Order: SVU" as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
The first season was shaky but there were elements that worked like Olivia Benson played by Mariska Hargitay, Elliot Stabler played by Christopher Meloni, John Munch played by Richard Belzer and Capt. Donald Cragen played by Dann Florek. The stories in the episodes varied in quality but they weren't bad. As a matter of fact a few of the episodes from the first season I do recommend you check out like the pilot episode: "Payback", "Closure (Part 1)", "Chat Rooms" & "Slaves". Seasons two, three & four is where the show picked up steam. It got rid of dead weight that was Detectives Monique Jeffries played by Michelle Hurd who really didn't do that much and Detective Brian Cassidy played by Dean Winters. Now that's not to say both are bad actors I actually enjoy their works, it's just they were under utilized in the show. While Dean Winters will return in later seasons the time away actually helped develop the character. I just wish outside of a brief mention in the season ten premiere by John Munch we actually discover what truly happened to Monique Jeffries. But I digress, Season 2 saw the introduction of Odafin Tutuola played by ICE-T and ADA Alexandra Cabot played by Stephanie March. The pacing of the season picked up exponentially and Several episodes from Seasons 2-4 include "Wrong Is Right", "Honor", "Runaway", "Countdown", "Rooftop", "Greed", "Competence", "Disappearing Acts", "Fallacy" and while technically a Season Five Episode I also recommend Stephanie March's Final Episode in her first run "Loss". Season Five showed that change isn't a bad thing, especially with the new ADA Casey Novak played by Diane Neal who actually appeared in an episode where Diane Neal's character was put on trial. Anyway from Seasons Five through Eight is where the series actually finds new ground and the series sounds more like a natural reality for a solid future at least for a while anyways. Some of the episodes I recommend include "Serendipity", "Coerced", "Control", "Brotherhood", "Hate", "Sick", "Bound", "Debt", "Charisma", "Haunted", "Game", "Demons", "Design", "911", "Strain", "Raw", "Storm", "Taboo", "Informed", "Choreographed", "Burned", "Loophole", "Dependent", "Haystack", "Sin", "Florida", & "Screwed" (Cut to James physically)
TLOTA:
Now we move on to season Nine and Hoo boy! Do we find ourselves in unique territory. (Cut to clips of Season 9 of "Law & Order: SVU" as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
Now again this is not a bad season, I actually enjoy a lot of the episodes and I enjoyed the new character of "Chester Lake" played by Adam Beach and one of the best things is when he acted as the new audience surrogate in the season premiere episode "Alternate" when he said that the detectives at the 16th Precinct's Special Victims Unit were where the looney tunes come home to roost! If he was around for a while longer he would know how much crazier the show would get. But by the end of the season both he and Diane Neal leave the show in the finale "Cold" an episode my associate on TV Trash had discussed already. But the truth is, the rest of the season is really good. Especially the 200th episode "Authority". The episode has the late Robin Williams in the role of Merritt Rook as he got away with coercing a man to do rape in a fast food restaurant. After getting away with it, Rook makes it his goal to cause chaos within his rights. And rather than go to prison, he drowned himself. Overall the season has it's highs and lows and for me I recommend it.
Det. Faraci (Played by James Faraci):
Detectives Faraci and Kurtzke, What have we got? (Cut to the Forensic Scientist played by Brenda Fonseca)
The Forensic Scientist:
Cause Of Death was trying to binge 20 years worth the show in before the 21st season, I'm ruling the cause of death to be malnutrition, but the reason I called you two in was the fact that someone raped the corpses, Semen was sucked out of the men and the hymen of the women were torn post mortem! (Cut to Detective Kurtzke)
Det. Kurtzke:
It appears that it's more than that, I'm noticing wound made before they bought the farm! My guess, a .22 to the back to the ear did all of them. One shot starting here and ending in the wall! (Cut to the CSI Tech team played by John Ross Santos, Ed Champion, Mike Santos, and Andrew Beach as they cut out the chunk of the wall. Cut to Det. Faraci and Kurtzke)
Det. Kurtzke:
This one maybe harder than Chinese Arithmetic might be figuring out who'd do this to these people and why?
Det. Faraci:
The Who is obviously a "Law And Order: Special Victims Unit" fan. There's 20 years worth of the series missing from the Media Collection and now with Season 21 nearly here, the how is even harder. (Fade to black Cut to "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" style opening credits with shots of Sullivan County with credits reading "Starring James Faraci", "Paulo Fonseca", "Rebecca Yaun", "John Santos", "Mike Santos", "Nick Yaun", "Renee Miller", "Olivia Horvath", "Ed Champion", "Andrew Beach" with the performers doing standing poses with the last shot being the Monticello NY Government Building. Cut to the Logo of "The Last Of The Americans" in Law & Order style text. Cut to James and Team TLOTA standing in the Main Lobby. Cut to the Neversink Reservoir as the words "Written by James Faraci" while a soundalike to the "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" main theme. Fade to black and cut to James in his office taking off his Detective garb and his usual clothing)
TLOTA:
I'm James Faraci The Last Of The Americans and the views that I'm about to express are that of my own and some of yours. (Cut to the Opening Credit scene of "Law and Order: Special Victims Unit" then clips of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" play as the "Law & Order: SVU" theme song plays in the foreground James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
As of this post, Law & Order: Special Victims is gearing up for it's 21st season. The series has come a LONG way from the first Spin Off of "Law & Order". This series has become a cultural landmark, having made a household name out of Mariska Hargitay, changed how rape and abuse is looked upon in the media and has become the longest running drama in the history of Television. But how has it earned that distinction? What has kept the show going after tumultuous cast departures, an episode that will never see the light of day and everything else that would've ended a series like this only a few years in? (Cut to James physically)
TLOTA:
Well this will definitely not be your usual Mini-Review/Editorial, I will be talking about subjects I naturally try to avoid when it comes my work because I don't want to alienate ANYONE by going into subjects that divide people like Politics and my views on certain subjects so bear in mind if I say something that may contradict certain things mentioned as to how certain people say and or how they would do things in the real world. So let's get into the whats, the hows and whys as we find the secret that has made "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" the longest running Primetime Drama in TV History. (Cut to clips of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
A lot of people when they talk about the show talk about how they do episodes that are "Ripped From The Headlines". Um... How do I put it gently? When they do that usually they do it from what I would consider the Hollywood Point Of View. One episode in mind comes from something that happened a few years ago. The "Gamergate" issue! In the episode "Intimidation Game" Detectives Odafin Tutuola, Amanda Rollins, Dominic "Sonny" Carisi are at a gaming event when a game that I would recommend as a part time gamer is being promoted a game called "Amazonian Warriors" in which the players were given a chance to change things for the better but the slope headed Neanderthal male games are like "We Want More of the same Violent Games, not something intelimenegnt!" and proceed to become kidnappers and rapists. OY VEY, WHERE DO I BEGIN?! I know gamers who are NOTHING like the characters in that episode. Angry Joe isn't that way, The Angry Video Game Nerd isn't like that and neither is the Irate Gamer or whatever Chris Bores goes by now a days and friggin ICE-T WHO IS A GAMER AS WELL AS A RAP ICON ISN'T THAT WAY. SO WHY DID YOU WRITE GAMERS THAT WAY?! And guess If there ever is another type of situation like the one that, do something intelligent and call in Angry Joe or James Rolfe aka The Angry Video Game Nerd to consult, that way you can get it right.
Then there are the episodes that seem to have a unique political slant like in the episodes "Anchor" & "Info Wars". In those episodes they seem to make a point to make a certain political party, a News Network and their pundits and those who watch them look like the evil empire who believe Rape is good thing and everything that is happening is because we allow the wrong to happen and love to tear the world a new one. WHERE DO I BEGIN?! Okay let's start with "Anchor" in which a Political Pundit is made to look evil even though the guy who did the wrong did it of his own volition. The Attorney defending him tried to make it sound as if the Political Pundit is the cause because of both his right wing political standings and his beliefs that Immigrants should be sent back to their home country. Now here is where I will defend certain people on that network when it comes to Immigration and Immigrants coming to our country and they do not oppose it. They are more than welcome but they also have to be sure to get in the right way. Now onto the episode "Info Wars" in which a Female Political Pundit who looks like a recently dismissed Megyn Kelly who at that point was hired and didn't connect with NBC's audience and I think it was the network's way of letting her know what they think and hope for her which didn't bode well for a well functioning relationship between the two parties. But I digress The Megyn Kelly wannabe is raped by a fanatic and rather than being grateful the Megyn Kelly wannabe is so stuck in her own reality, it makes the case impossible to be done the right way. So much so that even at the end of the episode the Megyn Kelly Wannabe doesn't apparently care and Lt. Benson is DONE trying to deal with her. WHERE TO START?! Okay first off I actually checked out all the news that I could muster and stand without wanting to take a baseball bat to the head. And from what little I saw, Nowhere in her pieces was she anti-rape, nowhere was she as cold and calculating as her Law & Order SVU counterpart (Cut to James Physically)
TLOTA:
But those examples of where the show DOESN'T work. There are a lot of things to like about the show and I'm about to go through 20 seasons worth of a show that has been through more Ups and Downs than any show that's lasted a fraction of the time. So let's do it! (Cut to clips of "Law & Order: SVU" as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
The first season was shaky but there were elements that worked like Olivia Benson played by Mariska Hargitay, Elliot Stabler played by Christopher Meloni, John Munch played by Richard Belzer and Capt. Donald Cragen played by Dann Florek. The stories in the episodes varied in quality but they weren't bad. As a matter of fact a few of the episodes from the first season I do recommend you check out like the pilot episode: "Payback", "Closure (Part 1)", "Chat Rooms" & "Slaves". Seasons two, three & four is where the show picked up steam. It got rid of dead weight that was Detectives Monique Jeffries played by Michelle Hurd who really didn't do that much and Detective Brian Cassidy played by Dean Winters. Now that's not to say both are bad actors I actually enjoy their works, it's just they were under utilized in the show. While Dean Winters will return in later seasons the time away actually helped develop the character. I just wish outside of a brief mention in the season ten premiere by John Munch we actually discover what truly happened to Monique Jeffries. But I digress, Season 2 saw the introduction of Odafin Tutuola played by ICE-T and ADA Alexandra Cabot played by Stephanie March. The pacing of the season picked up exponentially and Several episodes from Seasons 2-4 include "Wrong Is Right", "Honor", "Runaway", "Countdown", "Rooftop", "Greed", "Competence", "Disappearing Acts", "Fallacy" and while technically a Season Five Episode I also recommend Stephanie March's Final Episode in her first run "Loss". Season Five showed that change isn't a bad thing, especially with the new ADA Casey Novak played by Diane Neal who actually appeared in an episode where Diane Neal's character was put on trial. Anyway from Seasons Five through Eight is where the series actually finds new ground and the series sounds more like a natural reality for a solid future at least for a while anyways. Some of the episodes I recommend include "Serendipity", "Coerced", "Control", "Brotherhood", "Hate", "Sick", "Bound", "Debt", "Charisma", "Haunted", "Game", "Demons", "Design", "911", "Strain", "Raw", "Storm", "Taboo", "Informed", "Choreographed", "Burned", "Loophole", "Dependent", "Haystack", "Sin", "Florida", & "Screwed" (Cut to James physically)
TLOTA:
Now we move on to season Nine and Hoo boy! Do we find ourselves in unique territory. (Cut to clips of Season 9 of "Law & Order: SVU" as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
Now again this is not a bad season, I actually enjoy a lot of the episodes and I enjoyed the new character of "Chester Lake" played by Adam Beach and one of the best things is when he acted as the new audience surrogate in the season premiere episode "Alternate" when he said that the detectives at the 16th Precinct's Special Victims Unit were where the looney tunes come home to roost! If he was around for a while longer he would know how much crazier the show would get. But by the end of the season both he and Diane Neal leave the show in the finale "Cold" an episode my associate on TV Trash had discussed already. But the truth is, the rest of the season is really good. Especially the 200th episode "Authority". The episode has the late Robin Williams in the role of Merritt Rook as he got away with coercing a man to do rape in a fast food restaurant. After getting away with it, Rook makes it his goal to cause chaos within his rights. And rather than go to prison, he drowned himself. Overall the season has it's highs and lows and for me I recommend it.
(Cut to James physically)
TLOTA:
Now let's go through seasons 10-13 and how much happens in a few year span. (Cut to clips of Seasons 10-13 of Law & Order: SVU as James does a voiceover)
Now let's go through seasons 10-13 and how much happens in a few year span. (Cut to clips of Seasons 10-13 of Law & Order: SVU as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
These seasons had one problem an ADA that could last a season before being replaced by a legend ADA like Novak or Cabot. My personal favorite who almost got through a season was Kim Greylek played by Michaela McManus if there was even a few minutes in an episode where we got to know more about Greylek during her season we wouldn't have gotten the ones I dislike, Sonya Paxton, Sherri West and Gillian Hardwicke. Sonya Paxton was such a beeyotch she basically told Lucy Van Pelt to hold her beer then took a double dose of everyone else's beer Lucy and Hers included! As for Gillian Hardwicke she was just so cold! And that is not a knock towards Melissa Sagemiller, She played characters that while were ruthless also showed a different side to her each time. The character of Sherri West was just a meh, as a matter of fact when she returns in her final appearance in season 13 she's a defense attorney. Meaning she willing went to the dark side to defend the scum that shouldn't be defended and they should be quickly convicted and then sentenced to death! Then there's ADA Jo Marlowe played by Sharon Stone and to Sharon's credit, it's MILES above her work in "Catwoman" but it doesn't make up for "Basic Instinct 2" by a long shot! Then we meet David Haden played by the ever smooth and fantastically awesome Harry Connick Jr. The fact he was a love interest for Olivia and was played with some less than subtle moments in his tenure. But just because there were some negatives, it doesn't mean these seasons were bad. I loved at least I'd have to say 98 percent of Season 10, 95 percent of season 11, 99 percent of season 12 and at least 85 percent of Season 13. In fact one of my favorite moments in season 12 was when Olivia and Elliot were interrogating Vincent Prochik a professor of Mushrooms. I would love to see the blooper reel from that scene. Then came the Season thirteen of SVU which in two episodes introduced us to Amanda Rollins played by Kelli Giddish and Nick Amaro played by Danny Pino after season 12's finale which we will get to it right now. Season 10's finale had stones to kill off a secondary character we all knew. Season 11's finale ended with the Kidnapped child dying and the father having set up the mother for the kidnapping and with everything ending in tragedy. Season 12th's season finale proved to be Elliot Stabler's swansong as he has no choice but to shoot someone who is out for vengeance as she accidentally kills reoccurring character "Sister Peg" leaving the entire squad in turmoil and in the crosshairs of a lot of higher ups in the NYPD. Season 13's finale was unique as it was for the first time in SVU's history was a cliffhanger! As a case was hanging on by threads as it was turns bad as it was made to look like Captain Cragen committed murder while drunk. Keep in mind Captain Cragen had a problem with the booze when he was a young officer and nearly made a mistake that cost him his career and since then stayed sober! (Cut to James physically)
TLOTA:
Thankfully The Season 14 premiere would resolve the cliffhanger. The season itself was better for a lot of the right reasons. (Cut to clips of Season 14 of Law & Order: SVU as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
First off we had for the first time in five seasons a stable ADA with Rafael Barba played by Raul Esparza and for the first time since ADA Kim Greylek, I liked him. He was likable, he played his cards close to the vest and he had a mentality towards making sure justice was served. The season itself was amazingly better than Season 13 which for me had some good episodes. Season 14 is where the series picks up a new momentum that not a lot of series get in their 10th season let alone their 14th! That wind carried them to a new level of success and it's amazing how the season was well written, well acted and well paced! The season finale while again a cliffhanger made it worthwhile TV as William Lewis played by Pablo Schreiber got into Olivia Benson's apartment and had nasty plans for her next season. (Cut to James physically)
TLOTA:
Season 15, As much as it is a solid season, me personally, I feel turned into three mini-seasons with stories from the previous seasons sprinkled in.(Cut to clips of Season 15 of Law & Order: SVU as James does a voiceover)
These seasons had one problem an ADA that could last a season before being replaced by a legend ADA like Novak or Cabot. My personal favorite who almost got through a season was Kim Greylek played by Michaela McManus if there was even a few minutes in an episode where we got to know more about Greylek during her season we wouldn't have gotten the ones I dislike, Sonya Paxton, Sherri West and Gillian Hardwicke. Sonya Paxton was such a beeyotch she basically told Lucy Van Pelt to hold her beer then took a double dose of everyone else's beer Lucy and Hers included! As for Gillian Hardwicke she was just so cold! And that is not a knock towards Melissa Sagemiller, She played characters that while were ruthless also showed a different side to her each time. The character of Sherri West was just a meh, as a matter of fact when she returns in her final appearance in season 13 she's a defense attorney. Meaning she willing went to the dark side to defend the scum that shouldn't be defended and they should be quickly convicted and then sentenced to death! Then there's ADA Jo Marlowe played by Sharon Stone and to Sharon's credit, it's MILES above her work in "Catwoman" but it doesn't make up for "Basic Instinct 2" by a long shot! Then we meet David Haden played by the ever smooth and fantastically awesome Harry Connick Jr. The fact he was a love interest for Olivia and was played with some less than subtle moments in his tenure. But just because there were some negatives, it doesn't mean these seasons were bad. I loved at least I'd have to say 98 percent of Season 10, 95 percent of season 11, 99 percent of season 12 and at least 85 percent of Season 13. In fact one of my favorite moments in season 12 was when Olivia and Elliot were interrogating Vincent Prochik a professor of Mushrooms. I would love to see the blooper reel from that scene. Then came the Season thirteen of SVU which in two episodes introduced us to Amanda Rollins played by Kelli Giddish and Nick Amaro played by Danny Pino after season 12's finale which we will get to it right now. Season 10's finale had stones to kill off a secondary character we all knew. Season 11's finale ended with the Kidnapped child dying and the father having set up the mother for the kidnapping and with everything ending in tragedy. Season 12th's season finale proved to be Elliot Stabler's swansong as he has no choice but to shoot someone who is out for vengeance as she accidentally kills reoccurring character "Sister Peg" leaving the entire squad in turmoil and in the crosshairs of a lot of higher ups in the NYPD. Season 13's finale was unique as it was for the first time in SVU's history was a cliffhanger! As a case was hanging on by threads as it was turns bad as it was made to look like Captain Cragen committed murder while drunk. Keep in mind Captain Cragen had a problem with the booze when he was a young officer and nearly made a mistake that cost him his career and since then stayed sober! (Cut to James physically)
TLOTA:
Thankfully The Season 14 premiere would resolve the cliffhanger. The season itself was better for a lot of the right reasons. (Cut to clips of Season 14 of Law & Order: SVU as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
First off we had for the first time in five seasons a stable ADA with Rafael Barba played by Raul Esparza and for the first time since ADA Kim Greylek, I liked him. He was likable, he played his cards close to the vest and he had a mentality towards making sure justice was served. The season itself was amazingly better than Season 13 which for me had some good episodes. Season 14 is where the series picks up a new momentum that not a lot of series get in their 10th season let alone their 14th! That wind carried them to a new level of success and it's amazing how the season was well written, well acted and well paced! The season finale while again a cliffhanger made it worthwhile TV as William Lewis played by Pablo Schreiber got into Olivia Benson's apartment and had nasty plans for her next season. (Cut to James physically)
TLOTA:
Season 15, As much as it is a solid season, me personally, I feel turned into three mini-seasons with stories from the previous seasons sprinkled in.(Cut to clips of Season 15 of Law & Order: SVU as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
The first mini-season started after the season premiere saw the rising of Olivia Benson from the darkness of what happened to her to become a woman in command. The first step was when Sgt. John Munch retired from SVU and moved to working for the D.A.'s Detectives Division. Which is where my buddy Rowdy decided to hit the dusty trail as well. Which is a shame because the second Mini-season was the next step in The Rising of Olivia Benson as though the lives of Nick Amaro and Amanda Rollins went down the toilet. Between Amanda relapsing with her demons and Nick fighting for solid ground as his wife left him and took their daughter. Then comes the retirement of Capt. Cragen putting Olivia in charge as she had passed the Sergeant's Exam. It was during the third mini-season where we saw not only the next step as she learns how to command the squad while still working the cases we saw resolution of the events in the second mini-season. With Amanda finally bottoming out and finally coming to terms with what was wrong with her, William Lewis escaping custody and stalking Olivia and finally putting the guy in the morgue, Nick finally allowing his world to fall apart so he can rebuild it into something better and Speaking of Olivia, she discovers in the middle of a case a little baby and in the finale of this season after noticing how much of a vested interest Olivia has taken in the baby who we discover is the offspring of a trafficked hooker named Ellie Porter, the judge decides to have Olivia become the foster mother to the Baby named Noah and if in one year's time if no one has stepped forward, Olivia could formally adopt Noah.
The first mini-season started after the season premiere saw the rising of Olivia Benson from the darkness of what happened to her to become a woman in command. The first step was when Sgt. John Munch retired from SVU and moved to working for the D.A.'s Detectives Division. Which is where my buddy Rowdy decided to hit the dusty trail as well. Which is a shame because the second Mini-season was the next step in The Rising of Olivia Benson as though the lives of Nick Amaro and Amanda Rollins went down the toilet. Between Amanda relapsing with her demons and Nick fighting for solid ground as his wife left him and took their daughter. Then comes the retirement of Capt. Cragen putting Olivia in charge as she had passed the Sergeant's Exam. It was during the third mini-season where we saw not only the next step as she learns how to command the squad while still working the cases we saw resolution of the events in the second mini-season. With Amanda finally bottoming out and finally coming to terms with what was wrong with her, William Lewis escaping custody and stalking Olivia and finally putting the guy in the morgue, Nick finally allowing his world to fall apart so he can rebuild it into something better and Speaking of Olivia, she discovers in the middle of a case a little baby and in the finale of this season after noticing how much of a vested interest Olivia has taken in the baby who we discover is the offspring of a trafficked hooker named Ellie Porter, the judge decides to have Olivia become the foster mother to the Baby named Noah and if in one year's time if no one has stepped forward, Olivia could formally adopt Noah.
(Cut to James physically)
TLOTA:
And now we kick it into seasons 16-18
And now we kick it into seasons 16-18
(Cut to clips of Seasons 16-18 of Law & Order: SVU as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
And while Olivia adjusts to single parenthood well enough, we're also introduced to someone who was only meant to be in a handful of episodes before hitting the dusty trail but people liked him so much, he became a regular by the fifth episode of the season. The newbie? (Show clip of "Dominic Carisi Jr. AKA Sonny" as he introduces himself. Cut to clips of Seasons 16-18 of Law & Order: SVU as James does a voiceover) Dominic "Sonny" Carisi played by Peter Scanavino and to his credit, he could've just phoned in his performance. But from the get-go there was an energy that was infectious. So much so Social Media took a liking to him and I understand why, he's ambitious enough to want to help, he cares about the victim and somehow reads everyone well enough. We also get some development with him in several episodes as he tries to get to pass the bar as a lawyer, has more siblings than we know and is an uncle to multiple nephews and nieces. Plus the banter between his character and both Rafael Barba and Amanda Rollins. So much so between Rollins and Carisi they've actually done what's known as "Shipped" them. Whatever that means. Anyway while this season does have the infamous "Gamergate"-esque episode this season and the next season has several episodes that crossover with another Dick Wolf produced series "Chicago P.D." . One of my favorite moments from these crossovers had Sgt. Hank Voight played by Jason Beghe was in the witness interrogation with a child trafficker and started to smack the taste out of the mouth of him much to the chagrin of Benson, thankfully cooler heads prevail but these crossover episodes help expand and connect the different shows under the Dick Wolf Production banner. But back to seasons 16-18 of SVU. One episode of season 16 which I'm sure came back to bite both the writers and actress Kelli Giddish in the butt was when Amanda Rollins said something about not having kids because during the production break after season 16 ended and season 17 started Kelli in real life got married and pregnant. The pregnancy was written into season 17. But back to season 16 as a major revelation of Noah's parentage came into play as it turns out Johnny D who was introduced in the episode after the "Gamergate" episode is Noah's biological dad. This information comes back into play in the season's finale as not only does Johnny D turn Olivia's life into a nightmare but even worse is that Nick Amaro's career has hit a brick wall. With all that going on Johnny D is sabotaging the case. That is until a young victim named Ariel breaks the sabotage which causes Johnny D to go on a rampage shooting the Judge and taking a court officer. Nick Amaro is in pursuit when... (Show Courtroom door as two shots are heard. Cut to later in the episode as James continues his voiceover.) While Nick survived Johnny D and the court officer he took weren't as lucky. With what appeared to be all the roadblocks gone Olivia formally adopted her son Noah Porter Benson. While this is happening, Nick is recovering and decides he's retiring. Then we meet his one season replacement with Sgt. Michael Dodds who just so happens to be the Chief's son. While he does become the second person in terms of a reoccurring character to actually die on a "Law & Order" series. As a matter of fact the series 18th season has Olivia trying to come to terms with what happened while fighting certainly some of the most important cases they can handle. (Cut to James physically )
TLOTA :
Now we must address something that is important. There's an episode which has not aired and something tells me it will most likely never see the light of day. The episode in question is about someone who is Trump like character who probably ended up in prison. According to some sources, the writing of the episode was more than likely not up to snuff and people probably would have been very disappointed with it. So maybe it was for the best it never gets released on the home media market or the syndicated market as well. And as for the rest of Season 18, it was really amazing. However between season 18 and 19 the young actor who played Noah was replaced. But what happens in Season 19 was just as monumental. (Cut to clips of Season 19 of Law & Order: SVU as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA :
Now we must address something that is important. There's an episode which has not aired and something tells me it will most likely never see the light of day. The episode in question is about someone who is Trump like character who probably ended up in prison. According to some sources, the writing of the episode was more than likely not up to snuff and people probably would have been very disappointed with it. So maybe it was for the best it never gets released on the home media market or the syndicated market as well. And as for the rest of Season 18, it was really amazing. However between season 18 and 19 the young actor who played Noah was replaced. But what happens in Season 19 was just as monumental. (Cut to clips of Season 19 of Law & Order: SVU as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
The season premiere has Fin in Cuba picking up an escaped rapist in exile and Olivia and her son Noah now played by Ryan Buggle and for the record, Ryan Buggle is awesome as Noah heading to school when a distracted Olivia took her eyes off her son and Noah nearly became a Road Pizza! That moment sets off a chain reaction that sets up her arc for the first third of the season. After a brief investigation, Olivia would be cleared of trumped up charges but the incident has a secondary chain reaction. Trevor Langan played by Peter Hermann who happens to be Mariska's Husband discovers that the mother of Ellie Porter the trafficked hooker who is Noah's Biological Mom was looking for Noah. While it took a few episodes the two try to put Noah's best interests ahead of a lot of their own turmoil. It's not until the fall finale that Sheila played by Brooke Shields put into play her plans to take Noah away from Olivia. While the fallout remains, we as an audience had little time to deal with it. Why? Because after several seasons Raul Esparza left but his final episode also was a good transitional episode for the new ADA who was in a short lived Chicago series by Dick Wolf. Enter Peter Stone played by Philip Winchester and while in his first episode he was a little too tough to digest over the rest of the season he mellowed out and he got some great development through out the rest of the season and much like Cabot, Novak, Greylek and Barba I liked him. He was smart, he was able to get the bad guys to fool themselves into providing the evidence to send themselves to jail and he quickly melded with the rest of the cast. As for the season finale it put a bullet through expectations as the intensity is ramped up. In the first part a nanny who was brought here through human traffickers finds the one who was the worst to her and tortures him. And as the case about the trafficker goes to trial, one of his associates takes the mentally ill sister of Peter Stone and when he and the squad along with ESU try to rescue her... (Show clip of Peter's sister being gunned down by the gangster and everyone filling the gangster full of lead!) Yeah, this was one of those times where even Ted Nugent would've thought it was overkill! Overall season 19 was as awesome after watching it for the tenth time on the USA Network as it was the first time on NBC! (Cut to James physically)
TLOTA:
Now we come to the most recent season and HOLY COW, No Holds Barred is the understatement of the millennium with the 20th season! (Cut to clips of Season 20 of Law & Order: SVU as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
And the best way to describe the 20th season is Nucking Futs! Between dealing with Amanda Rollins' Second Pregnancy, Olivia trying to get her son to open up to her, Peter Stone trying to come to terms with what happened with his sister being killed, All it needed was to give us a season full of amazing episodes which I am proud to say are some of the best I saw last year. There was not one episode I didn't like and one of the best moments was when something that was a loose plot point turned into something of a sticking point, A memo Chief Dodds played by Peter Gallagher had done up and it was after they captured a final third of the season long enemy in Rob Miller played by Titus Welliver and let me say the second he shook Noah's hand I knew YouTube would be BURNING up the comment section in wanting to see this guy die in the most Colossal and Painful of ways possible! Fortunately this death would not happen as believe it or not, they actually rehashed the ending to the episode "Cold" and made it work this time. (Cut to clips of the episode "Cold" as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
This is something my buddy The Rowdy Reviewer went into detail about how they tried to make the ends justify the means as Casey Novak tried to hold off the evidence that would've let a dirty cop get off on his crime and would potentially set a chain reaction that showed a lot of bad things. But even without the evidence, the person is found not guilty and it's up to Chester Lake to put a bullet in him like Old Yeller! Meanwhile Casey's plans are sent straight to hell as not only is her rouse discovered as we discover in the second episode of season ten Casey was disbarred meaning the job offer she had at the beginning of the episode was now a moot point! And while how and why Casey returned in the 12th and 13th seasons took Gold in the Plot gymnastics at the Storytelling Olympics a lot of people thought what happened was wrong. (Cut to clips of the season 20 finale as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
This time, it was personal for Peter Stone, During the season break, I'm willing to believe that Olivia Benson and her son Noah took Peter and gave him something positive to have in his life and the only way he felt as he could repay them was to put Rob Miller into a jail cell for the rest of his life even with the most circumstantial evidence. A move that eventually leads to Peter Stone leaving his post as the ADA for SVU however unlike Casey's departure which was because she was doing everything to put a criminal away with her somehow trying to make him slip up and convince the jury that he was guilty. Peter used everything in his arsenal and the smallest sliver of evidence linking Rob Miller to a murder that most likely he did commit. It was Peter's way of thanking Olivia and Noah in some weird and bizarre way by sacrificing his career, Peter gave Olivia and Noah some peace of mind knowing Rob Miller is in a jail cell for the rest of his life and the fact Peter knew the cost made the sacrifice more poignant. (Cut to James physically)
TLOTA :
And after going through every single last season, did I figure out what keeps this series relevant? I think so and I probably heard it so many times that it is stuck inside my head. (Show opening statement of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit". Cut to clips of the show as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
"Sexually based Offenses are especially heinous" and in our world we need detectives dedicated to putting them away. We need that elite squadron to put the rapists and abusive boyfriends/husbands/wives/girlfriends! We need the Special Victims Unit to help make sure that love, romance and all the stuff most people take for granted doesn't become criminal acts most times when things in a romance goes south it's not the prettiest picture or when someone does wrong to someone sexually, it's going to end up in the purview of the Special Victims Unit to investigate and ensure Justice is done and everyone on the show knows it. So much so Mariska Hargitay started up a non profit charity to help in the healing process called The Joyful Heart Foundation whose mission statement is to help victims heal and find strength through all sorts of exercises and assistance. To learn more, click on the link right here: http://www.joyfulheartfoundation.org/. And to those who help keep the bad people at bay in real life and on the show I salute all of you! (Cut to James physically)
TLOTA:
I'm James Faraci The Last Of The Americans and... Wait a second, Next month is October! I've always wanted to break out something different. (James pulls out his morpher and morphs into a Halloween version of his suit with a Black shirt covered in Pumpkins instead of a Red White and Blue shirt.) HOLY MOLY IT WORKED! Next time around The Top 13 Charmed episodes! I'm James Faraci The Last Of The Americans and... (A thunderous boom is heard) The Hell?! (James looks out the window and sees four witches with a cauldron in his parking lot. Cut to James) This is not going to look well to the landlords! ORAC! (Cut to black)
The season premiere has Fin in Cuba picking up an escaped rapist in exile and Olivia and her son Noah now played by Ryan Buggle and for the record, Ryan Buggle is awesome as Noah heading to school when a distracted Olivia took her eyes off her son and Noah nearly became a Road Pizza! That moment sets off a chain reaction that sets up her arc for the first third of the season. After a brief investigation, Olivia would be cleared of trumped up charges but the incident has a secondary chain reaction. Trevor Langan played by Peter Hermann who happens to be Mariska's Husband discovers that the mother of Ellie Porter the trafficked hooker who is Noah's Biological Mom was looking for Noah. While it took a few episodes the two try to put Noah's best interests ahead of a lot of their own turmoil. It's not until the fall finale that Sheila played by Brooke Shields put into play her plans to take Noah away from Olivia. While the fallout remains, we as an audience had little time to deal with it. Why? Because after several seasons Raul Esparza left but his final episode also was a good transitional episode for the new ADA who was in a short lived Chicago series by Dick Wolf. Enter Peter Stone played by Philip Winchester and while in his first episode he was a little too tough to digest over the rest of the season he mellowed out and he got some great development through out the rest of the season and much like Cabot, Novak, Greylek and Barba I liked him. He was smart, he was able to get the bad guys to fool themselves into providing the evidence to send themselves to jail and he quickly melded with the rest of the cast. As for the season finale it put a bullet through expectations as the intensity is ramped up. In the first part a nanny who was brought here through human traffickers finds the one who was the worst to her and tortures him. And as the case about the trafficker goes to trial, one of his associates takes the mentally ill sister of Peter Stone and when he and the squad along with ESU try to rescue her... (Show clip of Peter's sister being gunned down by the gangster and everyone filling the gangster full of lead!) Yeah, this was one of those times where even Ted Nugent would've thought it was overkill! Overall season 19 was as awesome after watching it for the tenth time on the USA Network as it was the first time on NBC! (Cut to James physically)
TLOTA:
Now we come to the most recent season and HOLY COW, No Holds Barred is the understatement of the millennium with the 20th season! (Cut to clips of Season 20 of Law & Order: SVU as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
And the best way to describe the 20th season is Nucking Futs! Between dealing with Amanda Rollins' Second Pregnancy, Olivia trying to get her son to open up to her, Peter Stone trying to come to terms with what happened with his sister being killed, All it needed was to give us a season full of amazing episodes which I am proud to say are some of the best I saw last year. There was not one episode I didn't like and one of the best moments was when something that was a loose plot point turned into something of a sticking point, A memo Chief Dodds played by Peter Gallagher had done up and it was after they captured a final third of the season long enemy in Rob Miller played by Titus Welliver and let me say the second he shook Noah's hand I knew YouTube would be BURNING up the comment section in wanting to see this guy die in the most Colossal and Painful of ways possible! Fortunately this death would not happen as believe it or not, they actually rehashed the ending to the episode "Cold" and made it work this time. (Cut to clips of the episode "Cold" as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
This is something my buddy The Rowdy Reviewer went into detail about how they tried to make the ends justify the means as Casey Novak tried to hold off the evidence that would've let a dirty cop get off on his crime and would potentially set a chain reaction that showed a lot of bad things. But even without the evidence, the person is found not guilty and it's up to Chester Lake to put a bullet in him like Old Yeller! Meanwhile Casey's plans are sent straight to hell as not only is her rouse discovered as we discover in the second episode of season ten Casey was disbarred meaning the job offer she had at the beginning of the episode was now a moot point! And while how and why Casey returned in the 12th and 13th seasons took Gold in the Plot gymnastics at the Storytelling Olympics a lot of people thought what happened was wrong. (Cut to clips of the season 20 finale as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
This time, it was personal for Peter Stone, During the season break, I'm willing to believe that Olivia Benson and her son Noah took Peter and gave him something positive to have in his life and the only way he felt as he could repay them was to put Rob Miller into a jail cell for the rest of his life even with the most circumstantial evidence. A move that eventually leads to Peter Stone leaving his post as the ADA for SVU however unlike Casey's departure which was because she was doing everything to put a criminal away with her somehow trying to make him slip up and convince the jury that he was guilty. Peter used everything in his arsenal and the smallest sliver of evidence linking Rob Miller to a murder that most likely he did commit. It was Peter's way of thanking Olivia and Noah in some weird and bizarre way by sacrificing his career, Peter gave Olivia and Noah some peace of mind knowing Rob Miller is in a jail cell for the rest of his life and the fact Peter knew the cost made the sacrifice more poignant. (Cut to James physically)
TLOTA :
And after going through every single last season, did I figure out what keeps this series relevant? I think so and I probably heard it so many times that it is stuck inside my head. (Show opening statement of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit". Cut to clips of the show as James does a voiceover)
TLOTA (Voiceover):
"Sexually based Offenses are especially heinous" and in our world we need detectives dedicated to putting them away. We need that elite squadron to put the rapists and abusive boyfriends/husbands/wives/girlfriends! We need the Special Victims Unit to help make sure that love, romance and all the stuff most people take for granted doesn't become criminal acts most times when things in a romance goes south it's not the prettiest picture or when someone does wrong to someone sexually, it's going to end up in the purview of the Special Victims Unit to investigate and ensure Justice is done and everyone on the show knows it. So much so Mariska Hargitay started up a non profit charity to help in the healing process called The Joyful Heart Foundation whose mission statement is to help victims heal and find strength through all sorts of exercises and assistance. To learn more, click on the link right here: http://www.joyfulheartfoundation.org/. And to those who help keep the bad people at bay in real life and on the show I salute all of you! (Cut to James physically)
TLOTA:
I'm James Faraci The Last Of The Americans and... Wait a second, Next month is October! I've always wanted to break out something different. (James pulls out his morpher and morphs into a Halloween version of his suit with a Black shirt covered in Pumpkins instead of a Red White and Blue shirt.) HOLY MOLY IT WORKED! Next time around The Top 13 Charmed episodes! I'm James Faraci The Last Of The Americans and... (A thunderous boom is heard) The Hell?! (James looks out the window and sees four witches with a cauldron in his parking lot. Cut to James) This is not going to look well to the landlords! ORAC! (Cut to black)
