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S22.E05: Turn Me On Take Me Private


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I hope this episode will be a good one - so far I’ve liked every episode of SVU this season which is very surprising, usually they have a dud by now. The promo for this one didn’t look all that interesting though, and from the promo it seems like they will be dealing with subject matter that they’ve dealt with numerous times by now. Let’s hope this is a compelling and well done episode.

Edited by Xeliou66
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Are they sort of repeating themselves again. Wasn't there a theatre group, that used a sort of rape scenario as part of the production? Or is this some kind of "Catfishing" that I saw on L&O or just SVU?

I am smelling an inspirational (probably long winded) speech by Benson near the end of the episode

Edited by dttruman
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12 minutes ago, dttruman said:

Are they sort of repeating themselves again. Wasn't there a theatre group, that used a sort of rape scenario as part of the production? Or is this some kind of "Catfishing" that I saw on L&O or just SVU?

I am smelling an inspirational (probably long winded) speech by Benson near the end of the episode

 

There was an SVU where a guy signed his ex-girlfriend up for a rape fantasy and the guy who raped the girl honestly had no idea she didn't sign up for it. There was the 'Weeping Willow' CI where the internet girl (Michelle Trachenberg) staged her own kidnapping. I feel like there were others too. They're also taking the 'guy represents himself' from the SVU Fred Savage episode.

 

Kat and Liv disrespecting Carisi and wanting him to avoid the laws because they don't see fit are infuriating. He can't just make shit go away. God I almost want Rollins to pop up to understand he has a job to do.

 

The actor playing Gabe is entertaining. 

Edited by Gigi43
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Well I'm glad Benson didn't give a speech, but I was wonder why Tamin was acting like she saw something like this for the first time? She has been has been with SVU for over a year, and she has seen where her friends on the streets have stalkers, so why are they trying to make her the new Benson.

Why is it they have an upset victim confronting her rapist and she becomes very apprehensive, but they still won't assign a court appoint shrink to help her out?

 

Edited by dttruman
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Gabe needed a psych ward.  I enjoyed the episode off that performance alone. Probably my favorite guest star of the season so far (Barba doesn't count!)

 

Finn was right, for some guys the line gets blurred (not just in Cam-ing the parasocial relationship people seem to get with YTers, etc seem to be much worse and more common than, say, even a reality TV star. I couldn't believe the amount of 'But Jenna helps me with depression she needs to come back' comments I was when Jenna Marbles quit YT.) But for many guys it does not and that's why what Carisi did at the end was so smart calling other clients but I wish he'd gotten there sooner. I thought Gabe was going to snap on any one of the other guys.  

 

Just once I want Carisi to throw Liv out of his office. He does not answer to her. I like Kat but jeez. She was mini-Liv. Carisi wasn't even personally against Zoe, he just understood the defense as he should. 

 

I know we all talk about the masks but good grief they had Zoe's dad, an old man, talking to Gabe with the mask hanging off his face and they all rolled up to the nursing home room maskless. I wish I had the Michael Jordan 'Stop. Get Some Help' gif handy for what they're doing. 

Edited by Gigi43
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I thought this was a decent episode - mainly because the courtroom scenes were really well done again, after basically having no courtroom stuff last season, this season they’ve delivered the courtroom drama and it’s been well done. Carisi was really good again, last season the writing for him was shaky, this season they’ve figured out how to write for him, and how to write good courtroom drama. This episode really delivered on that front and I liked Carisi’s plan at the end to call the other people interacting with the victim on the site to wind up Gabe and get him to show his true colors to the jury. Bonus points for Carisi doing it all on his own without having to seek out the SVU squad for advice. 

My problem with the episode was how the SVU squad treated Carisi, particularly Kat. I didn’t care for St Olivia trying to tell Carisi to bluff his way into a deal, Carisi can come up with that idea on his own, he has the law degree, not Benson, other than that Benson was surprisingly decent in this episode and didn’t hog the screentime.

But Kat was behaving like Olivia Junior, she had all the worst characteristics of Benson in this episode and had a major stick up her ass, going after Carisi in his office for “not protecting” the victim, I liked Carisi reminding her that he’s a prosecutor and not a victim’s advocate. And then just when it seemed that Carisi ad Kat were on good terms, Kat got all bitchy again at the end and said none of them protected her. What the fuck is wrong with you Kat, the SVU squad and Carisi got justice for her, what more does Kat want?! My god she was whiny and had the worst of Benson’s crusader/victims advocate tendencies in this episode, she told Carisi she couldn’t believe he was a cop, Kat should remember she’s a cop and not a victim’s advocate. I didn’t care for Kat in her first couple of episodes because of her whining and her having Benson’s SJW victims advocate tendencies, she improved a lot as the season went on but tonight all of her worst characteristics were on full display, she was acting like Benson at her worst. Pull the goddamn stick out of your ass Kat. Honestly I have no idea what more she wanted from Carisi, he did his job and he did it very well. 

Fin was okay for the most part and he was right about how guys like Gabe think, but he doesn’t need to be giving Carisi advice, again Carisi has the law degree.

No Rollins at all!! Usually I wouldn’t mind this as I’m no Rollins fan, but tonight we could’ve used her to defend Carisi and remind Kat Carisi is doing his job. 

Nice continuity bringing back the porn site guy who appeared in an episode last season. 

Overall I liked this episode pretty good for the courtroom scenes and for Carisi, but I was very annoyed with Kat. After last week Benson and Fin disrespected Carisi and this week Kat did, it’s time for Carisi to have it out with the whole squad, remind them that he’s not one of them anymore, and that they should respect him as an ADA. 

So far this season has produced all decent episodes, they haven’t had a dud yet!!!! Shocking for modern day SVU!! 

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Another round of PPP loan applications starts Monday and I am doing a 12+ hour shift today and TBD tomorrow so I don't have time to say much, except that I pretty much agree with everyone. This was a solid, but not spectacular episode and Kat was annoying. They seem to have forgotten she was a vice UC and should be written more like early Fin than what they are doing - cynical, a bit of a cowboy (cowgirl?), and swinging between identifying too much with the victims and not enough with Fin in the Munch jaded mentor role. Benson Jr. would be fine if it was a way of accelerating the shift of Benson back to a more tolerable place, letting her coach Kat and hoping we all agree to forget a lot of the last 4 years in the interest of a more watchable show, but they aren't.  It was still a pretty good episode in a season that has been surprisingly good and consistent. Still hoping they can make the jump from consistently good to exceptional, like some of early Season 17, but consistent competence is no small improvement!

 

 

 

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While this is a cam girl variation of plots that we have had before, where someone is being raped but people thought it was role play or performance art or something when it was actually real, I thought it was still a pretty good episode. I appreciate that there wasn't really a "twist" and they found the guy pretty quickly, and they mostly focused on the courtroom stuff. Carisi calling in Zoey's other clients to rile Gabe up and show his true colors was a great idea, I knew right away that he would show his real psycho self. The guest stars were all good, especially Zoey and Gabe, the guy playing Gabe especially was great at seeing harmless (the kind of harmless nice boy that older women might have more sympathy for then a cam girl) but then flipping a switch to violent stalker. 

For a second I thought that this was going to be a "Carisi is an ass to make some kind of point" episode, but it turns out that it was actually a "Kat is an ass for no reason" episode. Seriously, what was her problem this week, since when does she hate Carisi and why was she all up in his grill so often? When was this established? Yeah Kat can get all up in his face sometimes and jumps down his throat, but she's like that with everyone, I never thought she had a real issue with him in particular. I'm with Carisi from the end of the episode, what does she want from him? What more could he have done besides just forget about the law and drop kick this asshole down a giant hole? He has to enforce the law, not just make up whatever he wants to make sure that every creep gets sent to jail even without a case or evidence. That's his job, and enforcing the law is Kat's job too. I was kind of amused at everyone having a very "there there" reaction when Kat was freaking out at the end, they were all like "Oh, look at her, she's new". This was as much of a victory as a case like this can be, the perp went to jail and will presumably be put on the sex offender registry and will never both Zoey again, that's pretty much as much as they could have wanted, so why is she even so pissed at not "protecting" Zoey? They did most everything they could besides going back in time to stop the assault in the first place. Plus the show did end up dipping into the "people talk in hashtags and soundbites instead of having a conversation" dialogue, especially when Liv and Kat were jumping all over Carisi in Liv's office, and pretty much every time Kat started going on about slut shaming, its always just so awkward. It doesn't sound like how people actually talk to each other, you expect the actors to just look at the camera and tell us how bad whatever is going on in, like the PSA ending of a Very Special Episode on an 80s sitcom. 

Fun seeing John Water the porn producer back again, now having moved into Cam Girls, and the whole thing with Cam Girls being a popular pandemic alternative for hookers and strippers to keep their business going in quarantine, and that people in general are using Cam Girls more while quarantined, is actually a decently creative way to work the pandemic into the plot without it actually being focused on COVID. Unfortunately, it really takes me out of it when everyone is so freaking inconsistent about using masks! Sometimes they are all in masks, sometimes no one is, or someone insists that someone where a mask one scene, then they walk around an old folks home with no masks in sight, just pick a lane, masks or no masks. 

I also appreciate that they didn't go super hard on the "The Internet is EVVIILLLLL" stuff that this show can indulge in, at least not as much as they have in the past. Its shown to be more of a neutral force, where most people are harmless but there are some really nasty people out there as well to be wary of, which is a solid enough point. Its not as ridiculous as say, The Gamer Gate episode or a lot of the early episodes that involved child molesters, probably because Stablers not around, that was always a real Thing with him. 

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3 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

 

I never thought she had a real issue with him in particular. I'm with Carisi from the end of the episode, what does she want from him? What more could he have done besides just forget about the law and drop kick this asshole down a giant hole? He has to enforce the law, not just make up whatever he wants to make sure that every creep gets sent to jail even without a case or evidence. That's his job, and enforcing the law is Kat's job too.

I also appreciate that they didn't go super hard on the "The Internet is EVVIILLLLL" stuff that this show can indulge in, at least not as much as they have in the past. Its shown to be more of a neutral force, where most people are harmless but there are some really nasty people out there as well to be wary of, which is a solid enough point. Its not as ridiculous as say, The Gamer Gate episode or a lot of the early episodes that involved child molesters, probably because Stablers not around, that was always a real Thing with him. 

 

That seems to be the the ongoing theme, be mad at Carisi for doing his job instead of ignoring crimes or immediately convicting without a trial somehow. Dwight and Irene episode was the same way. Liv was pissed Carisi actually thought they should figure out who killed Dwight, more specifically not pin it on a 14yr old!- and there should be some kind of consequence if it wasn't direct self defense as the law dictates. Last episode they were working with the defense over the murder of a man who was in police custody awaiting trial. Big Bad Carisi, enforcing the laws as ADA. That sonofabitch. Why can't he just beat on suspects ala Amaro and Stabler or publicly humiliate them like Liv's done several times? I swear I'll blow a gasket whenever that crossover for Organized Crime happens and we probably get Stabler and Benson shitting on Carisi and I just know it'll happen. I just hope when it does Finn remembers he hated Stabler and joins Rollins in backing Carisi.

 

I'm really glad they showed the balance of the cam girl viewers of the other viewers understanding the rules and they weren't all "losers". It's like a strip club. 99 guys come in and follow rules. Then there's that 100th that gets handsy and wants the girl to go home with him.  The show usually isn't that balanced with the internet, you're right. 

 

3 hours ago, GussieK said:

I thought it was a good episode, but the conviction ended up depending on provoking the guy into a meltdown.  And maybe they didn't ever know where they were going with that.  A lot of luck.

 

I think it was more than luck. Gabe was ripe to snap. Carisi made him twist listening to those other guys. He knew what he was doing, much as he knew when he got Irene to confess and got the guy from the previous episode to state on the stand he'd shoot the guy again. Everyone keeps saying Carisi has forgotten what it's like to be a cop but he keeps showing he can get under the perps skin for confessions, perhaps from all those years as a cop. Barba got a lot of courtroom confessions (granted the show didn't want to write jury verdicts it seems) and Carisi learned from him, too.

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52 minutes ago, Gigi43 said:

I think it was more than luck. Gabe was ripe to snap. Carisi made him twist listening to those other guys. He knew what he was doing, much as he knew when he got Irene to confess and got the guy from the previous episode to state on the stand he'd shoot the guy again. Everyone keeps saying Carisi has forgotten what it's like to be a cop but he keeps showing he can get under the perps skin for confessions, perhaps from all those years as a cop. Barba got a lot of courtroom confessions (granted the show didn't want to write jury verdicts it seems) and Carisi learned from him, too.

Okay, I'll buy that!

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Again with the randomly applied mask situations,UGH.  IRL I doubt it’s optional in THE City for jury members, lawyers, judges & police officers, especially in court.

Carisi:  “ ok everybody mask up we’re taking the subway”...like you wouldn’t “mask up” at the office, or in a taxi.  Please.

The Main thing I didn’t like about this episode was that the perp waved his freak flag all over the courtroom...as if whew, what a relief that it’s only the truly obsessed and psychotic that violate clearly defined boundaries.  I’d have liked it better if the slime ball kept himself juuuuuuust under the radar, like most of them do and wasn’t convicted.

Cam girls should be encouraged to have a security person over there in the corner off cam, just in case...not lulled into a false sense of security that only the psycho guy who couldn’t even control himself in a courtroom is the least of her worries.

Edited by kicotan
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2 hours ago, Cotypubby said:

Can Kat please fuck off to wherever they pulled her from? I hate every single thing about that character, she is actually becoming more annoying and whiny than St Olivia. 

I have mixed feelings on Kat - I disliked her when she started, she improved as season 21 went on, but this episode was the most annoying she’s been - like I said in my review she acted like Olivia Jr and had all of Benson’s worst characteristics of being a crusading victim’s advocate who wanted to forget the law and whined about everything. I honestly have no idea what more she wanted of SVU and Carisi, they put the rapist in prison and did their jobs, there was nothing more SVU could do, they couldn’t have prevented the rape beforehand. Even St Olivia seemed tired of her whining. 

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For all this show's flaws, I often think they do about as good a job as could be expected dealing frankly with sexuality on a broadcast network at 9pm.  But I guess on this occasion Standards & Practices decided they could only say “rape” a few times times and only in moments of heightened drama?  Every time they said "ravish," "ravishing," "ravishment fantasy," it snapped me right out of the illusion of a real world.  It made me think more of those novels with Store Brand Fabio on the cover that my grandmother takes to the beach than how a webcam model would describe what they offer.

I also thought, for all the "hello colleagues in the break room, by the way, I have just heard on the news that X% of relevant people do Y!" infodumping they sometimes do, there could have been a reference to safewords or other tools you can use if you are part of an, erm, ravishment fantasy.  "Webcam model raped by a home invader" is perhaps not a relatable situation too many viewers, but "my partner wants me to __________, how do we know if we're still roleplaying or it needs to stop" is probably relevant to plenty of people.  I know folks aren't watching for a PSA, but I think as unsubtle as they can be, these little tidbits can make a difference.  (I'd better not say that too loud or Mariska will knock on my door and ask for an advocacy plaque.)  Kidding aside, that was just a bit of a missed opportunity in my eyes.

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17 hours ago, kicotan said:

Cam girls should be encouraged to have a security person over there in the corner off cam, just in case...not lulled into a false sense of security that only the psycho guy who couldn’t even control himself in a courtroom is the least of her worries.

If I was masturbating on camera for strangers, I wouldn't even consider hiring a security person to come to my home and be near me while I did it.

7 hours ago, 853fisher said:

For all this show's flaws, I often think they do about as good a job as could be expected dealing frankly with sexuality on a broadcast network at 9pm.  But I guess on this occasion Standards & Practices decided they could only say “rape” a few times times and only in moments of heightened drama?  Every time they said "ravish," "ravishing," "ravishment fantasy," it snapped me right out of the illusion of a real world.  It made me think more of those novels with Store Brand Fabio on the cover that my grandmother takes to the beach than how a webcam model would describe what they offer.

IIRC, when the word "ravishment" was used, it was mostly John Waters's character and the customers, when talking to the authorities. I could buy that they'd want to sugarcoat the business they participate in.

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19 minutes ago, Blakeston said:

If I was masturbating on camera for strangers, I wouldn't even consider hiring a security person to come to my home and be near me while I did it.

If it was my job, I’d insist on it.  If I was just doing it for fun, probably not.

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1 hour ago, kicotan said:

If it was my job, I’d insist on [having a security person over there in the corner off cam, just in case].

I think most webcam models are probably not in a position to afford the expense of security to protect them against a possibility which, while hideous, is in my estimation very uncommon.

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25 minutes ago, 853fisher said:

I think most webcam models are probably not in a position to afford the expense of security to protect them against a possibility which, while hideous, is in my estimation very uncommon.

I’m not privy to the financial aspects, but sex workers, not models, being victims of rape and abuse is definitely not an uncommon occurrence.  The uptick in webcam work instead of street corner work would make me invest in security, if I was so inclined to pursue sex work, as a cost of doing business and I’d encourage any webcam sex worker to do the same.  Now, if she’s a webcam model just posing in lingerie, that might be a bit different, but the one portrayed on this episode was engaging in sex work.

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30 minutes ago, kicotan said:

I’m not privy to the financial aspects, but sex workers, not models, being victims of rape and abuse is definitely not an uncommon occurrence.  The uptick in webcam work instead of street corner work would make me invest in security, if I was so inclined to pursue sex work, as a cost of doing business and I’d encourage any webcam sex worker to do the same.  Now, if she’s a webcam model just posing in lingerie, that might be a bit different, but the one portrayed on this episode was engaging in sex work.

I agree that violence against sex workers who interact with clients face-to-face is all too common.  I believe it is far less often that those who interact with clients virtually, and often not remotely locally, are victims of home invasions or other physical confrontations as portrayed in this episode.  A detailed discussion of the economics of these platforms when it comes to commissions, demand, etc would perhaps be straying too far from the episode, but I will say that additional overhead expenses would have made this work untenable for a large majority of people I know who have undertaken it.  I appreciate that it can be dangerous to generalize from anecdotes, and my sample may not be representative, but every cam model I have known enough to discuss it was more concerned about reputational damage if their true identities leaked or other forms of harassment against which physical security would have been useless than about bodily risk.

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I liked this episode although what the hell Olivia, when you find the victim you start talking about her secret job as a webcam girl basically infront of a the other people she works with at the soup kitchen. With a priest right over your shoulder. Is it that hard to ask if you can talk somewhere private. Sure you whisper but then you start waving around a damn tablet with pictures of her assault. 

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I wonder how the jury would have ruled if Gabe had kept his shit together and didn't go all psycho.  Carisi's strategy worked, but it wasn't a slam dunk because he couldn't control Gabe's meltdown point, and juries are always unpredictable.

I agree with all the sentiments above of how Carisi was great, and that Kat is ridiculous (my words).

Really good episode with great supporting cast of actors.

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On 1/16/2021 at 9:52 PM, Xeliou66 said:

I have mixed feelings on Kat - I disliked her when she started, she improved as season 21 went on, but this episode was the most annoying she’s been - like I said in my review she acted like Olivia Jr and had all of Benson’s worst characteristics of being a crusading victim’s advocate who wanted to forget the law and whined about everything. I honestly have no idea what more she wanted of SVU and Carisi, they put the rapist in prison and did their jobs, there was nothing more SVU could do, they couldn’t have prevented the rape beforehand. Even St Olivia seemed tired of her whining. 

Do you think for the next couple of episodes they will have Tamin showing like you said "all of Benson’s worst characteristics of being a crusading victim’s advocate who wanted to forget the law and whined about everything"? Do you think Benson will then be lecturing her on objectivity and due process, but Tamin zeroes in on the judge's bias and possible illegal doings for the next episode?

On 1/18/2021 at 9:17 PM, CrystalBlue said:

I wonder how the jury would have ruled if Gabe had kept his shit together and didn't go all psycho.  Carisi's strategy worked, but it wasn't a slam dunk because he couldn't control Gabe's meltdown point, and juries are always unpredictable.

I thought the jury's reactions were a little too obvious staged for the benefit of the defendant's defense. Making the jury look sympathetic to his so called plight of thinking there was some deep spiritual connection is absurd. The jury may show some kind of disdain for Carrera's profession, but ignoring the obvious disclaimer that there should be no contact (that the writers only seem to glance over) is unrealistic. Like many have mentioned, that bringing in the other viewers to testify was a good move by Carisi, to show this guy was a real wingnut, so kudos to the writers for coming up with that.

On 1/17/2021 at 1:42 PM, kicotan said:

I’m not privy to the financial aspects, but sex workers, not models, being victims of rape and abuse is definitely not an uncommon occurrence.  The uptick in webcam work instead of street corner work would make me invest in security, if I was so inclined to pursue sex work, as a cost of doing business and I’d encourage any webcam sex worker to do the same.  Now, if she’s a webcam model just posing in lingerie, that might be a bit different, but the one portrayed on this episode was engaging in sex work.

I wonder what would happen if this guy was just busted for obsessively stalking. I wonder how much security would she require and how that would play out in the court room?

Edited by dttruman
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11 hours ago, dttruman said:

I wonder what would happen if this guy was just busted for obsessively stalking. I wonder how much security would she require and how that would play out in the court room?

I wonder why they didn't play up the stalking angle. The rapist had to go way out of his way to find out his victim's address. 

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SugarFap lol

When they guy came up behind her and grabbed her and everybody started dropping mad tokens I laughed.

Kat is really getting on my nerves. She tells Carisi she can’t believe he was ever a cop when she’s the one who couldn’t give a shit about what the law says. She’s too worried about EmPoWeRmEnT and ViCtIm BlAmInG.

“I hate this new law.” Benson on record saying she hates a law that helps the defendant defend themselves.

Another episode where Carisi doesn’t actually prove anything. He just manipulates the defendant into making an ass out of themselves.

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1 hour ago, ShepardRahl said:

Another episode where Carisi doesn’t actually prove anything. He just manipulates the defendant into making an ass out of themselves.

A couple of commentators have made some good points about Leight. He is not very fond of staging courtroom scenes in episodes of SVU. So if we do see them, they are few and far between. But since we have seen two in a row here, it makes sense that he would not make them too complicated. I guess because of the Covid-19 crackdown in NY, they are reducing settings to bubble type situations for easier shootings

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