Episode Discussion: Season 3 and Onward

[Sake614]

I can’t believe they killed Jamie!!!!! I mean, I knew as soon as his father walked in that he’d turn off the box but I can’t believe they did it at all! And I guess Muncy is leaving to make room for a Rollins return. Oh joy 🙄 not sure why the SVU gang wrapped up the episode but whatever. Very disappointed in the whole thing. The only possible redeeming factor will be if that goodbye between Liv and Elliot finally closes the book on the possibility of them hooking up. They do work well together and I still enjoy watching them but I never wanted them as a couPle.

last thought: there’s no one, I mean NO ONE in the NYPD, FBI, CIA, Interpol etc who could shut down that site? This kid was the only one in the entire world capable of doing it? That certainly speaks volumes about the capabilities of our tech people.

[WendyCR72]

41 minutes ago, Sake614 said:

The only possible redeeming factor will be if that goodbye between Liv and Elliot finally closes the book on the possibility of them hooking up. They do work well together and I still enjoy watching them but I never wanted them as a couPle.

Yeah...as much as I agree, I think this is unlikely. Therefore, just call this all a waste.

[jabRI]

I'm all for people reinventing themselves, pulling themselves up, etc.  but Amanda as a profiler for a mass murderer?  Maybe start with a mugger and work your way up.  Sheez.  Her only background was teaching a few classes.   Get a real expert next time, and bring her back for some believable reason if you want.

 

Do you know who played Jamies' dad? He looked familiar.

[Raja]

29 minutes ago, jabRI said:

Do you know who played Jamies' dad? He looked familiar.

IMBd list him as John Lawrence Payne with no other credits reported.  A quick Google search only brings up a 30s actor with the same name.

[Andyourlittledog2]

This was a national and international case.  They would have used an FBI profiler not Amanda. This show I swear.

[1775rik]

KInd of liked the way they gave the daddy of death no lines.

[TV Anonymous]

Jet and Jamie? Since when? And who removed Jamie's life support to let him go? Reyes? Would that not be a homicide on its own?

Our heroes were in Dublin, OH. They were raiding a suspect's home. Of course NYC finest led the raid. And when they breached the door, "NYPD!" Did citizens of Ohio suppose to understand what NYPD was? Just by that call alone, they did not announce themselves as police, IMO and therefore potentially opened themselves to liability if someone was actually at home.

[Raja]

On 6/20/2023 at 12:17 PM, TV Anonymous said:

Jet and Jamie? Since when? And who removed Jamie's life support to let him go? Reyes? Would that not be a homicide on its own?

Our heroes were in Dublin, OH. They were raiding a suspect's home. Of course NYC finest led the raid. And when they breached the door, "NYPD!" Did citizens of Ohio suppose to understand what NYPD was? 

Reyes wouldn't and then the father arrived.

NYPD was a mild show branding compared to their TV show peers 

Edited June 23, 2023 by Raja

[christie]

On 6/20/2023 at 10:17 PM, TV Anonymous said:

Jet and Jamie? Since when? And who removed Jamie's life support to let him go? Reyes? Would that not be a homicide on its own?

Our heroes were in Dublin, OH. They were raiding a suspect's home. Of course NYC finest led the raid. And when they breached the door, "NYPD!" Did citizens of Ohio suppose to understand what NYPD was? Just by that call alone, they did not announce themselves as police, IMO and therefore potentially opened themselves to liability if someone was actually at home.

I always thought that the actor played Jamie as having a crush on Jet. Now Jet being interested in Jamie was completely out of the blue.

Yeah, Jamie's dad pulled the life support.

Everybody knows what NYPD means - heck I'm not even American and I know. 

[ribboninthesky1]

On 6/23/2023 at 12:17 AM, christie said:

I always thought that the actor played Jamie as having a crush on Jet. Now Jet being interested in Jamie was completely out of the blue.

And not just interested...she told him ILY.  I was NOT supposed to be laughing at that, I am certain.

[christie]

4 hours ago, ribboninthesky1 said:

And not just interested...she told him ILY. 

She did? Ok I guess that shows how much attention I pay lol

[ribboninthesky1]

It was totally out of left field.  It was only a few episodes before that she was "in love" with that Seamus character, so I have no idea what the writers were thinking. Don't know if the Jamie actor wanted out or was let go, but from my perspective, he got the better end of the bargain.  This show is a mess. 

[WendyCR72]

Of note, Season 4 is listed to premiere on January 18, 2024. No title or description as of yet.

[WendyCR72]

Description for the S4 premiere, "Memory Lane", is up, airing January 18, 2024:

Quote

Stabler must deal with rapid changes at work and home after returning from a dangerous undercover assignment. Bell hires an adviser whose AI technology program could revolutionize police investigation. Jet and Reyes struggle with Whelan's absence.

 

[Raja]

Quote

Stabler must deal with rapid changes at work and home after returning from a dangerous undercover assignment; Bell hires an adviser whose AI technology programme could revolutionize police investigation

We are back with the squad's survivors dealing with PTSD and Stabler back undercover as just an older guy mule for drug dealers. And just like that more blood on him from the mission.

A new guy, Dr. Vargas reminds me of a failed FOX show where a tech guy came in like OCP without Robocop to introduce drones and a phone app to the PD. Jet and Bobby are turning a grief driven one night stand into a thing after a close call as Bobby and Stabler put their partner over their own safety.

[Snazzy Daisy]

I miss this show, so glad it’s back. Hope there’ll be no long break in between its 13 episodes. 

Some things never change:

• Every time he doesn’t want to deal with difficult feelings, Elliot uses the UC ops as an escape.
• When it’s over, he easily swings back into the office, no adjustment period needed.
• He still doesn’t listen to what Ayanna says. The look she gives him when he glides into a hazmat suit to sneak into the mobile lab is funny. Poor Ayanna, she has to endure a lot from this stubborn man. 😆

Dr. Kyle Vargas is a nice addition to OCCB team. He has some interesting interactions with Elliot and Bobby. More of them working together, please.

I truly despise the grief-sex thingy between Bobby and Jet. It’s harmful to their team dynamic. I hope this show doesn’t forget that he’s married with kids. Elliot has already noticed the “more than friendly” touch between these two. Ayanna must be aware of it too.

And ohh, please stop with the Bensler tease. It’s getting lame and ridiculous. Yuck! 😏

 

Edited January 19 by Snazzy Daisy

[preeya]

8 hours ago, Snazzy Daisy said:

And ohh, please stop with the Bensler tease. It’s getting lame and ridiculous. Yuck! 😏

This is getting old, tired, and unnecessary. They even had to show the presser with St.Olivia getting accolades for the missing girl save, even though Maddie wasn't recovered and will be an on-going thorn throughout this season of SVU. Enough with the Bensen crap.

Edited January 20 by preeya

[Snazzy Daisy]

35 minutes ago, preeya said:

This is getting old, tired, and unnecessary. They even had to show the presser with St.Olivia getting accolades for the missing girl save, even though Maddie wasn't recovered and will be an on-going thorn throughout this season of SVU. Enough with the Bensen crap.

The foreshadowing of Bensler working together and solving Maddie's case.

Elliot saying "I just wanna hear your voice" is hilarious. It's totally a fan service. Keep on baiting the shippers until SVU S50. 😆

[The Wild Sow]

OK, we've known Elliot Stabler for what, 25 years?  And we've met his mom, his kids, late wife....seen flashbacks to his dad and his childhood (the bullet in the tree)...heard stories of his childhood and his mom's bipolar episodes (taking him out driving in the blizzard, etc.)

So where the heck did these "brothers" come form all of a sudden?!

[Raja]

33 minutes ago, The Wild Sow said:

OK, we've known Elliot Stabler for what, 25 years?  And we've met his mom, his kids, late wife....seen flashbacks to his dad and his childhood (the bullet in the tree)...heard stories of his childhood and his mom's bipolar episodes (taking him out driving in the blizzard, etc.)

So where the heck did these "brothers" come form all of a sudden?!

Soaps run that length of time just be thankful that it wasn't the evil twin 

[Sake614]

On 1/19/2024 at 1:18 PM, Snazzy Daisy said:

hope this show doesn’t forget that he’s married with kids.

Thank you! When he showed up at her apartment, all I could think was ‘isn’t he married with children?’ I mean, of course that never stops people from cheating, I just thought it was an odd setup. Not to mention I don’t find him to be the least bit attractive and can’t imagine Jet being interested in him.

wasn’t Elliot taken off UC work last season because his cover was blown and his face was all over the news or something? So how exactly was he back undercover this episode? And of course one of the bad guys recognized him. Which is exactly why he shouldn’t be undercover anymore!

and I too am wondering where these brothers suddenly came from? We’ve heard absolutely no mention of them in all these years. Not when Cathy died. Not when their mother was being threatened. Not when the family was discussing his mothers living arrangements. Now all of a sudden he has both an older and a younger brother?🙄

Edited January 21 by Sake614

[Snazzy Daisy]

7 hours ago, Sake614 said:

and I too am wondering where these brothers suddenly came from? We’ve heard absolutely no mention of them in all these years. Now all of a sudden he has both an older and a younger brother?🙄

16 hours ago, The Wild Sow said:

So where the heck did these "brothers" come form all of a sudden?!

😆😆😆

 

[Snazzy Daisy]

A question re a plot… 

[The Wild Sow]

12 hours ago, Sake614 said:

and I too am wondering where these brothers suddenly came from? We’ve heard absolutely no mention of them in all these years. Not when Cathy died. Not when their mother was being threatened. Not when the family was discussing his mothers living arrangements. Now all of a sudden he has both an older and a younger brother?🙄

I checked Bernadette Stabler's* profile on L&O Wiki - and it claims she and Joe had six children!

Are the other three sisters?  Where were they, and why have they never been mentioned before?!  And none of the in-laws came to Kathy's funeral?

* Ellen Burstyn is 91 years old!  Wow!

And yeah -- isn't Bobby Reyes married?  With kids? Jet, Jet, Jet -- what are ya thinking?

[wknt3]

5 hours ago, Snazzy Daisy said:

A question re a plot… 

This is an example of (probably unintended) realism with the police being uniquely vulnerable to fentanyl -

https://www.npr.org/2023/05/16/1175726650/fentanyl-police-overdose-misinformation

[MarylandGirl]

1 hour ago, wknt3 said:

This is an example of (probably unintended) realism with the police being uniquely vulnerable to fentanyl -

https://www.npr.org/2023/05/16/1175726650/fentanyl-police-overdose-misinformation

Interesting--thanks for sharing! It could make sense that Stabler was affected though, as they showed the cut in his arm, so it could have gone into his bloodstream. Plus, some raw materials for it got knocked over, so maybe that affected both of them (but wouldn't have explained Jet).

Actually, at first, when they had Jet feeling lightheaded, I was expecting her to turn out to be pregnant. So was oddly relieved when it was explained by the fentanyl! Like, please don't go that route, show...

[Sake614]

3 hours ago, The Wild Sow said:

six children!

Which makes sense as a Catholic family. Just odd that in 25 years there hasn’t been a single mention! Not when Eli was born after Cathy was in that car crash. Not when Kathleen was diagnosed with bipolar and Elliot was spiraling looking for answers (that’s when we were introduced to his mother). Not when he was undercover and needed help with Eli. 

[faithie]

4 hours ago, The Wild Sow said:

I checked Bernadette Stabler's* profile on L&O Wiki - and it claims she and Joe had six children!

Are the other three sisters?  Where were they, and why have they never been mentioned before?!  And none of the in-laws came to Kathy's funeral?

* Ellen Burstyn is 91 years old!  Wow!

And yeah -- isn't Bobby Reyes married?  With kids? Jet, Jet, Jet -- what are ya thinking?

The only people at Kathy's funeral were Elliott, the kids and of course, St. Olivia.  I guess Kathy was an orphan?   I was waiting forvo e of the kids to ask Olivia: why the hell are you here?

[Raja]

1 hour ago, Sake614 said:

Which makes sense as a Catholic family. Just odd that in 25 years there hasn’t been a single mention! Not when Eli was born after Cathy was in that car crash. Not when Kathleen was diagnosed with bipolar and Elliot was spiraling looking for answers (that’s when we were introduced to his mother). Not when he was undercover and needed help with Eli. 

Maybe the brothers just made parole after the 20 years to life Ben Stone plea bargained them down to 

[Zaffy]

I can't take this show seriously where Stabler keeps working undercover after he has been so many times on TV and he is basically a public figure. I know NY is too big, but still...this is ridiculous! 

[txhorns79]

Just a reminder everyone, we made a decision last year that this particular show would not have individual episode threads for each new episode.  Instead, we are using this thread to discuss any and all new episodes of the show going forward.  Please do not create a new episode thread.  Your comments from the thread created for the first episode of Season 4 have been moved here.  Any questions, please let me know @txhorns79.

[Snazzy Daisy]

S04•E02 - Deliver Us From Evil

Stabler the baby whisperer! 😆

Elliot emotionally hugging Melinda brings me to tears. Their scene lasts only for 2 minutes but it’s undeniably special. The OG reunion. 💙

Intense dynamic between Elliot and Randall. What happened between these two?

Huh, that crazy girlfriend from EVIL plays Captain Shah. The tension between her and Ayanna is obvious. Workplace frenemy? Former lovers?

Bobby hasn’t been given enough materials in this episode except for talking unprofessionally to Jet about their not-so-secret coping activities. Dr. Vargas has more lines than him.

I hope OCCB isn’t trying to poach Officer Sam Bashir to join the team.

These 2 meme-worthy moments make me chuckle… 😂   
 

[Raja]

3 hours ago, Snazzy Daisy said:

Bobby hasn’t been given enough materials in this episode except for talking unprofessionally to Jet about their not-so-secret coping activities. Dr. Vargas has more lines than him.

I hope OCCB isn’t trying to poach Officer Sam Bashir to join the team.

With Bobby acting like he has two wives now my guess is that Officer Bashir replaces two detectives for the rest of the season.

[justduckey]

Is the show going to be episodic this year as opposed to following the same story all season?

[The Wild Sow]

Oh, great -- I can't look at Dean Norris (Randall) without seeing Detective Lee Scanlon's "bad guy" brother, Paul, from Medium.

Yeah, I see he was on Breaking Bad, but I didn't watch that show -- so Paul Scanlon it is.  Is he going to specialize in playing good cop's bad guy brother?

[MarylandGirl]

13 hours ago, justduckey said:

Is the show going to be episodic this year as opposed to following the same story all season?

I was also wondering this. I thought part of the appeal of this show was the longer arcs.

[Sake614]

Well it seems pretty clear that Randall has been out of the picture for many years if even his own mother isn’t thrilled to see him! And from the greeting he gave her, I have to wonder why he even bothered? But I do like the dynamic between the brothers so far, so I’m interested to learn the backstory.

[juliet73]

21 hours ago, justduckey said:

Is the show going to be episodic this year as opposed to following the same story all season?

I was wondering that too.  I hope so.  The Wheatley nemesis was so over the top and ridiculous!  I won't watch anymore if they're going to return to that dumpster fire!

[wknt3]

22 hours ago, justduckey said:

Is the show going to be episodic this year as opposed to following the same story all season?

 

9 hours ago, MarylandGirl said:

I was also wondering this. I thought part of the appeal of this show was the longer arcs.

I don't think anything's been announced one way or the other. They could still be setting up an arc, or they could be going more episodic and only doing Stabler's family as an arc given the shorter season and the fact that there are century old GM factories that haven't been retooled as much as this series.
 

27 minutes ago, juliet73 said:

I was wondering that too.  I hope so.  The Wheatley nemesis was so over the top and ridiculous!  I won't watch anymore if they're going to return to that dumpster fire!

Speaking of Wheatley I am wondering if they are going with AI guy as a mole and if it was going to turn out he was somehow connected to Wheatley...

[Xeliou66]

I’ve liked the episodes fine enough so far this season, the current case about the smuggling has been solid, but I just can’t get into this show as much because of the continuing story arcs plus Stabler’s family drama. When I watch it I mainly do so if I’m still not tired after the Mothership and SVU. I just can’t get into it as much, but the show is much better without the Wheatley crap - that was downright comical, awful writing. I hope we never hear about Wheatley again. 

[Snazzy Daisy]

S04•E03 - End Of Innocence

Our boy, Stabler doesn’t need hair plugs. He may have lost his hair but he’s still a badass. It’s neat, baby. 🤣

Hey Officer Bashir, it’s good to see you again. But don’t make yourself comfortable okay, am not ready for Jamie’s replacement yet. 😣

Using human/flesh pocket to smuggle gems is one disturbing and cruel method. The gun-for-hire’s auntie is not badass enough to be in that kind of business.

Jet and Bobby should’ve known by now that they can never hide things from “mommy and daddy”. They know everything. Am assuming this is the end of their ridiculous hookup plot. Please don’t surprise us with unplanned pregnancy etc.

Some eye-rolling moments:

• Elliot counting the rounds while being shot at.
• Important files in Imam’s office aren’t magically destroyed by the fire.
• Is AI’s utilities analysis with instant results even a real thing in NYPD?

🙄🙄🙄

 

Edited February 5 by Snazzy Daisy

[babyrambo]

This season’s had a bit of an uneven start but I’m liking it far more than than L&O and SVU. Even if they’re leaning a little too hard into interpersonal messiness. Stabler’s family drama is always hit or miss but I’m interested to see who they cast as his sisters and how they interact. I’d also like another addition to the team (it’s looking like Bashir might be up next but I hope not; he’s nice enough but really bland and I sort of tune out whenever he’s onscreen). Not sure why they went there with Reyes and Jet but I’m hoping they move on and never revisit it. It throws off the team dynamics quite a bit but also feels really lazy. But then, romance has never been this franchise’s strong suit. Speaking of, I sensed some chemistry between Shah and Bell especially during their conversation at the start. I was never deeply invested in Bell’s wife but I like Bell and already prefer this dynamic with Shah if they do happen to do there. 

[KeithJ]

I'm glad the Jet / Reyes drama is done (at least I hope it is).  Now if they'd just get rid of the Stabler (and his ever expanding family) drama, I'd be very happy.

[edhopper]

20 minutes in and I want this annoying little brat to die.

[Raja]

All that security and they still allow kids to keep phones and online games. Are we the only people who have watched cop shows for the past 20 years?

With Officer Bashir there I was confused about which case this was. I guess he is on extended loan from Hate Crimea 

[justduckey]

Bashir has joined the team. They announced it at the beginning of the episode.

[edhopper]

There was almost nothing in this episode I liked. I hated both families.

[Snazzy Daisy]

S04•E04 - The Last Supper

Elliot Stabler is always “working on the wives/widows”. He is the MILFs whisperer. 😆

Bobby Reyes seems to be harbouring a lot of angers and dissatisfactions nowadays. He used to be a cool dude who is good in UC, a chameleon. Do the writers forget about a character they’ve crafted?

Whiny Eli, annoying Kiki and emo Lucas - young adults from hell. Kiki’s bf and Eli’s gf should run and never look back. Eli Stabler is totally his mom’s son. 💯 

The moment they find a burner phone on Kiki, they should have been moved to a secure location. In fact, they shouldn’t have spent the night at their OWN house. SOP be damned. And why the officers assigned to the protection details aren’t wearing a bulletproof vest?

I get the politics and the optics, but what’s Elliot supposed to do with Lucas? He restraints the shooter. And why the interim captain doesn’t question Jet? Jet doesn’t bother to search the perp for extra guns.

When Randall says “just don’t do anything stupid like the old man did” - is he implying that their dad took his own life??! Back in S02, Elliot only found out that he’s a dirty cop. Nothing about how he died, right?

[Raja]

How is it that after finally finding Elliot on his alternate phone number no less that Detective Stabler was the first backup to arrive on what should have been a 10-13 call with agents already down? It reminded me of the Miami police helicopter which couldn't pull ahead of the CSI Humvee 

On a different show the local cops would ignore the call because it was Sergeant Bell who needed help.

Even though they said Sergeant Bell was going to recover bringing in a fresh actor to take over as captain can reset the payroll counter with just Jet and Stabler getting seniority raises.

[christie]

2 hours ago, Snazzy Daisy said:

I get the politics and the optics, but what’s Elliot supposed to do with Lucas? He restraints the shooter. And why the interim captain doesn’t question Jet? Jet doesn’t bother to search the perp for extra guns.

I think the issue wasn't that Eliot restrained Lucas but that he used a lot of force in restraining him which resulted in Lucas cracking his scull; it was the cracked skull that was the issue and not so much the restraining (at least that's how I see it). This is a tv thing anyway, we know that in the real world there would never be an inquiry. Agree about Jet. I preferred Jet nerdy girl who's a tech wiz to Jet super cop - let me rephrase that, we're told that Jet is an exceptionally good cop but whenever we've seen her in the field, she looks like a deer stuck in headlights, is pretty bad and makes simple mistakes.

There's snow outside and Eliot is grilling steaks in the yard whilst wearing a shirt and a vest - I don't think so.