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Celebrating 1,000 NCIS-franchise episodes

S17.E01/S17.E02: Devil's Dissections/Criminal Pathology

WendyCR72

By WendyCR72
in Law & Order: SVU

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WendyCR72

WendyCR72

The SVU is called to a familiar crime scene – the beach where serial killer Gregory Yates buried his many victims. When another body washes ashore, Detective Rollins tries to coax him into confessing, but the surprising information he provides sends shockwaves through the police department. As the case goes to court, Barba faces off against two hotshot defense attorneys in a trial that leads to blackmail, an incriminating confession, a new victim and a fugitive suspect.
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WendyCR72

WendyCR72

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Not trying to be a hard ass bitch, but this isn't a live thread. Please wait 'til the episode is over if you must comment as there may be spoiler free people around.

 

Thanks!

 

And for the future, if you (universally!) do wish to have a live thread, we can discuss it if there is enough interest for one.

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Spartan Girl

Spartan Girl

I can't believe Rollins is pregnant, but at least it wasn't Amaro's. Her scenes with Yates...yeesh. Very Silence of the Lambs.

The murder of Yates' fiancée was gruesome but I can't say that I felt sorry for her. I had a feeling he and Rudnick were bosom buddies.

I am so sick of seeing Defense Attorney Buchanan, he is such a douche.

  • Love 6
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Hero

Hero

I hate when TV shows bring kids into the plot when it isn't necessary. I know Kelly Giddish is pregnant in real life, but they should just hide her stomach rather than bring in a baby.

These two episodes were predictable, I knew who did it right off the bat. But, it was entertaining. I like the Yates/Ruddick plot much nore than that terrible Lewis plot that dragged on for too long.

I also like how they didn't make Carisi incompetent this episode. Hopefully, it stays that way.

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WendyCR72

WendyCR72

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I take it writing around baby bellies is a lost art? Or the writers are too lazy to be creative? Not the first program I've watched of late that is writing in a kid, but jeez.

 

Whatever happened to hee-yuge purses or sitting down, large chairs to stand behind or even filming up close? Sigh.

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RafaelBarbas

RafaelBarbas

I dreaded this episode thinking Amanda would be pregnant with Nick's baby. I am not happy at her being pregnant still but can tolerate it.

Everything from here on shall be Barba related because that's what I really care about:

I called last season that Barba taking those pills wouldn't be a one-off. He has migraines! :(

Barba is a badass. The end. But a very stressed badass who needs another trip to St. Bart's.

I think based on Raul's tweets that Barba wants to be EADA. Which might be interesting, though I have this suspicion the stress will get to him.

The stubble and tan worked REALLY well for Barba/Raul. Just sayin'.

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RafaelBarbas

RafaelBarbas

Yeah, Barba and those pills. I know, I know...migraines. But this is SVU, land of the freak, home of the bleak. So how long before we discover poor Barba has an aneurysm or a tumor or something?

My thoughts exactly. It would totally be like this show. He tries to become EADA, has an aneurysm, calls himself lucky to be back as an ADA. Maybe throw in a witnessed hospital assault.

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Lizzing

Lizzing

This episode.....

It's been a while and my memory is fuzzy, didn't that idiot Stuckey turn out to be murderer as well?

Not only did Stuckey turn out to be a murder, that episode used the same line "when you hear hooves, think horses, not zebras" (Stabler & Benson said it to Stuckey in "Zebras" and Dallas Roberts said it in this ep.)  Do the current writers not know SVU is on like 300 times a week across basic cable?

 

And how many times did Rollins have to say the baby isn't Nick's?  Three times is just a bit "lady doth protest too much". :)

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RafaelBarbas

RafaelBarbas

I just had another thought re: Barba- between the excessive drinking, the scruffiness, the stress headaches, the moodiness and outbursts, and the anxiety, I wonder if Barba has PTSD from the courthouse shooting at the end of last season, or if he has some other kind of anxiety disorder he's trying and failing to self-medicate.

 

EADA = ??

One "rank" above ADA.

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WendyCR72

WendyCR72

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I figured that, but for the life of me, I can't figure out what the "E" stands for.

Executive Assistant District Attorney, a.k.a. what both Ben Stone and Jack McCoy were under Adam Schiff, who was the DA (followed, obviously, by Lewin and Branch) on the Mothership before McCoy moved up and Cutter took McCoy's old job of EADA.

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LotusFlower

LotusFlower

Executive Assistant District Attorney, a.k.a. what both Ben Stone and Jack McCoy were under Adam Schiff, who was the DA (followed, obviously, by Lewin and Branch) on the Mothership before McCoy moved up and Cutter took McCoy's old job of EADA.

Of course! Thanks.

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Tony

Tony

Awesome episode. This is a flashback to the old SVU where it was about the perps and the trials, and not Viv and her single mom problems. Of course they had to throw in Rowland's pregnancy, but I'll pretend it didn't happen.

  • Love 3
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Bill C.

Bill C.

Not much Fin, unfortunately (or that much Liv, in the greater scheme of things), but that aside?  I thought this was a pretty good season opener, even allowing for that faint feeling that they might have been trying to give Amanda her own William Lewis...at least until she confirmed she was pregnant.  And, repeatedly, that it's not Nick's baby.  I'm kind of with Lizzing on the "lady doth protest too much" side with that (though would she lie to Liv about that specifically?), but at the same time my inner soap opera fan went "There's no way they'll have both women on this show be mothers.  Something's going to happen to Amanda."

 

Jefferson Mays' Carl Rudnick I honestly didn't remember from last season at all, so in this episode bubble he just seemed like The Leader doing a weird Garak (DS9) impression...not Yates creepy, but more foppish creepy.  (Great facial expressions, though.)  And his running around in a dress towards the back half of hour two was some minor UCG.  If anything, though, the show seems to have opened a huge can of worms for Barba thanks to him: if every autopsy Rudnick did is now questionable, thus opening the door for a possible flood of appeals, what's going to happen to him?  He was already kind of snippy with Liv here...is he going to fall into a pill bottle due to stress?

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MrsRafaelBarba

MrsRafaelBarba

Yeah, Barba and those pills. I know, I know...migraines. But this is SVU, land of the freak, home of the bleak. So how long before we discover poor Barba has an aneurysm or a tumor or something?

He's been popping pills since his Grandmother died.

My poor Baby is stressed.

  • Love 6
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StaceyNotStacie

StaceyNotStacie

That was interesting.  The medical examiner was creepy enough during the first autopsy that I immediately suspected something was off about him.  I liked Rollins and Carisi working together and I liked that there was a bit of everything (investigation, court scenes, etc.).  With all of the focus on Rollins, I'm hoping that this season won't be all about Amanda like the previous season was all about Olivia.  I'm curious as to whether or not we'll get some sort of backstory on who the father of her baby is (I wouldn't be surprised if the baby is actually Nick's and they're trying to throw a curveball at us).

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Lebanna

Lebanna

People are suggesting all kinds of possibilities for Rollins' babydaddy. Finn. Barba. Even Carisi.

I hope they don't go there, and I don't really think they will. Rollins already slept with Amaro, I don't see them going there with another colleague immediately (not that there's anything wrong with that! Just can't see it happening on L&O.) Besides, they'd then have to make Rollins' relationship with whichever main character a big part of the show, if they were co-parenting. It's an important relationship. And it would also mean that we'd have three main characters dealing with becoming new parents all at the same time, which could easily get repetitive.

I'm hoping it's someone we've seen before, though, outside the main cast.

  • Love 2
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Princess Lucky

Princess Lucky

Fun episode.

 

I liked the pacing, for the most part, all the guest stars were fantastic (the killers and the lawyers), we got Melinda, we got a hilarious Carisi/Rollins road trip, there wasn't too much Benson, there was barely any Noah, there was a lot of Barba. Good stuff.

 

Regarding Rollins, she was too quick to say Amaro isn't the father (to Benson but also to Carisi, which tells me that Rollins knew that they knew). Hm. That said, the show wouldn't 'lie' about that, plus Danny Pino is gone. I don't think it can be Carisi because he was all "big brother" with her, with the ginger ale and all, and he was quietly supportive. He wasn't, like, worried or excited or asking how far along she was etc. SVU has done the "off screen relationship" thing, true, but Carisi's reactions weren't those of a man who thinks he might be the father of her baby.  I actually thought they made it seem like it could be Yates, but that was just probably him being a creep. Let's see.

 

I liked the Benson/Rollins dynamic. Benson is being a little harsh but not overly so, and she has every right to be harsh, to be honest. And Rollins also pushes Benson's limits quite a bit, plus I love the Kelli Giddish almost rolls her eyes every time Benson gives her an order she doesn't like. In the end, though, they're there for each other. I like seeing two women who are both skilled professionals and whose relationship is made complicated by work issues and work issues alone. On a personal level, Benson and Rollins support each other. On a professional level, there's mistrust and maybe resentment. I don't mind that at all.

 

Barba is still stressed out and still popping pills and still having migraines. I think we're meant to assume he's under pressure from above, and I hope we get a little more insight into the inner machinations of the DA's office. That could be interesting. A Barba-centric episode doesn't have to be about his dying grandma or his love life, it could be about his political aspirations or about someone at the DA's office undermining him or about a string of cases which messes up his record etc etc. There's a lot that can be done with him, and the premiere hinted at some of that (she said warily).

 

Fin was barely there in the second part, but he was great while he was there. And I just enjoyed the Fin/Melinda moment. It was an unexpected bit of character continuity. I do hope she gets that head M.E. position and we see some more of her.

 

Benson was pretty great too. She was reasonably cautious and she had her opinion but she still worked the case and immediately changed her mind when new evidence was presented. There weren't clashing egos, Benson didn't hang on to her mistaken theory, and Rollins didn't gloat either. Everyone handled the situation pretty well. Colour me surprised.

 

And Carisi, my favourite. This was a great episode for him. He also disagreed with Rollins, but he actually looked into it, just in case, (and he sassed Barba in the process). Again, no ego. All his moments with Rollins were awesome. That partnership has a lot of potential, as we had already seen last season. He figured her out, and he was sweet about it but not presumptuous (because it is her choice), and he had his dumb watch on and Rollins made fun of him and he was all "call her Sonny". I love those two together. And Carisi had a couple of funny moments with Barba, as well. I like how he brings out a funnier, snarkier side to angsty characters like Rollins and Barba. Seriously, he's such a great addition to the squad. I'm glad we get one more season of him.

 

All in all, a fun premiere. It didn't even feel like an SVU episode, and I mean that in a good way. And it certainly didn't feel like the premiere of the 17th(!!!) season of SVU. The show stays fresh-ish.

  • Love 6
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Joimiaroxeu

Joimiaroxeu

I'm glad they wrote Kelli Giddish's pregnancy into the show because from the very beginning of the episode I was distracted by it. The distraction would only have gotten worse as the season went on with all the gigantic purses, ficus trees, and weird camera angles. That said, come on, Amaro for sure is the baby daddy and I'm putting cash money down on it. As several said upthread, the lady doth protest way too much. And, just because they're writing Kelli's pregnancy into the show that doesn't mean they're writing another baby in as well. Rollins may have a late miscarriage.

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MorbidPet

MorbidPet

I have to get in to the Rollins' baby daddy speculation first. It is not Nick's. You need to read WL's interview in Hollywood Reporter and/or Kellis' on E! WL said they chose between Nate & someone KG/AR have chemistry with, and they went with the latter. I'm calling it;

Murphy

will be baby daddy :)

 

Okay to the episodes. I really liked them. Yes a bit predictable but still enjoyable. I'm fascinated by Yates so I get Rollins being a little obsessed. I liked Fin calling her out on the 'don't let them get inside your head', he knows her so well. I do like Carisi & Rollins working together but Finanda will always be my faves. And that's why I was a little disappointed we got to see her tell both Carisi and Liv but not Fin :( And I felt the "Not Nick's" came a ltl out of the blue. I can get her saying it to Carisi as he did "interrupt" them at times but to tell Liv? If she knew shouldn't she have put a stop to it? Since we didn't get much Rollaro on screen at all it feels weird to have her all of a sudden be so open about it on screen. I would've wanted it to be Nick's but a lot spoke against it - it would be out of character for him to not want to be a part of the kid's life, and I would not have liked it had they made Rollins not tell him, even if that would've been with good intentions (for him to not feel torn about moving back to NY) but as Nick isn't coming back, and may not guest star either, I guess it might be for the best Nick isn't the father although it breaks my heart a ltl. And with the one I suspect is the dad it brings a lot of questions to the surface & makes me think of Patton and if they will ever bring that up again? But I'll take this discussion in to some spoiler thread or something to not ruin it for anyone

 

I don't think we've seen the last of Yates and/or Rudnick (or Redneck as I thought they said at first so that is now my nickname for him *lol*), I would not mind seeing Yates again, Redneck I can do without though, unless he comes in drag, he didn't freak me out as much in drag for some reason. Redneck the ME freaks me out though and has from the very start. Called he was a weirdo ;)

I really liked Barba in court, and his interaction with the squad. I like him butting heads with them so if not with Liv then Rollins is just fine. I heart Rita/Marvel, she's such a cold bitch one minute, well most minutes but we've seen her have heart with Liv so we know it is in there somewhere. Rita with Rollins on stand was awesome. I don't mind Buchanan as much as I get most ppl do.

 

I like Carisi and I think Scanavino does a good job but I did miss Amaro. It would just be awesome to have all of them there.

I did miss Fin for the last part of the episodes. I hope it was just temporary cause I hated them rotating out squad members last season.

Just the right amount of Noah, I can handle that, pls stick with that writers. I don't think we will see much of Rollins baby so I'm just looking forward to seeing her waddle around the squad room, hopefully she will be extra cranky once the new Sergeant arrives :)

 

What else what else... oh what was up with Lewis crazy cupcake lady being in the gallery? She was just there or is she stalking Liv? I didn't get it.

Listening to Yates conjugal visit was just *ewww* but it is also the ewww-factor of Yates that makes me like him in some twisted way.

Carisi/Rollins roadtrip was very funny.

 

Well great start of S17, pls keep it up writers. Now ep6 can't get here soon enough, I am so looking forward to that one!!

  • Love 1
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Bananna

Bananna

This episode was surprisingly good, I thought it was pretty obvious that it was going to be Rudnick but it was generally execueted pretty well.

 

I was surprised at Buchanan's return, I, for whatever reason thought he had died in the courtroom shootout of last season. However, he is kind of funny in how much an obvious scumbag he is. The SOTL parralells were a little too obvious for my liking I was just laughing half the time.

 

Fin was totally underused in the second half, he was prevelent for the first half and then just vanished. Liv wasn't that insufferable and there was only one Noah scene, let's hope the rest of the season sticks to that scene. Eh, I don't really care about this pregnancy of Rollins so I have nothing much to say on this. Thank god for Carisi, I don't know when I started liking him but I do now and if he leaves then I will actually be quite sad. Barba's popping pills of course! I'm half expecting a Saved by the Bell style climax on the resolution of that storyline.

  • Love 2
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slowpoked

slowpoked

 

I liked the Benson/Rollins dynamic. Benson is being a little harsh but not overly so, and she has every right to be harsh, to be honest. And Rollins also pushes Benson's limits quite a bit, plus I love the Kelli Giddish almost rolls her eyes every time Benson gives her an order she doesn't like. In the end, though, they're there for each other. I like seeing two women who are both skilled professionals and whose relationship is made complicated by work issues and work issues alone. On a personal level, Benson and Rollins support each other. On a professional level, there's mistrust and maybe resentment. I don't mind that at all.

I actually like that they wrote Kelli's pregnancy into the season. When she told Liv about the pregnancy, it felt like Liv suddenly felt a kinship or connection with her. I can't help but notice Liv seems tougher on her than anybody else. Maybe because Liv has always viewed her as an "outsider", and someone that never truly belonged? But with the pregnancy thing, I like that there's now a connection between them.

 

 

What else what else... oh what was up with Lewis crazy cupcake lady being in the gallery? She was just there or is she stalking Liv? I didn't get it.

I didn't get that either. It looked like she was about to interrupt the cross examination a couple of times but ended up not speaking at all. I thought maybe she knows Rachel Groves and was going to say something during the trial. 

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Monkeybball

Monkeybball

What the HELL was with that last scene between Rollins and Yates? The old "when one life ends, another one begins, you're bringing new life into the world now, yada yada yada."  It was so weird it almost seemed like they were actually trying to pretend that Amanda's baby is going to be the evil-mind-spawn of Yates.  He got her pregnant TELEPATHICALLY!  I mean really!  It was just such a weird scene I dunno.

 

A bunch of the legal stuff really bothered me in here.  I'm sorry, there's certainly a few things here and there that you could utilize to call into question some of the evidence when an M.E. is charged, but Calhoun was acting like "oh yeah, these 50 minor coincidences, the jury will totally disregard the apparent connection."  SVU does that ALL THE TIME in the court room/pre-trial.  It's an insult to jurors to assume that the slightest bit of doubt would overwhelm all other evidence.

 

I agree with "The lady doth protest too much." Amanda - NO ONE ASKED YOU! 

 

I really don't wanna do anymore Rollins family drama this season. My GOD, haven't they tortured that poor woman enough?

 

Severe lack of Fin after the first third of the episode.

 

Carisi is hot.

 

That is all.

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slowpoked

slowpoked

 

but Calhoun was acting like "oh yeah, these 50 minor coincidences, the jury will totally disregard the apparent connection."

Yeah, that bothered me a bit too. When Barba said that Susie's blood was found in Rudnick's car, Calhoun was like "He gave her a ride and she got a papercut, that's all." I was expecting Barba to say something like "Oh yeah, he gave her a ride, IN THE TRUNK OF HIS CAR, where they found traces of blood." But he just shut up. I'm like, what the hell is going on?! Is Barba losing all his magic powers all of a sudden?

  • Love 4
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Monkeybball

Monkeybball

Yeah, that bothered me a bit too. When Barba said that Susie's blood was found in Rudnick's car, Calhoun was like "He gave her a ride and she got a papercut, that's all." I was expecting Barba to say something like "Oh yeah, he gave her a ride, IN THE TRUNK OF HIS CAR, where they found traces of blood." But he just shut up. I'm like, what the hell is going on?! Is Barba losing all his magic powers all of a sudden?

I don't know, I really feel like they do that in a lot of SVU episodes though.  I mean, I'm an attorney, by NO MEANS a medical expert, but they always do the whole "he/she got a nose bleed, so that's why their blood was found" thing.  Couldn't forensic testing tell you if that was plausible?  I mean shit, I'm surprised more people don't use that defense if it's such a good one!  Or "oh yeah, the girl was on her period!"  I mean seriously.  I've just seen cases in my life with WAY more "doubt" presented and the juries still convict.

 

OH YEAH!  I forgot to mention....WHAT THE F*&! was up with that crazy psycho juror lady sitting in the gallery?! AND WHY ALL THE CLEAVAGE?! I mean she clearly seems to think that Rudnick is innocent, because why wouldn't she, but HOW are they gonna try to work her in this time? And WHY ISN'T SHE IN JAIL!?!?!???!! She's at the very least an accomplice to murder for all the people Lewis killed while out, and could very easily get convicted of felony murder herself. SMH.

  • Love 3
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Spartan Girl

Spartan Girl

I don't know, I really feel like they do that in a lot of SVU episodes though.  I mean, I'm an attorney, by NO MEANS a medical expert, but they always do the whole "he/she got a nose bleed, so that's why their blood was found" thing.  Couldn't forensic testing tell you if that was plausible?  I mean shit, I'm surprised more people don't use that defense if it's such a good one!  Or "oh yeah, the girl was on her period!"  I mean seriously.  I've just seen cases in my life with WAY more "doubt" presented and the juries still convict.

 

OH YEAH!  I forgot to mention....WHAT THE F*&! was up with that crazy psycho juror lady sitting in the gallery?! AND WHY ALL THE CLEAVAGE?! I mean she clearly seems to think that Rudnick is innocent, because why wouldn't she, but HOW are they gonna try to work her in this time? And WHY ISN'T SHE IN JAIL!?!?!???!! She's at the very least an accomplice to murder for all the people Lewis killed while out, and could very easily get convicted of felony murder herself. SMH.

As long as she winds up in jail or dying a slow painful death, I'm open to her being worked in because that always pissed me off.

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