S15.E20: Beast's Obsession

[Lisin]

Four months after being taken to prison Lewis has figured a way out, and there's only one thing he's interested in and that's a last dance with Olivia Benson. He's taken a young girl hostage, and Olivia knows there's only one way to get this girl freed.

[Corvino]

Okay: refugee from Television Without Pity here (where I haven't posted for years because I forgot my password and couldn't recover it) and hope to find fine discussers here. About this episode I wish to say before it's on: I OBJECT TO ITS VERY EXISTENCE. I have been watching L&O:SVU from the very beginning, and the third episode with that guy was the first one ever I couldn't bear to sit through. I had to fast-forward to the end to see if he was at least convicted. Already in the first one the idea that the man could get away with raping and torturing that sweet middle-aged woman for twenty hours or whatever, and not be convicted for the very reason that she died of his treatment, was so outrageous I couldn't stand it (as well as not believing it). And he gets FOUR episodes?? If, after toying with us all through his second episode about whether he'd actually rape Olivia, he gets to do so in this episode, I'll stop watching the show.

[MyrtleGroggins]

I think it's gone beyond the physical rape aspect of things now, and Lewis is currently fixated on continuing to torture Olivia's mind to cause more long-lasting damage.  Also, based on the previews, he's apparently focused on getting Olivia to confess to ... something?  I had presumed that Lewis wanted Olivia to confess to beating Lewis in revenge (rather than defense), but perhaps he is urging her to confess to being complicit in the whole plan (which was his trial defense, right?)

I'm not sure why Lewis is so obsessed with Olivia - it doesn't really fit with his MO of seducing a mark with his charm and looks, using them for his depraved fantasies, and then disposing of them and moving on.

I particularly don't like Lewis in the courtroom, as he was written in such a way to undercut the legal prowess formerly displayed by Barba, who has only in the most recent episode begun to show his former level of skillful legal maneuvering.  If Barba has his hands tied again because of Lewis's increasingly unbelievable levels of good luck in dodging legal ramifications, then I'll be rather peeved.  Granted, I kinda doubt that Lewis may make it INTO the courtroom, depending on how the episode plays out.  They've written Lewis as such a super-human antagonist, I don't see a clear way for Olivia to get past her experiences short of ensuring that Lewis is dead and buried.

I suppose we'll have to wait and see!

[fastiller]

About this episode I wish to say before it's on: I OBJECT TO ITS VERY EXISTENCE.

~ ~ Corvino

Me too!  I understand that one of the showrunners from CI came over to SVU (Leight?).  I think that it's like this: Olivia Benson:Lewis::Bobby Goren:Nicole Wallace.  I hope that they wrap up Lewis's storyline much quicker than they wrapped up Nicole's over on CI.  I didn't hate her as much as I do Lewis, but L&O isn't about these arcs (at least I don't think it should be!).

[Sarah D. Bunting]

Here's what I wrote about it.

[hiccup]

I know a lot of people are sick of Lewis, but I was sitting on the edge of my seat with this episode.  I thought it was well acted by Mariska and Pablo.  The only thing I hated about it was 

Lewis shooting himself. He got off too easy!

[TheGongOfDoom]

Okay, since Benson went on tv and admitted she committed perjury during the trial, how does she not get her badge and gun taken away and oh yeah is also arrested and charged with assault or brought before a review board and given a semi-stern talking too chewing out while the board members ogle her breasts the entire time?

How the hell does this just get hand waved away*?

That bothers me more than the ludicrousness of her stalker escaping storyline and all the bullshit involved with that. Like how she managed to slip her body detail/ Seriously, how the hell did that happen? If the chick follows her into the bathroom and checks each stall Live would have to knock them both out to make her getaway, right?

 

*Unless this is some kind of meta-commentary on the corruptness of the NYPD, which I so believe is true. (The corruptness bit.)

[WendyCR72]

I don't see Olivia having any long-term consequences for her actions unless/until NBC pulls the plug on SVU. She SHOULD, but she won't.

[MyrtleGroggins]

Well, that sure was an episode.

I'm not sure what sort of rabbit's foot/four-leaf clover/unicorn horn/talisman Lewis carries, but he is surely the luckiest son-of-a-gun in the history of psychopaths.  Charming all the ladies, oh, you know, RISING FROM THE DEAD post-self-poisoning (what?!?), running a merry spree across NYC, and, as a coup de grace, having the most drawn-out hand of russian roulette ever?  Yikes, man.  Go to Vegas with that shiz.

And I bet that the NYPD will immediately spin Olivia's confession into a "hey, j/k, this was a hostage negotiation scenario" thing.  It still boils down to he said, she said, and currently the "he" is dead.  Until he hoovers up his brain bits, shoves them back into his cranium, and comes after Liv again.

o.O

[Lillybee]

If only Liv had killed him when she had the chance, none of this would have happened.

[fastiller]

Was the woman giving him the laced cupcakes the jury foreman from his trial? 

[MyrtleGroggins]

Here's what I wrote about it.

Hee, I snarfed at "Romeoandjulietophan."  The actual drug was propanolol (a beta-blocker most commonly used to treat heart conditions) in case anyone is planning their own cupcake-facilitated prison-escape scenario.  Caveat: in reality, most people stay super dead post-gigantic overdose unless you've got Lewis's Game Genie settings turned on.

Was the woman giving him the laced cupcakes the jury foreman from his trial? 

Yes, it was!  I thought it was interesting how they played that - she had been prescribed propanolol due to its anti-anxiety effects (which is a real use for this drug, so nice fact-checking, writers!) for her mandolin auditions (what?) and Lewis had convinced her that he was suffering from extreme anxiety due to his "wrongful conviction."  I think the implication was that she *hadn't* intended to facilitate his escape, per se, but was just trying to help him de-stress a bit.  Not sure why she used so much drug, though - maybe it was intended as a de facto pharmacy: two-cupcakes-a-day keeps the stress demons away!  Eat one tablespoon of icing and call me in the morning!

[fastiller]

MyrtleGroggins - I was wondering if they were going to do a jury tampering storyline.  As in, did Lewis make contact with her pre-verdict?  I wonder how they ended up communicating.

[T-A-C]

The end of the episode felt like such a copout. It felt like the only reason

Lewis shot himself

was that the writers had backed themselves into a corner and couldn't figure out any other way to let Olivia out of the situation. I can only imagine now they're going to drag this out even further with her traumatized the aftereffects of this episode.

I hope there's an alternate world where Lewis was a Chicago PD antagonist because while they're extrajudicious in their technique they wouldn't have let him drag this out for more than an episode at most.

Edited April 10, 2014 by T-A-C

[Tara Ariano]

"SVU Viewers Demand More Lewis, Smeary Terror Benson Faces." -- no Gazette ever

God love you, Sarah D. Bunting.

If the reason we had to return to the Lewis well so that (a) Liv was forced to come clean about what really happened with his beating so that (b) her character could be uncompromised again and not having to live with this Dark Secret, and also © there would be a legitimate reason for her not to become the permanent head of SVU so that (d) Murphy can replace her, then it was all worth it.

[MyrtleGroggins]

As in, did Lewis make contact with her pre-verdict?  I wonder how they ended up communicating.

 Given what happened in the episode, I think it's a moot point, unless he pulled a Fight Club finale-type stunt (uh, spoiler?). I don't imagine they'll go after the mandolin-playing jury forewoman if Lewis isn't in the picture (except in possible civil suits?)

If the reason we had to return to the Lewis well so that (a) Liv was forced to come clean about what really happened with his beating so that ... Murphy can replace her, then it was all worth it.

YES. Can Donal Logue stick around for a while and remain as the acting commander? Then, perhaps, the dynamic amongst the team might get a bit back more toward normal (I can hope!) however, I have a feeling that Liv's Big Confession will either be summarily never mentioned again (until the next time for a ratings boost) or handwaved away as a fabrication made to try to save the kidnapped little girl.

Okay, one totally creepy thing that took me out of the episode was the (necessary for network TV ... and decency) state of clothèd-ness of the rape victims. To be tied up as they were when they were found, they sort of has to be shown attired as they were, but Lewis didn't strike me as one who would re-clothe his victims after raping and torturing them. /creepyobservation

[MorbidPet]

I just loved that the Lewis-travesty is over & I was pleasantly surprised by Donal/O'Rourke walking in. And the fact he'll be around for the rest of the season makes me so happy I can't put it into words. I mean can you imagine Rollins' BJ-shame and/or 'you're not my father' complex playing out with him? And Amaro punched his boss in the gut #comebackandbiteyouintheassbigtime And O'Rourke & Barba battling it out *swoon*

@T-A-C I read some article (sorry I was dead tired and I can't recall which website it was on) with Warren and he draw a parallel to CI/Goren/Wallace and Lewis/Benson. And I got a feeling he didn't want to go down the same route. Having that said tho I think they dragged it out too long anyway. She should've killed him when she had the chance as O'Rourke said. I'm not sure we'll ever see the same Olivia after this, I don't mind character development but this wasn't the route I wanted for her.

[WendyCR72]

The thing is, doesn't Logue have that new Gotham series coming up? I know he snagged a role there. Not sure if it is just the pilot (which could be passed on) or if it is straight to series. But if it is the latter, I don't see him sticking around SVU for long.

[MyrtleGroggins]

I am going to presume that we can now talk about the ending of this ep without spoiler tags.

So, I honestly don't get why Lewis shot himself.  He's been consistently portrayed throughout his arc as a sadistic sociopath, and as a person who is very much pro-self and able to talk his way out of anything in order to succeed.  He did have that moment of goading Liv to shoot him when he was handcuffed to the bed, but that seemed more in tune with expertly reading Liv's fragile emotional state and knowing that she would (very likely) not actually kill him.  So why did he shoot himself in their final standoff?  Given his track record, I'm actually a bit surprised that the gun didn't jam or misfire, allowing him to survive yet again. 

He looked a bit as though he was setting up a shot that would kill both of them, but clearly that didn't happen.  But why take his life at all?  He didn't appear to be the martyr type - if he had killed Liv (or she had shot herself during the russian roulette standoff) he could play the "she shot herself out of guilt for perjuring herself and getting caught" card, which (particularly if Liv had shot herself) might just possibly be grounds for reasonable doubt.  With what we saw of Lewis and his general enjoyment of d*cking people around at his last trial, I would think he would relish the opportunity to represent himself at his trial for Liv's murder.  He would have loved to continue his tradition of fabricating grandiose tales in the courtroom and would have reveled in the palpable anguish such a trial would cause Barba and the SVU squad.  Now, of course, there would be about seventeen pounds of DNA evidence against him from his rape and murder spree, but his luck should allow a radioactive pigeon to fly into the crime lab and taint the evidence or somesuch nonsense.  Also, unless MH was planning to leave the series, this plot line clearly wouldn't work, so there's that (:

One last thought about Lewis - we never really got to see why people were so sharply divided on loving and trusting him, or (justifiably) despising him.  Rollins had her "bad feeling" about him, and Barba and the Squad soon agreed that he was hinky, but I would actually have liked to see him interact with some of the people he had convinced to be on "his side" to see the magic unfold.  I get that he's great at reading people and could focus his efforts on those who were less confident or more malleable in order to sway them to his side, but his allies included doctors and lawyers, who - due to the nature of their jobs - are usually both hyper-rational and have decent radars for creepazoids.

ANYway, enough about Lewis.  I don't follow enough entertainment news to have heard details about Donal Logue's new project, so I'll just hope that he can keep on coming back to SVU for a while!

[DangerousMinds]

I just loved that the Lewis-travesty is over & I was pleasantly surprised by Donal/O'Rourke walking in. And the fact he'll be around for the rest of the season makes me so happy I can't put it into words. I mean can you imagine Rollins' BJ-shame and/or 'you're not my father' complex playing out with him? And Amaro punched his boss in the gut #comebackandbiteyouintheassbigtime And O'Rourke & Barba battling it out *swoon*

 

Wasn't this the season finale?

Edited April 11, 2014 by DangerousMinds

[sgittinger]

Not that I'm aware of: Season shouldn't end until sometime in May.

[MorbidPet]

@WendyCR72 - yes you're right. I think it's only a pilot yet though but it looks like a rather solid show. I don't want to wish it bad luck but it would just be awesome to have Donal on SVU imo

@MyrtleGroggins - my take on it is that he basically just gave up. He knew he wouldn't get out of there in that last scene and he'd already faced off with Benson in court once so he did the one thing he could do to sorta remain her worst nightmare. I mean seeing someone blow their head off must stick with you for the rest of your life. When he pulled that trigger those first rounds he just showed no emotions, total lack of any fear of death. Liv on the other hand showed great fear so he beat her on that. And then he managed to get the final punch after all and Liv now has no way to counter that punch. I dunno though, he's clearly a psychopath so who knows really? I'm not sure he planned much a head actually, he just went with it, making things up as he went. I was over this arc before it even started (at least in hindsight)

This was def not the finale though. I think season 15 has 24 episodes. There will be one more Olivia-show episode but then we have 3 more that can be awesome now that Donal is on board. I guess there's just one more thing I think this season will include though that I'm not looking forward to

Liv will be a mother by the end of this season and that's another arc I couldn't care less about, I rather see her back to her old self on the squad than spending time with a baby. It was in an interview with Warren

I know I might sound critical to Liv at times but I actually really like her and I want her on the squad but just not in this state she's in now. I know characters have to change to be interesting but I wish they'd gone another route. I love the squad right now (miss Cragen & Munch tho) and with a Liv I recognize and Lt Murphy it can be an awesome season 16 ;)

Damn took me like half an hour to get that spoiler button to work with me *lol*

[WendyCR72]

Wasn't this the season finale?

Per TV Line, the finale is on May 21st.

[Catherinewriter]

Does anyone else worry about the effects of these kinds of shows on the very young actors who act in them? What are the standards for such involvement, if anyone is aware of them. And what kinds of parents think this is a good thing for their kids to do, no matter how much they want to go into acting?

[fastiller]

@T-A-C I read some article (sorry I was dead tired and I can't recall which website it was on) with Warren and he draw a parallel to CI/Goren/Wallace and Lewis/Benson. And I got a feeling he didn't want to go down the same route. Having that said tho I think they dragged it out too long anyway. 

I wondered about that.  I'm glad Lewis is done!

[webruce]

Just finally watched this on Hulu.
I guess that William Lewis knew that he couldn't keep escaping and harassing Benson much longer before someone did kill him. So he broke out and would force her to come clean on her big lie to disgrace her and put her career in doubt. He may have also thought he'd have a chance at retrial and get off on some plea or technicality.

Yes he was obsessed with Olivia because he thought she got off on all this stuff, but also because she was the "good guy" that lied to have him put away. He always figured with his good looks and charm he could talk his way out of anything.

I believe the reason he did shoot himself at end(if he did), was that he figured that even if he had his other gun on Benson the best he could hope for was to shoot her to as she shot him with the roulette pistol. And as stated above he will put into doubt if he committed suicide or Benson shot him.

Sorry if this sounds twisted, but I hope when we reach Season 31 of SVU that a William Lewis Jr. from one of the women he raped(I know most didn't survive),won't be brought into the precinct as a troubled teen.

I didn't really like Declan Murphy in the episode he was introduced to Rollins. But I know he was undercover. He did step up and take charge this episode. I do wonder if he will be biased towards Rollins and Amaro because of the undercover sting? I did like the thing he said to Olivia about how she should have shot him when she had the chance.

Even though I thought the Juror Bronwyn Freed, would have more to do with it, I am glad for her sake she didn't. He just used his charm to twist her into thinking he was setup.

How did Lewis fake his death to go to hospital? Didn't quite get the Lazarus Effect?

I had figured that Benson would get away from Detectives Delano and Carlson some how. Was surprised they stopped for a drink. They should be reprimanded as well.

Myrtlegroggins they could have shown the girls from the top of breast up so it looked like they were naked then switch to Amaros face etc, then back to girl with blanket or robe over them??

Edited May 24, 2014 by webruce

[webruce]

I read about the meds that did his heart attack and death. But bringing himself back was sheer determination, same with raping the nurse so soon I guess.

 

 How did the Juror get the cupcakes past the guards and not have one or more sample them??

Edited May 24, 2014 by webruce