"Law & Order: SVU" on NBC in HD - Page 7

He was promoted to Bureau Chief Executive ADA, he oversees the ADAs assigned to the SVU.

So, he'll pop up from time to time then? Safe to assume the whole Jack McCoy/new DA issue will be addressed. Perhaps the Dick Wolf plan is to use SVU to keep bits of the past L&Os alive this season.

Where was this mentioned?

http://www.tvguide.com/News/SVU-Linu...e-1036212.aspx

That's kind of obscure info for a show like Law & Order SVU. Don't usually need to turn to outside sources for explanations.

It's credible enough, I think.

Emotional ending for tonight's episode.

Was that Rene Russo featured in tonight's episode? Who ever that was, she was pretty.

I'm liking Danny Pino in this series.

Paige Turco

Good deal. Thanks.

first time i've seen Carla from Scrubs on anything in 2 years...

I rewatched the episode. It was mentioned by Capt. Cragen as Cutter walks in his office.

I really enjoyed tonight's episode. There wasn't that much action, but it's OK. Danny Pino as Detective Nick Amaro is going great. Good actor.

wow

A little sad.

It was a great episode with a great performance by Treat Williams. But, it was all sullied a bit by the typical SVU "shooting on the courthouse steps" ending. It would have been perfect to just end it with the display of confusion.

that ending was typical?

well - here's the real ending they put online.

http://www.nbc.com/law-and-order-spe...regret/1371938

Maybe not typical, but I've grown tired of these endings where the defendant's life ends right in front of the courthouse. Of course, it is not just SVU that's done it.

Thanks for posting this. Yeah, the on-air ending sucked because I thought the episode was going to show Treat have a moment of lucidity where he admits he needs help and the NFL (which isn't named and only referred as 'The League') would take care of him and his wive's future needs... you know, a happy ending. Instead the shooting on the court steps has been done so many times (on all three "L&O" shows) it rung hollow. Shame the online-only ending wasn't shown because it solidifies the bonding between Benson and Bayard Ellis that was built into Braugher's last two appearances. BTW, where was Munch?

So, we're at the midpoint of the new "SVU 2.0." Any thoughts? I still like the show and that it's not doing the same old things (new POV scenes, different ways to frame the same stories as before, Pino growing in confidence as a rookie SVU detective, etc.) but it's just not the same show. Any time I catch a "SVU" repeat on USA or DVD the Stabler-Benson-cast chemistry just springs back up. The NBC show is just a going-through-the-motions empty shelf of its former self, but darn if I still don't watch. I've been riding the boat for so long that I'm in until it sinks, if not this year then probably next.

Good stories. Natasha Lyonne was fantastic in the previous episode. In fact I immediately went to online stores to look for blu-ray upgrades of "But I'm a Cheerleader" and "Slums of Beverly Hills" but they don't exist.

This episode suffered a bit because they no longer had a police/fbi psychologist character. Otherwise it is almost on par with previous seasons IMHO.

TV Notes
Occupy Wall Street protesters shut down 'Law & Order: SVU' set depicting OWS
By Edgar Sandoval, New York Daily News - December 9th, 2011

More than 100 Occupy Wall Street demonstrators stormed the set for Law & Order: Special Victims Unit across from the Manhattan State Supreme Courthouse, shutting down production of an OWS-themed episode.

"We made it so that they could not exploit us and that's awesome," said Tammy Schapiro, 29, of Brooklyn.

The protesters arrived around midnight at Foley Square and roamed around the park inspecting tents and signs built by the production company.

"This is not us," said Drew Hornbein, 24, of Brooklyn Heights. "We are not part of corporate TV America."

Some of the set signs read "End War on Workers" "Greed No" and "War Profiteers."

About 100 police officers lined the perimeter of the production, preventing protesters from getting too close.

"It's hysterical," Hornbein said. "Two weeks ago they kicked us out of Zuccotti Park. Now they have this set trying to pretend it's us. It's odd."

After midnight, a police officer on a bullhorn announced that the film permit had been rescinded by the city, which drew cheers from the crowd.

Cops then threatened to arrest them if they did not leave the park. After a momentary standoff, police moved in and dispersed the crowd.

"This is bastardization going on. This is not the case of imitation is a form of flattery," said a man identified as Scooby 49. "This is insulting."

The production crew moved in and started dismantling the set.

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/...ticle-1.989070

SVU 2.0 is still great but I agree that Stabler/Benson delivered more consistent intensity. Meloni overacted a lot but he was very intense. I like the new blonde. She's awesome. I give Pino a pass so far. He's just not that entertaining/interesting as of yet. I missed Munch too.

I really like the blonde detective, too. Kelli Giddish is perfect as Detective Amanda Rollins, a worldly southern beauty who has seen too much in too few years. I also like the quiet, smooth way Detective Nick Amaro deals with suspects. He is the polar opposite of the emotional and sometimes violent Stabler. That has been fun. For a while it appeared that Benson didn't know how to use Amaro's strengths but she seems to be learning.

Critic's Notes
One too many hits: checking in on 'Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'
How are people feeling about the revamped cop drama?
By Alan Sepinwall, HitFix.com - December 12th, 2011

I'll admit up-front that "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" has always been my least favorite major entry in the franchise. No knock on Chris Meloni, Mariska Hargitay and company, but the subject matter was always a turn-off for me, and that was even before the show went through that period of casting beloved TV stars to play sick rapists for maximum shock value.

But it's the last piece of the franchise standing, and this year went through some major turnover, with Meloni (co-lead for the first 12 years) leaving, Danny Pino and Kelli Giddish joining the cast and Warren Leight (one-time "Criminal Intent" producer, but more recently boss of cable dramas like "In Treatment" and "Lights Out") taking over as showrunner. Last week on Twitter, Leight was sounding the trumpet for the most recent episode, "Spiraling Down," guest starring Treat Williams as a former star quarterback suffering from concussion-related dementia and featuring another appearance by Andre Braugher in his recurring role as defense lawyer Bayard Ellis.

I didn't have time to watch it that night, but when I did my Wednesday night TV open thread post the next day, a few commenters sang its praises. I figured the convergence of Braugher, Leight, Williams, the subject matter (I've read a whole lot of Alan Schwarz's brilliant reporting in the New York Times on the long-term effects of concussions) and my curiosity about the revamped show (I'd only previously watched Braugher's first appearance) led me to give it a shot.

And I thought it was a very strong hour of dramatic television, aside from an ending that was probably several degrees too melodramatic for what came before. (Had this been a story on the "L&O" mothership around, say, 1992, we would have learned that Williams' character killed himself off-camera while Ben Stone and Adam Schiff walked through the drizzle together.) In both this episode and Braugher's first appearance, it feels like the series has taken on a more straightforward tone where the crimes are still heinous but the show doesn't wallow in the details quite as much as I recall back in the day.

What was interesting, though, was how much the show tilted not only its sympathy, but its point of view, towards Williams and Braugher. This may not be an unusual thing for the series (again, before this year I'm not sure how long it's been since I watched more than a few minutes of an episode, and then only to see if Munch was doing something funny), but it did feel like the show temporarily turned into a spin-off about Braugher's character - which, considering how great Braugher is, I wouldn't exactly object to.

I'm curious, though, how the "SVU" die-hards - if there are many of you around these parts - feel about the state of the show. The ratings are down from last year, and the show's been trending down in general, so it's not clear how many Meloni fans defected versus age, entropy and the fact that it's on NBC. But if you're a long-timer, how have you felt about this incarnation of the show? And has anyone come to the show for the first time in a while (if ever) because of the changes?

Have at it. What say you on "SVU" circa December 2011?

http://www.hitfix.com/blogs/whats-al...l-victims-unit

Winter TCA Tour Notes
Mariska Hargitay To Continue On L&O: SVU', Harry Connick Jr. Joins For Arc
By Nellie Andreeva, Deadline.com Team - Jan. 6, 2012

At NBC's TCA executive session this morning, the network's chairman Bob Greenblatt addressed the future of Law & Order: SVU star Mariska Hargitay. Her work load this season had originally been reduced to accommodate her taking care of her new baby, sparking speculation that she may be leaving in May. But she ended up being in every episode and will stay on the show beyond this season, Greenblatt said. Mariska is not leaving SVU, Greenblatt said.

Hargitay confirmed that in a pre-taped video. I'll be back, she said. I can't leave this show, I'm having too much fun. She did the video with Harry Connick Jr. who is joining the show for a four-episode arc as her love interest, a new ADA.

http://www.deadline.com/2012/01/mari...joins-for-arc/

reading between the lines:
I am making a good living with SVU and my career is dead once I leave.

TV Notes
'Law & Order' actress Tamara Tunie watches as former manager Joseph Cilibrasi is sentenced to prison
By Barbara Ross, New York Daily News - Jan. 10, 2012

Law & Order actress Tamara Tunie told a tale of betrayal worthy of TV episode as her former business manager was sentenced to prison Tuesday for ripping her off.

Tunie, who played the medical examiner on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, lambasted Joseph Cilibrasi, 51, as a "malicious, cruel, diabolical, vicious" man who pretended to be her friend while robbing her blind for two decades.

She said he shared her family's birthdays, weddings, divorces, births and holidays "all to create a false sense of security" so he could steal her "life's work," more than $1.4 million.

Actors are like professional athletes, Tunie told Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Kirke Bartley: They earn a lot early in their careers and need to save money to assure a comfortable future.

She said that is particularly true for African-American actresses like herself who find that as they get older, roles are "few and far between."

Tunie, 52, said her peak earning years were from 2000 to 2009 when she played Dr. Melinda Warner on Law & Order and a litigator on As The World Turns.

"I cannot hope to replace what was stolen," she said in her victim impact statement. Now, she said, she might have to sell the 100-year-old home that she and her husband, jazz vocalist Gregory Generet, restored.

Prosecutor Peirce Moser said Cilibrasi preyed on busy people in the entertainment industry, pretending to be their pal as well as their business manager while "he bilked them for every dime he could."

Prosecutors said Cilibrasi tricked Tunie into opening a business bank account and wrote checks to himself and for cash starting in the 1990s. He used the money for business expenses, vacations and investment in projects like Legally Blonde: The Musical.

Moser said that Cilibrasi, who pretended to be a certified public accountant, stole outright from clients and from the government, pretending to pay taxes for clients but pocketing the money.

Another of his victim's was Michael Stern, the Kansas City Symphony conductor who is a son of famed violinist Isaac Stern, who lost $75,000. He told the judge in a letter he confronted Cilibrasi in the spring of 2010 and the defendant assaulted him.

Cilibrasi, who had pleaded guilty to grand larceny, was sentenced to two and half to seven years behind bars in a plea-bargain agreement. He had no comment before he was led off to prison.

Cilibrasi has a prior criminal record from 2004 for stealing from another client.

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/...icle-1.1004052

That crook scored a pretty sweet deal. Scum like him should have to serve considerably more time. The pathetic thing is that there will likely be others who will entrust him with their money after he's out.

That's crazy.

I feel bad for Tamara Tunie.

Edit: 40 more minutes until a new episode!

Good episode last night.

It's nice that Olivia has a boyfriend (played by Harry Connick Jr.)

Danny Pino as Nick Amaro is doing great. Liking his addition to the cast.

I enjoyed it as well.

I'll be surprised if the show does not go down the clichéd path of killing off Amaro's wife before the season ends.

Even after all these years I continue to enjoy SVU and watch it every week, although I have not yet got around to this week's show. As preposterous as the stories are, what the hell, this is television, they are always exciting and usually filled with excellent performances by outstanding actors.