Currently on Season 6 of The Mothership. What is everyone's consensus on Rey Curtis. Poor Claire. Lennie is still a legend. I don't know if I miss Logan yet

So I hope it's okay if I bounce around some word vomit. I watched all of Criminal intent about 4 years ago now and I won't lie, I've forgotten a great deal of it. A few choice episodes have stayed with me - John Glover was in only two episodes as Goren's mentor, which is a huge crime. Rip Torn was in one of the most depressing episodes about his abuse of one of his sons in the show. But in terms of an episode which has stayed with me because of the premise and ideas in it, "Scared Crazy" popped back into my mind while talking about the Waco debacle with some friends. I'm learninga bout it myself for the first time in real detail, about the psychological warfare used against Koresh. Anyway, if you don't know this episode, this is a fine summary
https://www.flowjournal.org/2009/04/scared-crazy-and-torture-julia-lesage%C2%A0-university-of-oregon/

TL;DR - A doctor uses lights and sounds to destroy a kid's mind. She didn't mean to, I honestly forgot that part, that the doctor wasn't so much evil as a victim herself, but while that improved the drama of the episode, it's not really relevant to why this has stayed with me.

I guess it simply fascinates me, the incongruity of perception and reality and how we lie to ourselves. When you hear the word "torture" you think fingernails being pulled out or something probably fairly bloody and overtly violent. You don't think flashing lights and loud noises. And that's probably the point. Just like we use lethal injections now to hide from the brutal reality of what we're doing, to pretend we're morally superior to headsman and stuff in the past, I'm sure this kind of torture was (is?) so in vogue because it allows people to dream that they aren't like some medieval "barbarian" with all his torture implements. Torture implements are things like knives, not stereos!

Like I said, just a really compelling premise for the episode.

Goren's concluding line in the episode is "Evil changes everybody." It reminded me of Verhoeven's commentary on his Starship Troopers where he said "war makes fascists of us all." Now I remember the story of the doctor in this episode, I think you could say that was the point of this episode, too.

Ice-T wasn’t credited.

I was never a fan of hers when she worked for the DA, but she was used sparingly enough that it didn’t really bother me much. But after Killerz, when it was obvious the little girl is a psychopath, it’s clear she’s not qualified.

Whatever version of CI you choose to begin the night with, enjoy!

The show isn’t on anymore but has enough seasons for a great binge. It’s on BritBox on Amazon Prime and it is excellent. I highly recommend it. Great acting and incredible stories.

What actors would you have loved to have seen guest star in law and order SVU or CI.

I would have loved as a game of thrones super fan if Lena Headey guest starred in law & order as a villain it would have been really interesting whether it's SVU or CI does anybody agree.

this episode hits a little too close to home because i am in my mid 30’s and nowhere near having children although i would very much want to have children in the future. because of a couple of reasons, issues with family, issues with my boyfriend, the financial capacity, and of course not being ready myself emotionally, personally, physically and mentally. i know my biological clock is ticking and it makes me depress to even think about it. and having people constantly point it out to me does not help at all. it really made me see liv in a different light. that was the first time i have related to her. and it made me love her character so much more

I’m watching Thrill and Jack just said “I’m playing legal tiddlywinks with these punks, what’s I’d really like to do is take them into Battery Park and hang them by the scrotum.”

I cackled so loud I woke the dog up!

What are some of your favorite lines?

Dick Wolf should produce a prequel series called Briscoe. It would be all about a young Lenny before he stopped drinking. I would watch the hell out of that!

I make passes for Serena in Glasses 🤓😍. I would have loved to seen her in glasses more

Enjoy!

One of the enduring problems with the revival seasons is that the characters have become weak and inconsistent, and Into the Mystic has multiple examples of this.

For one, this is an awful introduction to Rob Calvino. We learn nothing about him in this episode: he doesn’t demonstrate any notable qualities, doesn’t differentiate his investigative style, and none of the other characters offer any opinions on him. The one blip of characterization is his confrontation with Theo where he just acts like a reasonable detective would in the situation. Maybe he’ll get more of an introduction in the next episode, but you only get one chance at a first impression, and I kinda doubt that he’s going to differentiate much from Riley because the cast barely gets anything these days.

Just look at Walker: why exactly does he have qualms about lying to convict the killer? Pretty much the only consistent trait that Theo Walker has is his willingness to break the rules and distort the truth for the sake of justice, it’s literally what he did in his first episode. His hesitation only makes him weaker as a character because I have less of a sense of where he would draw the line and what pushes him over it.

I want to bring Detective Fontana for a comparison. Love him or hate him, Fontana’s characterization was strong from the get-go and consistent throughout his time on the show; he’s a charismatic bully who lied as easily as he breathed. Even if you didn’t like how he operated, I would argue that was the point, because it makes you question whether he (and by extension real police) should be empowered to do the things he did, what taboos he should be allowed to transgress. Lying was a part of Fontana’s character. For Theo Walker, lying is just a thing he arbitrarily does in some episodes.

The worst example of the character problem though is actually Baxter; I have no sense whatsoever of what his values are anymore. There’s no clear sense of what his ethics are anymore, he just randomly decides which laws and ethical duties he follows and which he’ll just ignore. His positions don’t even seem grounded in a real moral or legal philosophy - he was one step away from summing up his opposition to AI as “it doesn’t have a human soul.” This creates larger problems because none of the other characters can substantially push back against him; Nolan comes off as a petulant child who just uselessly whines about things. Since Baxter’s position isn’t grounded in anything, neither are Nolan’s protests, and when he just goes along Baxter anyway it looks like he can’t even stand by his own opinions.

I want to make it clear that I don’t need the characters to do things I personally agree with - Fontana’s kindof a scumbag but he’s one of my favorite detectives. What I need is to feel like I understand what’s driving the characters to make their decisions besides just the general momentum of the plot. Otherwise they’re bland at best and unlikeable at worst.

For anyone interested, I have written a novel centered on the character Cheryl Avery, who appeared in the Law&OrderSVU Season 4 episode 21 titled "Fallacy." The novel is titled "The Cellmate".

You can find links on my profile. The text is in Italian but you can use your browser's translator.

For anyone interested, I have written a novel centered on the character Cheryl Avery, who appeared in the Law&OrderSVU Season 4 episode 21 titled "Fallacy." The novel is titled "The Cellmate".

You can find links on my profile. The text is in Italian but you can use your browser's translator.

I love this episode, in fact it may be my all time favorite of the series. So many things to unpack. So what are your thoughts, is Mack Claire’s dad, stepdad, or her mom’s boyfriend? What did you like or dislike about the episode?

It went to the premium/paid plans sometime earlier this year, only a handful of episodes were available for free while you had to subscribe in order to watch the series in full. I’m watching it from the beginning on Peacock free now. All episodes from all 10 seasons are there in the lineup.

In case anyone wants to tune in when it’s not airing on Charge TV network, or the station does one of their odd streaks of skipping over several episodes instead of airing in order. Personally I plan on doing both because I like the community aspect of the primetime syndication water cooler here too. 😎