News broke only hours before this episode aired that Law & Order SVU has been renewed for 3 more years! Congratulations to all involved with the show and to fans.
This had the makings of an excellent episode had it not been smothered by the trials and tribulations of Kim Rollins and her (and Amanda’s) father, who is an equally sad loser. I find my brain tuning out as soon as Kim appears on the screen. Right off the bat Kim abandons her son to a stranger so she can head to a public rest room to take drugs, and she quickly ODs. (She leaves the faucet running in the sink so in the event she ODs, someone would notice the running water.) In a normal world, someone on parole getting caught OD’ing on drugs while leaving their child with a stranger wouldn’t be cut any breaks. In fact, even in the SVU world, Benson would be advocating in the best interests of the child. In this case, because Kim is Amanda Rollins’ sister, they bend over backwards to keep Kim out of jail for a while and help get her access to her son. Kim is not at all hesitant to come to Amanda to take advantage of her NYPD connections to get her out of her mess, and the only people that seem somewhat cautious are Fin and maybe Carisi. Despite the fact that their father has a drug/drinking problem and Kim’s release with the ankle bracelet means she can’t be around anyone like that, Amanda lets their father stay one night in her home. He also quickly ODs. (What a family.) Of course Kim, who can only think of herself, worries right away what will happen to her and her son, and Amanda has no idea how this will work and what happens next. These are all things that Amanda should have thought of before she allowed herself to be sucked into Kim's predicament from the start. I understand the desire to help out family, but sometimes the way to help is through tough love. This may have been the time for Amanda to take that approach. But, enough of the Rollins family train wreck; they grate on me in the worst way.
Kim’s predicament revealed a problem doctor who is writing prescriptions for painkillers in exchange for sex. It’s always good to see “repeat offender” Mark Linn-Baker (he has previously appeared in 2 Law & Order episodes and 2 Law & Order Criminal Intent episodes), and he did his usual fine job as the pervert/rapist of the week. I wish there would have been more focus on this part of the story as it was far more interesting. Bureau Chief Hadid decides to keep the prescription part of the investigation with SVU and not turn it over to the DEA, thinking the DEA will ignore the sex crime component and only work on the drug issue. But her decision to do so is influenced by her past relationship with the head of the implicated pharmaceutical company, Trey Harrington. At one point it appears she is going to tip Trey off so he can avoid involvement with the drug and sex scheme that the SVU uncovered. No worries; Hadid was working a little undercover operation of her own, and managed to catch Trey saying all the wrong things, much to her dismay.
As this episode unfolded, I wondered at what point should the SVU recuse themselves from an investigation. Not only did the outcome of the case with the doctor benefit Rollins' sister, but Hadid had a connection with a suspect and she could have easily worked to tip the scale in his favor. At least Fin was thinking objectively as it relates to Kim. The undercover operation made some good use of Kat's "talents" and allowed her to easily see first hand what sales tactics the pharma company was using.
I was slightly creeped out when Amanda and Kim’s father said that his third wife-to-be would be like meeting a third sister they didn’t know they had.
Here is the recap:
Rollins is in the park on a run, pushing a stroller with Jesse and Billie and running with her dog Frannie. She gets a call from Benson. She says she is going to be a little late as she has been putting off a doctor’s appointment. She explains everything is fine as she slows down. Meanwhile, Benson is walking with Noah and tells Rollins no worries and hangs up. Noah sees kids vaping and says someone was suspended for vaping in the school bathroom with three other boys in the fifth grade. Benson stops and asks Noah that he knows to never do anything like that, and Noah says, “Mom! C’mon.”
Later, Rollins is in the doctor’s office and he is looking at an x-ray of her knee, and says they will have to drain it. Her phone buzzes and he asks if she has to take it, and she says no, it’s all good. He gets out a large needle and she says “Let’s do this” and she winces in pain.
Elsewhere, Rollins’ sister Kim, who is pushing a stroller in a “dollar slice joint”, leaves Rollins a voice mail message saying she is in trouble. She states she failed her drug test and if they revoke her parole and she has a son now and is sorry she didn’t tell her. As she buys more drugs she asks Rollins to call her back as she could use her advice on something. She thanks her and says she loves her and she hangs up. She approaches another woman and asks if she can watch her son while she goes into the bathroom and the woman hesitates but agrees. She heads down a stairway to the bathroom,
Back at the doctor’s office, he asks how she is with the pain and she replies she’s had two kids. He tells her not to be a hero and suggest painkillers, but she says there is a family history and she will stick with aspirin.
Meanwhile, Kim goes into the bathroom and takes her drugs,
At SVU, Kat and Fin speak with Benson about the vaping situation with Noah and Fin suggests she keep an eye out. Kat tells Benson not to worry about it.
Later, Rollins returns Kim’s call and leaves a voice mail. Back in the store, Kim’s baby is crying and the stranger Kim left him with is trying to tend to him. She explains the situation to a worker and he says that is not cool and he goes to check the bathroom. He sees water running outside the bathroom door and forces the door open. Kim is passed out and as he turns off the sink faucets, he calls for help as Rollins’ face shows up as an incoming call on Kim’s phone.
