Sometimes the SVU squad gets their perp, and sometimes they get it wrong. In “Dissonant Voices", Amanda Rollins is reluctant to make their accusations public until they are certain they are pursuing the right man and her concerns turn out to be valid. Despite having no physical proof tying vocal coach Jackie Walker to accusations of child molestation, they move ahead and charge him, destroying his career. Billy Porter was excellent as Jackie Walker, making the criminal of the week (who turned out not to be a criminal) a very likable personality that I found myself rooting for early on and felt sorry for at the end.
Why didn’t ADA Barba handle the case from the beginning? As Raúl Esparza is part of the first billed cast, why did they feel the need to bring on another ADA? Instead, we were given ADA Pippa Cox, who seemed a little too eager to make a move on Jackie before there was any solid proof. Was it so the stink of how badly the case was handled wouldn’t be on Barba? [Update: Executive Producer Warren Leight advises that when a sex crime involves children, in NY, it is usually handled by CorpCounsel, thru Child Advocacy Center. The protocol is not for the regular DA to handle child cases, so Barba would enter later.]
Rollins was right to walk away from Barba and the detectives at the end of the episode as they tried to convince themselves that they handled this case correctly. Maybe if Captain Cragen would have been there – and Barba at the onset – this case would have never gotten so far. If they found the boy’s DNA on the “magic egg”, wouldn’t it have been suspicious that Jackie’s prints were not on it, especially if his prints or DNA were on every other item in that storage box (I assume they never checked this)? And, if he were guilty, why would he have kept something like that in a box in the room that is open to anyone, including the children? Even though we know that Law & Order’s Jack McCoy can indict a ham sandwich, even Jack would tell you that even a ham sandwich has to have some meat in it.
This was a great episode for Kelli Giddish, who gave Rollins the perfect blend of skepticism over the allegations about Jackie, disgust for the teenage girls, and disappointment with the SVU team. She was the only true dissonant voice in this episode, consistently sounding her objections with the rest of the team, who seemed content to just "doing their job."
Benson’s session with Dr. Lindstrom was shoe-horned in and I don’t think it added much to the story at hand. I’m also not sure at this point in Benson’s story that I am interested in how she felt as a child or having someone take care of her. I don’t mind having “shrink” segments in an episode as it relates to a case (as in seeing Dr. Huang), but it bores me if it does not. I felt the same way during the final season of Law & Order Criminal Intent with Bobby Goren’s shrink sessions – it felt like wasted time. The other potential time waster was the 5-1/2 minute intro for the American Diva segment. I resigned myself long ago to accept that many network TV shows are catering more to a much younger demographic who may be more interested in the style over the substance of the story. I would have edited out all the clips of the SVU team as they watched the show, as now I have a lot less respect for them and their TV viewing choices (wink).
Here is the recap:
Cast:
Mariska Hargitay – Detective Olivia Benson
Ice-T – Detective Odafin “Fin” Tutuola
Dann Florek – Captain Don Cragen
Kelli Giddish - Detective Amanda Rollins
Danny Pino - Detective Nick Amaro
Raúl Esparza - ADA Rafael Barba
Guest stars:
Billy Porter – Jackie Walker
Kelly Deadmon = Mrs. Allen
Jennifer Roszell – Allison Burns
Jessica Phillips - ADA Pippa Cox
Hana Hayes - Brooke Allen
Kara Hayward - Rachel Burns
Carly Rose Sonenclar - Grace Belsey
Ben Livingston – Dan Kenner
Kevin Collins – Steven Burns
David Pittu - Counselor Linus Tate
Bill Irwin - Dr. Lindstrom
Jake Katzman – Jonah Allen
Ashanti – as herself
Clay Aiken – as himself
Taylor Hicks – as himself
Alex Bento – Cooper Burns
Alison Fernandez – Zara Amaro
Sonia Manzano – Judge Gloria Pepitone
Dawn Yanek – TV reporter
Kimberly Stern = Grace’s mom
Charlie Romanelli – Grace’s dad
Madeline Hoarle – Emma
Isabel Harperleight – Charlotte
Mason Schnieiderman - William
Backstage, Jackie Walker coaches contestant Grace Belsey before she goes on stage for the show “American Diva”. When she gets on stage and she introduces herself, clips of her personal story shows for viewers. Back at SVU, Rollins and Fin watch the show as Grace thanks her vocal coach Jackie Walker and Jackie talks about how he will take her as far as she can go. She begins her performance and she can barely be heard.
Meanwhile, Benson is at home, also watching, talking to Brian on the phone about throwing a housewarming party. Then she tells Brian not to say that, he loves parties. Back to the performance, Grace is signing louder and the audience and the judges engage.
Elsewhere, Amaro is at a diner with his daughter, also watching the show, who asks about how they can get on the show. He tells her it is the same way to get to Carnegie Hall – practice. She tells her father he is weird.
Grace’s performance continues as Rollins sings along back at SVU. Meanwhile, back at the Allen residence, young Jonah is called in by his mother and sister to watch the show. The crowd cheers as Grace finishes her performance. Jackie applauds her backstage. The judges are all very complementary, and when one asks where her voice comes from, she calls out Jackie to come onstage. Jonah sees Jackie on TV and says he does not like him as he makes him play doctor. Jonah runs to his room as his mother and sister look worried and his mother follows him.
Later, in an interview room for children, Jonah tells Benson that Mr. Jackie is a bad man. Benson asks why is that, and he replies he follows him into the bathroom when he has to go. It is just the two of them. As Amaro and Rollins observed, ADA Pippa Cox enters and says Jonah Allen is 4 years old. Amaro says his mother called SVU. They hear Jonah explain to Benson that sometimes Jackie wants to play doctor. Benson asks him if he likes to draw and he nods yes. Benson hands him a piece of paper. Amaro comments to Cox that Jonah’s mother saw his music teacher Jackie Walker on TV and flipped out, and Rollins explains he is the vocal coach on American Diva. Amaro says Jackie kept his day job as a pre-k music teacher at the Margaret Fuller school, which Cox knows as a $50K a year prep school off Park Avenue. Rollins explains his mother and sister brought him here and his parents may be wealthy but they are also separated 3 months ago. Cox comments that the 4 year old suddenly comes forward and it could be that he wants attention or it could be a divorce maneuver. She tells them to get the father down there too.
Later, Amaro and Fin speak with Jonah’s mom while Rollins speaks with Jonah’s sister. His mother said Jonah recently spent the night at his father’s and he wet the bed there which he has not done in two years. Jonah’s father Steve arrives, angry, and says whatever she is saying is a lie, and a huge argument ensues and their daughter also pipes in. The detectives separate them all. Steve tells Fin his wife is lying, she already made a false report to the IRS. Fin tries to calm him. Mrs. Allen thinks Steve is accusing her and Amaro asks why he would do that. She explains that he wanted public school and she wanted Margaret Fuller.
Rollins speaks with their daughter who thinks this is her fault, when Jonah told her she should have told her mom that Mr. Jackie followed her into the bathroom and touched him. Rollins looks stunned and asks when Jonah told her that. She explains a few weeks ago, but Jonah is 4 and he makes things up. Sometimes he says he has another family in California or that he can see through doors. She has known Jackie since she was four, and then thinks she is going to be sick.
Meanwhile, Jonah makes a drawing for Benson where the crotch area on the two figures is highlighted in yellow and he also drew a purple oval which he calls a magic egg that Mr. Jackie uses to tickle him and points to the crotch as to where Jackie tickles him. He tells him to stop but he doesn’t. They play the doctor game in the special bathroom which is special because it has bluebirds and flowers.
