Law & Order SVU: “Streetwise” Missed the Mark

I am not quite sure what I don’t like about SVU lately, but something is just wrong with this show. The episode that aired on January 1 – “Streetwise” – just seemed weak. I found myself getting distracted by all kinds of superficial things:

1. Olivia’s (Mariska Hargitay) hair – what’s the deal with it? Very unbecoming. If they are trying to make her look harsh, it’s working, but it’s also off-putting.

2. Benson and Stabler (Chris Meloni) both looked so tan to me. It was like they were both off for a few weeks in Hawaii. If one of them looked like that I’d just pass it off. But both of them looked sun-kissed in many scenes to me. Maybe they have a new makeup person?

3. That “father” that was leading the homeless kids was the cleanest looking homeless person I’ve ever seen on television. I mean really, for someone who said he’s lived on the street much of his life, he looked like he had perfect teeth. And the mother looked like she sure had a lot of money for makeup and hair dye. They were the best looking homeless people I’ve ever seen.

4. And will someone please make Chester (Adam Beach) and his frequent tidbits of knowledge just go away?

5. I know that the cops have to sometimes do devious things to get information, but c’mon, eating food in front of a kid who’s starving? That’s just plain torture, I think. I would never expect the "Special Victims" people to be so cruel to a kid.

On the plus side, I really enjoyed the street scene where Stabler chased the guy into the road and into traffic under a bridge. Great use of the city scenery, and they should do these kinds of shots more often.

The framework of the story was pretty good, but for some reason lately, Law & Order SVU seems to find a way to suck the life out of it. The dialog is flat and emotionless, and it’s no wonder that the actors seem to be going through the motions.

I hope that when the writers finish striking, that they come back with some decent, creative story lines for this show. And I also hope that the atrophy hasn’t spread to Law & Order The Mothership. We’ll find out tonight!

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Law & Order January Episode Recaps

A reminder: the two hour Law & Order season premier begins on Wednesday, January 2nd, at 9:00 PM. The summary for Called Home/Darkness is on my blog at the link HERE .

Here’s a listing of the upcoming episodes for January 2008, with summaries from NBC:

Episode 18-03 “Misbegotten”, Airs January 9, 2007
A SCIENTIST’S CONTROVERSIAL RESEARCH IS EXPOSED AFTER A MYSTERIOUS PACKAGE EXPLODES. An explosion hospitalizes a pregnant guard, leading Detectives Ed Green (Jesse L. Martin) and Cyrus Lupo (Jeremy Sisto) to a Gen-Tech scientist whose lab is housed in the same building where the bomb is delivered. When the detectives discover the injured security guard had been one of the doctor’s research subjects, ADAs Michael Cutter (Linus Roache) and Connie Rubirosa (Alana De La Garza) suspect the security guard’s brother-in-law.

Episode 18-04, “Bottomless” Airs January 16, 2008
A DRY CLEANING MIX-UP LEADS TO A MURDERED ATTORNEY AND A TRAIL OF CORPORATE CORRUPTION AND GREED. When a pair of men’s pants goes missing from a dry cleaner, Detectives Ed Green (Jesse L. Martin) and Cyrus Lupo (Jeremy Sisto) suspect the lost pants may be linked to the gruesome murder of a young lawyer. The evidence trail soon leads the detectives to a suspicious businessman who may be covering up a forbidden affair with a co-worker, and perhaps, far more.


Episode 18-05 “Illegal", Airs January 23, 2008
A CASE WHERE A COP KILLS A WOMAN RAISES TENSION IN THE DA’S OFFICE. A murdered woman is found in an alleyway dumpster after a riot at an immigration rally. Detectives Cyrus Lupo (Jeremy Sisto) and Ed Green’s (Jesse L. Martin) investigation leads to an auxiliary cop’s over zealous attempt to stop the riot. The political nature of case elevates tension in the DA’s office as DA Jack McCoy (Sam Waterston) assigns ADA Josh Lethem (guest star John Pankow) to prosecute the case. But Lethem has his own biased agenda, bringing McCoy’s liberal background into question.

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Sam Waterston and Linus Roache – The New Dynamic in the DA’s Office

Here’s an article from the LA Times that talks about the new dynamics in the District Attorney’s Office.

"A few nips and tucks for 'Law & Order'

Jennifer S. Altman / For the Times

By Matea Gold, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer December 30, 2007
NEW YORK -- SAM WATERSTON said he subscribes to Meryl Streep's advice: "Stand up for your character."

So after Fred Thompson left NBC's "Law & Order" in June to pursue a presidential bid, Waterston initially rejected the notion of Jack McCoy, the acerbic prosecutor Waterston has played on the show for the last 13 seasons, succeeding Thompson's Arthur Branch as district attorney.

"Jack McCoy has been sort of anti-politics all his life and loves his job, so I couldn't think of any reason why he'd want to," the actor said. "Then they started talking to me about it, and it began to sound really interesting. Here you would have a guy insulting politics all his life forced into a political role. And you wouldn't have to do any exposition, because everyone would know it."
When "Law & Order" returns for its 18th season Wednesday, viewers will find McCoy already ensconced in his new office. The change has meant a decidedly new dynamic for the drama, whose future seemed precarious last season after its ratings dropped 19%.

"I think it's the most important paradigm shift since the fourth season, when women came into the show," said series creator Dick Wolf. "It's a really interesting turn. He is dealing with what a lot of guys our age deal with -- generational transfer. He's really a lion in winter."

The series' new focus comes as it makes its scheduled midseason return, but with an extra advantage as a result of the ongoing writers strike: at least 12 new episodes.

"We're going to be up against a lot of repeats, so I'm hopeful that the message gets out that we're all originals," Wolf said.

This season finds McCoy, after years of bucking the bureaucracy, contending with a new foil: Michael Cutter, an aggressive young prosecutor played by British actor Linus Roache. The chief assistant district attorney is cast from a different mold than his boss -- he wears dark dress shirts and does legal research on his BlackBerry -- but they share some traits.

"He's a bit of an attack dog, willing to go that extra mile to bring justice to bear," said Roache, who was most recently seen on NBC's "Kidnapped." "We've had some episodes that have been really fun, where there's almost been a Jack Bauer [the renegade agent from Fox's "24"] approach to the law."

"Law & Order" viewers are accustomed to seeing new characters cycle through the long-running crime procedural. (With the arrival of Roache and Jeremy Sisto, who joins the show this year as Det. Cyrus Lupo, the series has now had two dozen actors play one of the six main roles, Wolf noted.)

Still, this season's shift is a dramatic one: For the first time, McCoy won't be tussling with judges and pounding witnesses in the courtroom. Instead, he'll weigh in on cases from his new perch, a role that has been expanded to give Waterston more of a presence than his predecessors.

"You will still see the same level of intellectual and moral combat going on," Wolf said. "He and Linus are actually very different types of prosecutors, so there's a lot of real conflict over methodology."

Waterston acknowledged that viewers may initially find his new position jarring.

"The normal human response to change is, ooh, is it going to be OK?" he said. "I think the changes have brought a whole lot of fresh life to the show, so once people get over their initial worry that change might not be nice, I think they'll like it."

For his part, the 67-year-old actor appears to be enjoying the setup. As he passed Roache on his way to the set on a recent afternoon, Waterston grabbed him in a loose headlock and playfully pulled him along.

"Working with Sam is just a total joy," said Roach, 43. "We just share a lot of mutual passions about where we are at this time as a human species and what matters. You know how you just meet a human being and there's a connection? It's just there."

It helps that they get along, because following McCoy "is a daunting thing," he added. "There's a moral function that that role has, so there's quite a bit riding on it."

With Cutter, "the energy may be different," Roache said. "But the essence of the show will still be there: How do you deal with these incredibly complex, challenging, human predicaments?"
Waterston said he misses doing the courtroom scenes a bit, but pronounced himself delighted with the series this season.

"Part of it is that Linus is so good," he said. "You don't have to feel like you've left a hole or anything like that, because it's all filled up and then some."

Waterston, a classically trained actor who frequently performs in New York-area theater productions when he's on hiatus, said he never envisioned that he would be on "Law & Order" this long.

"Not for a minute!" he said during an interview in his unadorned dressing room at Manhattan's Chelsea Piers, where the series is shot.

Once, when he was contemplating ending his run on the show, Waterston said he had dinner with former "Law & Order" cast member Carey Lowell and her husband, Richard Gere, who dismissed the notion of him leaving the program.

"He said, 'I don't see how you can do that -- you're an icon!' And I thought, 'Hmm, I'm an icon! That's not bad,' " said Waterston, letting out a very merry, unMcCoy-like laugh.

In addition, he said he thrives on the topical nature of the show: "Whatever you were worried about in the morning when you read the paper, you're probably going to be shooting in the afternoon."

After 17 years and two ongoing spinoffs, it remains to be seen how many fresh iterations of its crime-and-punishment formula "Law & Order" can churn out. This season, one of the show's original writers, Rene Balcer, is back at the helm as executive producer, and Wolf called the writing "as sharp, if not sharper, than it's been in years."

The series' creator blames the show's Friday time slot last season for its ratings slump, when just 9 million viewers tuned in on average. This season, the program is returning to Wednesday nights, where it will be paired with reruns of "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" that originally aired on NBC-owned USA Network this fall.

"We're perfectly poised in my mind for another substantial run," said Wolf, who's aiming for the show to beat "Gunsmoke's" 20-year record as the longest-running prime-time drama.
"What does he have against 'Gunsmoke,' anyway?" joked Sisto, who replaces Milena Govich this season as the new partner of Det. Ed Green (Jesse Martin).

Like Roache, Sisto's last major television role was on "Kidnapped," one of the many serialized shows that failed to ignite last season. Playing Lupo "requires me to use a different muscle," he said.

"There's a responsibility to tell the story and make sure the audience understands how we get from point A to point B," he said. "There's a lot of information to get across, and in order for audience to have a fun ride, you've got to be able to express those clues clearly."

Martin, who has been on the show since 1999, said the arrival of Roache and Lupo "infused the show with something new.""They're affecting the energy a lot," he said. "It will be really interesting to see how the audience adjusts it. For us, it's been so organic. It invigorated it, at least for me, in a way it hasn't been for a while." "


Link to LA Times Article

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Also, see my companion Law & Order site,
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Bring in the New Year with Law & Order Marathons

Don’t forget that both TNT and USA networks will be having Law & Order and Law & Order Criminal Intent marathons starting on New Year’s Eve.

TNT will be running the L&O “mothership” starting at noon and finishing in the late afternoon on New Year’s Day. USA will be showing Criminal Intent beginning at 6:00 AM through 9:00 PM, with a break between 9:00-11:00 for WWE. LOCI picks back up at midnight and ends at 5:00 AM.

So if you’re bored of the Twilight Zone marathons, ring in the New Year in the Law & Order universe instead.

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Jeremy Sisto: Law & Order's New Detective

Associated Press did a nice piece to introduce Jeremy Sisto, the new addition to Law & Order. He'll be playing a detective named Cyrus Lupo. OK, just how do they think up these wacky names for people? Hmmm, let's check it out:

Cyrus: From Κυρος (Kyros), the Greek form of the Persian name Kûrush, which may mean "far sighted" or may be related to the Persian word khur "sun". The name is sometimes associated with Greek (kyrios) "lord". This was the name of several kings of Persia, including Cyrus the Great, who conquered Babylon. He is famous in the Old Testament for freeing the captive Jews and allowing them to return to Israel.

Lupo: From an Italian nickname meaning "wolf".

Lord Wolf? OK, I get it. Dick Wolf''s vanity is showing.

Anyway, here's the AP article:



"By FRAZIER MOORE, AP Television Writer Wed Dec 26, 4:20 PM ET
NEW YORK - When Jeremy Sisto got his first glimpse of the updated "Law & Order" opening, there he was, in a courthouse setting alongside his castmates, just like so many who had come before him.

Sisto hums a few bars of the "Law & Order" theme, and recalls with a laugh: "There I am, walking with the others. And I thought, `What's HE doing there?!'"

Maybe it was just time. The 33-year-old actor has already played Jesus and Julius Caesar, a high-school hunk who catches Alicia Silverstone's eye in "Clueless," and, recently in "Waitress," Keri Russell's loutish husband.

Last season, he tracked down abductees on the short-lived drama "Kidnapped." And among his most memorable roles: Billy Chenowith, a gifted photographer and tormented manic-depressive on the HBO series "Six Feet Under."

Now he's joining "Law & Order" for its 18th season. He plays Detective Cyrus Lupo, new partner to Detective Ed Green (series veteran Jesse L. Martin).

Also joining up is Linus Roache as Chief Assistant District Attorney Michael Cutter, who succeeds Jack McCoy (Sam Waterston), himself the newly appointed district attorney. Fred Thompson, who for five seasons played District Attorney Arthur Branch, exited last spring to launch a real-life presidential bid. Meanwhile, S. Epatha Merkerson (as Lieutenant Van Buren) and Alana De La Garza (as Assistant District Attorney Connie Rubirosa) remain on duty.

Bottom line: Sisto and Roache become the 23rd and 24th actors to fill the show's six slots for cops and prosecutors.

But "Law & Order" begins another season after surviving a near-death experience last May. It was almost canceled, the victim of a sharp ratings drop. Having won a reprieve, it's now back in the chase to overtake "Gunsmoke" (20 years) as TV's most-enduring prime-time drama. Two episodes air Wednesday at 9 p.m. EST on NBC.

"It's classic `Law & Order,' but it's been reinvigorated," says Sisto, munching a cookie at a favorite coffee hangout in his SoHo neighborhood.

The premise: After four years abroad working undercover intel, Detective Lupo is summoned to New York when his brother is found dead. Lupo joins Green to crack the case.

Unlike many of Sisto's roles, Lupo is a somewhat understated personality. Sisto has a knack for stirring up a thunderstorm in his performances. But not here.

"It's a different kind of acting, this `Law & Order' thing," he explains. "They want two partners who can play off each other well and are fun to watch, but depth of character is not necessary in this job. Too much character gets in the way of the story. This is a very specific gig."

Sisto fell under drama's spell growing up in Chicago, where his mom, an aspiring actress, brought him along to her auditions.

"Then someone would say, `Does your kid want to read for a part?' I did some plays and had a great time."

When he was 16, he landed his first film, the drama "Grand Canyon," playing the teenage son of Kevin Kline and Mary McDonnell.

"That got me a foot in, to come out and have a life in L.A. in this business," Sisto says. "It could very easily not have happened for me. To be an actor takes a lot of courage, but the way I did it takes less courage." He laughs. "I was very lucky."

Since then, he has tackled dozens of roles, roles that often took him to a furious or troubled place. Those are his faves, he says — "the kind of roles where you feel like you've expressed something that's private, and shared sides of yourself that are darker and you're less proud of.

"It's nice," he insists. "It's like having a good cry. Sometimes you NEED a good cry, you know? And if you happen to cry in front of the world, something about that is cleansing: `Here's me at my ugliest, and my weakest and most vulnerable, and it's OK — it happens to all of us.'

"I think it's good to put it out there for the audience," he says. "We've all had moments where we're sitting at a movie or watching a show, and we see it and feel understood for a moment; we feel a little less alone.

"I'm definitely craving some of that right now," he adds with a tight smile. "I'd love it if my character Cyrus Lupo had a breakdown. I tried to get 'em to write that: `Maybe he could freak out!'" Sisto chortles and shakes his head. "It's not gonna happen!

"`Law & Order' is different," he cheerfully concedes. "For the viewer, it's that old friend. It brings up moral questions and the legal aspects of them. It's fun to pretend to be a detective for a little while and go through all the clues. You put it on and you just feel better."

For 18 years and counting. No freaking out allowed."



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E. Epatha Merkerson on Broadway

Sadly underutilized on Law & Order, it's great news to hear that the very talented S. Epatha Merkerson comes to Broadway in the return of “Come Back Little Sheba”.

Playbill has announced:

“Complete casting has been announced for the upcoming Broadway revival of Come Back, Little Sheba, which begins rehearsals Nov. 29 prior to a Jan. 3, 2008, debut at the Biltmore Theatre.
As previously announced, the Manhattan Theatre Club production will feature S. Epatha Merkerson ("Law & Order"), Kevin Anderson (Broadway's Death of a Salesman, Orpheus Descending, Brooklyn), Lyle Kanouse (Big River), Zoe Kazan (The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie), Brian J. Smith (Fabulous Life of Size Zero), Brenda Wehle (Pygmalion) and Matthew J. Williamson ("Boston Legal").

Newcomers to the production, which will officially open Jan. 24, include Joseph Adams (A View From The Bridge), Chad Hoeppner (Butley), Daniel Damon Joyce (Urban Cowboy) and Keith Randolph Smith (A Midsummer Night's Dream).

Michael Pressman directs the production, as he did an earlier spring 2007 incarnation in Los Angeles. Emmy and Golden Globe Award winner Merkerson also starred in the previous run at Center Theatre Group's Kirk Douglas Theatre.

In the classic by the Midwest writer Inge, "Lola (Merkerson) is a faded beauty queen trapped in a lonely marriage to Doc (Anderson), a recovering alcoholic on the brink of relapse. When a pretty young woman (Kazan) becomes a boarder in their cluttered Midwest home, their lives are unsettled as unspoken passions rise to the surface. As the emptiness of their marriage is laid bare, can they find their way back to each other or will they be undone? This new look at William Inge's great American story is an absorbing tale of lost hopes and unfulfilled promise, told with unflinching honesty and heartbreaking power."

The design team for the production will include James Noone (scenic design), Jennifer Von Mayrhauser (costume design), Jane Cox (lighting design), Obadiah Eaves (sound design), Peter Golub (original music), J. David Brimmer (fight director) and David Caparelliotis (casting).
The Biltmore is located at 261 West 47th Street, between Broadway and Eighth Avenue. For information on how to subscribe to MTC, which also operates two theatres Off-Broadway, visit www.ManhattanTheatreClub.com. “


Link to Playbill article

Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information,
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Also, see my companion Law & Order site,
These Are Their Stories.

NBC Synopsis of Law & Order 2-Hour Season Premier

The NBC web site has published a synopsis of the 2-hour Law & Order premier on January 2nd, titled Called Home/Darkness.

"Season 18
CALLED HOME / DARKNESS
Wednesday, Jan. 2nd 9/8c 2-Hour Season Premiere

CALLED HOME: DETECTIVE CYRUS LUPO (JEREMY SISTO) LEAVES TERRORIST REGIONS TO RETURN TO HIS OWN FAMILY TERROR AT HOME. After four years abroad, Detective Lupo (Sisto) returns to the United States to find his brother committed suicide by lethal injection because of his incurable illness. Before the case is closed, another man is found dead, having killed himself in an identical fashion. Lieutenant Van Buren (S. Epatha Merkerson) permits Lupo to work the case alongside fellow Detective Ed Green (Jesse L. Martin). Lupo and Green are suspicious of a recent parolee formerly known as "Dr. Death," and through further investigation they are inclined to believe "Dr. Death's" daughter (guest star Marin Ireland) could be a follower of her father's work.

DARKNESS: An executive's wife and daughter are kidnapped during a power outage.


Also starring: Sam Waterston, S. Epatha Merkerson, Linus Roache, and Alana De La Garza. TV-14"

Only two weeks to go! I don't know about the rest of you, but I can't wait!

Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information,
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Also, see my companion Law & Order site,
These Are Their Stories.

Sam Waterston Honored at Episcopal Charities Tribute Dinner

Sam Waterston has been in the news a lot lately. The New York Social Diary reports:

“The Episcopal charities held its annual Tribute Dinner at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. Honorees were Sam Waterston, Jon Meacham, editor of Newsweek, J. Christopher Flowers, and Mary H. White MD. Meryl Streep presented Mr. Waterston with his award.The evening was a record fund-raising effort for Episcopal Charities, raising more than $1 million, with more than 500 attending.The evening’s Chairs were The Bishop of New York, The Rt. Rev. Mark S. Sisk and Mrs. Sisk, and Mr. and Mrs. C. Douglas Mercer II. Co-chairs were: Robert Albertson, Brenda G. Husson, Rector, St. James Church; William H.A. Wright II, Hope Bryce Preminger, Wolcott B. Dunham, Jr. Anthony J. Walton and Kenneth Koen. Dinner Chair and emcee for the evening was Keith Reinhard, Chairman Emeritus, DDB Worldwide Communications Group.

Episcopal Charities provides funding and practical support to a broad range of community –based human service programs throughout the Diocese of New York. These programs, sponsored by Episcopal congregations, serve disadvantaged individuals, youth and families on a non-sectarian basis.

The Episcopal Diocese of New York has its seat at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. It includes 203 congregations and 65,000 people in Manhattan, the Bronx, Staten Island and Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster and Westchester counties.”

The New York Social Diary also provided some great pics, which you can see below, and
here.




















Lynn and Sam Waterston

Sam Waterston and Meryl Streep

On a side note, when I visited New York City as a teenager, I visited The Cathedral of St. John the Divine. It was an amazing experience. The place is absolutely HUGE and I felt very very small standing in there. They were also doing some work on the pipe organ at the time, and testing it out, and the sound was unlike any other pipe organ I’ve ever heard (and I’ve heard quite a few). The sound felt like it was going right through my body, and it was like every bone was vibrating. We received a very extensive tour of the cathedral and it has to be one of the most fascinating cathedrals I've ever visited. If/when I get back to NYC, that is one place I where I would like to return.

Check out my blog home page for the latest Law & Order information,
HERE!

Also, see my companion Law & Order site,
These Are Their Stories.