Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 4 Episode 8 Review: Elliot Stabler’s Family Tragedy Takes a Back Seat to Exposing a Corrupt Judge

Stabler’s household is falling aside, however a minimum of he knocked another person’s corrupt father off his throne.

Legislation & Order: Organized Crime Season 4 Episode 8 featured the highly effective finish of the Bonner saga alongside Bernie’s transfer out of Stabler’s residence — and an equally tragic secret she’s been holding onto eternally.

The dialogue and deep emotion made the hour really feel extra just like the final act of a traditional movie than an episodic TV present. What a unbelievable story!

Meredith Bonner’s battle with guilt and ache was fascinating. This character started as a corrupt police chief who had Stabler arrested to get him out of her method, however she did not look like the identical individual anymore.

Dropping her brother and realizing what enabling her father had gotten her opened her eyes, and he or she grew to become the heroine she ought to have been all alongside as a substitute of a part of the issue.

Meredith was a tragic determine. Unaware that her father had killed her mom, she twisted herself out of practice to show her loyalty to him.

Her refusal to place the reality over what he needed to be led to her having to shoot her brother on Legislation & Order: Organized Crime Season 4 Episode 7, and as soon as the mud had settled, she was left with a ton of guilt and disgrace.

Highly effective Performances because the Small-City Saga Got here to an Finish

The dialogue for Meredith, Stabler, and Decide Bonner helped make this story must-see TV.

Eric wasn’t the neatest child, however he was the sweetest. There have been no indicators then of what he would turn out to be. Or perhaps I did not look arduous sufficient.

Chief Bonner

Meredith’s strains have been exceptionally nicely accomplished, demonstrating her guilt through stunning prose that’s uncommon for an episodic tv sequence. That dialogue contributed to the epic really feel of this story.

Keith Carradine continued to impress me. Decide Bonner was a posh, multilayered character extremely completely different from the well-meaning President Dalton he portrayed on Madam Secretary.

Decide Bonner was creepy and coldhearted, but he believed solely that he was a superb father who had accomplished every thing he might to guard his daughter — although he’d prompted her ache by killing her mom and mendacity about it.

His last scene was particularly nicely accomplished. I wasn’t positive if he ever meant to shoot himself or if he was making an attempt to control Meredith into proving she beloved him.

She could not let him die, however she did not give an inch, both. As quickly as she’d disarmed him, she arrested him.

However did she catch him, or did he purposely give up to her out of a twisted sense of household obligation?

That ambiguity is what made Bonner such a powerful villain.

Even when exhibiting a softer, extra weak aspect, it was by no means clear if it was genuine or calculated to get the emotional reactions he needed.

He was the type of horrible individual I would not need to hang around with in actual life, however he was an interesting character!

Meredith Made Poor Decisions

Though I applauded Meredith’s standing as much as her father and kicking him out of her residence, it was a horrible thought.

The person had killed her mom for standing as much as him, so accusing him of that previous homicide and kicking him out of the home could not lead anyplace good.

Decide Bonner’s Achilles’ heel was his love for Meredith and want for a relationship along with her. However how lengthy would his orders to guard her have lasted even when his employees hadn’t gone rogue?

Eliminating Elliot Stabler would not have quelled her riot, not now that she knew the reality about her mom.

Bonner had nothing to lose besides her, and he or she had nothing to lose in any respect, making her a formidable adversary for him.

Their psychological battle was as fascinating as all of the motion all through the hour, particularly its climax.

Decide Bonner thought killing the lads who had attacked Meredith would convey her again to his aspect as if he hadn’t put every thing in movement together with his manipulations.

The lads attacking her have been rebelling towards his orders. He’d misplaced management for a cause, and his makes an attempt to control them led to this violent end result.

Stabler’s Precarious Profession State of affairs Parelleled Bonner’s Story

The IAB storyline instantly intersected with the Bonner investigation when Bonner’s goons went after Stabler within the diner.

Stabler and Cragen’s teamwork was a enjoyable diversion from the principle plot. However earlier than that occurred, Cragen defined why the IAB man had it in for Stabler.

Stabler: I do know Hanson isn’t any fan of mine.
Cragen: Was. He died about six weeks in the past.
Stabler: I hadn’t heard. So Warren’s after me as a result of he bequeathed his grudge?

The IAB agent’s vendetta made him no much less corrupt than Bonner, particularly since he was making an attempt to avenge a unclean cop.

Ayanna Bell had among the finest strains of the hour when she confronted the rogue agent about his nonsense and made it clear she wasn’t placing up with shedding her finest detective due to his anger.

Bell selecting up her cane and strolling out was the proper ending for these scenes.

She’s come a great distance from when she considered Stabler as a perpetual thorn in her aspect who by no means adopted orders and made it more durable for her to do her job!

Stabler’s Household Tragedy Offered a Fascinating Parallel, However Did not We Know This Already?

I might have sworn we already knew that Joe Stabler Sr. had killed himself. Possibly I imagined it, however I believed it was, on the very least, strongly implied when Stabler was investigating the Brotherhood.

This revelation might have simply turn out to be a drained TV trope, nevertheless it was dealt with completely.

Bernie Stabler’s insistence that Randall tells Elliot the reality, voicing that reality herself, after which handing Elliot a quilt together with his identify on it was about as excellent an emotional sequence as you will get.

I am unhappy that she’s shifting in with Randall. I’ve loved each scene she’s had in Elliot’s residence, and I do not need her shuffled off-screen!

As for Randall’s numerous revelations about how a lot of an abusive asshole Joe Sr. was, these have been the proper parallel to Meredith’s scenario.

Like Meredith, Stabler ignored a ton of purple flags about his household scenario.

His mom and brothers are nonetheless alive, however there’s nonetheless lots of ache that might have been prevented if Stabler had realized the reality earlier.

He and Meredith share traumatic childhoods and ugly household secrets and techniques, but their friendship was way over mere trauma bonding.

I nearly wished Meredith wasn’t being so noble and risking jail time. I might love for her and Stabler’s friendship to proceed to develop.