Law and Order Premiere

- 2 minutes read - 386 words

I watched the double airing of Law and Order last night. First, I miss Jerry Orbach. I mean that kind of deadbeat, deadpan, “ho hum another body” humor just can’t be imitated. However, Dennis Farina as a smooth, Italian, playboy meets Sherlock Holmes is an interesting character and he seems to work well with Jesse L. Martin.

Something I really noticed is the downward spiral that Elisabeth Rohm’s character (ADA Serena Southerlyn) seems to be headed towards. Instead of a transfer or a flame-out her character (she is leaving the show at the end of the season) seems to be headed for mass disillusionment and burn-out.

We see this in her disagreement with former Republican Senator Fred Thomson’s DA character. She citing that the War In Iraq is a covert act of Imperialism, that it is immoral, that bombing civilian targets indiscriminately is not the way to win and he citing the failures of the international community to stop atrocities, etc.

L&O always has the ability to put both the weaknesses of both sides on display and flirt with either.

In the second delivery McCoy’s cross examination of a 9/11 widow was particularly lethal and pointed ( I always root for McCoy but sometimes think he opts for the Draconian route versus a more merciful consideration. The People whom he represents want justice, not always blood) and one could read the change in Serena’s mien as he hammered over and over again.

When she tried to mention it to him she was interrupted, but I suspect that this seed of cynicism threatens to destroy her outlook on her post and will ultimately lead to her character’s (and her) departure.

Bad news for Dick Wolf, time to find yet another sophisticatedly pretty female for the ADA slot…. I thought about it a bit last night, could they put a guy in there? Don’t think so. That would leave the van Buren character as the only female on the show …

Personally I would love to see Alicia Witt in the role ( actually, I just like seeing Alicia Witt ). She looks great in conservative attire, has a great delivery and I could totally see it. I was really a fan of her performance in the (3rd season?) of “The Sopranos” and think it could carry over.