Ranking Every Law & Order Episode (As I watch It)
My ranking of every Law & Order episode as I watch through the series for the first time. Episodes are ranked by both quality and how much I enjoyed them being the primary factors, some notes may contain spoilers.
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- DirectorArthur W. ForneyStarsJerry OrbachBenjamin BrattS. Epatha MerkersonA woman claims that a Puerto Rican man kidnapped her infant daughter while she was in a church confessional. However, she later confesses to killing her baby and cremating her body.Masterful. A beautiful and longer sequence, between Bratt and (spoiler), a confession, and every aspect of it is legally relevant during the trial. It does several totally new concepts for the show, particularly with Fineman. Faith ultimately leading to confession is something I know can be sincere. Even the discovery about the stroller was clever. Waterson cross-examining "God's plan" and applying lawyerly logic in the old and stern fashion against a priest was f---ing awesome. "Terrorists are trying to blow up the World Trade Center" is just one line in that impassioned monologue from (spoiler) is a painfully real account of the depravity one can observe and be driven to a type of madness. That monologue is her motive for those saying she lacks one. Even the judge not ruling on Fineman's objection was new.
- DirectorE.W. SwackhamerStarsGeorge DzundzaChris NothDann FlorekA young black girl claims to have been raped by white police officers. Police and prosecutors struggle to get the truth after an ambitious black congressman claims the investigation is a racially-motivated cover-up.Completely relevant conversation to today, while also being an episode they could not release today. Watch after S22E3 and S1E8, the first to understand how all-in this series goes into scenarios that one side may find politically unfavorable, and the second will contextualize within the same season how aware this show can be of how optics and reality can intersect into a nightmare, especially when the police have done something wrong. "Death In The Family" is optional viewing before this.
- DirectorConstantine MakrisStarsJerry OrbachBenjamin BrattS. Epatha MerkersonAn anti-Semitic teen is accused of killing a Jewish teacher. His defense attorney argues that the accused is really the victim of a Jewish conspiracy.Another episode where all the details of the first part matter in the trial part. It is the definitive antisemitism episode, and it raises the incredibly ballsy topic of Jewish conspiracy being written for the defense's strategy. It is pure legal integrity even at the expense of good taste, and as a law-head, I love this. "I resent the implication that ANYTHING but my badge affects how I do my job." How is it this can be a value for some people but not others, and those others rule the day?
- DirectorE.W. SwackhamerStarsGeorge DzundzaChris NothDann FlorekA police officer is accused of planting a gun on an unarmed African-American youth that he shot. The victim was beloved in his community, but the investigation reveals that he may have also been a drug dealer.I love Greevey as a character. This episode has the political nuance and messiness while also highlighting the type of bad-cop story that some believe should be every episode of any police show.
- DirectorAaron LipstadtStarsGeorge DzundzaChris NothDann FlorekAfter an anti-abortion protester is killed in an abortion center bombing, detectives search for all of her potential co-conspirators.A really great episode on pro-life vs pro-choice conflict that feels tense and personal, yet surprisingly respectful. Price is personally opposed, yet has enough integrity to do his job, a character leading by example on how professionals should conduct themselves.
- DirectorGwen ArnerStarsGeorge DzundzaChris NothDann FlorekA police officer is shot to death on a rooftop. Assistant D.A. Stone's investigation reveals that the officer may have been dirty.great stuff. SPOILERS: A cop is killed, twist, he's a dirty cop.
- DirectorDon ScardinoStarsGeorge DzundzaChris NothDann FlorekStone temporarily dismisses rape charges against three defendants because the victim's testimony has too many holes. Greevey and Logan's subsequent reinvestigation uncovers a possible fourth assailant.They want a peabody.
- DirectorDaniel SackheimStarsGeorge DzundzaChris NothDann FlorekA twelve-year-boy is injured and his infant brother is killed by gunshots. The investigation reveals they were the accidental victims of a hit ordered by a drug dealer against a real estate broker.The crimes that usually go unsolved and impact these communities, often come from within. It's the hard truth that this episode dives into, no "twists" from that reality.
- DirectorConstantine MakrisStarsJerry OrbachChris NothS. Epatha MerkersonA false kidnapping claim leads to the prosecution of a married couple after detectives discover that three of their infants have died under mysterious circumstances.Watching these episodes with knowing the synopsis is great because it allows the acting and pacing to give me the twists and turns in real time. I like the DA being aware of the stakes of the situation, that they either have a serious crime to prosecute, or an expensive apology to offer the defendants. For me, the reveal at the end that (Spoiler) the dad learned from the beginning what she was did. The last child going missing is clever since it wouldn't have their "condition."
- DirectorJames FrawleyStarsPaul SorvinoChris NothDann FlorekStone and Robinette go after a defense contractor, as well as his lawyer and the hit-man he allegedly hired, after two men are killed and a whistle-blower who planned to testify against him goes missing.Very clever episode. Things look like an impending trial disaster for our DA's office, but they pull it off.
- DirectorAdam DavidsonStarsJerry OrbachBenjamin BrattS. Epatha MerkersonThree people are killed when a possible drunk driver runs them over. A.D.A. McCoy is bent on getting a questionable death sentence in the case, but Ross believes that he is trying to get revenge for Claire Kincaid's death.Power performance from Waterson in this episode that adds more continuity to Kincaid. There's always intrigue to be had when legal chicanery favors the prosecution.
- DirectorChristopher MisianoStarsJerry OrbachBenjamin BrattS. Epatha MerkersonBloody sheets and an apparently stolen credit card lead Briscoe and Curtis to a pair of college age lovers who present McCoy and Ross with a united front of denial that one of them killed their newborn son and disposed of the body.Episodes with babies are most likely to get me. What can I say, I'm human. From the clever way the defense lawyer is split, to the great scene of the father's "confession" where we believe he is lying to us, to the actually sound defense, and the gut-wrenching ending.
- DirectorJames FrawleyStarsPaul SorvinoChris NothDann FlorekDr. Olivet accuses an esteemed gynecologist of rape. However, when she loses her case, the DA's office resorts to a new strategy to bring the doctor to justice.Crime hits close to home in this episode where Olivet is the victim. The Judge's decision makes sense based on what were shown in the trial and what is stated to be his ideology. He's a complex character, more than merely old man bad.
- DirectorGilbert M. ShiltonStarsPaul SorvinoChris NothDann FlorekA Colombian drug cartel assassin is accused in the murder of a Colombian couple in a restaurant. While trying to make the case against the accused, Ceretta is shot by a black-market gun dealer whom the prosecution needs as a witness.Colombian cartel, chilling ending, Several shootouts.
- DirectorEdwin SherinStarsPaul SorvinoChris NothDann FlorekAn arson at an Hispanic social club that killed 53 people is related to a powerful Cuban, an INS agent, and the sale of fake green cards.Interesting trajectory for this episode. You think it's going to be a cold and dark dive into a community attacking itself, but circles back somewhat to include an outsider.
- DirectorEdwin SherinStarsPaul SorvinoChris NothDann FlorekA white Jew faces trial for the shooting death of a prominent African American leader, but was the assassination actually an inside job?90s MLK is assassinated. More great racial jousting more cutting and direct than anything you'd get on TV today.
- DirectorE.W. SwackhamerStarsJerry OrbachChris NothS. Epatha MerkersonThe hunt for a racist serial killer is aided by personality profiling that the defense uses to their advantage in court.James Earl Jones as a defense attorney for a racist is worth the price of admission. Black lawyers are just as capable as white ones of earning their Dershowitz street-cred, haha. As a black man, I do miss the decades up to the 2000s when we used to be able to use the N word on TV for dramatic effect, even comedy in some contexts. White-Hate as an element that directly results in crime gets its due in this episode, which takes us into a world of casual and overt racism. The difference between the era of this episode and now is that our white lead characters generally trust themselves to assess situations, and don't forfeit their knowledge of self to potentially opportunistic individuals. Witty gags and a gutsy subject matter. They even manage to find a half-decent motive to go along with the hatefulness, not to excuse it, but simply to make the story more compelling.
- DirectorConstantine MakrisStarsJerry OrbachBenjamin BrattS. Epatha MerkersonBriscoe and his new partner, Rey Curtis, track down the man accused of kidnapping and killing a young girl.Didn't know Benjamin Bratt was ever on this show. I actually guessed the character motives when (spoiler) the mother walks into the courtroom, but then thought I was wrong when she shoots Capetti. I figured the rest of the episode would alternatively be about using principle to convict this technically guilty but highly sympathetic defendant. I also love the double hearsay, that was funny.
- DirectorArthur W. ForneyStarsJerry OrbachChris NothS. Epatha MerkersonA smug African American stock broker who resents other people of his own race is accused of murder. However, he hires a high-profile civil rights attorney, who presents a "black rage" defense.This kind of race-baiting makes my blood boil, and resonates with me personally as an element of villainy. Courtney B Vance puts in a good performance, and there are some sympathetic moments for him, but while this episode takes some time to get going, I appreciate the 2nd half.
- DirectorEdwin SherinStarsJerry OrbachChris NothDann FlorekProsecution of an elderly Jewish man accused of killing his wife, a Holocaust survivor, becomes complicated when it is learned that he may have collaborated with the Nazis in Poland during World War II.Well done ethical quandary, unsettling at times.
- DirectorArthur W. ForneyStarsJerry OrbachChris NothS. Epatha MerkersonA Jewish driver kills a black youth in a hit-and-run accident in Harlem and is not prosecuted. The black community's reaction ends in the death of a white motorist, but should the killer be held responsible for his actions?Another adventure in optics going from bad to worse, and one that seriously re-addresses the concept of riot mentality and the responsibility of individuals. Episodes like these show how following the law can, when seen from the outside, have the appearance of bias. There's only one line in the episode I'd really change, and that's Moriarty's quip about who should look in the mirror. J.K. Simmons has a small speaking role as a tech. Antisemitism among black people is showcased.
- DirectorE.W. SwackhamerStarsGeorge DzundzaChris NothDann FlorekA woman claims she shot two punks on a subway car in self-defense, but investigators and prosecutors are not sure that they believe her.Surprising handling of racial/gender bias in profiling, fairly unique to see.
- DirectorDaniel SackheimStarsPaul SorvinoChris NothDann FlorekThe parents of a woman murdered in Manhattan try to get the case moved to Connecticut so that they can pursue the death penalty against the defendant, a suspected serial killer.great stakes with the case being a slamdunk n CT, even if a little potential fibbing is needed by the parents, versus trying it in NY which seems worse by all metrics. Philosophy and ethics on display.
- DirectorE.W. SwackhamerStarsGeorge DzundzaChris NothDann FlorekStone faces a Texas cowboy lawyer and a hostile community as he tries to prosecute a young man accused of murdering a drug dealer for raping the man's sister."They knew they were being flimflammed."
- DirectorJace AlexanderStarsJerry OrbachChris NothS. Epatha MerkersonDetectives and prosecutors believe that a smug comedy club owner shot his wife and put her in a coma, but they can't come up with enough hard evidence to get him convicted.A dour, twisty episode. Spoiler: First transgender culprit