This was an excellent episode. First of all, it is better quality than a typical TV episode, and seems more like a suspense or thriller movie, albeit a short one. It involves a woman who has been held captive and abused, hence the title, "Slaves." The detectives investigate, and the suspects seem like successful, healthy people, who would blend in easily at a party or other social gathering. They live in Manhattan, a crowded and civilized part of the world, and have their own evil little kingdom going on. It is disturbing to see people, who seem ordinary and have lives that seem enviable, who have a darker side and private life involving unspeakable acts. This insight that psychos hide in plain sight in our society, perhaps very near us, is disturbing. Another plot line involves Detective Stabler causing those around him to worry about his psychological well being, as he seems extremely fed up with the people he arrests. Well done NBC!
3 Reviews
Taste for sadism
bkoganbing14 November 2014
Warning: Spoilers
A passed note and a conversation in Romanian to a fellow countryman sends SVU on a hunt for a missing Romanian immigrant who never showed up at college for the classes she registered for.
It's a pretty slim lead and Dann Florek is ready to pull the squad off the case when the missing woman's aunt is found dead after being dumped on the Henry Hudson Parkway. Now the NYPD is very interested.
The trail leads to white shoe lawyer Andrew McCarthy who with his wife is keeping the young woman both a prisoner and a slave. McCarthy is one cool customer himself, establishment preppy type with a nasty taste for sadism.
McCarthy is one of the scariest villains SVU ever featured. Try not miss him in this SVU story.
It's a pretty slim lead and Dann Florek is ready to pull the squad off the case when the missing woman's aunt is found dead after being dumped on the Henry Hudson Parkway. Now the NYPD is very interested.
The trail leads to white shoe lawyer Andrew McCarthy who with his wife is keeping the young woman both a prisoner and a slave. McCarthy is one cool customer himself, establishment preppy type with a nasty taste for sadism.
McCarthy is one of the scariest villains SVU ever featured. Try not miss him in this SVU story.
Sadistic slavery
TheLittleSongbird10 February 2020
'Law and Order', 'Special Victims Unit' and 'Criminal Intent' all had promising first seasons, that were mostly of very high quality and where even the weakest episodes were still decent. 'Special Victims Unit's' weakest episodes in Season 1 ("Wanderlust" and "Stocks and Bondage") may have been weaker than those for 'Law and Order' and 'Criminal Intent' and their first season, but the season for 'SVU' also had the highest number of great and more episodes of the three shows.
"Slaves" for me was one of the best episodes of Season 1, and a season finale that more than does it justice. One that feels like one and makes one eager to see the next season, namely because of the way the episode ends but also to see whether the exceptionally high quality of the first season would carry over in the next season and future ones, which fortunately it does (more the early ones though than the later ones). It actually didn't matter to me at all that the identity of the murderer was not in doubt almost immediately when introduced, not when everything else was so brilliant and how much the case in general affected me.
The case in "Slaves" is thoroughly absorbing from start to finish. It is in no way easy to watch, actually it is really quite disturbing (one of the more disturbing early seasons 'Special Victims Unit' cases) and moved me as well. Felt very sorry for the victim, as well as horrified at what she went through, and even found myself sympathising with the wife despite her actions being uncondonable. The villain is one of the most sadistic and scariest ones of early years 'Special Victims Unit' and one of the scariest and most sadistic of the first season.
It, the case that is, is balanced very well with the team therapy interviews, which were intriguing and insightful in questioning and how they were answered and didn't distract from, each team member's inner thoughts are brought out sometimes surprisingly and their personalities in these scenes make them interesting in their own ways. Stabler is the most interesting and some of what he says shocks, and Olivia's candour in particular is admirable. The episode ends on an attention grabbing cliff-hanger that doesn't feel like a cheat or a gimmick, a good thing seeing as depending on how they're executed cliff-hangers are not always my thing.
Furthermore, it looks good visually and avoids being over-scored. The script is thoughtful, especially in the interview scenes, and intrigues, without rambling. The acting is excellent from all the regulars, while Andrew McCarthy plays this truly reprehensible character to quite chilling perfection.
Concluding, brilliant. 10/10
"Slaves" for me was one of the best episodes of Season 1, and a season finale that more than does it justice. One that feels like one and makes one eager to see the next season, namely because of the way the episode ends but also to see whether the exceptionally high quality of the first season would carry over in the next season and future ones, which fortunately it does (more the early ones though than the later ones). It actually didn't matter to me at all that the identity of the murderer was not in doubt almost immediately when introduced, not when everything else was so brilliant and how much the case in general affected me.
The case in "Slaves" is thoroughly absorbing from start to finish. It is in no way easy to watch, actually it is really quite disturbing (one of the more disturbing early seasons 'Special Victims Unit' cases) and moved me as well. Felt very sorry for the victim, as well as horrified at what she went through, and even found myself sympathising with the wife despite her actions being uncondonable. The villain is one of the most sadistic and scariest ones of early years 'Special Victims Unit' and one of the scariest and most sadistic of the first season.
It, the case that is, is balanced very well with the team therapy interviews, which were intriguing and insightful in questioning and how they were answered and didn't distract from, each team member's inner thoughts are brought out sometimes surprisingly and their personalities in these scenes make them interesting in their own ways. Stabler is the most interesting and some of what he says shocks, and Olivia's candour in particular is admirable. The episode ends on an attention grabbing cliff-hanger that doesn't feel like a cheat or a gimmick, a good thing seeing as depending on how they're executed cliff-hangers are not always my thing.
Furthermore, it looks good visually and avoids being over-scored. The script is thoughtful, especially in the interview scenes, and intrigues, without rambling. The acting is excellent from all the regulars, while Andrew McCarthy plays this truly reprehensible character to quite chilling perfection.
Concluding, brilliant. 10/10
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