Love 'Law and Order: Special Victims Unit' in its early seasons, where a vast majority of the episodes are very good to outstanding. The later seasons though for me were more hit and miss. Although the first season of 'Special Victims Unit' may have had more not so great episodes than the original 'Law and Order' and 'Criminal Intent' (and a little worse than the worst of their first seasons), but it also of the three had the highest number of great to brilliant episodes.
After a near-consistently solid first season, it was hard not to expect much from Season 2 and 'Law and Order: Special Victims Unit' didn't disappoint in this aspect. Again like Season 1, not every episode completely works but at its best the season was brilliant and a good deal of the episodes were of high quality. While not quite one of the best Season 2 episodes for 'Special Victims Unit', "Wrong is Right" is regardless a very good start for the season.
Most components are very good to superb, but there are a couple of things that could have been done better. The serious underuse of Olivia is criminal, she showed herself in the first season to be a great character (which continued throughout the show, one can see why she is its longest serving regular character) and her chemistry with Stabler was always a plus (of which there is not enough of here).
Will agree too to some extent that the case itself in the first half is on the routine side, it is in the courtroom scenes where it becomes more interesting.
Having said all of that, there is so much to like about "Wrong is Right". Like 'Law and Order' and 'Criminal Intent', the photography is sharper and the editing has tightened while still very much maintaining the grit and slickness that was there before. The music is used only when necessary and when used it is unobtrusive and fits with the atmosphere well. The script is tight and thoughtful, with the courtoom scenes being especially well scripted. Seeing how much Stabler cares for his family, and seeing him with a compassionate side underneath all that intense steel that he has when on the job, is quite affecting to see, and Munch's dry humour and conspiracy hunches really shine. His subplot brings a smile to the face and intrigues.
Enough of the story is compelling, and despite being a little routine in some of the first half it does begin disturbingly and turns out to be a mystery generally worth investing in. It is a classic case of an episode where one feels sympathy for the perpetrator, while of course not condoning what they did, and despising the victim (the closest Season 1 came to that is perhaps "Disrobed"), his crimes making the stomach churn. "Wrong is Right" has a few firsts, it has the last appearance of Jeffries (which actually didn't bother me that much to be honest, she was never the most interesting character on the team in the first season in my humble opinion), it has the first brief appearance of Fin and it has the first appearance of Alexandra Cabot (nicely played by Stephanie March). So, like the first episode of the second season of the original 'Law and Order' ("Confession"), because of having to undergo several changes, "Wrong is Right" is something of a benchmark episode.
Performances are all high quality, with Christopher Meloni and Richard Belzer really selling it in their roles and March makes a promising first impression. Gerry Bamman relishes his character's smug arrogance, but even better is a quite moving Adam Kaufman, especially when on the stand.
Concluding, very good start to Season 2. For me though, if to briefly compare and hoping it's not too unfair, the Season 2 openers for 'Law and Order' ("Confession") and 'Criminal Intent' ("Dead") are a little superior. 8/10
After a near-consistently solid first season, it was hard not to expect much from Season 2 and 'Law and Order: Special Victims Unit' didn't disappoint in this aspect. Again like Season 1, not every episode completely works but at its best the season was brilliant and a good deal of the episodes were of high quality. While not quite one of the best Season 2 episodes for 'Special Victims Unit', "Wrong is Right" is regardless a very good start for the season.
Most components are very good to superb, but there are a couple of things that could have been done better. The serious underuse of Olivia is criminal, she showed herself in the first season to be a great character (which continued throughout the show, one can see why she is its longest serving regular character) and her chemistry with Stabler was always a plus (of which there is not enough of here).
Will agree too to some extent that the case itself in the first half is on the routine side, it is in the courtroom scenes where it becomes more interesting.
Having said all of that, there is so much to like about "Wrong is Right". Like 'Law and Order' and 'Criminal Intent', the photography is sharper and the editing has tightened while still very much maintaining the grit and slickness that was there before. The music is used only when necessary and when used it is unobtrusive and fits with the atmosphere well. The script is tight and thoughtful, with the courtoom scenes being especially well scripted. Seeing how much Stabler cares for his family, and seeing him with a compassionate side underneath all that intense steel that he has when on the job, is quite affecting to see, and Munch's dry humour and conspiracy hunches really shine. His subplot brings a smile to the face and intrigues.
Enough of the story is compelling, and despite being a little routine in some of the first half it does begin disturbingly and turns out to be a mystery generally worth investing in. It is a classic case of an episode where one feels sympathy for the perpetrator, while of course not condoning what they did, and despising the victim (the closest Season 1 came to that is perhaps "Disrobed"), his crimes making the stomach churn. "Wrong is Right" has a few firsts, it has the last appearance of Jeffries (which actually didn't bother me that much to be honest, she was never the most interesting character on the team in the first season in my humble opinion), it has the first brief appearance of Fin and it has the first appearance of Alexandra Cabot (nicely played by Stephanie March). So, like the first episode of the second season of the original 'Law and Order' ("Confession"), because of having to undergo several changes, "Wrong is Right" is something of a benchmark episode.
Performances are all high quality, with Christopher Meloni and Richard Belzer really selling it in their roles and March makes a promising first impression. Gerry Bamman relishes his character's smug arrogance, but even better is a quite moving Adam Kaufman, especially when on the stand.
Concluding, very good start to Season 2. For me though, if to briefly compare and hoping it's not too unfair, the Season 2 openers for 'Law and Order' ("Confession") and 'Criminal Intent' ("Dead") are a little superior. 8/10
