Derp Donovan and Lurch do some derpy and lurchy investigating, bland as usual. Camryn Manhands lumbers out of her office. The severe looking computer tech glowers along severely.
Speaking of Manhands, I keep waiting for her to say something like, "It won't make the slightest difference to me, Derp, but the consequences to you and Lurch will be devastating. In your mind, I'll be dead, and with no one to guide you out, you'll be stuck here in permanent psychosis. The walls of reality will come crashing down around you."
By the way, the time from opening to the first five-minute batch of commercials was five minutes. That includes the opening credits sequence. So, five minutes of show, five minutes of commercials. Then, four minutes of show followed by a four-minute commercial interruption. I you thought the advertising is getting worse and more annoying, you're absolutely right. This choppy pattern runs through the whole "hour." It's just one of the reasons the stories on these new Law and Order shows are so thin. That and the terrible writing.
This is yet another episode featuring tech millionaire types. Apparently on Law and Order, regular people no longer commit crimes. There are some Asian suspects -- the severe looking computer tech added suspiciously quickly after the show's been criticized for a significant lack of Asian American diversity notwithstanding, Law and Order continues it's shameful track record of a lack of positive Asian American representation.? Shame on you, Dicky Wolf, shame on you!
With the constant interruptions, there's no rhythm to the stories anymore and certainly no character development. It's like buying the can of tuna at the supermarket and finding it only half filled and then mostly with water. Just not as derpy and lurchy.
AOC gets a girls moment lamenting her lack of a relationship while Manhands has to butt in and prove someone would marry her. There's also more SVU infection, with yet another reminder about champions of sex crimes and the like.
The beady, wall-eyed villain represents himself in court. For some reason, the Garden Gnome sees this as some kind of threat, though given the general lack of the Gnome's legal prowess, I suppose that's to be expected. He spends a lot of time in court with his hands folded and glowering at the guy.
I am starting to warm up to AOC more, though. She's beginning to project some warmth, and the writers are giving her more to do than spout clumsy expository dialogue. It's a shame the writing is so poor, as she could have been a good ADA in the older version of Law and Order. They should have cast her as the main ADA and let the Garden Gnome get her coffee. Sam Waterston's DA doesn't seem to work anymore. All the conversations with him -- and they're starting to be actual conversations -- are while he's heading for an elevator. As far as drama goes, this is getting tiresome, though Waterston's constant effort to escape the reboot seems more than sensible.
Lastly, are all the judges now just members of the production crew? None of them seem to have the gravitas or depth of character as they were in the old show. They just seem like somebody in a robe who can barely act. The judge in tonight's case might have been better cast as Bob, the guy who resupplies the vending machines. His female predecessor earlier in the episode is not much better, coming across as a snippy department store manager.
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