TV.com

show: Shark

episode: Trial By Fire

The Bottom Line: "Superb"

SPOLIERS BELOW -------------



One of my favourite episodes from either season. Fast-paced, full of high-stakes action and tense drama. The main dynamics of this episode include a rather dopey defendent who goes nuts in a courtroom before his trial grabs a gun and holds everyone as hostage. His aim is to get some one to look at his case again as he cries foul at his plight. He is sympathetic enough. Stark and the rest of the people in the court at the trial of a multiple murderer get stuck in the same room as their adversay and we know sooner rather than later the tables will turn and they will become the quarry. The murderer is quite scary and the threat to life v real. Lets face it you cant go wrong by placing a hostage situation in the middle of a courtroom, with a judge and lawyers present! Due to the close proximity of all the characters and the inclusion of the very believeably scary sentenced murderer the situation in itself is a great source of adhesive to keep you hooked on watching.

The story works extremely well, with every actor managing to bounce off their deliveries against another character. This provides almost incessant momentum from the start right to the end, so you'll have little time to catch your breath. Overall the intensity scale works a dream, with something occurring every other scene to ramp up the stakes and the level of threat. Key scenes that work particularly well are the ones where the judge is shot after the hostage taker and the cop who arrested him struggle. Shark's attempts to assist the police effort outside and getting caught. The guilty nacsist murderer and the children of his victims being trapped in the same room. When the murderer persuades the hapless hostage taker to give him a gun. The murderers confrontation with Shark and Sophina adds a great edge to the final act.

This coninues until the final act where the inevitable final confrontation takes place. While it could have a little better, it actually could have been much worse and has a very interesting twist at the end that heavy in resonance.

A definite thumbs up from me and one you should definitely watch.

show: Law & Order: Criminal Intent

episode: In the Dark

The Bottom Line: "Fair"

An episode that covers needless murder, loss of mental faculty and devotion.

While this story made me feel somewhat sympathetic towards the female perpetator, the plot just had too many loose ends and failed logic for me to like it. Overall, the story is fair and it would have been watchable if not for the motivations of Butch which I felt arent explained enough. Sure there is enough motivation to his life's love, but to kill so many unconnected people for her just eludes me.

Furthermore, I felt the first act of the story was more in keeping with what youd expect from a L&O-CI episode and was promising something spectacular involving, a serial killer morphed into a mythical demon dreamt up by homeless community, a black market business salvaging body parts from dead homeless people. Both of these threads had so much potential in their own right, that they could have made an episode each from them. Instead the story takes its deviation into a tame unremarkable crime, whose only interest is the shocking truth of the woman's condition and the reality of her elusive daughter - Jenny.

As others have indicated, there is very little plausibilty as to why the mechanic would kill so many homeless people, unless they were had the mind of serial killer, something that is never communicated at all.

The finale is also a let down, by which point Id stopped caring about the protaganists, so that even their eventual adversal confrontation to shake out the truth meant very little.

I wouldnt worry if you miss it. The only notable mention is that Geoffrey Lewis does a good job playing the role of Butch the overprotective mechanic. Overall a let down.

show: Law & Order: Criminal Intent

episode: Great Barrier

The Bottom Line: "Superb"

Nicole is one of those characters that make this show what it is. She is deep, complicated, yet calculating, malicious and vicious. She would take an ordinary story and take it up to notched. Yet this episode has a first class story of its own.

From the first act when we witness the initial crime we are purposely fooled into thinking that these perpertrators are going to be the main targets of Goren and Emes efforts. Instead we are tricked. The apparent fall girl is actually using her submissiveness to manipulate her "master" into another trap of her "real" masters conception - Nicole's.

Once Goren and Emes get past this initial curveball, we are shown the real crime that is going on, Nicole's manipulation of the young Japanese woman who cant see the reality of the situation. As youd expect we learn alot of her background and you will no doubt feel a mixture of sympathy and serve's you right for her.

Yet this is only half the story. The real meat of the middle act is a journey through Nicole's past as Goren and Emes dig deep to uncover events from her past to explain her current motivations and the trigger that set her off on her journey of manipulation and crime. It is for this that makes this episode a must see. That and one of the most exciting finales of the show. Just when everything is weighed against Nicole and it looks like her time of freedom is up, we see the immeasureable depth of her conviction.

Definitely not to be missed.

show: Law & Order: Criminal Intent

episode: Eosphoros

The Bottom Line: "Great"

A really enjoyable episode that doesnt get bogged down in detail like many other L&O-CI episodes. The premise relies on your basic kidnap story at its heart, but goes on to reveal an interesting backstory for the motive, if the execution of the crime is fairly mundance . To be fair, the enjoyment is in the intrigue between the two main suspects. W/o this I would have found this particular setting and theme somewhat boring. The crime itself goes on to have many layers at its heart, which is great fodder for Goren to go his onion-style unravelling of the truth.

The finale is particularly strong, even if the ending is somewhat hackneyed and full of resignation. This is one episode which Goren resolves with great interplay between the two conspirators, to reveal a novel twist at the end. Did you get the clue at the very beginning of the episode?! Definitely one to watch, if you can put up with the low-brow nature of the crime in question.