Critic’s Rating: 4.8 / 5.0
4.8
Whew! Maura Tierney’s Jessica Brady pushed Law & Order Season 24 Episode 1 into a powerful new era the second she walked into a crime scene for the first time.
The way Brady took charge made it clear that this was not the same show that it had been for the past three seasons.
Brady’s new leadership, especially coupled with Baxter’s statement to the press at the beginning of the hour, added to the tension in one of the strongest episodes Law & Order has had in the past few years.
Law & Order Was The Latest Dick Wolf Show To Undergo A Leadership Change
Dealing with tough, new bosses seems to be a theme on most Dick Wolf shows this season, as Chicago Med and Chicago Fire also have stories revolving around new leadership.
In Law & Order’s case, it was badly needed, even though I’m sad to see Dixon go, especially with a disappointing exit story.
Stlll, Brady is one of the best things that could have happened to Law & Order Season 24 Episode 1.
Brady was far more hands-on than Dixon was, jumping into both the crime scene and taking on the interrogation of a suspect.
It’s not realistic — in real life, heads of police departments do administrative and supervisory work rather than being out in the field — but it helped establish the series’ new tone, so I was all for it.
Brady’s desire to close cases rather than make friends with her detectives is symbolic of the best thing about this new era.
Brady: I’m sensing a little tension, Vince.
Riley: No tension. I just feel like you don’ trust me.
Brady: I don’t. I don’t know you.
Law & Order is supposed to be a police procedural, but in recent years it abandoned its “cases first” principles .
I’m all for there being some personal stuff so that the characters don’t feel like cardboard cutouts, but the show had gone too far in the other direction and it was messing up the pacing of the show.
Law & Order’s brand has always been showing the cops cracking tough cases and the prosecutors struggling to get convictions afterward. Period.
Law & Order Season 24 Episode 1 did a better job of finding the right balance. The pacing felt tighter, as if everyone were more focused on the case.
The show still sneaked in some social justice messages, but it was done in a way that felt more organic.
For example, the guy at the convenience store made some assumptions about Mexicans being undocumented that Shaw didn’t appreciate, but Shaw kept his annoyance within the context of getting whatever information he could from the clerk.
Instead of discussing the issue to death afterward, Shaw and Riley kept it moving, and the first half felt more like a real investigation than it had in a while.
Law & Order Season 24 Episode 1 Returned To Its Roots
It Ripped Cases From The Headlines Without Losing Focus
Law & Order has always been famous for ripping cases from the headlines, but in recent years those cases had become little more than mouthpieces for the writers’ point of view.
Not so this time.
Law & Order Season 24 Episode 1 avoided tired TV tropes associated with the show by letting the case stand on its own.
It was a smart decision to go in the direction of a domestic violence story instead of Macy’s murder being politically motivated.
The series can comment on politics without being too political, and this episode successfully found the balance.
It referenced cases that happened in real life, including controversial ones like former President Trump’s conviction in New York for charges related to using hush money, but wasn’t so one the nose that it was obvious what the writers think about that case.
Maroun’s Law & Order Season 24 Episode 1 Story Was Powerful, But The Writers Missed An Opportunity
The Victim’s Sister Offered A Potential Plot Twist
I had my doubts when Phipps was found dead at his own hand shortly after his trial began.
It seemed too convenient.
While it was logical that a guy who realized he had no way out of doing serious time for murder might decide to end his life, on television, suicides aren’t often what they seem.
When Sarah showed dup in Maorun’s office filled with rage, it seemed like the perfect plot twist for her to have killed Phipps herself.
That would have set up an even more compelling conflict for Maroun and Price. Maroun might have wanted to look the other way because she felt the killing was justified, but the DA’s office would probably not accept that.
Maroun’s arc was powerful as it was, so I can’t complain, but Phipps’ suicide turning out to be murder would have been fun too.
As for Maroun, her trauma has never been triggered to this extent before, and I was glad Odelya Halevi finally got some meaty material to work with.
Far too often in the past, Maroun has been sidelined, getting only a few lines while Price does all the heavy lifting in the case.
This case was an improvement in another way, too: for the first time, it wasn’t an automatic win in court.
That’s something I’ve wanted for a while. It seemed like in previous seasons, it was too easy for Price to win, and he got convictions even when he shouldn’t.
This time, the prosecutors were forced to abandon their case because of an uncooperative witness who likely had been paid off to keep his mouth shut.
Instead of a happy ending, the best Price could do was comfort Maroun after talking her out of throwing away her career to try to force the witness to do the right thing.
Nolan: Sam, look at me. If you talk to him, if you even knock on his door, you will be disbarred.
Sam: I don’t care. I’m sick of these rich bastards getting away with murder.
That made for a more powerful case that was similar to the way Law & Order used to be in the 1990s.
Over to you, Law & Order fanatics. What did you think of Law & Order Season 24 Episode 1?
Vote in our poll to rate the episode, and then hit the comments with your thoughts!
Law & Order airs on NBC on Thursdays at 8/7c and on Peacock on Fridays.
