"Dazzled's" story sounded very intriguing, though it also wasn't a massively unique premise. 'Law and Order' for a while did a very good job making ordinary concepts more interesting than they sound. Will admit though to preferring stories that have a wider range of emotional impact and that tackle more controversial and tougher subjects that isn't sugar-coated in execution. Season 12 nears its end here with four more episodes to go, and generally the standard was not at all bad.
Bad is not an adjective to describe Season 12's twentieth episode "Dazzled". Actually think it is very good and closer to being in the better end, certainly a long way from being amongst the worst. It doesn't quite dazzle, but very little here falls flat. And even with the prosecution case not being a complex one and with not much to it for a while, "Dazzled" still doesn't feel too thin or over-obvious, both of which have been the cases with some episodes with weaker prosecution arguments.
It's not perfect. It does try to cram in too much in too short a space of time, not an uncommon problem in 'Law and Order' episodes.
Really don't want to sound like a broken record, but Elisabeth Rohm really fails to inject any life to Southerlyn and comes over as stiff and cold with one-note line delivery.
A lot is great though. The photography and such as usual are fully professional, the slickness still remaining. The music is used sparingly and is haunting and non-overwrought when it is used, and it's mainly used when a crucial revelation or plot development is revealed. The direction has some nice tension while keeping things steady, without going too far the other way. Other than Rohm, the acting is very good. Jerry Orbach and Jesse L Martin are such a great pairing and they are great individually. Sam Waterston really commands the screen and part of the tension is down to how McCoy's mind works. William Atherton does very well at making one unsure as to whether his character is guilty or not.
Moreover, the script is thought provoking and smart, thankfully not rambling or too complicated that it makes things confused. A lot of the legal scenes' dialogue really probes thought and pulls no punches, which prime-'Law and Order' often excelled at brilliantly. It's not just non stop seriousness though, there are also humorous moments here and there such as Briscoe's one-liners. The story is an interesting and well paced one that is a lot less ordinary than it sounds. The prosecution argument is flimsy to begin with but it is well worth sticking with to see how it resolves, how the truth is gotten to and the turns in the story.
Overall, very good. 8/10.
Bad is not an adjective to describe Season 12's twentieth episode "Dazzled". Actually think it is very good and closer to being in the better end, certainly a long way from being amongst the worst. It doesn't quite dazzle, but very little here falls flat. And even with the prosecution case not being a complex one and with not much to it for a while, "Dazzled" still doesn't feel too thin or over-obvious, both of which have been the cases with some episodes with weaker prosecution arguments.
It's not perfect. It does try to cram in too much in too short a space of time, not an uncommon problem in 'Law and Order' episodes.
Really don't want to sound like a broken record, but Elisabeth Rohm really fails to inject any life to Southerlyn and comes over as stiff and cold with one-note line delivery.
A lot is great though. The photography and such as usual are fully professional, the slickness still remaining. The music is used sparingly and is haunting and non-overwrought when it is used, and it's mainly used when a crucial revelation or plot development is revealed. The direction has some nice tension while keeping things steady, without going too far the other way. Other than Rohm, the acting is very good. Jerry Orbach and Jesse L Martin are such a great pairing and they are great individually. Sam Waterston really commands the screen and part of the tension is down to how McCoy's mind works. William Atherton does very well at making one unsure as to whether his character is guilty or not.
Moreover, the script is thought provoking and smart, thankfully not rambling or too complicated that it makes things confused. A lot of the legal scenes' dialogue really probes thought and pulls no punches, which prime-'Law and Order' often excelled at brilliantly. It's not just non stop seriousness though, there are also humorous moments here and there such as Briscoe's one-liners. The story is an interesting and well paced one that is a lot less ordinary than it sounds. The prosecution argument is flimsy to begin with but it is well worth sticking with to see how it resolves, how the truth is gotten to and the turns in the story.
Overall, very good. 8/10.
