Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (TV Series) Spiraling Down (2011) User Reviews

Treat is a treat

[chipbrill · 10/10 · 21 June 2013]

A somewhat mild criminal episode given the past, usual fare of SVU, this one shows off the genuine acting abilities of the ensemble and guest performers, the most prominent of whom are Treat Williams as Jake Stanton and Andre Braugher as his attorney Bayard Ellis. Too, the camera work is quite splendid, adding dramatic panache to a particularly fine script.

The episode covers so much ground - teenage prostitution and early-onset-athlete dementia - without any maudlin overtones or polemic. Truth is, this would have made for a fine movie; it is, in my humble estimation, the best episode of the SVU series.

Very realistic, and, heartbreaking

[ColonelPuntridge · 9/10 · 23 February 2018]

WARNING: THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS

Having helped take care of my very demented stepfather (traumatic brain injury AND Alzheimer's, toward the end he needed to be coached in order to brush his teeth) for ten years, I can say, the writers of this episode did an excellent job, and so did Treat Williams, of portraying intermediate-to-severe level, on-and-off dementia. Treat's performance is utterly heartbreaking, and Beth Chamberlin, who plays his wife, is even more so.

Special bit of brilliance by the scriptwriter: the prosecutor asks whether he (Jake) paid the 14-year-old girl for sex and solicited from the undercover officer, and he totally misses the point that he's on trial for statutory rape, and answers "sure, but lots of guys cheat on their wives!"

Treat Williams deserved a Emmy in my opinion

[IcksPigeon-943-718375 · 10/10 · 3 September 2021]

Now that I have a family member with Dementia, I think he played this role perfectly. I wish all my family members could see this episode and see how much our member is behaves like this. I don't know how he prepared for the roll, but I though he was great. I have new repect for his talent. I recoment this episode foe anyone who has a friend or family member who was recently diagnosed with this crippling illness.

A very big fish

[bkoganbing · 8/10 · 4 March 2014]

The SVU squad comes up against some divided loyalties here as they set up a sting to trap johns using underage hookers. Their sting yields one very big fish.

The fish is former quarterback Treat Williams who was once the toast of New York, something like Joe Namath back in the day. Now he's busted in a cheap hotel with an underage hooker.

Mariska Hargitay however feels sorry for Williams and quite out of channels gets him Andre Braugher as a defense attorney whom the squad has dealt with before. What Williams and his wife Beth Chamberlin have been living with is his diminished capacity brought on by way too many concussions.

That sets Mariska up against ADA Stephanie March who doesn't like being submarined by the cops she works with.

Braugher wins his case with an examination of Williams on the stand. It is a devastating and heart breaking scene. As is this story with Williams as once great athletic hero who can't come to grips with his illness.

One of the best

[kturney-72728 · 9/10 · 27 April 2022]

Heartbreaking episode highlighting the ongoing horror of long term football injuries. I cry every time I watch this one. The first time I ever heard of "sundowning", which now I am very aware of in my personal life. Treat Williams does a great job as the football player who can't face what is happening to him.

Aren't We on the Same Team

[yazguloner · 10/10 · 16 July 2021]

Treat Williams is putting out a great game. Friendly and fun...

Ellis is already gorgeous...

In the end, the way chosen to understand a damage... I can't continue would be spoilers.

Svu is the first episode I started following, it's special.

I really like Ps Ellis and Olivia.

Quality spiralling up

[TheLittleSongbird · 10/10 · 21 June 2022]

Season 13's "Spiralling Down" sees the return of Bayard Ellis, a great refreshing character wonderfully played in all his appearances by Andre Braugher. His first appearance was in "True Believers", also from Season 13, and he made that episode (one of those episodes with a high quality guest star and mixed feelings storytelling) better, elevating what easily could have been average to pretty decent. So it was great to see him return.

And Ellis is far from wasted. In fact "Spiralling Down" makes the utmost most of him and plays to his strengths as a character. As an episode, it is outstanding and not just the best Season 13 episode up to this point (one of only two to be great or more, the other being the not quite as good "Russian Brides") but also one of the best of the whole season. With "Spiralling Down" doesn't see quality spiralling down, it sees it go up by quite a lot.

The episode is worth seeing primarily for three things. One is Braugher, whose performance here is every bit as good as it was in "True Believers". He has such great authority and while he can be intimidating because of how well he does his job but also his coolness. Two is the other main guest star Treat Williams, who is exceptional. Was really expecting to be repulsed by his character but actually surprisingly it turned out to be the complete opposite once the truth for why he did what he did is revealed.

Lastly, the big cross examination is absolutely devastating, the best, most emotional and most dramatically riveting one of the franchise in a long time. Cabot fans like me are going to love that she is in a bigger role here, this is not one of those returns of loved character that does too little with the character in question but one where her role is not small and her strengths are played to. The personal drama in "Spiralling Down" is present but wisely is not focused upon too much and it certainly does not overshadow the case, it does further Amaro's character too.

Here the writing is concise and has enough meat while not too much fat, while the story is both disturbing and poignant. The regulars are very good, but not as good as Braugher and Williams. The production values are solid and the intimacy of the photography doesn't get static or too filmed play-like. The music when used is not too over-emphatic and has a melancholic edge that is quite haunting. The direction is accomodating yet also alert.

Wonderful episode all in all. 10/10.

Nobody won

[pumping_iron-1 · 10/10 · 30 April 2024]

I thought this was one of SVU's best episodes. It calls attention to CTE in NFL players and teenage prostitution. Although, teenage prostitution kind of gets lost . I think there should have been a little more focus on how teenagers, especially runaways are manipulated into prostitution. It's very sad.

The story is well written and well directed. The late Treat Williams gives an Emmy worthy performance of an ex NFL Quarterback who is suspected of suffering from CTE and/or pugilistic dementia. The late Andre Braugher returns to give a powerful performance as his attorney. I found this to be an emotional and poignant episode. Yes, it brought tears to my eyes. The ending is heartbreaking. No. There are no winners in this episode.

Good but why does SVU start out with one thing then go another way

[marysammons-42220 · 7/10 · 12 August 2020]

This episode started out about underage prostitution when a friend of Amaro's wife comes to SVU because his daughter called upset. Turns out she cane to New York and got hooked up with a pimp. To catch the guy they set up a sting and a former football player is arrested. It turns out he's had one too many blows to the head. They take him to court anyway because self righteous Alex Cabot has to. Then when it blows up in her face she blames Olivia who did push to go after the Johns. But how could Alex not see it? She tried to railroad the guy just like she tried to railroad a mentally challenged kid in season 10. You want justice for her and compassion for him she said to Benson. You can't have it both ways. Well yeah you can. He was not guilty. Diminished capacity. Prosecute the guilty ones. She acted like she had to because football players aren't special. Well neither are you, Alex. The guy shoots himself after being acquitted when he realized what he did. Treat Williams was great as was the actress who played his wife.

Worthy episode with a needlessly sensational climax.

[cwbellor · 5/10 · 10 June 2022]

Most episodes of SVU are masterfully and thoughtfully written. This one is no exception. Within minutes, you are emotionally invested in the plight of a young girl who is heartlessly kidnapped and pimped out. Then, comes the development that became almost cliche with SVU episodes during this era. Attention is shifted to a new yet related character and a new subject. Not so much a plot twist, but a plot turn. Now we are invested in the plight of a retired football star who is deteriorating mentally. For 95% of the episode, we have a well-written plot, only for it to devolve into another trope of so many SVU episodes - the tragic climax. Most of the episodes that have these feel warranted and realistic. This one however, feels tacked on, off color and out of left field. It's as if a producer had to put their mark on the screenwriter's draft before the principal shoot started because they thought the episode was "too tame." The words what are they trying to prove come to mind. Considering that this series has little to prove in the way of drama, authenticity or quality, that question is especially odd.

Really

[bigchief-83309 · 5/10 · 11 December 2021]

Really? The dad is upset that ONE out of 200 johns get acquitted? I usually like SVU but this episode was too meandering and full of holes.

For the life of me I can't understand why the dad is so upset at the end? Also the 14year old is suddenly a choir girl clutching her pearls. Unbelievable.

How incompetent can a detective be?

[rob hendrikx · 4/10 · 14 September 2023]

Where to begin?

Like an other review says Cabot's remark to Benson that you can't have justice for the victim AND compassion for the culprit is ridiculous.

Treat Williams is good, but the real star of this episode is Andre Braugher, who is one of the finest actors around in my opinion.

But the reason for this review is the following.

Even though it was just established that Treat Williams could not be held responsible for the statutory rape of fourteen year old Kay Panabaker, the writers of this show just can't let anybody "get away with rape".

So, Williams takes a gun from a cop and points it at his own head, Benson and Amaro point their guns at him and ask him to lower (or drop) the weapon. And as soon as he lowers the gun, they both completely relax, at which point he still shoots and kills himself. Now, I believe that some cops can be incompetent, but how the heck can you relax when a madman is still holding a loaded gun? That is beyond incompetent, that's criminally stupid.

But with this poor piece of writing the show maintains its record of not allowing any sex offender to escape "justice".

Do the cops need more training ?

[s-sood71 · 5/10 · 21 January 2024]

I wasn't sure where this episode was going at the start - nothing about the prosection of the pimps etc.

However the thing that really annoyed me was the lax behaviour of cops.

Firstly a cop having a selfie - really ? He should be fired as he is on duty and has a loaded gun on him!

Secondly when Jake Stanton puts the revolver to his head the two cops draw their guns and tell him to put it down.

As soon as he lowers it they breath a sigh of relief and slowly lower their weapons.

If this was a person who had taken a cops gun the first thing they would do when he lowers it is to keep a gun trained on him and disarm him as he still has it in his hand!! This is surely basic policing ?!

Other than that it was an needless ending - he couldn't remember most things let alone perhaps how to fire a gun ?