Fun
Frisky
Nostalgic
Intense
Adventurous
Choked Up
Curious
Romantic
Weird
Who among us hasn’t eschewed our responsibilities and spent one too many hours camped out in front of the TV or laptop, partaking in yet another marathon of Law & Order: SVU despite having seen every episode close to a dozen times? We just can’t turn away from Sergeant Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) and her tough, yet troubled, group of detectives as they hit the mean streets of New York and attempt to take down the bad guys. Duh, who would? Thankfully, we don’t have to say goodbye to the dulcet tones of the “dun dun” anytime soon given that the series was recently greenlit by NBC for a 19th season. That’s eternity and a day for a TV series, but it’s not quite long enough — SVU seemingly cannot and will not die, and hallelujah for that.
While it may seem SVU has mined the depths of every depraved sexually-based offense in the book and then some, many several times over, the series somehow manages to avoid the slumps that often come with a show wearing out its welcome, so to speak. This is likely because its writing team regularly blends fact with fiction in innovative ways, pulling from major headlines and maneuvering just enough to create vaguely recognizable storylines that are just different enough to escape real-life litigation from those who inspired it. Given that there’s no shortage of terrible people in the world, there’s no dearth in possible Law & Order: SVU storylines, and as morbid as it sounds, that’s kind of a good thing here.
Of all its incarnations, SVU arguably remains the most beloved spawn of the Law & Order franchise, in large part to memorable performances from the likes of Mariska Hargitay, Ice-T, Raul Esparza, and of course Christopher Meloni back in the Stabler days. Together, the expansive cast functions like a well-oiled machine of lawyers, detectives, and those they seek to protect and represent. There are, of course, clear standouts — one could argue that Hargitay alone carries the majority of SVU’s heavy weight and without her, the show would likely decline to the point of cancellation. For proof of this, we only need to harken back to 2011, when reports that Hargitay would take on a reduced role in season 13 set off such a frenzy that NBC bent over backwards to ensure she appeared in every episode of the season after all. You can’t say they didn’t know where their metaphorical bread was buttered.
The praise for Hargitay, however, should not diminish the fine work of her co-stars, who, while not entirely likable (looking at you, Amanda Rollins) are still compelling in their own right and who help ground the series and make the emotional stakes personal. And yet, SVU showrunners have by now perfected the balancing act of showcasing its characters’ personal lives without focusing on them so much that it loses sight of its main purpose.
That purpose is, of course, catching bad guys. While some of the crimes committed by SVU’s offenders are indeed “especially heinous,” we can stomach them only because we know Benson, her team, and ADA Barba are working tirelessly to bring them to justice. Does it happen every time? No, but neither does it in real life — we’re all too aware that the bad guys get away sometimes, despite the best intentions and efforts of prosecutors. And yet, we keep watching for the wins, the times when justice prevails and those who were wronged don’t suffer in vain.
In many ways, the success of the series and its cult status as one of the most binge-worthy shows ever made should be perplexing. After all, many of us seek out media as a form of escapism, and watching rapists, pedophiles and murderers hurt women and children is something we can see by turning on the evening news — we don’t necessarily need a dramatization of it during primetime. However, where SVU succeeds is in that aforementioned place where retribution is not only possible, it’s sought out tirelessly. It seeks to restore our faith in the belief that the good guys will win in the end because they won’t stop fighting until they do.
Because the overarching themes of SVU are so timeless and yet timely, the likelihood of the series going stale or simply running out of stories to tell is not just unlikely, it’s nearly impossible. And as long as that’s the case, we’ll keep tuning in again and again.
Jennifer Still is a writer and editor from New York who cares too way much about fictional characters and spends her time writing about them.
