Former New York detective Cyrus Lupo returns after his brother's suicide. The investigation reveals a relationship between two assisted suicides, a notorious assisted suicide doctor, his dau... Read allFormer New York detective Cyrus Lupo returns after his brother's suicide. The investigation reveals a relationship between two assisted suicides, a notorious assisted suicide doctor, his daughter, and an investigative journalist.Former New York detective Cyrus Lupo returns after his brother's suicide. The investigation reveals a relationship between two assisted suicides, a notorious assisted suicide doctor, his daughter, and an investigative journalist.
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- TriviaThis episode appears to be based on the 1980's and 1990's Dr. Jack Kevorkian (a.k.a. "Dr. Death") case. Dr. Kevorkian became famous in the late 1980s and early 1990s as a supporter of assisted suicide. He became most noted for publicly championing a terminal patient's right to die via euthanasia; he claims to have assisted at least 130 patients to that end. He famously said that "dying is not a crime." Between 1999 and 2007, Kevorkian served eight years of a 10-to-25-year prison sentence for second-degree murder. His trial was a lengthy one because of several acquittals and a mistrial. He was released on June 1, 2007, on parole due to good behavior. He died on June 3, 2011.
- GoofsA.D.A. Connie Rubirosa refers to the defendant as "Molly." Her name is Mila.
- Quotes
D.A. Jack McCoy: The more I learn about Mr. Nolan, the less I want to make a deal with him.
- ConnectionsReferenced in Law & Order: Last Dance (2024)
But on the whole "Called Home" manages to do so. It is a pretty good start to Season 18, which was uneven but was solid once it got going (the second half of it being much better than the first), but had potential to be better than it was. As an introduction to the two new characters, it's pretty decent and fares better than some of the franchise's character introductions despite the legal scenes underwhelming a bit. As far as Season 18 goes, it's in solid middle, neither one of the best or worst.
"Called Home" does a lot right. Have nothing to fault the production values for, which are suitably slick and gritty without being static or gimmicky. Or with the music, used relatively sparingly and didn't sound over-scored or over-emphasised. It is a dependably directed episode and is thoughtfully and leanly scripted on the whole. Did like the first half a good deal, where there was intrigue and it didn't feel routine. The subject matter is a difficult one and hits hard when done right, and it hits hard here in a complex and tactful way on the whole.
Jesse L Martin shows no signs of fatigue as Green and has proven that he is every bit as good as main lead as he as a co-lead. Jeremy Sisto fares well too and certainly has a lot more personality than Cassady (character development-wise he was a lot more interesting). While Martin and Sisto don't scintillate together, they do work well as a team and there is some nice grit and entertainment value to their interactions. Linus Roache makes a good first impression and does have presence in the courtroom, just wish that his material was as good as him. The supporting cast is solid.
Usually the legal scenes fared better than the policing on 'Law and Order', where they tended to be more suspenseful and intricate. For a lot of the first half of Season 18, it was surprisingly the opposite. There is some intricacy and suspense, but somehow the episode becomes on the bland and unsettled side when it goes to court and the complexity and tension could have come more consistently. Didn't like the underuse of promoted McCoy, and when he does appear the spark he had before isn't there.
Alana De La Garza is also blander than she was in Season 17. Did find the final quarter slightly heavy handed.
On the whole, pretty good if inconsistent. 7/10.
- TheLittleSongbird
- Oct 10, 2022