Post by skittles4me on Apr 28, 2011 13:15:46 GMT -5
Hmmmm. Another take on season 10.
(Psssst! David Hinckley! Alexandra Eames is the CHARACTER, the ACTRESS is Kathryn Erbe!)
'Law & Order: Criminal Intent'
'Law & Order: Criminal Intent' signs off, brings back actors Vincent D'Onofrio and Alexandra Eames
DAVID HINCKLEY
read it here
Another "Law & Order" is getting packed off into television history, and however melancholy that prospect may seem to fans of the institution, at least it's starting the home stretch strong.
The best news is that "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" has brought back Detective Robert Goren (Vincent D'Onofrio) and Alexandra Eames (Kathryn Erbe) for these final eight episodes.
That's more than a simple bid to cash in on nostalgia for two of the show's original cast members, though it does have that basic appeal. Their return also adds a new dimension to the show.
Given Goren's neuroses and temperament, his rehiring in particular becomes a fragile experiment that serves as a parallel story line to the regular homicides and other awful crimes he and Eames will presumably tackle each week.
While Goren doesn't directly replace Jeff Goldblum's Zack Nichols, who had a major detective role the past two seasons, his intense, almost ferocious style provides a shot of adrenaline that viewers didn't get from the quirky Goldblum.
As we already knew, Goren also works well with Eames, whose character shares his focus without being quite so neurotic.
Goren's specific backstory is that last year he was fired for insubordination. Now, however, Major Case Capt. Joseph Hannah (Jay O. Sanders) has yanked a bunch of strings to get Goren back because even when he's insubordinate, he clears more cases than anyone else.
This puts Goren on a tight leash, which isn't his best position. Even more interesting, it requires him to see a shrink every episode, which could create the most interesting psychiatric TV this side of "In Treatment" and Dr. Melfi on "The Sopranos."
Part of the fun, obviously, is that we don't know whether the shrink gambit will work. With only eight episodes until the end, Goren could just as easily veer off the reservation for good.
For this last stretch, "L&O: CI" also has a new show runner, Chris Brancato, whose résumé runs from "Boomtown" to "90210." But "Law & Order" and all its children remain under enough of creator Dick Wolf's control that we can be pretty sure nothing will stray too far from what has worked since the first Bush administration.
Sunday's kickoff episode suggests Goren has no intention of making life easier for Hannah just because he brought him back. Goren still bends whatever rules get in his way, and his witness interrogation techniques are still no model of decorum.
Some viewers may be so happy to see D'Onofrio back that they won't be too particular about how he does. For the record, he does well. His particular sort of manic compulsion should have no trouble propelling the show to the finish line.
dhinckley@nydailynews.com
(Psssst! David Hinckley! Alexandra Eames is the CHARACTER, the ACTRESS is Kathryn Erbe!)
'Law & Order: Criminal Intent'
'Law & Order: Criminal Intent' signs off, brings back actors Vincent D'Onofrio and Alexandra Eames
DAVID HINCKLEY
read it here
Another "Law & Order" is getting packed off into television history, and however melancholy that prospect may seem to fans of the institution, at least it's starting the home stretch strong.
The best news is that "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" has brought back Detective Robert Goren (Vincent D'Onofrio) and Alexandra Eames (Kathryn Erbe) for these final eight episodes.
That's more than a simple bid to cash in on nostalgia for two of the show's original cast members, though it does have that basic appeal. Their return also adds a new dimension to the show.
Given Goren's neuroses and temperament, his rehiring in particular becomes a fragile experiment that serves as a parallel story line to the regular homicides and other awful crimes he and Eames will presumably tackle each week.
While Goren doesn't directly replace Jeff Goldblum's Zack Nichols, who had a major detective role the past two seasons, his intense, almost ferocious style provides a shot of adrenaline that viewers didn't get from the quirky Goldblum.
As we already knew, Goren also works well with Eames, whose character shares his focus without being quite so neurotic.
Goren's specific backstory is that last year he was fired for insubordination. Now, however, Major Case Capt. Joseph Hannah (Jay O. Sanders) has yanked a bunch of strings to get Goren back because even when he's insubordinate, he clears more cases than anyone else.
This puts Goren on a tight leash, which isn't his best position. Even more interesting, it requires him to see a shrink every episode, which could create the most interesting psychiatric TV this side of "In Treatment" and Dr. Melfi on "The Sopranos."
Part of the fun, obviously, is that we don't know whether the shrink gambit will work. With only eight episodes until the end, Goren could just as easily veer off the reservation for good.
For this last stretch, "L&O: CI" also has a new show runner, Chris Brancato, whose résumé runs from "Boomtown" to "90210." But "Law & Order" and all its children remain under enough of creator Dick Wolf's control that we can be pretty sure nothing will stray too far from what has worked since the first Bush administration.
Sunday's kickoff episode suggests Goren has no intention of making life easier for Hannah just because he brought him back. Goren still bends whatever rules get in his way, and his witness interrogation techniques are still no model of decorum.
Some viewers may be so happy to see D'Onofrio back that they won't be too particular about how he does. For the record, he does well. His particular sort of manic compulsion should have no trouble propelling the show to the finish line.
dhinckley@nydailynews.com
?? Doesn't directly replace Jeff Goldblum? Say what?