Tuesday night's Law & Order: SVU ruled. In fact, it ruled so hard that it may have compromised my immune system, making me too ill yesterday to post about its awesomeness.
Why was it so incredible?
1. Matthew Modine. He has been my favorite since the one-two punch of Full Metal Jacket and Married to the Mob. Age 10 and I was DONE.
2. Chris Meloni.
3. Matthew Modine and Chris Meloni. Mrrreow.
4. The dialogue-driven nature of the episode. I commented to my sister that it was like, for one magic night, Homicide was back on the air. Only, it wasn't Frank who had somebody in the box, it was Stabler. But that same dynamic was in play--the interrogation as mental duel, with sympathies, antagonism, and electricity running in both directions. And then, of course, the final shot showing the toll it all takes on the cop--in this case, Stabler holding his head in his bloody-knuckled hands.
This episode was so good, I'm willing to suspend judgment on the casting of Martin Short as next week's villain.