Detective Elliot Stabler is back. But should he be?
BY: JACOB POLITTE
Online Editor
Tonight on NBC, television history will take place.
For the first time in nearly 10 years, Christopher Meloni’s Elliot Stabler will return to television in a two-hour crossover event. Starting at 8pm (central time), Stabler makes his return to “Law and Order: Special Victims Unit” (SVU) for the first time since the Season 12 episode “Smoked.” Following that, a spin-off series centered around his character fighting the modern-day mafia, titled “Law and Order: Organized Crime” will premiere.
Meloni’s return to the “Law and Order” fold was once considered improbable, but after nearly a decade, the stars finally aligned. Even if they’re not on-screen together every week, seeing the dynamic duo of Stabler and former partner Olivia Benson on screen once more will be a real treat for viewers.
That being said, while Stabler’s return to screens is a welcome one, and a reunion with Benson will provide long-time fans of the franchise with some much needed closure, it does have to be asked if giving the Stabler character a full-fledged series is necessary.
It’s not even a question on if a show about organized crime syndicates is a worthy topic. It simply revolves around the Stabler character. Over the course of his 12 year tenure on SVU, Elliot Stabler was a notorious hot-head, and often became physically violent with suspects regardless of their guilt.
Obviously, following the events of the last decade, policing in America has changed, and so has the way that police shows portray the job. Fans of SVU have noticed a real change, particularly in the last two seasons, with how the job is portrayed, especially when it comes to Benson’s actions. But Benson is an entirely different – and far less controversial character – than Stabler.
So the real questions are: Does Elliot Stabler really need his own show in 2021? How would a cop like him navigate the current political climate?
The answer to the first question is no, he doesn’t. This seems wholly unnecessary, but that doesn’t mean it’s not an intriguing idea.
To the show’s credit, they have done an ample job of addressing the second question. In both interviews with those involved with the show as well as promos for the show itself, it’s made very clear that we’ll be seeing a different Elliot Stabler, at least initially. So the jury is still out on the second question, at least until we get a clearer picture of what the overarching story of “Organized Crime” actually is. Stabler returning to the police force after a “devastating personal loss” doesn’t exactly sound like someone who would be able to calm down.
But in the short term, it’ll be nice to see Meloni and Hargitay back together on screen again. As far as the long-term, it remains to be seen whether any of this was a good idea.
