Mammon

'Law and Order' was a brilliant show in its prime and overall is actually my favourite of the 'Law and Order' franchise and out of it, 'Special Victims Unit' (the longest running) and 'Criminal Intent'. Despite not feeling the same post-Briscoe. The Fontana and Green pairing didn't settle straight away, and neither did Fontana, but of the four police lead pairings in the post-Briscoe period it is the best one or the one with the least problems.

"Mammon" on the whole is very good, if falling slightly short of great, and much better than the disappointing previous episode "Fixed". It is not one of the best episodes of 'Law and Order' and not among the very best of this up and down season, but it is worth seeing for particularly Sam Waterston and one scorcher of a scene that is a season dramatic highlight. "Mammon's" subject may not sound new but there is enough to the execution to stop it from being repetitive.

Like quite a lot of 'Law and Order' episodes, the second half is better than the first. The investigative portion does intrigue and is well acted, but doesn't have the tension and complexity of the legal portion and not much is innovative.

With the exceptions of like four or five appearances or so, Southerlyn very rarely did anything for me as a character and Elisabeth Rohm is very flat and robotic in personality.

However, so much is good. It is shot with the right amount of intimacy without being claustrophobic and that the editing has become increasingly tighter over-time has been great too. Nice use of locations too. The music doesn't get over-scored or overwrought, even in the more dramatic revelation moments. The direction doesn't try to do too much and is understated but never flat or unsure.

As said, the subject matter is handled with uncompromising force but also tact without taking sides. The story is compelling and never dull, with the aforementioned dramatic highlight being the brilliantly written and acted cross examination scene. The acting apart from Rohm is very good, with Sam Waterston in fact being brilliant and giving his best performance of the season. Especially in the cross examination.

In conclusion, very good. 8/10.

A housekeeper was about to clean a fancy house, noticing it was unusually off. Upstairs the owner lied on the ground sorrounded by his own blood, killed by a blunt object. Detectives noticed the bed sheets were stolen as well as some cash and jewelry (the safe deposit box was open). The victim was a successful businessman and he was married to a much younger woman (Andrea Roth) without kids. The limo driver who used to take the wife shopping claimed they lived separated lives, because they didn't share any common interests. The wife had an affair with a man in charge of the apartment renovation; after police figured out the alarm system hard drive was stolen, the contractor became the prime suspect. Later on, even the wife died, allegedly poisoned by him. Anyway the bad boy had always a girlfriend outside ready to alibi him...

An episode on the average, great performance for McCoy at trial. I don't understand why girls with no priors were willing to risk jailtime for a piece of work like the main character. Southerlyn is right: women are different, they like outlaws.