Mushrooms

When a twelve-year-old boy is seriously wounded and his eleven-month-old baby brother is killed by gunshots in their apartment building, Sgt Greevey and Mike investigate the case. They inform and interview the mother, the worker Mrs. Denise Winters, suspecting that her boy could be involved in drug trafficking. But soon they learn that the family is honest. Their further investigation shows that the hit was contracted by the drug dealer Michael Ingrams targeting the real estate broker Edward Kay, who laundries his money and has lost US$ 300,000 of Ingrams' money in a personal business. The fourteen-year-old hit man T-Ball is illiterate and was not able to read the correct address of Kay. Now Stone wants to send the whole gang to prison.

"Mushrooms" is a sad episode of "Law & Order" that involves many social problems in USA. A poor honest family is forced to live in a bad neighborhood. Initially, the police suspect that the twelve-year-old son might be involved in drug trafficking, showing bias of the detectives based on the neighborhood. The killer is an illiterate teenager, hired by a drug-dealer to kill a man that laundries his money. In the end, the Winters' family is the greatest victim of a society with many social problems. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Cogumelos" ("Mushrooms")

It must have been hard following on from one of Season 1's best episodes (well two technically), the two parter "The Torrents of Greed". If it was me doing the script, it would have been no easy picnic at all. Both parts of that two parter were full of tension that increased all the time and had a riveting case, a good deal of chills and the most loathsome antagonist most likely of the season and also up to this early stage of 'Law and Order' in general (ever too on the show in my mind).

"Mushrooms" does brilliantly however in this respect, actually doing it with remarkable ease. It is a different kind of episode, it is not the tension-filled and almost scary kind of episode and the type of perpetrator couldn't be more different either. Instead "Mushrooms" is an episode that is not an easy watch at all, one doesn't need to be a mother facing every mother's worst nightmare to find it quite heart-breaking in parts, and one where one's hatred is directed at somebody else other than the person directly responsible.

As always for 'Law and Order', "Mushrooms" doesn't try to do too much visually while still opening things up. The slickness and grit are still here. The music doesn't get overwrought and is only used when appropriate, namely when things are being revealed. The theme tune is still a memorable one. The writing is taut and thoughtful, as well as whether chilling between Stone and Ingrams or not-sure-what-your-stance-is-like between Stone and Anson in court.

The story is as said not an easy watch and the circumstances of the homicide doesn't become as much shocking as this. There is a lot of poignancy here, especially that pivotal moment in court where it is revealed what really happened and it leaves one shocked and upset. As said too, it does make one hate Ingrams more and any initial dislike towards the perpetrator diminishes when it's revealed why and it's sad.

Performances are great as always, Michael Moriarty shining of the regulars and Brad Sullivan spars against him in a way that intrigues. S. Epatha Merkesen (the future Anita Van Buren) is heart-rending in her role while James McDaniel is suitably loathsome as Ingrams.

Summarising, wonderful and one of Season 1's best. 10/10