All the previous four season openers of 'Law and Order: Special Victims Unit' ranged from very good to outstanding, especially "Chameleon" closely followed by the one that started it all "Payback". So it was hard to not expect much from Season 5's first episode "Tragedy". It didn't sound like anything out of the ordinary reading the synopsis, but 'Special Victims Unit' has shown before and since that it can do a lot great with ordinary-sounding premises.
It very nearly did that with "Tragedy", meaning that it did overall nearly did a lot of great with a premise that was attention grabbing but not extraordinary, but just missed out on exceeding expectations due to one section not being as believable as the rest. Actually really liked the episode for most of the length and was riveted by the tension and intrigue it had, but for me it was let down by the final 5-10 minutes which didn't ring true from personal opinion. Probably not going to be a popular opinion.
Shall start with the good. The slick grit and the sharper and tighter visual look that the previous four seasons had is still maintained, and equally had no problems with the generally understated and not too melodramatic music. Nor with the sympathetic but crisp direction in primarily the second half. The script is taut and thought-provoking and the story did on the whole manage to have the right amount of suspense and ability to keep one guessing. The first scene was unsettling.
There is a scene later on just before the truth is revealed (am not going to spoil it) that is very harrowing, had me on the edge of the seat and brought a lump to my throat. The characters are on the most part written very well, the episode does really well for a while at making one convinced that the prime suspect is guilty while leaving some room for doubt as well. The regulars on the whole were great and loved how they worked together. The episode is incredibly well acted from all involved.
It is a shame though that the big reveal was not near as believable. The identity of the responsible was not hard to figure out, being somebody that has seen that trope before they were suspectable early on. Not only that, their motive was rather extreme and would have made more sense if they were targeting somebody else. Also didn't buy the inconsistent behaviour of the prime suspect, especially in regard to being angrier at the person thought not long before the truth came out to have committed the crime but proven innocent (after blaming themselves not long before that) than at the perpetrator.
While liking Stabler in the harrowing scene mentioned, very strong and paternal, he did have moments where he was judgemental and rather jerk-ish in his attitude towards Daniel, who was only still a suspect when Stabler expressed want at being the executioner (extreme and something that somebody on duty would not realistically say).
Concluding, good episode but not great. 7/10
