Hammered

It's not that this episode isn't tautly written and directed because it is -- at least in terms of creating the drama. Christine Lahti deserves special mention for creating Sonya Paxton as a character who was both irritating and sympathetic, her bravado being a shield for her real problems. It's a bit contrived, but then SVU has always been the most contrived of the Law and Order series.

But the biggest flaw is Benson, and this is one of the episodes to show how wildly inconsistent her character is, and how the writers don't really care so long as they can show she's right. Benson is constantly on a high horse, but in earlier episodes, there was some self awareness to her pontificating, holier-than-thou personality. Here, there's none. The way she goes after both Paxton and the ostensible villain -- who we're still not sure is guilty by the end -- is very much the Benson we get today, who is too often a bigmouth crusader.

Here, though, her smugness is particularly awful. Yes, this is the Benson who tells convicted criminals she hopes they get raped in prison, you know, because that's in the rule book about justice. But she lights into Paxton -- who clearly is an alcoholic -- and the accused -- who clearly is an alcoholic -- as though their disease has absolutely no bearing on their situations. Contrast this with the many, many times Benson has argued exactly the opposite, especially if the issue is the victim.

So, if someone is too inebriated to remember if they gave consent, that absolutely cannot be used against them later when they accuse someone of assaulting them and who argues they did. However, if the accused is too inebriated to remember if they assaulted someone, that's absolutely no excuse to absolve them of the crime they're accused of.

Remember, insanity is doing the same thing more than once and expecting a different result. In this case, it's Shroedinger's drunkiness. Too drunk as the alleged victim, and you're not responsible. Too drunk as the alleged criminal, and you're absolutely responsible.

That she puts the screws to Paxton just makes it even worse. Benson and her fluid ability to marshal the same ideas and come to different conclusions is actually pretty scary. So, why is this episode part of the decline? Because it refuses to recognize Benson's erratic reasoning. We will see seasons later how awful it will get.

It is a strong section on addictions such as alcohol, cigarettes, coffee.

Sonja Paxton (Christina Lahti) appears at the center of the story and sadly for the last time.

It is a solid performance that treats the law as if it were biblical, authoritative, tactless, but with some goodness in it.

She is actually a good potential character for the L&O universe.

Sonya Paxton turned out to be a very polarising character, some loved her and felt she gave 'Law and Order: Special Victims Unit' an energy and kick that it started to lack in the mid seasons. Others didn't like her and felt that her antagonistic attitude was too much. Was in the latter camp when younger and on first watch when first getting into the show. Ever since though she has grown on me and now she sits in the former category. The subject matter also sounded interesting.

"Hammered" was on the most part well done, with it being at its best showing what drink does to you and affects those around you. It also developed Paxton very well, when it comes to character writing this is the episode that has some of her most memorable and insightful. "Hammered" didn't feel like a consistent episode and some of it felt over the top, including a scene that has always stuck in my mind but even when on first watch not for the right reasons.

A lot is great here. The regulars are all very good, and even better is the headstrong turn of Christine Lahti that shows a more tortured side not seen before. Scott Foley is very good, and Dann Florek shines the most he's done in a while. Did like very much how the whole team was involved and how they were all given some kind of role in the story. Cragen is very interesting here, he has some very funny and gritty lines but his opening up is also very honestly written and movingly delivered by Florek.

Paxton is written in a way that is much more than the stock antagonism-causing character, she does provide a lot of tension but this is also the episode where she does start getting respect from the team in a situation where intervention is needed. Everything centering around the alcohol is not as heavy handed as feared and sees moments of real honesty. The production values are fine, have always liked the photography's intimacy and grit and the look of the show has come on a good deal over-time (and it was good to begin with). The music doesn't intrude and has a haunting quality, have not always remembered to say that the theme tune is easy to remember and holds up. The direction is alert but also accomodating.

On the other hand, the case was one of those that starts off very well, with a not for the faint hearted opening scene for example, and is very intriguing, but the second half has too much over-heated melodrama. Paxton's big courtroom scene coming off worst, even when first getting into the show that felt very over the top dramatically and in writing. The policing is quite sloppy, including the perpetrator being able to escape so easily.

It is another Season 11 episode to have a very unsatisfying ending for similar reasons to the endings for the previous three episodes. One of those endings that makes one want to throw the shoe at the screen in anger due to it feeling unwarranted and wrong. The abortion angle added nothing, due to nothing being done with it so could have been left out.

Summing up, great in a lot of areas but not everything succeeds. 7/10.

Christine Lahti is a great actress - I am impressed! I knew about her past work but geeze....Go Christine Go!

Her few appearances on this show have been electric. In particular, the sparring between her character & Christopher Meloni's character, Stabler.

"Wow" is all I can say in regard to what she has done with what she has been given......and what she has been given is tough to pull off & not particularly flattering stuff.

I can't really describe it all that well but I hope the powers that be realize she's a valuable asset to the show & that they give her character some dignity in the end......hopefully it'll be more than a couple of episodes.

It's two ways to get hammered, but neither involves a nail. The performances are reliable (Lahti in fact is very good), but the plot is just preposterous and so contrived it defies logic. Florek is this episode's 'scales of justice', trying to convince the belligerent Lahti that 'alcoholism' is a disease to be treated (or in a legal sense, serve as mitigation), and not merely a vice of the weak nor wicked.

The moral question being posed is fine, but the way it's addressed is borderline farce; the bungles and contrast of the final few scenes render the resolution much too trivial for the gravity of the crime committed, and the lesson much too laboured.

Hargitay and Meloni are virtual bystanders as Lahti's conflicted character takes centre stage in this all-too-simple instalment. Belzer and Ice trade familiar dialogue on the evidence, question a would-be witness, then it's back to Captain Florek to ground the argument on his character's own tenuous sobriety.

Technically it's fine, but the plot is just too thin and rushed to do the subject matter justice (no pun intended).