It was great to have some focus on Fin, who is underused in 'Law and Order: Special Victims Unit' too often. Or at least in mid-late-'Special Victims Unit' he was. But when he is given a prominent role, it is often well worth it and added a lot to him as a character, even if at times the rest of the story isn't anywhere near as good (a major example in a bad being "The Intimidation Game", but episodes like "Manhunt" and "Venom" are great representations of him).
Fin is handled very well here but "Diss" itself could have been quite a lot better as an episode itself. Is it a terrible episode? No it isn't, and anybody familiar with me will know that it takes a huge amount for me to call anything that as someone who has always aimed to be encouraging in ratings and expressions of opinions. Could "Diss" have been a lot better? Yes it definitely could have been, with a case that was a lot more involving consistently the episode could have been at least good.
"Diss" has good things. Ice-T has the right amount of steel and sympathetic edge. There is some great illuminating character development for Fin, nice to learn more about his background. The other acting standout is a formidable Orlando Jones.
The diss war stuff was intriguing and the episode did a good job showing the dark side of social media and how terrible fans can be. Visually it is well made, especially the intimate photography. It looks stylish and slick with a more refined look than when 'Special Victims Unit' first started all the way back in 1999, while maintaining the show's grit. The music doesn't overbear and is not overused.
On the other hand, a lot could have been done better. The case itself was rather thin, nothing new and was lacking in suspense. The pacing also felt over-stretched and the dialogue could have been tighter and had more personality.
Furthermore, the characters are cookie cutter stereotypes rather than real well fleshed out people. Snoop Dogg's role is too small and limited for him to make a strong impression and he came over as bland. The celebrity cast are not particularly well used, only Jones is used well, and the acting in general seems forced excepting Ice-T and Jones.
Rather mixed here on this episode. 5/10.
Fin is handled very well here but "Diss" itself could have been quite a lot better as an episode itself. Is it a terrible episode? No it isn't, and anybody familiar with me will know that it takes a huge amount for me to call anything that as someone who has always aimed to be encouraging in ratings and expressions of opinions. Could "Diss" have been a lot better? Yes it definitely could have been, with a case that was a lot more involving consistently the episode could have been at least good.
"Diss" has good things. Ice-T has the right amount of steel and sympathetic edge. There is some great illuminating character development for Fin, nice to learn more about his background. The other acting standout is a formidable Orlando Jones.
The diss war stuff was intriguing and the episode did a good job showing the dark side of social media and how terrible fans can be. Visually it is well made, especially the intimate photography. It looks stylish and slick with a more refined look than when 'Special Victims Unit' first started all the way back in 1999, while maintaining the show's grit. The music doesn't overbear and is not overused.
On the other hand, a lot could have been done better. The case itself was rather thin, nothing new and was lacking in suspense. The pacing also felt over-stretched and the dialogue could have been tighter and had more personality.
Furthermore, the characters are cookie cutter stereotypes rather than real well fleshed out people. Snoop Dogg's role is too small and limited for him to make a strong impression and he came over as bland. The celebrity cast are not particularly well used, only Jones is used well, and the acting in general seems forced excepting Ice-T and Jones.
Rather mixed here on this episode. 5/10.