In the character of Mike Logan, Dick Wolf and Chris Noth created the most fascinating and watchable of all the Law & Order precinct dwellers over the years.
In the time leading up to this episode, fans of the Law & Order franchise were able, not just to view and enjoy, but to feast on the best of the writing done for any of the franchises. This last episode featuring the Logan character delivers in the finest traditions of the best episodes featuring that problematic character of Logan. He blazed a fiery arc over his story lines in any incarnation of the show, and goes out with the fire he showed whenever he walked into the squad room or the captain's office.
As a longtime fan of the original Law & Order franchise, I was saddened at its ending a few years ago. I found the Law & Order Criminal Intent episodes in daytime TV repeats, and happily discovered the three dozen or so Mike Logan stories they presented.
The final Logan stories, under captains played by Jamie Sheridan and Eric Bogosian, embody the best writing and performing I personally had ever seen in the whole L/O series.
Whatever different creative influences and agendas went into production of the various Law and Order series over the years, the most apparent thing to me is that the Mike Logan character had to be the series creator's favorite. You get a product like Logan's final three dozen stories when the act is a true labor of love for the writers and actors.
This episode is exciting, compelling, happy and sad to a richly satisfying degree, and evokes the large history of the franchise itself. Enjoy it.