Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (TV Series) Father's Shadow (2012) User Reviews

Benson is the only friend this kid has

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 17 April 2014]

Mariska Hargitay owns this particular episode of SVU. She's the only friend this confused kid has after his father is arrested for one rape and caught in the act of another.

You'll not convince Cameron Monaghan that his father Michael McKean was anything but the greatest dad in the world. I might think so too if at 16 I was set up in my own apartment and girls supplied, all I need and can handle with 16 year old libido. McKean is a reality TV producer so he's got hopefuls beating down his door. Monaghan's mother and sister who split from his father have a different view of him, more in line with law enforcement's.

Young Monaghan's one torn up kid inside and he takes two hostages and holds them in his apartment demanding his father be released. McKean shows how much he cares when he says he won't cooperate unless the charges against him are dropped. Some piece of work.

With SWAT surrounding the building the only friend he has is Mariska Hargitay who literally puts her body between him and SWAT to save him.

One of Mariska's best.

One of my Favorites

[vab-122-172357 · 8/10 · 13 September 2016]

I have to respectfully disagree with two of the reviews of this episode. Far from wanting Benson to shut up I thought she was the only one who seemed to be making any sense. The culmination of the episode involved a hostage situation in which Benson seemed to be the only one who did not already want the hostage taker dead. She behaved like a true cop trying to stop even one more life to be taken. While the hostage taker deserved capture a scared child (or any person) especially one who has been under the influence of a terrible person and has yet to do anything irreversible should not be immediately sentenced to death. This will remain one of my favorite Pre-Barba episodes.

Michael McKean brilliant as usual and so much more!

[lbowdls · 9/10 · 19 September 2019]

Another episode ripped from the headlines! And how disgusting those reviewers here giving this 1 point reviews (seriously they have a problem politically with Mariska Hargitay/ Olivia Benson totally ridiculous!) Even if you don't think this is one of the best episodes of SVU - which it is- Seeing the brilliant Michael McKean and Robert Klein is worth the "price of admission" anyway. However so many levels of story and suspense here which is not unusual when it comes to SVU! And this is when Olivia started to really step up even further since losing Stabler. A great progression and great episode!

Father's Shadow

[yazguloner · 10/10 · 17 July 2021]

What happens when this attachment of a father-addicted child is shaken. Young actor Monaghan's performance is commendable.

In the 17s 11e and 19s 23e episodes, Benson had also fallen into a hostage situation.

In the shadow of the father

[TheLittleSongbird · 8/10 · 22 June 2022]

The type of story that "Father's Shadow" has is not new territory for 'Law and Order: Special Victims Unit' and is one of the more typical ones of the 'Law and Order' franchise. But the franchise has proven a number of times that it can bring something new to familiar territory and do something complex with premises that sound on paper basic. The original 'Law and Order' was particularly good at this, as was early 'Special Victims Unit' (latter seasons not so much).

"Father's Shadow" turned out to be a very good episode. Thought so on first watch, and my feelings are the same still now. It does fall short of absolute greatness and was so close to being, until one part was not as good as the rest of the episode. It was very interesting to see a different side to Michael McKean and do it as well as he did and nearly everything is done incredibly well. Flaws are very few, but the couple of flaws there are are big enough to bring things down a bit.

Am going to start with the good. It is as ever shot with the right amount of intimacy without feeling too up close, even with a reliance of close up camerawork. That the editing has become increasingly tighter over-time is great too. The music isn't over-scored, manipulative or used too much. There is intimacy and tautness in the direction. The script is intelligent and lean with no signs of fat.

On the most part, the story is tense and suspenseful (even when the truth is not a surprise), intriguing to have a crime happening days before the SVU's involvement rather than on the day (the latter usually being the case up to this point of the show). The regulars are all fine, especially Mariska Hargitay with the meatiest material where her steel and empathy shines. Am another person who actually thought that Olivia was the one that made the most sense and the one that most cared in this dire situation. McKean plays a sleaze of a character so unsettlingly, a far cry from his roles in 'This is Spinal Tap' and 'Clue'. Also felt bad for Cameron Monaghan's character. Robert Kleenex is good value too.

However, not everything works. The Olivia and Haden subplot was not needed and Harry Connick Jr is still stiff and lacking in anything that makes his character in any way appealing.

Did find the climax too on the dragged out and contrived side.

Concluding, very well done. 8/10.

Very Frustrating to Watch

[stephenbooth-uk · 1/10 · 28 December 2016]

I've flagged this as containing a spoiler but I'm not sure you can really spoil an episode that was first shown over 4 years ago.

Really Benson should have been disciplined, probably sacked or at least demoted, for her actions in this episode. After she arrived on the scene where Eddie had taken his girlfriend and her daughter hostage the police had at least 5 low risk opportunities to end the situation. On each occasion Benson prevented them from doing so. She put the girlfriend, the daughter, her police colleagues, the public and her self at unnecessary risk to save Eddie's life. I got so frustrated that I was yelling at the screen "Take the shot!" and "That's a clean head shot there!". At one point one of the ESU at the front door has the muzzle of his weapon less than 6 inches from Eddie's head and a clear path across the apartment, if Benson hadn't interfered he could have ended the situation there and then with no unnecessary risk. Worst case he would have needed some counselling afterwards, but it would have been a textbook good shoot. Because Benson interfered the girlfriend needed to go to hospital, the daughter was traumatised and both Benson and Amaro were put in extreme risk. In the universe of the show she should have been disciplined and probably sacked.

In real life the writers of this episode should be, metaphorically speaking, taken out back and given a good kicking for lazy screen writing. It started out OK but rapidly went down hill, like the main writer had started the script but then gone sick so an intern finished it off the afternoon before filming was due to begin so they had a choice to shoot a very poor quality script or lose money by not shooting anything. It would have been better to miss an episode.

Unbearable

[lonetraveler86 · 1/10 · 21 December 2022]

Truly an awfully written episode. Extremely frustrating to watch Benson and her holier than thou attitude. The writing for seasons twelve and thirteen have been remarkably badly written. I'm really hoping it gets better soon. I'm also not liking the new cops and the fact that there are too many episodes that should have been given to different task forces...The only bright spot so far this season has been Gilbert Gottfried and Adam Driver geeking out over spy cams. But this episode has no bright spot whatsoever. I hope benson finds a good partner soon as well. She needs someone like Elliot to keep her likable. She needs a partner to call her on her bad takes.