Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (TV Series) Internal Affairs (2013) User Reviews

A corrupt cop in a corrupt precinct.

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 31 December 2014]

This episode focuses on a corrupt cop in a corrupt precinct. At his new assignment Dean Winters is told of a cop who likes to pick up women who are drunk and vulnerable and rape them. Just whom are those victims likely to call?

When he reports this to Internal Affairs that gets Robert John Burke's attention. In what amounts to chutzpah of the year award he goes to Dann Florek and asks for SVU's help. Still it's a sex crime and that is what they are in business apprehend.

Without a hesitation SVU does a sting operation with Kelli Giddish playing very effectively a drunken women who looks to have partied too hardy. But it nearly goes wrong.

David Conrad whom we are told is married and has a kid doesn't look like the type who would have to force his attentions on women. Watching him as the cop rapist you wonder what gave him the idea to use the badge as a sexual hunting license.

As Conrad's partner Nadia Dajani is even more terrifying. She's a plain Jane type 40 something who has this Statue of Liberty size torch for Conrad. She aids and abets in everything he perpetrates in the hopes he'll notice her some day. Truly pathetic and Dajani is the most effective one in this show.

Seeing Florek tell off Burke in the end is worth the whole show.

Dirty Cops

[marysammons-42220 · 8/10 · 28 October 2019]

Good episode overall. But does anyone think that when Benson was talking to Quinn about her partner that some of that was about Elliot. Elliot wasn't dirty but could she be thinking how all those years she secretly loved him and hoped he'd love her too. She'd never have done anything or expected him to cheat but maybe she wished he'd decide on his own she was the one he couldn't live without.

Near perfect affairs

[TheLittleSongbird · 9/10 · 1 August 2022]

Anybody who has read any of my other reviews for for example individual episodes of the 'Law and Order' shows, am slowly working my way through writing reviews for all the episodes of 'Law and Order, 'Special Victims Unit' (and 'Criminal Intent' until just under a year ago) with a long way to go, will know already how much admiration there is from me for anything that tackles difficult and controversial themes and issues. This episode is no exception, not new territory but 'Special Victims Unit' has done many topics more than once and fared well.

"Internal Affairs" does a great job with its subject matter. As an episode it is not quite as great as "Imprisoned Lives" and especially "Surrender Benson", but it sees a quick return to form in quality after the very disappointing "American Tragedy". While not being a fan of one character, "Internal Affairs" does really well balancing a compelling case with lovely character moments. If an episode of 'Special Victims Unit' or any show manages to achieve that balance, it's already an at least above average episode, and this is well above that.

Will admit to still not caring for Dr Lindstrom, and don't buy Bill Irwin in the role. He is meant to be a sympathetic character but when one sees his recurring guest role on this show and compares it to what made him so memorably creepy in 'CSI', the creepiness is not easy to shake off. Lindstrom also comes over inappropriately in one scene, not in a sinister way but in that his behaviour is too close in context to the job.

However, everything else is great. The production values are suitably slick and gritty, with photography that is reliant on close ups that have an intimacy without being too claustrophobic. The music is didn't come over as too melodramatic or like it was emphasising the emotion too much. The direction is sympathetic while still giving momentum.

Script is very sharp, thoughtful and punchy, there is a lot of talk but it doesn't feel too much and is not hard to understand. The subject is handled tactfully but at the same time also unflinchingly, while not being too sleazy. The story is compelling, kept me guessing and Cassidy's conflict didn't come over as forced. Neither did the role of Internal Affairs, Tucker is one of those love to hate characters but he was fine here and it was good that the relationship wasn't as acrimonious.

Performances from the regulars are uniformly good while David Conrad and Nadia Dajani terrify in their guest roles. There are some lovely character moments, namely the sweet scene between Olivia and a more sympathetic Amaro and Rollins' funny drunk imitation.

Concluding, great. 9/10.

If the rapist is in uniform

[yazguloner · 10/10 · 2 August 2021]

It's a good article on corrupt, dirty cops.

Uniformed cops are the gang that sets up their net by trying to hunt down drunk women.

Symbolically, the head of the corrupt police gang is black. One of the partners is a policewoman. The other is married and has children.

This iconic trio of the police gang carries the message that "whoever you are, you are corrupt, whatever you are."

There are so many great things about this episode

[whoneedsascreenname · 9/10 · 27 August 2023]

"Internal Affairs" is an SVU 2.0 banger.

Story here features a pair of super-dirty uni's working as partners at an ordinary Manhattan precinct -- headquarters for their sick SA operation

Enter Ed Tucker, who sells Cassidy, Cragen and Benson on an IA scheme to bust the creeps -- while allowing Cassidy (now Olivia's bf) an opportunity to earn back his detective shield

Cassidy goes to work alongside slimebag officers West & Quinn (stand-out performance by Nadia Dajani) on the pretense that he's now been 'moved up' from his recent demotion to the Bronx

The plan also calls for a bit of deft UC work from Fin and Rollins, (Kelli Giddish in another top moment), while testing the resilience of the still-reforming Benson/Cassidy relationship

But the capper of this fast, well written episode (by Kevin Fox), is the heart-wrench when Benson confronts Quinn about the delusional torch she carries for her partner

"You spent the last five years hoping he'd suddenly turn to you and realize you're the woman he can't live without. . ."

Benson didn't speak all that much about Stabler during 2.0, but this scene was a whole decade of feels in two stellar minutes. Hit us right in the Stablers.

This is the handsome man episode

[schwa88 · 8/10 · 18 February 2024]

The actors playing West, Cassidy, and Tucker, all very appealing, three cuties in one episode, wow!

They should have telegraphed earlier the motive of West's partner for covering up for him, as for the first forty-five minutes it's laughable and irritating. The mind goes all over the map trying to figure this out, and concludes pretty much what the episode tells us, but a bit of subtle foreshadowing would have been nice.

Also, what year is this when all the cops are white? Not likely in the 21st century. The episode has the feel of a seventies Kojak episode, which altogether is not a bad thing, but I don't think that's what they were aiming for.