Noah gives Olivia a scare. The team catches a tough case and has to backtrack DNA from a prolific philanderer. Dodds is having difficulty with the job.Noah gives Olivia a scare. The team catches a tough case and has to backtrack DNA from a prolific philanderer. Dodds is having difficulty with the job.Noah gives Olivia a scare. The team catches a tough case and has to backtrack DNA from a prolific philanderer. Dodds is having difficulty with the job.
- Detective Amanda Rollins
- (credit only)
- Detective Odafin 'Fin' Tutuola
- (as Ice T)
- ADA Rafael Barba
- (credit only)
- Lady in Park
- (as Ali Wentworth)
- Stella
- (as Alice Barrett Mitchell)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThis episode is the fictionalized account of the murder of Yara Gambirasio in Italy.
- GoofsAs Carisi is asking Lily's parents about her password, he asks about her cat's name...but it's impossible to input that on an iPad's numerical password screen (which is what appears when he shows her parents). Not a goof: the numbers on a password screen can be used the same as the letters on a telephone keypad. For instance, "cat" can be typed as "228" for a password (or "5459" for "Lily").
- Quotes
[last lines]
Olivia Benson: Paperwork can wait.
Mike Dodds: Yeah. Lily's parents... they're never gonna get over this, are they?
Olivia Benson: Losing a child? No.
Mike Dodds: You have a kid. That's gotta make this job harder.
Olivia Benson: Yeah, it does. You know, Dodds, I'm gonna tell you something that I wish somebody had told me after my first tough case. Go home. Talk to somebody you love, and don't make this job your whole life.
Unfortunately, "Melancholy Pursuit" is one of those episodes that is nowhere near as good as advertised with one of the bigger disappointments being the aspect that drew me into seeing the episode the most. Didn't care for "Melancholy Pursuit" on first watch, finding it an episode that promised so much more than it delivered, and my opinions are pretty much exactly the same now (having seen some episodes recently where initial opinions have changed).
By all means, it is not an all round terrible episode. The photography while very close up doesn't come over as too static or filmed play-like, while the production values are typically solid and have subtle atmosphere while not being drab and keeping things simple. When the music is used it is haunting and has a melancholic edge that is not overdone.
Also thought that the regular performances were very good, all things considered. As well as the supporting performances. Wonderful to see Tamara Tunie return.
Did feel however that "Melancholy Pursuit" was very misleadingly promoted, with the opening scene being nowhere near as tense or as sinister as advertised. It also didn't feel needed. The story is too thin and predictable, namely with the flimsy prosecution case and the pace is dull. There are also too many loose ends, a big example being with the semen which is not only not explained but is practically dropped.
Too much of the dialogue lacks tautness and is trite. Dodds is bland and doesn't fit, his reaction to the body is pretty wimpy considering his rank.
Concluding, not a waste of time but could have been a lot better. 4/10.
- TheLittleSongbird
- Sep 22, 2022