Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 4 Episode 10 Review: Crossroads

Just when we think the current OCCB case couldn’t get any more thrilling or heartbreaking, they pull a fast one on us. If we are being completely honest, our hearts still haven’t recovered from Jamie’s death at the end of Season 3.

Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 4 Episode 10, “Crossroads,” takes character death to another dimension in how it handles the murder of Sam Bashir. There is the initial shock of learning his fate and then the little nuances along the way that really drive home how devastating it all is.

Just when this case is starting to get to a place where things could become repetitive or unmoving, the writers throw us this wrench. It’s the perfect setup to keep the investigation fresh and complicated.

Stabler Learns First

The shock and heartbreak on Stabler’s face when he discovers that the body he is being forced to bury is one of his own is a hell of a way to open the episode. The great thing about Law & Order: Organized Crime is that it’s never been afraid to go to the extreme ends of what could happen undercover.

We’ve seen Stabler do all kinds of questionable things before and know it’s just the nature of the game. However, what if the thing you have to do means actually going against your own? That’s when things get dicey.

Meloni does a phenomenal job of conveying Stabler’s real feelings about the situation at hand through microexpressions. Viewers can see, clear as day, that Stabler’s heart is breaking, and he’s thinking about Bashir’s wife and kids.

The added use of flashback is vital to driving home the emotionality of it being Stabler who is forced to bury this body in an unmarked grave. And his mixed feelings about it carry over into his interaction with Angus Boone. 

What could be a nail in the coffin for Stabler actually endears him to the leader even further. By putting a spin on it, saying that Bashir was a Marine, which is why it’s messing him up, Stabler shows Boone that he’s got similar ideals as the older man — at least on the surface.

Alerting Bell and the Team Is Another Deep Cut

The way Stabler manages to get word to OCCB that Bashir is dead might be even more heartbreaking than if he had said it directly. It comes directly after Bell, undercover, talks about losing members of her “unit” and wondering how she’s still alive.

It’s a level of emotion Law & Order: Organized Crime doesn’t usually allow from the fearless leader of the team. Sargeant Bell is worse than Stabler when it comes to just pushing things down, like the death of Jamie.

And that’s the kicker, isn’t it? The OCCB team is recovering, not fully healed, from the death of Jamie mere months ago. They’ve let Bashir into their ranks and really connected with him. Only for him to die, too.

This is a loss that is going to be felt by the team for months maybe even years to come. It’s a little too much too soon, but it does a great job of illustrating the risks each of these detectives takes while on the job.

Out of everyone’s reaction to Bashir’s death, Jet’s might be the most heartbreaking. She’s always been someone who wears her heart on her sleeve, and this time is no different.

Ainsley Seiger really draws you in with her sad eyes and devastated expression. Even when she accompanies Bell to inform Stacey, Jet hangs back and can’t fully immerse herself in the heartbreak unfolding before her. She’s too wrapped up in her own grief to be of any real support to anyone else.

The Involvement of Stabler’s Younger Brother

To top it off, the writers take things a step further when they connect Joe Jr.’s actions to the same vehicle that picked up Bashir. That vehicle belongs to Red Coat who is the man above Angus Boone in the whole drug smuggling operation.

What makes things even worse is that Joe Jr.’s job, the winery working out of a warehouse in Manhattan, contains evidence linking the location to Bashir’s death. While no one comes out and says it, everyone is thinking about it. Joe Jr. probably has something to do with the death of Sam Bashir.

It’s already hard enough on Stabler that he couldn’t protect Sam or his family. Imagine what guilt that man is going to carry if it comes out that Joe Jr. has direct ties to the murder.

What continues to make Law & Order: Organized Crime great is the focus it gives particular events within the stories it tells. Bashir’s death could’ve happened and then been brushed under the rug, but instead, all of “Crossroads” is devoted to the immediate ramifications of that loss.

Stray Thoughts:

• Trisha is ATF, damn Angus Boone has all kinds of undercover agents in his operation, and he doesn’t even know it.
• That situation with the mentally unstable vet, Nolan, made my heart stop for a few seconds
• The deeper Stabler gets on this particular assignment, the more I worry about not only his physical well-being but his mental as well. He hasn’t had war flashbacks in decades, and now he’s having them.
• I’m truly going to miss Sam. I really liked him and thought he was going to be a more permanent fixture on the team. Especially with how he bonded with Stabler.

 

What did you think of this episode of Law & Order: Organized Crime? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Critic Rating:

User Rating:

 

Law & Order: Organized Crime airs Thursdays at 10/9c on NBC.

 Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram!

Want more from Tell-Tale TV? Subscribe to our newsletter here!