‘Law & Order: Organized Crime’ 4×06 Review: “Beyond the Sea”

Law & Order: Organized Crime 4×06 “Beyond the Sea” is a continuation of the Rita Lasku case. It’s a chapter in the investigation that makes clear just how much close-knit towns that seem quiet on the surface may be screaming of corruption underneath. But much like the town of Westbrook has a dark underbelly, so, too, does this episode. Because it’s not just the next stage of an investigation. No.

This is still, perhaps more than ever, the story of a man who’s seen too much, suffered too much, and is therefore left to grapple with whether or not the faith he’s carried his whole life has any meaning. And it’s the story of a society, whether it’s the small town Westbrook or really anywhere at all, that abandons women and girls — especially those who do sex work. Additionally, it’s about what we’re willing to do for family, whether it be the one we’re born into — one that, for Chief Bonner, is rotten to its core and desperate to cling to power — or the one we’ve built around us. 

Scratch the surface, and you’ll find all of these things and so much more. Because, as usual, Law & Order: Organized Crime isn’t just your run of the mill procedural. And, also as usual, we can’t help but marvel at how much better it is than anything else that claims to have similar goals, or be of the same “type,” on TV. 

Welcome to Bonnerville

When we first met her, Chief Bonner came across as almost too antagonistic, to the point where it seemed like she was directly part of a coverup. Like she knew what happened to girls like Rita and Christine and wanted nothing more than to block Elliot’s progress every step of the way. This is a fine enough, if done well, sort of villain story. So, the series could’ve stuck with that initial sense of corruption and would have been just fine.

This, however, is not your usual procedural. So, we didn’t go the most fully-expected route. Instead, Law & Order: Organized Crime 4×06 creates a much, much more interesting character. And a much, much, much more believable one, at that. We learn that Meredith Bonner, for all her issues and all the people she may “owe,” actually does want to do the right thing. She’s still part of the problem — at least somewhat, yet not how we might have initially thought. As in, this character is right in this series’ most comfortable area, one that most shows just can not get right — the gray area. The nuanced one.

As we see early in “Beyond the Sea,” Chief Bonner is the sole powerful woman in a sea of powerful, wealthy white dudes summoned to Cahill’s house. And, when Judge Bonner — yes, relation — volunteers his daughter as someone who knows “some things need to stay buried,” there’s both a reminder of her place and even a little bit of a threat there. All of these people are watching, she only has her position because of who her father is, and she’d better fall in line. But…she doesn’t. She does what every woman in that situation would do — take the micro-aggression and swallow down the acid it causes to rise up the back of her throat — but then, she tries to reason with her father in private.

Unfortunately, his idea of “fatherly advice” is…not fatherly at all. “This is the biggest case of your career, but your job right now is to protect our quiet, little community and everything we worked so hard to build here.” Imagine being a parent who acknowledges how important this is to his daughter, yet cares more about their town’s reputation than her having any level of real, earned success. Certainly won’t ever be Elliot Stabler.

While the Chief may not give as much pushback as we’d like, she does at least try. And, more importantly, she actually helps Detective Suspension Stabler with the investigation. Not only that, but she’s genuinely interested in what his gut tells him about the killer and really follows his lead here. The problem is, of course, that the very same gut she knows to trust figures her out, too. The back-and-forth between Jennifer Ehle and Christopher Meloni when Stabler finally calls Bonner out is so very interesting. There’s so much to show that Bonner’s simultaneously a willing participant in the investigation and a reluctant one. Additionally, she’s defensive against his accusations, yet extremely weak about it. Her excuse about knowing these people, too, is really more about her own embarrassment and trying to justify it than at all trying to convince the detective.

And when Meredith leaves to go have dinner with dear ol’ Dad, Elliot just can not figure out what to make of her or the situation. A blend of confusion, suspicion, and disgust that melts away — yet doesn’t quite settle on respect — settles on Meloni’s face in the second after Ehle’s character leaves.

And then, the dinner. Here, Ehle takes over from Meloni and tells her own story without doing much at all. Those sideways glances Meredith directs at her father are so loaded. They give us a ton of information, yet in the most understated way possible. She’s sizing the judge up, wondering what he might or might not know, and — just like earlier at Cahill’s house — she stands up to him…but not really. And when he shuts her down, she shows what she really thinks only when no one (but us) is looking.

As it turns out, every instinct we have about Clay is right. He’s a killer, just not the killer. But his complete lack of care for all those dead women is certainly telling. It’s chilling, how Carradine manages to portray the way his character just completely shuts off his empathy switch in order to protect what he values. In fact, Clay doesn’t seem to show anything other than just…emptiness. Even when he admits, without admitting, that he’s behind the DA’s death. No confession here — just a demand for gratitude from his serial killer of a son.

This town is so much uglier than it wants outsiders to believe, as are a lot of towns like it. But they never seem to get the same reputations as, say, the big, “scary” cities. Can’t q-white figure out why.

Officer Monte Cristo goes up in flames

Law & Order: Organized Crime 4×06 does some fascinating things with the character of Elliot Stabler. He’s who he’s always been, sure. Those early scenes where he just stands there, a rock that’s quiet in his own suffering as Rita’s friend Heidi uses him for comfort and support, are more than enough proof there. Same goes for the way he blows Jet off when she mentions his appointment with IAB, as well as the way he just wants to get that whole mess over with. Even working on this case, when he’s suspended from his actual job, is about as Stabler as it gets.

But there’s that stunning scene on the beach where Elliot burns his copy of The Count of Monte Cristo, even removing the cross from around his neck and putting it in that book before tossing it in the flames. Officer Monte Cristo, Rita Lasku’s savior, is dead. With him, maybe some part of Elliot’s savior — certainly some part of his faith and hope — might also be dead. At the very least, it’s clear he at least thinks he’s done in the moment.

But Elliot hasn’t really lost his faith, even if he’s someone at an awfully low point. He simply can’t totally discard that part of himself as easily as a book or a chain — because it’s his foundation. It guides him. After all, he’s still trying to save the vulnerable. He can’t help Rita anymore, but he may yet still save someone when he gets his answers — the next girl, and the next, and the next. And, even as he wants to leave so much behind as his God has failed Rita and him, Elliot doesn’t even need to think before realizing what the stigmata marks on the body are, or even what the history of “one of those fish some people put on their cars” (same, Chief. Same) is before knowing.

Because even when he’s at his lowest, when he has his deepest doubts, whatever lessons his faith may have taught him, he will never unlearn. And while we can certainly get into the dangers of what happens when we take our beliefs too literally — history and current events have plenty to say there — those core teachings of love, and compassion, of pursuing justice and doing the right thing even when it’s the most difficult thing are a part of what makes Elliot Stabler the good man he is. Yes, his time as Rita Lasku’s Officer Monte Cristo may be over, may have ended in disaster. And his fight for her may be what kept him alive under the mask of Eddie Ashes as he was hiding from his own suffering by going undercover.

But whatever he thinks he discarded in those flames, he simply did not. Instead, what needed destroying was the running, the anger, the vengeance. All those things led him nowhere. Along that path lies death. But along another, may finally lie redemption.

“A pattern of behavior”

So, with all that being said, it’s utterly and completely heartbreaking to have to point out something else about Law & Order: Organized Crime 4×06. That, namely, would be the IAB meeting itself. A crisis of faith, after such a profound loss, makes sense. And, as we’ve detailed, it’s not really like the crisis is…necessarily as deep as Elliot may feel like it is in the moment. But he doubts himself. To switch gears back to the IAB side of things, Detective Stabler is not, in any way, the “poster boy for rage” he once was. Not even here, where he’s being difficult and uncooperative. There are many, many good reasons for that. Growth-related ones, even. Positive growth!

The difficult part to swallow, however, is that at least part of why he doesn’t go fully into fight mode is because he’s just too worn down. Everything he does to defend himself is half hearted, the most stark example being the “I’m not my father” line. Meloni, like, barely delivers on that. No conviction there, with just enough something at the end of the sentence that manages to be neither a statement nor even a question. He not only doesn’t know but doesn’t even know if he knows, can not trust whatever conclusion is rattling about in his head. This is a setback for the character, full stop. Because, at least in the past, whether he believed it or not, he could play just enough into that “Unstabler” reputation to stand up for himself. Not so here.

We thought he’d finally started to learn that he was worthy, that he wasn’t like Joe. But, sometimes before you can really start over and take a true step forward, you need some steps back. It’s painful to watch, but it makes total sense with where the character is in his latest series of hardships. But what makes this turn particularly strong is how much Elliot is proving how many lesson’s he’s learned, even as he seems to think he’s still his father’s son. To close the section with a full circle comment here, it’s just…utterly and completely fascinating what “Beyond the Sea” does with Elliot.

And we didn’t even fully scratch that surface, both in terms of trying to break it all down and in terms of what could possibly be next for this series and this character.

More on Law & Order: Organized Crime 4×06

• Ok but how do they even have the budget for all these gorgeous shots?
• This title. Seriously? Raise your hand if you knew it would hurt because The X-Files.
• Obligatory “cheer up emo kid” comment about Elliot on the beach. Especially when he puts his hood up.
• All that guilt this man carries. And this handful of scenes is like a couple tear drops compared to his ocean of angst. Oof.
• His face when he wakes up…that is one haunted old man.
• Chuckled a bit at the abrupt way El cut the call, probably shouldn’t have.
• Speaking of IAB: Is he ever going to find out who “Ed” was or…???
• “The task before us now is to, uh, clean up this mess as quickly as possible.” Ah, yes. That’s the important part, not justice for the victims. Frank Lundy from Dexter would never. (Anyone else incapable of seeing Keith Carradine without thinking of him?)
• “We have dead bodies in cold storage, and you’re telling me protecting our town’s reputation is our job right now?” That part.
• “Keep getting better.” I love how he gives great advice to everyone but himself.
• Love everything Ainsley Seiger does in this episode. Her character’s best moment is probably when she stands up to Captain Shah, defending Elliot’s — and really the whole team’s — need to find justice for Rita. But for Seiger, it’s everything those eyes say immediately after Shah actually agrees (!!!). So much stunned, fragile hope there. Maybe even a little bit of guilt for her initial judgement of the other woman. Brilliant.
• “…a combination of charm, brute force…” Elliot Stabler, folks.
• Meloni can create so much with so little. For some clear evidence, check out his subtle, yet powerful, reaction to seeing the body. (And then, send help.)
• “Looks like our boy’s a true believer.” Again. Elliot. Even his doubts, as far as this girl from a (different) tradition that encourages questioning even God himself is concerned, is proof of his utter and complete belief.
• “I have this terrible feeling that, um…no one cares.” Society really, truly does not. The people in power do not. However, [clears throat], ELLIOT STABLER CARES.
• “Justice? I don’t think there will be any justice for those poor women.” Someone call Captain Benson. She’s got another girl boss to add to her growing squad.
• Anyone else initially get “they’re totally going to frame Elliot” out of that “one way or another”?
• “I hope you like takeout and video games.” Correct.
• Heidi’s grin, Jet’s tiny smile…help.
• “He told me I should get out more. Be with…people.” Now, why do I feel attacked?
• “See you in church.” Yeah…way too spot on with how a certain element that can get away with murder gets to pretend to be “respectable” and “religious.”
• “You might be surprised by my tolerance for weird.” ME.
• “I don’t know. I’m not his mother — thank God.” The way I feel seen…
• “My father, the honorable Clay Bonner.” This line delivery. Yes.
• When Elliot puts his head in hands…I’m done.
• The artsy touch of those flowers on the ground.
• “This is about you.” Chief Bonner has caught up to the entire premise of this series. Good for her!
• “You’re…gonna call a serial killer.” “Do you have a better idea.” They are funny! No Bell/Stabler, but I’ll take it for now!
• “Luckily, the bastard wasn’t here when I got home or I would’ve shot him.” Go off!!
• ...but also, whatever y’all do, don’t think about Olivia Benson and…that.
• DA Cahill, gone…not soon enough, really. Rot in H-E-double-sticks, dude from Dollhouse who has the same last name as Harvey Specter’s SEC boyfriend. You weren’t a good guy anyway.
• Now, why is Bobby’s hat on like that???
• He couldn’t save Rita, but he could save Heidi.
• Whatever you do, don’t think about how he would’ve had those very same very good instincts for finding Liv…except stronger.
• “Hey, it’s alright. I got you.” Sobbing.
• The way Seiger barely lets the corner of her mouth lift as Jet’s reaction to Heidi thanking her.
• Imagine if El had given Liv anywhere near what Bobby’s giving Jet right now.
• IMAGINE. IF.
• Coffee!!!!
• “Cheers. Nice work.” “So, how come I don’t feel like celebrating.” He’s, like, ragged here. Someone comfort this poor old man!
• I’d say the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, but well. First off, the Stablers are proof to the contrary. And second, Eric is even more soulless than his daddy? At least Clay has the capacity to care somewhat about something?
• …and we’ll see you on March 14 to suffer more.

Thoughts on Law & Order: Organized Crime 4×06 “Beyond the Sea”? Leave us a comment!

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