Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 5 Episode 6 Review: ‘Red, White, Black and Blue’

On the surface, Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 5 Episode 6 is the story of the OCCB task force joining other members of the NYPD in hunting down Miguel Olivas, a Sinaloa lieutenant who murders four detectives from the ADA’s office and the ADA herself. So, what viewers might expect to see after the brutal cold open is a very uncomplicated, pro-cop story. In such a scenario, everyone encountered by Bell, Reyes, and Stabler would fit into two groups — either good cops…or evil cartel members. But this series doesn’t, as a general rule, do watered down. And so, we dive into murkier waters.

‘Red, White, Black and Blue’ visits more familiar, and more realistic, territory. The hour reminds us of something obvious — that police can be corrupt, and their loved ones can absolutely be complicit. And, on the flip side, a man who says his girlfriend is innocent might actually be telling the truth — no matter how much blood may be on his hands. Stabler has a history with one of the dead detectives and, during the investigation, he works with another detective who shares that past connection. So, he’s stuck at the center of a lot here, which means he has to make some difficult choices. The hardest one of all? Seeing what’s right in front of his face.

If the situation happens to put El at least somewhat at odds with Detective Reyes, who doesn’t have quite the same personal ties to the case but does make a human connection with Olivas’ girlfriend Lucero, well…let’s just say that just makes for great television — and an even more complex narrative. Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 5 Episode 6 is yet another compelling hour, beginning with that horrifying off-camera murder, featuring the types of performances from the cast we’ve come to expect, and even throwing in some surprises along the way. Revisiting this more honest idea — that the police aren’t always our heroes, and even when they are, they may be severely flawed — usually tends to work well for Organized Crime. This episode is no exception.

MORE: Elliot’s undercover stint with the Brotherhood in Season 2 was a strong look at bad cops, and it was always at its finest when Elliot’s feelings about his dad were at the forefront.

“I’m sorry you had to go through that.”

Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 5 Episode 6 highlights a lot of aspects of Detective Reyes that make him special. We’ve seen how good he is with undercover work, how tough he can be under pressure, and how well he can convince even the most hardened gang members that he’s one of them. (See also: His remarkably short, yet effective, time with Los Santos during their war with the Camorra in Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 5 Episode 4.) During this investigation, though, we see a completely different side of Bobby. Instead of a talent for becoming someone else and making a convincing show of loyalty and toughness, it’s his heart and compassion — as well as his ability to see a situation with clear eyes — that ultimately gets the job done.

When Detective Reyes initially meets Olivas’ girlfriend Lucero, she is clearly afraid, surrounded by officers who just won’t stop asking her questions she either can’t or won’t answer. Although he may not completely believe this woman’s story about Miguel keeping certain parts of his life separate from his relationship, Reyes still treats her like a human being. He speaks to her in a calm and reassuring tone, brings her into a separate room — away from the guys who have been, essentially, holding her hostage — and he even tells her he understands when she says she just wants to go home. That he also smoothly transitions in and out of speaking Spanish with her to make her feel more at ease is also very important. Again, it’s a matter of showing this person he sees her.

Imagine coming to a foreign country to support your boyfriend and leaving your child behind. You get here, and a simple shopping trip turns into being snatched off the streets, a bag thrown over your head. Then, these black-clad, armed shadows chain you up and take you to an unknown location. And when the person you came to support gets free in a violent, bloody way, you’re held indefinitely and questioned relentlessly by law enforcement. A nightmare. So, Reyes adding that little touch of a familiar language — of home — goes a long, long way. Here’s something they have in common, some familiarity he can give back after her ordeal with all these strangers.

Reyes’ support for this woman doesn’t stop there. Later, when Stabler interrogates her, having Bobby in the room gives her someone to look to for reassurance — and someone to remind Stabler, just by being there and sharing those little concerned glances with him, of who he is. Because McKenna bursting in there with those photographs of Lucero’s “kidnapped” son and parents is, um, disturbing AF. Terrifying and rage-inducing, actually. If it doesn’t upset you that a cop would use a child against his mother and/or elderly parents against their daughter like that, ask yourself why. And, for what it’s worth, Elliot Stabler knows better.

Throughout Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 5 Episode 6, as Reyes connects with this person — and, rightfully, is wary (at best) of McKenna — Rick Gonzalez delivers on an understated, yet excellent performance. That first reaction to Lucero claiming the cops had Miguel’s wife and daughter killed is one of utter shock and horror. Later, when she turns to him for support, naming McKenna as the one responsible for those murders, that ever-so-quick look of alarm in the direction of a man he just had a bad reaction to prior to the interrogation is yet another brilliant moment.

And we absolutely can’t leave Kiara Liz out of the discussion. There’s not a moment when we don’t believe Lucero is afraid, maybe even a little desperate. Liz is equally good, if not better, when she has her emotional outburst in the face of the cop responsible for so much suffering. Kinda can’t leave out her complete air of “b—ch, please” when Stabler alleges that she put herself in this situation either.

There’s a very real conversation to be had here about how Lucero is racially profiled, treated more harshly than scared family members in other criminal investigations, and even talked about like an object. (“The girlfriend,” whose name Reyes makes a point of saying in response to McKenna not using it.) A parallel conversation would be about how important it is to make sure spaces are more diverse, equitable, and inclusive as a way of avoiding that type of treatment. But we don’t actually need to write anything on the subject because it’s vividly portrayed in Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 5 Episode 6…and, you know, all over. Everywhere.

MORE: Don’t miss our Rick Gonzalez interview.

“This is fate”

In case we weren’t already well aware (we are), Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 5 Episode 6 shows us that the cop Elliot Stabler is — or at least works, every day, to try to be — and the cop he was are not the same man. ‘Red, White, Black and Blue’ sets this conversation up with a very pointed, yet not explicitly stated, request from the Chief of Detectives for Elliot to close Miguel Olivas’ case by any means necessary. It’s an incredibly tense exchange that clearly has Elliot anything but comfortable. Despite his obvious misgivings, though, Stabler makes it clear that he understands what Saubert is saying and will “do what needs to be done” when the time comes.

As we learn, again through subtext and nonverbal communication, Elliot chooses to do the right thing and arrest a severely-injured Miguel. (Instead of doing the one thing that could have guaranteed he’d never be able to hurt anyone ever again.) Basically, he does the thing viewers know is more in character — not the thing everyone on the force assumes is his preferred M.O. As in, Moses Warren from IAB proven wrong, yet again. But that’s not to say that Detective Stabler is anywhere near perfect. At times, he’s blinded by being too close to Detective McKenna, as well as their shared desire to get justice for Tommy Da Silva.

That Elliot tries to defend his old pal and his “ruse” to Sergeant Bell is simultaneously disappointing — Elliot, really? Mr. Family Man??? For shame — and completely understandable. Again, they both want to catch this guy who murdered not just any cops, but at least one Stabler and McKenna both worked on an anti-crime task force with. Not to mention, when you randomly run into someone from your past, it’s easy to fall into old patterns. But, deep down, El knows better. And he knows he knows better.

So, when Bell tells him about the sealed DEA file, Stabler goes to confront McKenna. But not before we get a moment from Christopher Meloni during his exit. If you didn’t catch it, go back and watch the way he pauses, looks like he’s been wounded, and then yanks his jacket down before storming out. All it takes to get that reaction is Reyes merely asking what the other guy’s deal is.

Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 5 Episode 6 includes a number of excellent scenes. But the one where Elliot asks Tim if Lucero’s claim, that he had Miguel’s family killed, is true just might be the best of the best. Meloni and guest star Jason Patric bring something special here. These two characters are dealing with a lifetime of scars and regrets, and both actors give us a compelling look at what that’s like. But they do it in very different ways. Patric’s energy is so…much throughout — first with that “righteous” anger, then breaking down. Meanwhile, Meloni gives us all of Elliot’s turmoil through a certain quiet tension. With El at a loss for words, the awkward, frozen expression upon realizing what his friend’s actions caused screams volumes. The emotions are just as strong, but they’re held in, to whatever extent Elliot can manage.

…and the two men are opposite sides of the same coin, mirror images of one another, even. Elliot sees his own mistakes and regrets in his friend, and Elliot’s reaction is that reflection of just how bad Tim feels about all of it. If we were to reverse the names in that statement, it would still hold. As the scene builds, it’s those final couple of admissions that land the hardest. And no, Elliot can’t help his friend — doesn’t have the words to make him feel better, though he tries — because he’s never been able to forgive himself for his own faults.

Now. Compare all of this to what we learn about Da Silva. He fully started breaking the law when he was supposed to be upholding it, and it cost him his life (uh, and a lot of other lives) in the end. McKenna is actually the first person to come to the conclusion that something was going on there, while at least initially, Elliot pushed back on that one. Why? Because even when he hates himself for getting it wrong, he’s still never considered not at least trying to get it right. Through that key difference between these two and the third member of their former group, Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 5 Episode 6 adds yet another layer of truth to its storytelling. The range from “good guy” to “bad guy” is very, very wide. And it has many, many shades of gray.

MORE: In Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 5 Episode 5, Bernie asked Elliot what kind of cop he thinks Eli will be. This episode makes that question even more interesting.

More on Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 5 Episode 6

• You know when you see Eriq La Salle listed as the director, it’s going to be good — and it was.
• I love how that opening with Lucero getting “hooked” and surrounded by those guys with guns gives the impression that some kind of criminal organization has her. Because, um. Yeah.
• “Who’s the perp?” “Just get down here.” Petition for this man to just listen the first time Ayanna tells him something. Just once!
• “She will get the kind of time that turns something beautiful…into something…not so beautiful.” Stuff like this makes me not even sorry to see Da Silva meet his untimely demise.
• I would like to point out that Emilio Rivera does some phenomenal work in this episode. He played a Miguel that was genuinely afraid for Lucero but completely and totally remorseless when it came to telling the chilling beginning of his origin story.
• “One of them was a woman. She fought, and fought, and she fought so hard…I cut out her eyes and kept them in a jewelry box just to remind me of her courage.” Dear God. Tag yourself: I’m ADA Frasier looking like she’s gonna vomit.
• The way she slid away on that floor, begged…and we still heard the pounding to death.
• A typewriter????
• “Heyyyy, at least we don’t have rats and mice down here.” Is that…to imply…the usual office…does??? (Or has Reyes just been watching The Pitt.)
• “Oh, sh—” indeed.
• That long line of cops on the way to the crime scene. And. All. That. Blood. OMFG.
• Organized Crime stop making Elliot Stabler lose people challenge.
• “…which, in case that’s not clear, means the devil.” I cracked up.
• “…this F—ing animal.” Something about a “F—ing virus” later. Hm. Yep. Dehumanization is one way to compartmentalize and do the job.
• Love seeing Bell at that table, holding her own as a leader. My main criticism for Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 5 Episode 6, and the season as a whole, remains that we’re not getting anything big for her, though. Admittedly, this episode gives her more, I think, than we’ve had so far. But still.
• “Good. Whole world’s gonna be watching us. It’s time we get to be the heroes in the story again.” Hm. And implying that a detective should use excessive force will totally accomplish that! (Tag yourself: I’m Elliot looking like he wants to hack up a particularly large hairball after that exchange.)
• …also. How did this man get to be Chief of Detectives without being able to detect Elliot’s extreme discomfort? Talk about white dudes failing up.
• “Look: I heard what they did. Even I think it’s F—ed up.” Reyes, sir, that “even” doesn’t need to be there.
• “They were burned alive.” “By cops?” Pretty sure I already said this up above, but mannnn is Gonzalez’s expression everything in this moment. Up until this point, Reyes kept his cool and didn’t show a lot of emotion around how his colleagues did business. But this was just too much emotion for him to contain.
• That notification scene and “hand of God” story…Just Meloni doing Meloni things.
• It’s like you can actually watch the wheels turn in Elliot’s head after McKenna lays out all his findings about Da Silva. That awful moment of realization is so powerful, too.
• “You guys spooked her. Black-bagging people like the F—ing CIA? We’d be lucky to get her to agree to a lunch order, let alone talk.” GET HIM, BOBBY.
• “You had her family kidnapped?” If looks could kill…
• “And you knew about this?” GET HIM, AYANNA. HE KNOWS BETTER.
• “Detective. This is my house. Which means there’s only one rule.”
• Ayanna Bell, folks. Just that one interaction. Such. A. Boss.
• Mannnnn, this whole action sequence at Grand Central. That’s, like, old school Organized Crime.
• Elliot’s little hat!
• “All of a sudden, you’re the king of the Irish goodbyes?” I feel gaslit. Just like when he gave Jet a hard time in Episode 3.
• The three very different ways Elliot asks “is it true” and the loaded pause after the last one, before McKenna answers.
• “I can’t look at my own daughter without seeing his, and I F—ing hate him for it. And I F—ing hate everything he’s done. But i hate myself more. For everything I did.” Love the way Patric leans in, with that almost conspiratorial tone, on the part about McKenna hating himself more than Olivas. Woww.
• The shot of Elliot behind Tim, like pleading with him over his shoulder, and Tim blurred in the foreground. Art.
• I see Reyes’ hunch was right.
• “You all have given everything you have to this city. To this job. And look how they treat you. All these new policies now? Pushing cops out. No pension? Nothing to fall back on. And Tommy wasn’t going to let us end up broke and penniless.” Check out this clown, versus Lucero. Yet, nobody would’ve treated her like less than an animal and automatically assumed she was guilty AF. Can’t qwhite guess why.
• Good for Elliot, throwing the “gave everything” part back at her and telling her about Anne Frasier’s family, too.
• Oof. His intense look.
• Not sure Stabler and Reyes should be having that conversation in front of the CI but ok.
• The “help me” and cutting to black so we have that split second of doubt about what Elliot would do…
• “Sir. What you said earlier about me being comfortable with violence…Maybe I am. But lately, it’s what comes after that doesn’t feel right.”
• I still have questions about whether Tommy was the only fully corrupt guy here.
• That empty office when Elliot calls Eli, man.

Agree? Disagree? What did you think of Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 5 Episode 6? Leave us a comment!

New episodes of Law & Order: Organized Crime stream each Thursday on Peacock.