Law & Order: SVU Season 28 Episode 2 Review: ‘Midway’

Law & Order: SVU Season 28 Episode 2 “Midway” is a devastating hour. It’s also one that clearly shows how trauma and tragedy can lead to an endless cycle of more trauma and tragedy. When the team rushes to search for a 9-year-old boy named Leo who goes missing at a carnival, it’s heartbreaking enough that he disappears at all. But he’s already suffered his uncle’s abuse and is still at a terribly difficult stage of healing, which makes the situation much worse. Then, there’s the outcome of his case—even our elite squad can’t save him. It’s a difficult episode to sit with, but sometimes, that’s what makes great TV. (This is one of those times.)

But Leo’s story isn’t the only gutting one in this episode because, ultimately, we learn that the kidnapper is a victim herself—one who’s been missing since she was a child. She’s been brainwashed, and groomed, and assaulted for years. So, in Mary’s mind, she just saw a terrified little boy and thought she was saving him from his angry father. Given her history, this is far from a black and white situation.

As ADA Hawkins puts it at one point, “we have to decide what exactly justice looks like in this case.” Based on how things end—a kid whose last moments had to be terrifying and painful, overwhelming guilt and grief for so many, one mother who’s lost everything, another who thought she’d gotten her daughter back only to lose her all over again, and even Captain Curry visibly rattled—the answer is that there actually isn’t an answer. Nobody wins. Because sometimes, a “win” just isn’t possible. All we can do is try to avoid causing more harm and yet another loss.

Olivia Benson’s “we just pick up the pieces afterwards” comment from the bar scene in the Season 28 premiere hits harder after watching this second episode. Because for Leo’s too-short life, nobody was ever able to put those pieces back together again. Even the tiny glimmer of hope we may find in Mary realizing she needs help, then choosing to take a deal aimed at getting her that help, guarantees nothing. After all, she promises she’ll “be home someday. But not yet,” but there are plenty of ways for it all to go wrong.

Because Law & Order: SVU Season 28 Episode 2 doesn’t end with everything wrapped up neatly—doesn’t deliver us reassurances that the case is closed, with purely “bad” guys punished while the “good” guys get some kind of inspirational glimpse into a sunny future—it takes an already-impactful story and elevates it. Additionally, the hour’s biggest strengths come not from one particular “here’s the big, forced moment that’s supposed to make you feel something,” but all the quiet and subtle, yet profoundly emotional, reactions along the way. On that last point, the camera work and editing do a lot of heavy lifting here. It’s especially strong in revealing all the details in Stella Marcus’ performance as a Mary who’s facing multiple internal battles at once, all while everyone around her talks about her like she’s not even there.

MORE: It’s still early in the season, so here’s everything we know.

A great episode for Aimé Donna Kelly as the case takes its toll on Captain Curry

In the season premiere, we finally had a moment where Olivia related to a witness as a mother. I certainly hope to see more scenes like that for her, specifically. Law & Order: SVU Season 28 Episode 2 doesn’t provide proof of life for Noah. Instead, the hour connects Renee Curry the parent with Captain Curry…well, the captain. And I loved every second of it.

At work, this winds up being one of those cases that breaks through and leaves its mark. Curry’s the one who’s there, trying to support Helene Brooks—first through the desperation to find Leo, later through the overwhelming sense of loss after his death. There’s an existing relationship because of what happened eight months ago, sure. But as Aimé Donna Kelly’s incredible performance makes clear, Curry’s also constantly thinking of her own son, wondering how she’d ever survive something like this and feeling Helene’s heartbreak as her own. Although Kelly’s great at portraying Curry’s losing battle to keep that mask of professionalism in place, it’s what she does at the end of the hour that’s most impressive.

The excellence is in the contrast. At the beginning of the hour, Renee’s conversation with her son is almost carefree—she and Gabe share such an effortless closeness, joking back and forth while she’s still able to lay down the law—but at the end…wow. Talk about trying so very hard to be “normal” with someone you love and who loves you back, faking those smiles, trying play like everything’s ok, and just breaking inside. Watching that final scene, knowing Renee goes to pick up Gabe because she just has to be with her son after all of that, and seeing her unable to shake off the horrors well enough to reassure him, it’s difficult to do much more than just sit there, stunned, after finishing the episode.

Credit also goes to Jay Mack here. When Gabe notices something’s off about his mom, he’s so careful in the way he asks about work. Then, when Curry (unsuccessfully) lies and says she’s ok, even Kelly’s performance can’t distract from the way Mack’s Gabe just..watches, and worries, and still maintains such a lovely sort of fondness for her. And that last shot—Captain Curry turning away to break down, Gabe so incredibly stunned and concerned—slams the case closed on quiet, crumbling dread.

MORE: Last time we saw Gabe, SVU delivered on one of Season 27’s strongest episodes.

“I just had to help him”

Given that our initial concern is all about Leo (as it should be), and because he dies as the result of Mary’s actions, it could be painfully easy to loathe Mary and want the full force of the law to come down on her. But Law & Order: SVU Season 28 Episode 2 does’t give us easy. (Painful, on the other hand…we’ve got plenty of that.) Even so, had the character been played by a lesser actor, or had the writing been weaker, we might’ve found a way to root for her demise. It’s a huge credit to Stella Marcus, as well as to the way the moral and ethical struggle of what to do about her exists with Helene’s grief as a constant companion, that it’s so easy to just simply feel bad for Mary.

Indeed, even the name Mary feels both correct and an abomination. Yes, she learns her real name. And yes, she slowly realizes that she’ll need help to love her parents thanks to Bob’s lies. But this victim doesn’t let go of the name she’s answered to for most of her life. How could she, when she’s been Mary far longer than she was Christine? I think it’s smart to have her hold onto that. It’s an effective way of showing how that man stole her entire sense of self, among other things. It’s also the right thing to do for Olivia to ask what to call her and let her finally have control over something, anything, in her life. Because names matter. They just do.

Throughout the hour, every single shot of Marcus tells the story of a girl in crisis. She’s great with that initial fear, the hopelessness before she whirls around and attacks Curry to try to get away, to just absolutely losing it in the initial interrogation with Bruno and Rollins. She’s even better when, seated opposite a Mariska Hargitay who’s as good as always, Mary’s terrified, agitated, frantic to push back on all this buried information about her past and repeat the story Bob brainwashed into her. Mary’s confession, such as it is, comes out rushed. She’s desperate for the scary stranger trying to trick, the one who’s asking her all these questions, to understand. Those wide eyes, the way Marcus holds herself—it’s all just super work.

In the Bellevue scene, Marcus still holds herself back and pulls away from Liv a bit, but she doesn’t give off as much “cornered animal” energy. There’s very real evidence of the progress Olivia mentions. But there’s still a long way to go. Mary’s all nervous swallows and wary glances between Liv and the psychiatrist. Her emotional reaction to seeing photos of Bob, her younger herself, her parents and little brother is all in the eyes. And it’s just so powerful.

I keep using and/or thinking “quiet” to describe how Marcus filters through one raw, aching feeling or another to the next. That’s never more true than in the scenes with the lawyers—especially that last one. All of these strangers want to argue about what’s best for her, what to do with her. So, Mary tries (fails) to shut it all out. But the camera gets up close and personal, in her face, so viewers can’t shut her out.

Basically, it’s impossible not to feel terrible for this girl. As she listens to everything going on around her and starts to feel the remorse creep in, when she admits she doesn’t even know what home is, even as she watches that old video of a happy Leo, it’s like nothing and no one else exists in the room because we’re being drawn into Mary’s consciousness with her. It’s almost like…like we’re being forced to bear witness—as if we’re having our noses rubbed in it, in the fact that so much of her was destroyed to get her to a place where she’d do this heinous thing. Just excellent, excellent, excellent TV.

MORE: One of last season’s standout episodes taught us a lot about Detective Griffin.

More Law & Order: SVU Season 28 Episode 2 reactions

I absolutely loved that opening Curry scene. It’s obvious Renee wants to soak up as much time with Gabe as she can get, but she’s very respectful of him. So, the dynamic is almost like two equals—Captain Curry doesn’t baby her boy at all—but there’s just enough parental authority there.
That commanding “everyone stop and take a breath” had me like “yes, ma’am.”
Ok but dear ol’ dad deserved much worse than that punch. Your kid survived sexual abuse (committed by your brother, no less). And you’re going off about him needing to be normal only eight months later?! What, like there’s a deadline for a child to heal? For anyone to heal? And then, when he disappears, it takes you over two hours to ask for help? Dude, F— you.
“My boy should be doing fun things, kid things.” Yes, but like. He’s experienced a lot of things that are neither fun nor for kids (also not for grownups!), so.
The urgency to try to get a lead and find this kid…wow. If the entire episode was just this, it would still be a good one.
A lot of what makes Law & Order: SVU Season 28 Episode 2 so great is the way the main cast delivers on these big, powerful emotions in mostly understated, subtle ways. But, on the flip side, there’s Leo’s mother who (rightfully) is just letting it all out. Abby Mueller is fantastic as Helene. She has to maintain this heightened sense of emotion in every single scene. First, it’s the panic and the urgency when Leo’s missing; then, it’s insurmountable grief. Because Mueller does so well in keeping things on that extreme level, she both makes her character feel extremely real—alive, almost, like someone we know—to us as viewers and actually sets the stage for everyone else to be able to do their own great work around and “underneath” her, for lack of a better word.
“It’s been rough. None of us are ok.”
“We’ve been through half a dozen therapists with the aggression, the nightmares, he’s withdrawn…” Yeah. That part. People don’t just move on; kids don’t just bounce back or WTFever.
“I mean, how is he ever gonna get right?” “Not everybody makes it out of the dark, Griff. No matter what we do.” They really tried to warn us here, huh?
Things I need injected into my veins: Olivia Benson getting sassy with that Chet guy. Same goes for her smirk when he says he needs a lawyer.
The wordless communication between Curry and Griff just before she chooses to follow Mary and try to talk to her—that’s the good stuff. Partners!
Ok but like. How does Curry get up after that blow to the head and also manage to intercept Mary when she’s running away from the others??? The tackle!
“Couple of Advil, couple of stitches, I’m right as rain.” I really want to be like “OMG BAMF QUEEN” and all, but this is…also…kinda dangerous AFTER A HEAD INJURY.
You can actually pinpoint the exact moment Olivia Benson’s heart breaks, realizing this girl—not the person who kidnapped her—has (unwittingly) harmed a fellow victim. And that’s before we even get to the stunner of a shot of Benson and Curry finding Leo’s dead body.
The whole Liv/Mary interrogation is such a work of art. And just…poor Liv. She’s not the main person who’s suffering here, obviously, but the way she has to try so hard to get the information she needs out of a victim—the way she’s obviously bracing herself and being so painstakingly careful with every single word and reaction—just for things to end the way they do, no less…ouch.
The rough emotion in Hargitay’s voice on “I would never let anyone hurt Leo, especially his father.”
“He’s with Bob now.” The horror.
“So Leo tried to get out. He was terrified. He suffered.” One of Aimé Donna Kelly’s best moments in an episode that’s already so good for her.
The blocking in the scene where Liv, Mary, and the therapist all talk gives us this vivid picture of how small, alone, and cornered this girl feels.
“She was working within a permission structure she had learned from Bob.”
“Leo is our victim.” “So is Mary.” “But she also chloroformed a kid, left him in a box to die.” Again, I must say: OUCH.
In the scene with Carisi, Hawkins, and the squad, Carisi seemed like he was about to, frankly, pi** me off like he did in the premiere. But when he worked through the whole moral and ethical dilemma with Baxter later on, that…was much more what I like to see from my ADA. This job is hard; it takes a toll. He’s got to follow the law, which may not always line up with what his heart tells him. It’s nice to see him get to be vulnerable about it all and actually let Baxter see how much weight he’s carrying.
“And also, do we believe prison is where this girl belongs?” “This brings us back to the original question. What does justice look like in this case?”
“I am empty. I have nothing. The only thing that is keeping me upright is the thought of justice for my little boy.” Her grief, Curry’s reaction to it with that bowed head and those closed eyes…wow.
“And as soon as I know what that looks like, you’re going to be the first to know.” It’s like she’s begging.
Saidah Arrika Ekulona is great as the defense attorney and all, but I’ll always know her as Nardalee.
“Can we stomach that harsh of a sentence, knowing what this girl has gone through?”
“Sometimes, we have cases with no clear answers. We have to trust in the law to decide for us. Our system might not be perfect, but it’s all we have.” “Follow the law through justice.” “Provided you can live with the outcome.” This is so classic Law & Order??? Like, the whole franchise—the best of the whole franchise—is supposed to be about these kinds of difficulties.
Just blown away by the closeup of Mary while the lawyers argue in court. I know I mentioned the closeups up above, probably more than once, but just…look at her. This is how you bring nuance, and gray areas, and empathy, and “but sometimes, the ‘bad’ people just need our help, too” into it!
“Everyone here—police, parents, lawyers—we are all so convinced that we know what’s best for Mary. And throughout this, I have watched her shut down and shut the world out. But Mary, you can’t escape the truth forever. Right? Has anyone even bothered to ask you what you think?” That part!
“No, I can’t.” The hushed “can’t.”
“I don’t…even know…what. Home is.” A line reading that broke me.
Wait. No. This one broke me: “And I need h-help to love you.” Ouch, ouch, ouch.
And also: Ouch.