10 Harsh Realities Of Rewatching Law & Order: SVU Season 1 25 Years Later

10 Harsh Realities Of Rewatching Law & Order: SVU Season 1 25 Years Later


This article contains references to sexual assault, domestic violence, and police brutality.

Although Law & Order: SVU is going strong a quarter-century after its premiere episode, several harsh realities about season 1 become apparent on rewatch. Law & Order: SVU is considered one of the best Law & Order series because of its commitment to supporting and empowering survivors. From its first episode, it made it clear that this series was about giving a voice to victims of heinous crimes that are not often talked about, and the show is often groundbreaking in how seriously it takes sexual assault and similar crimes.

That said, this long-running procedural has changed over the years in many ways. Benson’s Law & Order: SVU season 26 team features almost all new faces, and Mariska Hargitay is now the only cast member left who has been with the series since its premiere episode, as Ice-T joined at the beginning of season 2 and everyone else is relatively new. Thus, it is unsurprising that Law & Order: SVU was very different during its first season than it is today, and many of the changes are for the better.

10

Law & Order: SVU Season 1 Was Far Less Respectful Toward Gender-Nonconforming People

SVU Often Used Derogatory Terms For Men Who Wore Women’s Clothes

Although recent episodes of Law & Order: SVU have explored transgender issues in a respectful manner, this was not always the case. Law & Order: SVU season 1 sometimes contains language that would be condemned as offensive today when dealing with victims, witnesses, or suspects who are cross-dressers or transgender. This is established early on with Munch’s (Richard Belzer) reaction to discovering a male murder victim who might have been raped and had women’s underwear stuffed in his mouth, which included questioning the man’s identity using a slur.

The type of language used — along with awkwardness on the part of the cops in cases involving gay men — was common in 1999 when Law & Order: SVU began. The procedural’s intention was likely to depict the cops as realistically as possible while attempting to support sexual assault survivors. Unfortunately, the ethos of the time didn’t allow for that mission to treat LGBTQ+ survivors, especially those under the transgender umbrella, as equal to the cisgender women who made up the bulk of the survivor population in these early episodes.

9

Stabler Often Went Way Too Far To Continue Working For SVU

Stabler Letting His Anger Get The Better Of Him Was Par For The Course

Law & Order SVU Stabler getting rough with a suspect

Law & Order: SVU‘s Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni) was always hot-tempered and often acted impulsively, which are traits that have not completely disappeared 25 years later. However, in season 1, he often crosses the line with witnesses and suspects. He often stands too close to suspects, and his physical intimidation sometimes crosses over into actual violence, making it likely that confessions and other evidence would be thrown out if it were today because of the appearance of coercion.

Sadly, this type of misbehavior on the part of law enforcement was more acceptable on television in 1999, and Stabler is not the only character who would have to be toned down if the first season were rewritten. Stabler’s behavior is a little much even for his superiors, and he is sometimes reprimanded for it, but he doesn’t face real consequences until the season 1 finale. Ironically, he gets in trouble for admitting he had secret fantasies of killing pedophiles rather than for anything he actually does when interacting with suspects.

8

Benson Often Violated Boundaries & She Was Justified By Her Intentions

Some Of The Ways Benson Tried To Help Were Inappropriate

Benson struggles with boundaries in season 1, a recurring problem throughout the series but which was particularly pronounced in the early episodes. In the series premiere, she has to learn Captain Cragen’s lesson that “we don’t pick the vic[tim].” During that storyline, Benson engages in inappropriate behavior such as alienating a widow by informing her that her husband was a rapist and that she’d better start talking about what she knows and questioning a suspect on her own while Stabler is busy.

Casey Novak (Diane Neal) staring intensely a someone in SVU.

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This behavior continues in later seasons, such as in season 2, which includes Benson being hit by a restraining order when she gets overly involved in helping a young girl who is claiming to be abused by her parents. This trend has also made somewhat of a comeback, considering Benson’s obsession with the Flynn family in season 25. However, it is particularly pronounced in season 1, when Benson’s overstepping of boundaries was often attributed to her being new to the Special Victims Unit.

7

Law & Order: SVU Season 1 Had Far Less Diversity Of Victims

Most Victims In Early SVU Were White Cisgender Women

Law & Order SVU a victim lying next to a crosswalk with blood on her head

Law & Order: SVU has offered more diverse stories in recent years, with victims of various genders, races, and sexual orientations. However, Law & Order: SVU season 1 mostly deals with white cisgender women who have been assaulted by men. This was an issue that would take many years to fix and which reflected the lack of diverse representation on television in the early 2000s.

That said, there was some effort at diverse representation even during this initial season. One episode features a victim who might have been a cross-dresser and another features a gay man. There is also an episode near the end of the season revolving around a man who had once been a victim and who was now abusing young boys himself. However, these episodes were in the minority and relied to some degree on stereotypes, diluting their power.

6

Law & Order: SVU Season 1 Did Not Take Male Victims As Seriously

The First Significant Male Victim SVU Story Doesn’t Occur Until Season 3

Law & Order SVU A gay man is brutally murdered and has injuries on his face

Technically, there was a male victim in Law & Order: SVU‘s premiere episode, as the story begins with a male cabbie who has been stabbed and castrated. However, the focus of that episode quickly shifted to the fact that the victim was a rapist who was likely attacked by one of his victims, making it difficult for Benson to take his case seriously. This story established the new series as a show for survivors — however, while some of Law & Order: SVU‘s saddest episodes revolve around male victims, they don’t happen in season 1.

The first serious story about a male victim occurs during season 3 and stars Diane Neal (who would later play the entirely different character of Casey Novak) as an unrepentant female rapist.

During the first season, the only male victims featured were LGBTQ+ men, reinforcing the stereotypes that gay and trans men are weak and that only weak men become victims of this sort of crime. The one exception to this problem occurs in “Nocturne,” which involves a male victim of childhood sexual abuse growing up to molest children himself. This episode is closer to the type of inclusivity Law & Order: SVU would embrace later but focuses on the problem of abused boys becoming abusive men rather than on men and boys being abused.

5

Benson’s Mother Could Have Added More To The Story If She Lived

After Appearing In The Pilot, Serena Benson Disappears Until Her Death In Season 2

Law & Order SVU Serena Benson with a smug look

Serena Benson (Elizabeth Ashley) is only ever seen in the premiere episode of Law & Order: SVU. She appears in a short scene where she tells her daughter: “I wish you would consider getting out of that unit.” This appears to be part of an ongoing argument between Benson and her mother, who doesn’t think it’s good for her daughter’s mental health to work for the Special Victims Unit. Additionally, Serena acts as a sounding board for the case, pointing out that she would have killed her rapist too if she got the chance.

The conflict between Olivia Benson and her mother over her job is a compelling one, and Serena’s death later on leaves Benson without any family.

It’s unfortunate that Serena was cut from the cast after the first episode and killed off-screen in the following season. The conflict between Olivia Benson and her mother over her job is a compelling one, and Serena’s death later on leaves Benson without any family. Not only would Serena have been an effective sounding board and semi-supportive character throughout the series, but her reaction to Olivia meeting her half-brother years later would have made the drama stronger.

4

Law & Order: SVU Season 1 Writing Out Jeffries

Michelle Hurd’s Character Was Dumped At The Beginning of Season 2

Monique Jeffries (Michelle Hurd) also could have been a powerful addition to Law & Order: SVU‘s cast, but unfortunately, her character was not developed properly. She is the first Black female detective in Law & Order: SVU and might have made a good partner for Munch; the two worked together occasionally but were never put together permanently. Instead, the character was used only for small parts, making it clear she was going to be written out eventually. Hurd chose to leave at the beginning of season 2, and her character’s exit is extremely disappointing.

Two cast members from SVU standing side by side and looking at something off-screen

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After a traumatic experience, Jeffries begins acting recklessly and is put on a desk job because she admits to sleeping with a former suspect, leading her to quit. While her behavior is punished, Stabler is eventually exonerated and reinstated after he is also suspended for admitting to fantasies about killing perps, making Jeffries’ exit twice as unfair. The only silver lining is that Jeffries is replaced by Fin (Ice-T), who has been a fan favorite for the last 24 years. Regardless, it is obvious that Jeffries had more potential than was ever used during her short run.

3

Law & Order: SVU Season 1 Made It Clear That Stabler & Benson Were Not Intended To Be A Couple

Stabler Was A Family Man Whose Primary Concern Was His Wife And Five Children

Stabler’s home life during Law & Order: SVU season 1 gave the series a feel somewhat similar to Blue Bloods, as every episode has a subplot involving a problem with one of Stabler’s teenage daughters that he and his wife had to try to resolve. While Stabler’s job duties, especially ones involving Benson, irritate his wife sometimes, there are few hints that his marriage is unhappy or that he wants more with Benson than a solid work partnership.

Benson and Stabler in the snow in Law and Order: Organized Crime

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Stabler and Benson had obvious chemistry from the beginning, but that wasn’t important to Stabler. He was married, had kids, and had no romantic interest in Benson. Later in Stabler’s original run in Law & Order: SVU, things became more ambiguous, but the types of stories he got in the first season make it clear that the writers had not intended Benson and Stabler to become anything close to a couple.

2

Law & Order: SVU Season 1 Technology Ages The Show

There Weren’t Smartphones & Digital Tools Available Then

Law & Order: SVU Warner standing across from Cragen and Munch and looking at a report

It’s hard to believe how much technology has evolved since the first season of Law & Order: SVU. While cell phones and the Internet existed, there were no smartphones or apps, and DNA testing wasn’t as advanced. The comparative lack of technology makes early episodes of Law & Order: SVU feel like relics from a previous time even though they were filmed only 25 years ago. One such reminder occurs when Cragen (Dann Florek) tells Munch not to “waste time” looking up things in an Internet archive — something which is a routine part of investigations today.

1

Law & Order: SVU Season 1 Team Was More Judgmental Of Prostitutes & Other “Unsavory” Victims

SVU Has Come Around To Treating All Victims With Respect

Mischa Barton as a sex worker in SVU

Law & Order: SVU has always featured sex workers as victims and witnesses, but season 1 often does not treat these people with respect. The team often discusses the possibility that someone was engaged in sex work using derogatory language, and cases involving these types of victims aren’t taken as seriously. The series stopped short of suggesting sex workers were to blame for their plight, but it didn’t see these cases as equally worthy of the team’s time.

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