Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 25 Episode 6 Review: Carousel

Even though we are glad Maddie has come home and her case is closed, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 25 Episode 6, “Carousel,” feels like a filler episode. After an intense case that was discussed on the previous five episodes, this new case and the addition of the new cops don’t do much for the show.

The show absolutely needs new people in the squad room; that’s undeniable, but the truth is that Curry and Sykes still feel very foreign to the team, and their characters have yet to add something of substance to Manhattan SVU.

Even though both women are experienced cops, the characters feel bland. They are lacking the kind of power that an SVU detective needs. But even Velasco seems to be lacking this season as well.

On Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 25 Episode 5, “Zone Rouge,” Velasco felt like an interruption. He would only come into the scene to interrupt whatever was happening, deliver the news, and disappear again.

On Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 25 Episode 6, “Carousel,” he seems to be a bit more present as he does most of the investigation with Bruno, but he still isn’t the same detective we met a few seasons ago.

When he first joined the show, he was interesting and entertaining. There was a story behind him, something that intrigued us and kept us wanting to know more. After the incident with his friend, his storyline declined, and whether he is present or not doesn’t really change the episode’s tone.

The only detective to seem to have kept his goofy personality is Bruno. When Benson tells Sykes to pick a desk, he runs to his desk to claim it. He plays the bad cop with Velasco, trying to get the suspect to talk.

He seems to be the only one who hasn’t lost his essence, and he brings a more relaxed energy to the squad room, which is absolutely necessary.

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 25 Episode 6, “Carousel,” is the second episode with the two newly added cops, so we should give it some grace. However, the show still hasn’t found the perfect balance in the screen time given to each detective.

For the two women to have sufficient screen time and Velasco and Bruno not to disappear in the background, the episode lacks Fin and Carisi’s presence.

Hopefully, as the season goes by, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit will find a way to tell a story without needing to leave one or more detectives in the shadows. What used to make Law & Order: Special Victims Unit so great was the teamwork.

Those scenes in which the squad is talking about the case in one room are probably some of the best we have seen on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 25. We need more of that, but with everyone included.

Most cases on the show leave us with a bittersweet feeling, and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 25 Episode 6, “Carousel,” isn’t the exception. It is a terrible case in which a group of men takes advantage of several women.

One thing that seems quite unrealistic is the fact that Maura leaves her friend alone at a bar with two clearly predatory men. If you know the girl code, a woman never leaves another woman alone at a bar (or anywhere) with men they don’t know.

Even though that is a mistake that stands out, there are a few things done right. The first one is Leah’s POV when she is at the bar. By giving us a blurry scene, we can understand how drunk she is while dancing with Hayden and Fred.

It helps us see the way she is feeling and how her body is reacting when these two men are taking advantage of her.

The second one is the transitions between scenes. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit does this amazingly when showing us the video with the taxi driver and then transitioning to the taxi driver in the interrogation room.

The same can be said for the scenes in which they interrogate Hayden, Fred, and Dustin. As they start speaking, the scenes smoothly transition between each suspect to show it is all happening simultaneously.

The third thing done right on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 25 Episode 6, “Carousel,” is building the suspicion towards Dustin. It starts with him deciding to leave because he has food poisoning.

Then it continues with him not being at the bus stop with Hayde and Fred. His being so quiet and trying to place all the blame on the other two only added to the suspicion that he could be the one who assaulted Leah.

As they finally catch him placing the yellow pin on the map, our suspicions are confirmed, and we know he is the attacker.

And the final thing that we must highlight from this episode is the way in which, once again, Benson ends up being the one to give the victims the support they need. It is particularly remarkable when she talks to Sykes and Curry about her many decades on SVU.

Benson ends up saying that the job had a plan for her, and that’s why she has stayed at SVU for so long, but the reality is that she is the one who has made this job as special as it is. If it weren’t for her, the squad wouldn’t be what it is today.

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 25 has had some great and some unforgettable moments. The truth is that for a milestone season, it doesn’t feel as special as it should.

It felt like it would be special with Maddie’s case if it had lasted all season. However, with that case being closed and Olivia seemingly moving on fast, nothing else is making the season stand out from previous seasons.

Hopefully, the remainder of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 25 will focus on celebrating how far the show has come and why it has remained as important as it has in the last two and a half decades.

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Law & Order: Special Victims Unit airs Thursdays at 9/8c on NBC.

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