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Law & Order: Criminal Intent

Editorial Review

Editorial Review

A member of the prolific Law & Order family, Criminal Intent follows a similar crime-fighting formula to its siblings. However, this show rests a little more heavily than the others on its characters - or one character, anyway: the scarily brilliant, socially awkward and slightly twitchy Detective Robert Goran (Vincent D'Onofrio).

This episode is fairly typical Criminal Intent, beginning with one of the more annoying of the series' formulaic features. In the first few minutes, viewers are introduced to the first victim, followed by a series of flashbacks hinting at the recently deceased's shady past - a past that is almost always proven to be completely irrelevant. Not a good start to the show, Criminal Intent.

If the pointless padding doesn't put you off entirely, Criminal Intent does offer persistent viewers a few rewards. The show doesn't give viewers an opportunity to get bored, racing at a hectic pace from clue to clue, from unexpected forensic evidence to Goran's freakish hunches. Moreover, the courtroom scenes common to other Law & Order programs are skipped entirely, with the show instead serving as a solid homage to the genius detective - and to D'Onofrio's acting prowess.

Law & Order: Criminal Intent airs on Network Ten on Thursday, October 9, at 9:30pm.

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Shelley Tustin, October 2008