Greetings,
I recently had someone ask me to do a top ten list of my favorite Law and Order: SVU episodes. Now, as a general rule, though there have been exceptions, I don't do episode lists of shows that are still on the air. But I do love this show and would love to honor it in some way. So I had to think of something, and this is what I came up with. I decided to do a list of the best guest stars to be featured on the show, since the entire Law and Order franchise certainly brings out the best in people. But, as I began to make the list, it became too difficult to narrow things down. My solution was to separate the girls from the boys, like a summer camp where the counselors actually do their job. So today, best guest actresses, because ladies first.
Before I begin, let me say something about both of these lists. Like I said, this was hard to do because there have been so many stellar performances on this show. But I made these choices a lot based on these performances compared to others in their career, or if what they did simply reminded me of how amazing they are. Some people are consistently great, but we may forget. Others may be great as well, but we just never truly saw it until they came to the Law and Order world. I think you'll know which ones fall into which categories. So let's begin.
#10. Angela Lansbury ("Night", Season 7) - So Mrs. Potts or Jessica Fletcher herself plays a rich woman with many powerful friends and a son who is a complete mama's boy! And she's totally wicked. Technically, the bad kind of wicked, but she makes it so good.
#9. Carol Burnett ("Ballerina", Season 10) - We have a former Rockette named Birdie who owns a strip club and is played by, you guessed it, Carol Burnett. Ya know, that kind of sounds like a character she would have created for her variety show. To the time machine store!
#8. Kellie Martin ("Tragedy", Season 5) - I loved Kellie Martin on Life Goes On. She is one of my favorite TV actresses. But here she used her skills to play someone who wasn't the victim or the guilty party, but she was also, in a way, both of those things. It doesn't make sense on paper, but she made it work.
#7. Erika Christensen ("Signature", Season 9) - There are some people who look perpetually like teenagers, and Erika Christensen is one of them. So having her play a Special Agent (FBI?) would seem crazy. But she was phenomenal in this episode and totally made me a believer.
#6. Jill Scott ("Disabled", Season 11) - If any of you have ever seen either of Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married? movies, you will think of Jill Scott as a beautiful, sweet but strong women who is wonderful to her friends. Well, forget that! Here she plays a total mean lady who is jealous of and abusive toward her disabled sister. I didn't think I could buy her as such a character, but she succeeded in making me do so. Big time! The episode ends and we all thank God for real life where Jill Scott is the wonderful woman we all know and love.
#5. Jennifer Love Hewitt ("Behave", Season 12) - People have always underrated the acting abilities of Jennifer Love Hewitt. I think pretty much for the same reason they once underrated Dolly Parton and her musical abilities. Both reasons! But I must say, whatever you think of her, you can't deny what a fine job she did portraying a rape victim here. I was extremely impressed.
#4. Ellen Burstyn ("Swing", Season 10) - We've always known some things about the family of Elliot Stabler, but here, we learn of the mental problems of his mother. And there was no one better to play this role than Ellen Burstyn. We all know she's brilliant, but hopefully, this episode introduced her to a younger generation who can know how amazing she is, as well.
#3. Marcia Gay Harden ("Raw", Season 7) - She donned a Southern accent and slapped Richard Belzer. I have nothing else to say.
#2. Marlee Matlin ("Painless", Season 5) - Actually, she was in two episodes, but this one, here first, was the best. She proves, yet again, that she is not disabled because she can't hear, but she is differently abled. I mean, I can hear, but I can't do what she does when she gets in front of a camera. And she worked that magic here, hardcore.
#1. Tracy Pollan ("Closure, Part II", Season 2) - Again, she had two episodes, but, in this case, it was her second appearance that completely blew me away. Her first episode featured her as a rape victim who had become totally broken by it. But then she came back, determined to take charge and see her attacker brought to justice any way she could. Granted, some people would call her methods extreme, but who cares? Maybe if we had more women willing to do this, more rapists would be behind bars. Anyway, however you feel about the tactics of her character, Tracy Pollan played her brilliantly.
So hats off to you, ladies. You stand out in a crowd of the best and made our SVU experience even greater than we ever thought it could be. Thanks.
Tomorrow, the boys!
Love and full moons,
Becky the Writer
