A Look Back At "Alpha Dog"

Yeah, I know, it’s been a minute…or two…since the final Goren/ Eames episode of Season 8 aired. Obviously, I have never been one to worry about being the first to post comments or screen caps of recently aired episodes. That’s not my style. I work at my own pace, and I do this for…well…me. But if there are others along the way who happen to glean some small measure of pleasure from my meager offerings…then that’s just dandy, too. You flatter me by stopping by my blog now and again, and I thank you for it.

And now, a few words about “Alpha Dog.”

A day or two after this episode aired, I checked the All Things Law & Order blog, and I had to agree with her…I was confused the first time I watched it. Mainly because I couldn’t keep two of the main characters straight…two of the women…the perp’s wife and the dead guy’s “paramour.” They looked too much like one another, and it took my “aged” brain a while to differentiate between the two. By that time, we were well into the story, so I dispatched the notion of trying to figure out the “who” and the “why” dunnit, and just concentrated on the best part of Law & Order CI…Bobby.

Did you check out the pictures hanging on the wall of Hamp’s (the murder victim) apartment…Gandhi, Cary Grant, and Nelson Mandela. Guess he wasn’t just another buff bod and pretty face, huh? Go figure! But I’ve gotta ask…is it even “remotely” possible for a corpse to be in that reclined position? Frankly, I don’t know how the actor maintained that pose throughout the whole scene.

I loved Eames’ little smirk after Rodgers says, “I’ll hold off judgment until after I crack his chest.” This was in response to all of Bobby’s suppositions, educated guesses, and “gut” instincts as to how Hamp had died; i.e., suffocation.

Again, I find myself agreeing with ATL&O…I thought memory foam mattresses “bounced” back. I’ve slept on them, in fact, and never had any part of my super-sized body’s indentation left for me to fall back into hours later.

Okay, I feel the overwhelming "need" to pause in my “recap” of this episode to interject a personal plea to the wardrobe department for next season…assuming we get a next season. Please, by all that’s holy, burn the damned striped shirts before next season. VDO has trimmed down again, so maybe he’ll be back to the suit & tie and French cuffs regime. If not, that’s okay, but just PLEASE, “No more striped shirts!!” she shrieked in her best “Mommie Dearest” freak-out.

Another memorable line comes from Rodgers in the morgue when she says, “Detective Goren, once again, has an irritating way of being right.” Yes, he does, Rodgers, and that is why I love him so much.

And now for...perhaps...the best line ever delivered by a LOCI guest star. It is the one said by Hamp’s ex-wife when Bobby and Eames are questioning her at 1PP, and she tells them, “I’ve played a murderess, I know how they think.” I love that line and loved equally Bobby’s reaction…that little smile and chuckle. Yeah, right…this chick “knows” how a murderer thinks.

“Remind me to never get old.” Ah, if only it were that easy. It has been so long since I jotted down these notes that I don’t remember which character said this or in what context, but I can surely empathize. I am forever telling people, “Don’t get old.” It’s not fun…nope…not one little bit.

Detective “Goblin?” I’m still chuckling over that one. My poor, picked-on Bobby. And look at Eames, rushing to correct the insipid man. I adore the look on Bobby’s face…it’s like he’s thinking, “You little pischer…I could squash you like a bug.”

It was amusing watching Bobby “brush” the photographers/ paparazzi out of the way when they went to the rally looking for the girl that Hamp hit-on in the bar the night he was murdered; i.e., Gala. I wonder if Vincent D’Onofrio does that in “real” life when he goes out. Most likely, he has "people" to do that sort of thing for him.

“Major Case Squad – the name “implies” competence and judgment,” says Captain Ross after the debacle at the rally makes the cover of a local tabloid. Granted, Bobby’s “judgment” may be off a little at times; i.e., Nicole, Nelda, and Leslie fairly "leap" to mind, but there is no questioning his competence or passion or integrity or compassion or dedication or…well, you get the idea.

I have another plea for next season, and that is for “proper” lighting please. I’m talking about the scene when they go to question the guy in prison and Bobby can be found “propping up” a wall. This is a man who should not be kept in the dark, people. They just don’t light him adequately sometimes. It is "annoying" and…frustrating.

Now, I knew it would be Eames who questioned the chick in the sauna. The one who Captain Ross said was, “…beautiful, very beautiful. That kind of beauty requires high maintenance.” (I’m starting to not like Ross again.) Anyway, wouldn’t it have been an absolute “hoot” if Bobby had been the one who stepped through that sauna door instead of Eames? You can’t see me, but I’m smiling at the thought.

And now for the most obnoxious quote of the episode. It’s one of the things Duke’s wife says to Eames in the sauna; i.e., “It’s not just money, it’s the power that comes with money. “Little people like you” don’t understand.” Well, I “understand” this much…she’s a Bitch!

When the Scotch turns up missing and Eames’ explanation is, “Well, it’s not a perfect world. Some Scotch-loving cop obviously drank it,” I love the reaction-look on Bobby’s face. We all know how he is partial to Glenlivet Single Malt Scotch Whisky. Now, I don’t know if Eames was “implying” that Bobby was the “Scotch-loving” cop who purloined the potent potable, but I suppose that a $2,000 bottle of Scotch from a private stock that is not for sale to the general public “could” be a daunting temptation…even to someone with Bobby’s staunch resolve. Nah, he didn’t do it…not my Bobby.

Did anyone else find it odd that a former cop was “stupid” enough to leave his prints on the crime scene seal on the door at Hamp’s apartment? I suppose that would explain why he’s a Security Cop now and no longer a member of the NYPD.

DNA takes weeks to process…says Ross…and yet they magically, routinely have it in a matter of days/hours. Well, we really can’t track that kind of thing anymore since they took away the date tracker. I'm one of the few who actually miss the "doink-doink" and the date stamp.

And I’m really getting tired of everyone taking potshots and picking on my Bobby. I’m talking about the scene near the end when Duke comes striding into the squad room, taking names and making threats and announces to Bobby that “he” is at the top of his list. Got news for you, smarmy little pipsqueak of a man…Bobby is at the top of “my” list, too…albeit for vastly different reasons. So, get in line, buddy, get in line.

As usual, in the end, Bobby very cleverly gets his man to confess and all is well that ends well. And so ends another Goren/Eames season of Law & Order CI.

A lot of people were not too happy with Season 8 overall...starting with the fact that USA postponed the original start date from November 2008 (I think) until April 2009 and then chose not to air the episodes in the order in which they were filmed to the obvious lack of continuity in the length of Goren's hairstyle and facial hair to the horrible decision to write and present "All In" the way they did to the...well...you fill in the blanks.

When all is said and done for me, however, all I can say is I was happy to have Bobby back in Season 8. And I look forward to having him come back again and again and again...until he's a doddering old man, solving crimes from a bed in his room at the "Happy Trails" nursing home. Until then...here's the "Alpha Dog" slideshow for your viewing pleasure.

"Alpha Dog" Slideshow - Season 8