Law & Order Season 22 Episode 3 Review: Camouflage

Ripping stories from the headlines is nothing new and this one definitely hits close to home for so many people. The mass shooting in a subway on Law & Order Season 22 Episode 3, “Camouflage” is something New Yorkers have dealt with in the past year.

Pair that with the recent uptick in Asian hate crimes and “Camouflage” is a recipe for trauma. While this tactic isn’t new for Dick Wolf shows this subject matter is especially hard to watch and swallow.

To be quite honest, putting one of the characters right in the middle of it seems a bit much, even for this show.

Price’s Trauma

Nolan Price is one of those characters who takes each case personally, no matter the situation. Even when he is miles removed from the actual crime.

This time he is placed smack dab in the center of the crime scene. He literally gets blood on his hands as he tries to help one of the victims. 

Being this close to the case at hand isn’t going to bode well for Price’s already fragile mental health. We see him visibly shaking from the impact of what he sees.

He doesn’t even have time to really process what happens before he is thrown into the case of the century. Putting aside even his own moral beliefs, Price has to aim for the death penalty for this shooter — all because the public wants to see this man dead.

He does kill 7 Asian Americans and wounds many others in his pursuit of ridding New York of this particular race. Price may act as though the DA’s choice to ask for the death penalty is what he wants as well, but anyone watching can tell he has reservations.

This case is going to negatively impact Price for some time moving forward. I wouldn’t be surprised if some time this season he has a mental break due to PTSD.

The Investigation

I want to distinctively point out that out of all the horror that is this episode there is the bright spot of seeing Lieutenant Dixon sign to a young girl who is deaf. Of course, there is the inclusivity factor that is wonderful to see onscreen, but also it shows a softer, kinder side of Dixon.

Manheim is very skilled in sign language — as anyone who saw her perform on Broadway in Spring Awakening can tell you — so this added levity from her is heartwarming. It of course also helps the case because she is able to observe the girl speaking to her mother in sign and know exactly what is being said.

This case may be extremely disturbing and traumatic but, it shows just how connected this squad is. Shaw is new to the team and already he knows to check in on  Detective Yee while this is happening.

They share a common bond of knowing what it’s like to be hated just for their race. Law & Order Season 22 Episode 3, “Camouflage” also gives Cosgrove the room to step back and let Shaw and Yee set the tone for how they approach this subject matter. 

It’s kind of nice to not see Cosgrove in his usual “take no prisoners” attitude. Moving forward I want a bit more of what we see from this squad in this episode. 

It humanizes cops and makes us believe that goodness can exist in the NYPD.

The Verdict

While Law & Order sometimes hands us verdicts we aren’t expecting this time around the suspect gets exactly what we expected. While capital punishment is not something I wish to get into a debate about in this review, it is nice to see that a man who deliberately targeted so many Asian Americans got his just desserts.

Whether he had been found guilty and given life in prison with no parole or the death penalty like the show depicts it wouldn’t ever be enough for the lives he took. However, in the hands of the US legal system, the outcome is the most he could have gotten.

It’s very rare on this show that the ending to a case is as cut and dry as this one.

 

What did you think of this episode of Law & Order? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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Law & Order airs Thursdays at 8/7c on NBC.

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