Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 4 Episode 5 Review: Missing Persons

Despite being on suspension, Stabler can’t walk away when someone he cares about disappears. Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 4 Episode 5, “Missing Persons,” brings back Stabler’s old informant, Rita Lasku.

It’s the perfect opportunity for Stabler to put to rest one of the few hanging threads from that investigation. The disappearance also serves to explore his feelings of inadequacy around his job and family.

While most of the investigating taking place during this episode is completely off-book and technically illegal, that doesn’t stop it from being a compelling hour of television.

Where is Stabler’s Head At?

It’s a huge deal for Elliot Stabler to be charged with physical assault. It’s honestly something we haven’t seen from him since the early days of his tenure on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. 

He has grown quite a bit since those days, and he’s been much better at thinking before plowing ahead in any on-the-job situation. Unfortunately, “Missing Persons” shows us that he’s fallen back a few steps in his evolution.

While his handling of the teen during Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 4 Episode 4, “The Last Supper,” is completely justified, Stabler’s obviously not handling the IAB suspension very well. In fact, he’s not handling it at all; instead, he’s spiraling.

Stabler isn’t one to ignore calls from Olivia Benson these days, but during this episode, we see him do just that. He erratically goes from being concerned about some drug remnants found in his trash — an indication that either his son or his younger brother is using to focusing instead on Rita Lasku’s disappearance.

The Rita Lasku Situation

While it’s not a terrible thing that he’s taking on the search for this woman he once saved, it does show that his brain can’t settle down. We don’t see him follow through on concerns he has with his family, nor do we see him truly put aside his role as an NYPD Detective.

The former almost cost him his job when he oversteps the jurisdiction of a police chief on Long Island. It’s a version of Stabler we aren’t used to seeing, one that was buried along with the investigation into his wife’s murder.

On a larger scale, Stabler’s behavior is a well-orchestrated demonstration of Law & Order: Organized Crime knowing exactly how to play the long game. There is attention that needs to be paid to the causes behind Stabler’s somewhat unstable mental health here.

Lasku was a woman he saved, now she is in danger again, and Stabler feels he has to be the one to save her — which he unfortunately can’t. That realization hits him deeply because he still hasn’t dealt with the trauma and guilt of losing Jamie a few months ago. We could even argue he still hasn’t fully dealt with Kathy’s traumatic death.

It’s also a bigger indication that Stabler has been through many traumas in his time at OCCB. Despite being an active participant in his own mental therapy, he still has miles to go toward healing those traumas.

Where Does Stabler Go From Here?

The biggest question on our minds after this episode isn’t concerning the serial killer that’s just been unearthed — though that is important. Our main concern is how Stabler will handle everything being dredged back up on the job and at home.

Based on his conversation with Joe Jr. during Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 4 Episode 5, “Missing Persons,” Stabler doesn’t buy that his brother is telling him the whole truth. There is more to it, and as the season progresses, I am sure we will find out all we need to know.

In the meantime, how is Stabler going to be on the job? Especially if the IAB investigator does decide to penalize him for his actions during the shooting.

We are only just scratching the surface, and already we can see that Stabler’s progress is only tenable as long as his job and home life remain steady.

 

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

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Law & Order: Organized Crime airs Thursdays at 10/9c on NBC.

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