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Law & Order: Criminal Intent

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Law & Order: Criminal Intent
Image:CIopening.jpg </small>
Genre Drama
Running time approx. 45 minutes (per episode)
Creator(s) Dick Wolf
Starring Vincent D'Onofrio
Kathryn Erbe
Chris Noth (2005-present)
Julianne Nicholson (2006-present)
Eric Bogosian (2006-present)
Previous Cast: Samantha Buck (2003-2004)
Jamey Sheridan (2001-06)
Annabella Sciorra (2005-06)
Courtney B. Vance (2001-06)
Country of origin Image:Flag of the United States.svg United States
Original channel NBC
Original run September 30, 2001–Present
No. of episodes 121
IMDb profile
TV.com summary

Law & Order: Criminal Intent (also known as Law & Order: CI, L&O:CI, Criminal Intent, LOCI or simply CI) is an American crime drama television series set in New York City that premiered on September 30, 2001. It is the second spinoff of the long-running crime drama Law & Order. The show currently stars Vincent D'Onofrio, Kathryn Erbe, Chris Noth, Julianne Nicholson and Eric Bogosian; the latter two actors are new to the series and made their debuts in the sixth season. Theresa Randle has also been recently cast as a recurring character.

New episodes of Criminal Intent can be seen on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. EST on NBC, preceding Law and Order: SVU at 10 p.m. EST. [1] In addition, re-runs are aired on the USA and Bravo cable TV channels.

Season 6 premiered on September 19, 2006. The show had the lowest ratings of all Law & Order shows, but it is hoped that the show will serve as a good lead-in to SVU, which drew the highest ratings, with nearly 15 million viewers.[2]

Contents

[edit] Series overview

Law & Order: Criminal Intent follows a distinct division of the New York City Police Department: the "Major Case Squad". The Major Case Squad investigates high-profile cases, usually homicides, such as those involving VIPs, local government officials and employees, the financial industry, and the art world.

Unlike the other shows in the Law & Order franchise, Criminal Intent gives a great amount of attention to the actions and motives of the criminals, rather than showing (almost exclusively) the police and prosecution's side of the case.

A signature feature of each Criminal Intent episode (not present in the original Law & Order series) is that the teaser introduction before the title sequence always involves a series of cut-scenes that show events from the suspects' and victims' lives, leading up to the crime. Clues to the crime's eventual solution can often be found in this teaser sequence.

[edit] Characters

  • NYPD Major Case Squad Detective Robert 'Bobby' Goren - Vincent D'Onofrio, is a quirky yet extraordinarily intelligent investigator and criminal profiler, known for his instinct and insight. Often, Goren's intuition turns out to be the case-breaker, rather than solid evidence (which is usually the case in the other two series). Each episode, Goren typically employs his knowledge of an unusually wide range of topics, from theoretical physics to (multiple) foreign languages. Goren once served in the Criminal Investigation Division, stationed in Germany and South Korea. The Bobby Goren character is very reminiscent of Sherlock Holmes; he notices tiny — yet important — details ignored by others, and has broad encyclopedic knowledge. Frequently, Goren obtains crucial information and confessions by psychologically manipulating and provoking suspects, and suspects' associates.
  • NYPD Major Case Squad Detective Alexandra Eames - Kathryn Erbe, a quiet, practical partner who always seems to mesh well with Goren, despite the noticeable personality differences between the two. Her character is much like the screen portrayals of Holmes' partner Doctor Watson: a lesser equal, overshadowed by the charismatic presence of a prodigy partner. While still an assertive and no-nonsense cop and the senior partner of the pairing, much of Eames' dialogue consists of sarcastic, pun-heavy observations delivered at dramatically opportune moments (much like Law & Order's Detective Lennie Briscoe character). There are occasional hints of a strong attraction between the two partners, but their relationship is not romantic.
  • When Ms. Erbe went on maternity leave, she was largely replaced with the Detective G. Lynn Bishop (Samantha Buck) character (Season 3 [2003-2004], episodes 5-11). During this period, Ms. Erbe sometimes cameoed as Det. Eames -- on desk duty -- in police station scenes. The storyline explanation was that Det. Eames (who is single) had embarked upon a surrogate pregnancy, as a solemn favor to her sister who was too fragile to carry her own fetus.
The original cast of Law & Order: Criminal Intent
  • NYPD Major Case Squad Captain James Deakins (Jamey Sheridan), Goren and Eames' immediate supervisor; he periodically checks up on their progress during investigations. At Season 5's end, Deakins resigned rather than battle a conspiracy to frame him (started by his ex-friend, a revered hero cop-turned corrupted gubernatorial hopeful-turned murderer). The vendetta stemmed from a previous episode, in which Deakins -- torn between his loyalties and his integrity -- reluctantly allowed Goren and Eames to put this "friend" ("Frank Adair") in prison by refusing to cover-up Adair's misdeeds.
  • NYPD Major Case Squad Captain Daniel "Danny" Ross (Eric Bogosian) is Deakins' successor as Major Case Squad commander. He is given the position as a reward for a successful three-year stint as head of a Joint Task Force on International Money Laundering. With him, he brings Detective Megan Wheeler.
  • Assistant District Attorney Ron Carver (Courtney B. Vance), an aggressive yet idealistic, by-the-books legal figure who often pressures Goren and Eames for additional evidence. Like Anita Van Buren from Law & Order, Carver graduated from John Jay College of Criminal Justice, but it is unknown whether they knew each other or were classmates. (In a shared scene the two had in the episode 'Badge', however, there was little indication of closeness or a prior awareness of each other.) No reason has been given for ADA Carver's departure.
Image:Law&OrderCriminalIntent Season6Cast.jpg
  • Patricia Kent was supposed to be played by Nona Gaye, but she quit the series shortly after production began. Although Ms. Randle's character has replacd Mr. Vance's, she has yet to appear in the opening credits of the series.

Beginning with the 2005 season, a second team of detectives was introduced to alternate with Goren and Eames(reportedly to relieve D'Onofrio from being overworked, which had led to medical problems in previous seasons). "I wouldn't be doing a fifth season if it wasn't for Dick Wolf stepping in and coming up with a better idea. It was just too much. Kate and I, we work our butts off." [3].

The second team is as follows:

  • NYPD Major Case Squad Detective Michael 'Mike' Logan (Chris Noth), Logan is a troubled detective who had formerly worked as a homicide detective in Manhattan's 27th precinct (from 1990–1995, on the original Law & Order). He had been banished to the NYPD's career graveyard (Staten Island harbor patrol) after publicly punching a homophobic politician who had murdered a gay man that Logan had grudgingly come to respect; however, Logan redeemed himself by solving a dirty-cop murder/conspiracy case (as seen in the 1998 NBC TV movie Exiled: A Law & Order Movie). He was later transferred from Staten Island to the NYPD's Domestic Disputes department. He made an appearance working with Goren and Eames, as a colleague co-investigating allegations of prisoner abuse at the hands of a corrupt warden and his guards. In addition, Logan was involved in the 'officer-involved shooting' used to fuel the career-ending conspiracy against Captain Deakins.
  • NYPD Major Case Squad Detective Carolyn Barek (Annabella Sciorra), partner of Mike Logan. Barek is a brilliant criminal profiler who ascended from the hard-scrabble streets of Brooklyn's Cobble Hill to the highest ranks of the NYPD and beyond, spending two post-September 11th years with the FBI. Her reason for departing Major Case is not known.
  • NYPD Major Case Squad Detective Megan Wheeler (Julianne Nicholson), Mike Logan's second partner during his run with the Major Case Squad. Wheeler transfers into Major Case with her captain/mentor, Danny Ross.

[edit] Episodes

Main article: List of Law & Order: Criminal Intent episodes

[edit] Trivia

Law & Order franchise

Original series

Special Victims Unit
Criminal Intent
Trial by Jury

Franchise cast
Franchise characters

Conviction
Exiled
Crime & Punishment

  • The words to the opening narration are spoken each week by Steven Zirnkilton [4]since 2001
  • While many cast members of the various Law & Order shows are "repeat offenders" (actors who previously appeared in other roles), there are a few 'multi-repeat' offenders:
    • Courtney B. Vance previously played two different characters on the original show (a mayoral aide in "By Hooker, By Crook" and a stockbroker in "Rage").
  • Julianne Nicholson appeared in one episode of the original L&O ("All My Children"), then starred on Conviction before joining Criminal Intent as Detective Barek's replacement.
  • A planned miniseries which would have featured Detective Goren and united the casts of Criminal Intent, SVU, and the original Law & Order was cancelled because of the events of 9/11. The plotline centered around a terrorist attack using biological weapons.
  • D'Onofrio's real-life father, Gene D'Onofrio, appears in the episode "Slither". He is seen walking within the Major Case Squad.
  • Fans of the show frequently refer to it as LO:CI (prounounced Lo Chi).

[edit] The Real NYPD "Major Case Squad"

The NYPD does have a "Major Case Squad" but unlike the Major Case Squad on Criminal Intent, the real "Major Case Squad" Only handles the following types of cases.

  • Kidnappings as directed by the Chief of Detectives
  • Burglary or Attempted Burglary of a bank or bank safe
  • Larceny by extortion or attempt, from a bank
  • Robbery or attempted of a bank by a perpetrator not armed
  • Burglary of a truck contents over $100,000
  • Larceny of a truck contents over $100,000
  • Robbery of a truck and contents by hijacking
  • All robberies in warehouse depots or similar locations where the objects of the crime is a truck or its contents
  • All commercial burglaries in which the value of the property stolen exceeds $100,000
  • Art Theft

The "Major Case Squad" does not investigate homicides. All homicide investigations are conducted by precinct detective squads and borough homicide squads.

[edit] Awards

[edit] Won

  • 2005 Edgar Award for Best Episode in a Television Series Teleplay (René Balcer and Elizabeth Benjamin, for "Want")

[edit] Nominated

  • 2005 Edgar Award for Best Episode in a Television Series Teleplay (René Balcer and Gerry Conway, for "Conscience"; René Balcer and Warren Leight, for "Consumed"; René Balcer and Warren Leight, for "Pas De Deux")
  • 2004 Edgar Award for Best Episode in a Television Series Teleplay (René Balcer and Gerry Conway, for "Probability")
  • 2004 Satellite Award for Best Actor in a Series, Drama (Vincent D'Onofrio)
  • 2003 Edgar Award for Best Television Episode (René Balcer, for "Tuxedo Hill")
  • 2002 Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series (Courtney B. Vance)

[edit] DVD Releases

DVD Name
Cover Art
Release dates
Region 1
Region 2
Region 4
The Complete 1st SeasonThe Complete First Season October 21 2003 February 28 2005 January 20 2005
The Complete 2nd SeasonImage:Lci2.jpg December 12 2006 July 17 2006 March 7 2006
The Complete 3rd SeasonThe Complete Third SeasonSeptember 14 2004 N/A N/A

[edit] Technical information

Law & Order: CI has been shot on film in 16:9 format since at least 2004. This also presents the unique oddity of reruns in this format providing more (previously cropped) material than when the episodes were first run broadcast in 4:3. Since 2004, first run episodes have also aired in HDTV. Since 2006, all new episodes of the multiple Law & Order series have aired in widescreen for 4:3 screens, following other NBC shows such as The West Wing, ER, and Crossing Jordan.

[edit] Related series

Image:CI game.jpg

  • In addition, a Law and Order: Criminal Intent computer game by Legacy Interactive was released in November 2005.

[edit] French adaptation

In July 2005, NBC Universal sold the format of Law & Order: CI to French channel TF1 Alma Productions to launch a localized French version of the drama. The version will get its own native language title and actors. It should go into production and premiere in 2006. It will mirror the content of the original US stories, although the location will be in Paris and adjusted for language and culture. Vincent Perez is going to play the same character as Vincent D'Onofrio.

[edit] International Broadcasters

Country Alternate title/Translation TV Network(s) Series Premiere Weekly Schedule
Image:Flag of the United States.svg United States Law & Order: Criminal Intent NBC (Original Airing),
USA Network and
Bravo (Syndication) 		October 7 2001 Tuesdays 9:00pm ET
Image:Flag of Canada.svg Canada Law & Order: Criminal Intent CTV & NBC (Original Airing),
Access, OMNI.2
and Mystery (Syndication) 		October 7 2001 Tuesdays 9:00pm ET
Image:Flag of Australia.svg Australia Law & Order: Criminal Intent Network Ten (First run)
and TV1 (Syndication)		 Sundays 8:30pm AEST (currently on hiatus)
Image:Flag of Austria.svg Austria ORF
Image:Flag of Brazil.svg Brazil Lei e Ordem: Crimes Premeditados
("Law & Order: Deliberate Crimes") 		Sony Entertainment Television (Cable)
and Rede Record
Image:Flag of France.svg France New York - Section criminelle
("New York - Criminal Section") 		TF1 September 7 2002
Image:Flag of Germany.svg Germany Criminal Intent - Verbrechen im Visier
("Criminal Intent - Sights set on Crime") 		VOX August 2 2004 Mondays 9:10pm UTC and
Wednesdays 9:10pm UTC
Image:Flag of Greece.svg Greece Star Channel
Image:Flag of Spain.svg Spain Ley y orden: Acción criminal
("Law & Order: Criminal Action") 		Calle 13, TVE and Localia
Image:Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden I lagens namn: ur brottslig synvinkel ("In the Name of the Law: From a Criminal Point of View"); this title is only used on Viasat Crime Kanal 5 (Sweden) (first run); Viasat Crime, Hallmark Channel and TV4+ (syndication)
Image:Flag of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom Law & Order: Criminal Intent Hallmark Channel (first run)
and Channel Five (Reruns)
Image:Flag of Ireland (bordered).svg Ireland Law & Order: Criminal Intent RTE 2 Series 5

Late Sunday Night

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

fr:New York section criminelle nl:Law & Order: Criminal Intent no:Law & Order: Criminal Intent sv:Law & Order: Criminal Intent

Retrieved from "http://en.wikivisual.com/index.php/Law_%26_Order:_Criminal_Intent"
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