I cherished this episode. In my head, the story was a research in distinction between the several types of households we discover ourselves in. There’s our household of origin, which is all the time a wealthy supply of storytelling materials; there’s our discovered household, like a sports activities staff or a gang, and our work household, just like the police household Det. Vincent Riley is a part of. In “Big Brother,” all three varieties of households get stress examined. Let’s have a look at which household scenario breaks…
Coach Walsh has turned up lifeless. Detectives Shaw and Riley are investigating when Riley is hastened away to cope with a household scenario. The scenario – Riley’s brother – is locked up for illegally promoting weapons. Ryan Eggold, no stranger to NBC (New Amsterdam and the Blacklist), is arresting (pun supposed) as a wanna-be-gangster. At one level, his brother Vincent describes him as “95% good, recounting how he stepped up without complaint to care for their dying father, and 5% bad.” He tells the cop who arrested Matty that Matty could possibly be became a prison informant (CI) as a result of he hangs out with dangerous guys. This is able to get him off the gun cost he was arrested for. Vincent is doing every thing he can as a police officer to help his brother.
“Big Brother”” – LAW & ORDER, Pictured: Ryan Eggold as Matt Riley. Photograph by: Ralph Bavaro/NBC4 ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Because the investigation progresses, video surfaces exhibiting Matty had contact with the sufferer the day he died. This flip within the plot places the brothers on a collision course of kinds. Due to Matty’s twisted sense of honor amongst thieves, Vincent works exhausting to persuade him to assist with the investigation. To make the gun cost go away, Matty wears a wire to try to pry info out of the principle suspect, a bar proprietor named Jackie Costa.
There have been some tense moments when Costa, a person with a considerable prison report in racketeering, playing, and many others., insisted on looking Matty for the wire hidden in a button. Not discovering the wire, Costa begins to speak. He defined why the sufferer, Coach Walsh, encountered him to settle a playing debt for a former participant. All of the sudden, the feed goes silent. When Vincent and Shaw demand to know what occurred, Matty says, “I’m not a snitch,” successfully prioritizing his road household over his circle of relatives, and over what’s morally proper.
“Big Brother”” – LAW & ORDER, Pictured: (l-r) Reid Scott as Det. Vincent Riley, Maura Tierney as Lt. Jessica Brady, Mehcad Brooks as Det. Jalen Shaw. Photo by: Ralph Bavaro/NBC ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Back at the station, Lt. Brady asked Vincent what happened with his brother and the wire. He tried to play it off as a simple malfunction. Det. Shaw looked on uncomfortably. In her bloodhound fashion, Lt. Brady continued to press him until he confessed that his brother destroyed the wire. Brady told Vincent, “Subsequent time, lead with the reality, and we’ll get alongside higher.” Thankfully, what his brother did allow the police to record was enough to get a search warrant.
The search of Costa’s bar turned up a Rolex watch the Coach was known to wear. A kid shows up with the murder weapon a few days later, and he tells the DA that he saw a white dude toss it. Again, CCTV shows Costa in the vicinity of where the kid said he found the gun. The case is a strong circumstantial one. DA Price presses the police for more. Det. Riley goes back to make an impassioned plea to his brother. He emphasized that this was not some Scorsese movie, but a murder case with real consequences. Matty doesn’t budge. He doesn’t want to get involved. His refusal forces his brother to focus on the transactional nature of their relationship, reminding Matty that his testimony is the only way to make the gun charges go away. In disbelief, Matty tells Vincent, “There should be a whole bunch of how to make the gun cost disappear.” Vincent deadpans, “There isn’t.”
Extra out of self-preservation than doing the correct factor, Matty tells DA Value every thing that will result in Costa’s conviction. Value tells Matt, “You just have to say everything you told me on the stand.” Reduce to Matt within the witness field. His brother and Det. Shaw within the courtroom. Regularly glancing on the defendant, Costa, Matt denies each query DA Value asks. The court docket takes a brief recess. Vincent asks Matt what he’s doing. Virtually smugly, Matt says, “I guess I changed my mind.” Matt’s antics as a witness led Value to deal with him as a hostile witness as a result of his direct testimony contradicted his earlier sworn assertion. To question Matt’s testimony, Value accuses Matt, “Your refusal to cooperate is because you feel that being a snitch is an unforgivable betrayal. Because of this, you are willing to let a killer go free rather than testify!” Matt leans forward, grabs the rail of the witness box, looks the DA in the eye, and says: “You’re damn right.” I’m paraphrasing the whole scene, but you get it, right?
“Big Brother”” – LAW & ORDER, Pictured: Ryan Eggold as Matt Riley. Photograph by: Ralph Bavaro/NBC ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved
The enhancing on this courtroom scene was masterful. There have been close-ups of Det. Shaw dying of disgrace. You noticed Det. Shaw trying disgusted. You noticed Value’s frustration. However you additionally noticed, due to Matt’s refusal to cooperate, the jury slowly turning into satisfied of Costa’s guilt. You additionally noticed a foreshadowing of guilt on the faces of Costa and his legal professional. Reduce to the choose asking for the decision: “We find the defendant guilty.” Det. Shaw says to Vincent, “Shaw, you’re a great cop. People respect you, but if Costa had been acquitted…”
“Huge Brother”” – LAW & ORDER, Pictured: (l-r) Katie Sackhoff as Attorney Gallo, Chris Bauer as Jack Costa. Photo by: Scott Gries/NBC ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Later, Vincent shows up at his brother’s house. He says, “We gotta take a ride to the precinct. They’re gonna charge you.” Matt protested, “I thought you were going to handle that.” “Yeah,” Vincent says, “I guess I changed my mind.” Boom! What comes around goes around, Matty.
In procedurals like Law & Order, the best episodes are the ones that reveal the personal backgrounds of the characters. This story was all about the bonds of family. What families, criminal gangs, and police seem to have in common is the high-stakes, high-stress nature of their relationship. Being part of a family always comes down to who you can trust, who you can rely on, and who’s got your back. The Riley brothers seemed irretrievably broken, as neither, at the end of the day, had the other’s back. Both’s loyalty lay outside their family of origin. While heartbreaking because you want brothers by blood to get along, it all made sense when Vincent arrested Matt.
Again, I loved this episode. I thought it was well-plotted and wonderfully acted, especially Reid Scott’s portrayal of Det. Vincent. What did you think? Did you like Ryan Eggold’s sleazy depiction of Matt Riley? Did you enjoy the courtroom scenes as much as I did? Drop me a line and let me know your thoughts. Cheers!
Lynette Jones
