Law & Order (TV Series) The Wages of Love (1991) User Reviews

Unwritten law

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 8 August 2017]

A man and his young mistress are shot to death during a rendezvous at his apartment. The man was a frisky forty something in an extended mid life crisis.

Suspicion first falls on David Lansbury who was the former boyfriend of the mistress. But later Paul Sorvino convinces partner Chris Noth and Captain Dan Florek that maybe it wasn't Lansbury. The two start looking in the direction of the estranged wife Shirley Knight and their son Geoffrey Nauffts.

Does that famous unwritten law an acquittal for one partner if he catches someone bedding the wife uphold for the woman? Shirley Knight is certainly banking on it and she's a bit frowzy and frayed around the edges, but that could make a jury sympathetic. Nauffts also keeps dropping more bits and pieces to the police and the DA and that makes Michael Moriarty having to switch trial strategies.

I did feel a bit of sympathy for Knight myself. How will you feel when watching this interesting episode?

Love turning deadly

[TheLittleSongbird · 7/10 · 11 February 2020]

Despite undergoing some drastic changes, Season 2 started off incredibly well all things considered with "Confession". The season on the whole is just as good as the solid previous season where the weakest episodes were still pretty good, although the number of changes that the season underwent means that it doesn't always feel settled (one can understand why, it is not easy dealing with the amount of change there was) and it isn't quite as consistent perhaps.

This following episode "The Wages of Love" is not as good as "Confession", instead of building upon what was seen before the season takes a couple of steps backward quality-wise. It isn't as layered, as continually interesting or has the same amount of emotional impact, and the case isn't as strong. It is still a pretty good episode and has a lot of the good things, the best elements executed excellently, that Season 1 had and that "Confession" had, while missing the extra something.

In terms of the case, "The Wages of Love" is diverting enough but it is also a bit thin and at times slightly bland. It would have benefitted from having more suspects which would have given the episode more suspense and surprises, with there being not quite enough of either.

Also feel that the chemistry between Cerreta and Logan is one of the primary things that feels unsettled at this point of the season. It is far from non-existent and Paul Sorvino does commendably once again, but it doesn't quite feel gelled yet and the edge and oomph seen with Greevey and Logan as the first season progressed are not quite there here too.

However, the sharp yet still gritty and slick look of the photography still remains. As does the memorable main theme tune and unobtrusive scoring. The script is very thought-provoking, every bit as much as the writing in "Confession", and intelligently written. Also raising some very interesting moral questions, such as whether the sentencing should be for murder or manslaughter and revealing why the murderer acted the way they did which is where "The Wages of Love" is at its most suspenseful.

While the story is not perfect it still intrigues, if more the legal/trial scenes than the investigation. The moral questions and Stone's moral dilemma elevating those scenes to a greater level. The characters are well written, with Stone being particularly juicy. Michael Moriarty also gains the acting honours of the uniformly strong cast, giving his meaty material everything. It was interesting seeing a pre-Lennie Briscoe Jerry Orbach, who shines in the whole murder two exchange with Moriarty. Shirley Knight is affecting.

Summing, up, pretty good but not great. 7/10

Clears the Bar.

[rmax304823 · 7/10 · 20 November 2012]

Nicely done episode in which plump, middle-aged Shirley Knight shoots to death her husband, who is about to divorce her, and his new, fresh, bite-sized, cholesterol-free thirty-year-old innamorata. The two fornicators are plugged while in bed.

As is usual in this series, the two detectives follow a false lead before getting to Knight as the actual murderer. Ben Stone, Michael Moriarty here, agonizes over the charge to be brought against Knight. His choice is first-degree murder (she gets 25 years to life) or first-degree manslaughter because she didn't plan the crime but committed it impulsively when she found the lovers in the sack (4 years).

Stone reckons, sensibly enough, that the jury can convict on murder or manslaughter, or they can acquit because, after all, who doesn't sympathize with a discarded wife (and widow)? In cases like this, the jury generally takes the middle road and convicts on manslaughter but Stone is not satisfied. She's guilty of murder, not manslaughter. So he eliminates the manslaughter charge and puts the jury in the position of giving Knight 25 to life or else acquitting.

The jury retires and Stone paces back and forth in his office, sweating and biting his lip. Hours go by. He may lose it. Finally he receives a call from Knight's lawyer, who offers to go for two counts of manslaughter (12 years), and Stone, looking extremely relieved, says simply, "Deal." In real life, a defense lawyer named Barry Scheck, if I remember, argued that his client, a young and attractive English au pair girl accused of shaking to death the baby who was left in her care, should be charged with murder or else acquitted. Scheck reasoned: Who would convict a pretty girl with an innocent face and an English accent of deliberately killing a child? The jury did. Defense counsel had overreached. (The judge reduced the sentence to manslaughter and sentenced the nanny to time served.) I hope I remember the case accurately.

What's most interesting about this episode though is not so much Stone's tactics and his uncertainty. It's not the legal questions that are so gripping; it's the moral question. What recourse does a woman have when she is being dumped by the man she's loved and served and suffered with for a quarter of a century because she's now gained weight and developed some wrinkles? As far as we can tell, Knight has been a devoted wife and mother and nothing else, and now she's reading the want ads looking for a job.

You know those want ads look like? They tend to come in two styles. (1) "WANTED: Hard-charging junior executive type, self starter, good salesman and MBA, for small firm." And (2) WANTED: "Young, endowed, dancer, male or female, for private club in Hoboken. No experience necessary. Call 201-5554. Ask for Eddie."

Reminder of a Once-Great Show

[amorehl · 9/10 · 15 March 2023]

Watching this episode reminds me of what an outstanding show this used to be. The characters, the writing, the back-and-forth of the plot were all engaging and enjoyable. It also puts into stark relief the lesser quality of the "new" and NOT improved, w0ke Law & Order. Shirley Knight provides an excellent portrayal of the discarded wife that you can't help but feel sympathetic for. Paul Sorvino provides an authentic portrayal of a hard-nosed NYC cop, and Chris Noth's character is still working to get over the death of his partner and learning how to get along with Sorvino. Plus, this episode gives us our first glimpse of Jerry Orbach as a defense attorney. It's hard to believe the trivia item that Orbach was passed over twice for a detective role (although both George Dzundza and Paul Sorvino were excellent too). Silly thought: It's too bad they couldn't work in a brief duet between Orbach & Sorvino!

Guest starring Ben Lin and Stan Egi

[safenoe · 7/10 · 26 June 2023]

Ben Lin, Stan Egi and Jerry Orbach guest star in the second episode of the second season of Law and Order, and it's quite emotional with the middle-aged woman being scorned and taking matters into her own hands (with her loyal son as an accomplice) to wreak revenger against her good-for-nothing husband and his much younger, beautiful girlfriend. Interesting to see Jerry guest star, and he ended up replacing Paul Sorvino not long after, because the cold weather was affecting Paul's opera voice.

I like the early seasons of Law and Order, and for some reason I like the scene in the opening theme where the cars at night travel across the bridge. It's a helicopter view, and for reason it's mesmorizing.

I haven't watched the reboot of this series but maybe one day I will.