Law & Order: Special Victims Unit—The Second Year

The difficult, often heartbreaking work of the New York Police Department's elite Special Victims Unit takes center stage in this successful Law & Order spin-off produced by Dick Wolf. If anything, the 18 episodes of the second season are even better—and certainly grittier—than their predecessors. Christopher Meloni stars as Detective Elliot Stabler and Mariska Hargitay plays Detective Olivia Benson, supported by Richard Belzer as Detective Munch and Dann Florek as Captain Cragen. Second season additions to the cast (most welcome, I might add) include Stephanie March as Assistant District Attorney Alexandra Cabot, Ice-T as Detective Odafin Tutuola, and B.D. Wong as forensic psychiatrist George Huang. As the 2000-01 year begins with “Wrong Is Right,” the squad is still under investigation by IAD when Fin Tutuola transfers in from narcotics to help out on a particularly difficult case. “Closure, Part II” provides guest star Tracy Pollan with a plum role as a rape victim who, skeptical of police efforts, pursues her assailant with the idea of meting out justice herself. An especially powerful episode is “Secrets,” in which Stabler and Benson find that the rape and murder of a popular high-school teacher was tied to her secret life as a kinky thrill-seeker. The series' second year boasts a star-studded guest roster that includes Eric Roberts, Margot Kidder, Richard Thomas, Karen Allen, and Chad Lowe. DVD extras include deleted scenes, actor profiles, and behind-the-scenes featurettes. Recommended. (E. Hulse)