A "9-11 Widow" who received a lucrative settlement after her firefighter husband's death is murdered. Another firefighter's ex-wife, who was dumped for the victim after 9-11, is charged.A "9-11 Widow" who received a lucrative settlement after her firefighter husband's death is murdered. Another firefighter's ex-wife, who was dumped for the victim after 9-11, is charged.A "9-11 Widow" who received a lucrative settlement after her firefighter husband's death is murdered. Another firefighter's ex-wife, who was dumped for the victim after 9-11, is charged.
Photos
- DA Arthur Branch
- (as Fred Dalton Thompson)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe trademark "donk-donk" sound first appears in this episode during the introductory segment before the opening credits - very unusual for an episode of "Law & Order".
- GoofsIt is a common misconception that coffee helps one sober up. It does not. The caffeine in coffee acts as a stimulant, which may trick the mind into thinking one is becoming sober but the only thing that rids the body of alcohol is metabolism over time.
- Quotes
Pancho Diamond: What the hell is this?
Detective Joe Fontana: I'm gonna tell you what it is, Agent Diamond. It's my tailor made, Italian silk shirt with his blood on it. A little thing we like to call evidence. You take it, and you run a toxicology screen. And by the way, I'm billing the FBI.
- ConnectionsReferences The First Wives Club (1996)
"The Dead Wives Club" on the whole is a better episode, though it was a rather uneven one still and what was introduced in the previous episode has not settled yet. It did a much better job with its theme and the legal portions fare much better this time, but it is a case of one half being much better than the other. That has been known to happen with 'Law and Order' a lot, but with varying degrees of how much and the difference between the two halves in "The Dead Wives Club" is big.
By all means, it is far from a bad episode and has a good deal of good things. The episode is slick-looking and visually doesn't try to do anything too fancy or indulgent while also not being too safe. The music is not too dramatic and to me doesn't over-emphasise. The direction is not breakneck pace but it doesn't plod in my opinion either. Much of the acting is very good, Jesse L Martin and Sam Waterston being the easy standouts of the regulars and Amy Carleton making for a sympathetic suspect.
A big improvement can be seen in the writing here, which has more tautness and edge if more in the legal portions than the policing. The legal portion is very compelling, far from simplistic and has enough suspense, when it comes to trial there is a good deal of tension later on. The inequality aspect is handled very well, done with tact but also insightfully. Anybody who has encountered any inequality through witnessing or suffering personally will relate to what is covered and the subject itself.
However, Dennis Farina is still on the bland side to me and there just isn't enough to Fontana yet to make him memorable. Have always whole-heartedly believed in judging everything on their own merits for fairness sake, but sometimes it is not always easy when comparing when the difference between one thing and another is so big. Which is the case with Briscoe, who was the show, versus Fontana. His chemistry with Green is not igniting yet, the grit and snap are pretty much completely missing and they don't connect.
Did also find the first half very routine and ordinary, and the lack of chemistry and the lack of impact for one crucial character play major factors as to why. As well as that what happens is nothing new. Elisabeth Rohm is wooden once again.
Concluding, a better episode but a bit on the fence. 6/10.
- TheLittleSongbird
- Jul 25, 2022
Details
- Release date
- Official sites
- Language
- Filming locations
- Governors Island, New York Harbor, New York City, New York, USA(Ferry crash exterior - Governors Island Ferry Samuel Coursen)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro