A runaway bride calls the SVU for help on the day of her wedding. Rollins pitches in on her day off.
Is Amanda Rollins destined to return to SVU? For years, the squad was understaffed. Olivia always fought with the chief about hiring more personnel for her unit. And now, the squadroom is full with two captains, a sergeant, a couple junior detectives and a liaison with the FBI. Even if Olivia wanted to bring Rollins back, she doesn't have the room for her right now. Of course, everyone would still welcome her with open arms. She comes alive through this work. It invigorates her in a way teaching never did. After a year as a professor, she was offered a tenured position. She turns it down. She's unemployed now. She goes stir crazy after an hour alone. It was great to have a weekend at home with Carisi and the kids. However, he has to return to work. Childcare is already lined up. Rollins is now tasked with introspection over what she wants to do with her life. Returning to the NYPD is an available option. Olivia and Fin make sure of that. Rollins hasn't lost her touch either. It's simply not presented as something she should immediately decide.
Olivia sees Rollins using SVU as a safety net. It's always a reliable place to land. She's still excellent at the work. She remains compassionate with the victims. She provides the psychological examination into the minds of heinous criminals. She's still an excellent shot with a gun. Carisi worries when she goes off-script while undercover. Everyone fears they could entrap the suspect instead of collecting evidence against him in a lawful way. It's a very delicate balance they must strike. It's their duty to get things right. That's how they provide justice to the victims. The cops can't go rogue. Their actions must withstand scrutiny. Carisi notes he can't prosecute the case because he participated in investigative steps by going undercover. He's still trusted to craft a deal that punishes Leon while sparing the victims from having to endure a trial. That's one way they can regain their voices. Coming forward and helping secure the conviction for the prosecution is meaningful. It's because of the strength of the evidence that everything works out so concisely.
The case that intrigues Rollins back into this work involves a predator targeting women on the night before their weddings. He's in close enough proximity to the brides to know they will be spending the night away from their partners to maintain some sense of tradition before the ceremony. Rollins argues it's a way to destroy a person's happiness. The assailant wants to be remembered. He wants to tarnish the happiness this couple was expecting to come from marriage. Rollins even details the historical connection to when kings took the brides for themselves before the wedding. However, Leon's motivation isn't that deep. In fact, that lessens the overall impact slightly. He just got tired of waiting for his own happiness. And so, he set out to ruin it for others. It doesn't have to be much deeper than that. He wasn't caught because of his obsession to exert his power. Instead, it was all driven by the police making the connections between the victims and zeroing in on the one suspect who had the opportunity to attack. His sense of order extends to all aspects of his life. The detectives take note of that while also guaranteeing he gets arrested before anyone else is attacked.
Despite that shortcoming in the grand reveal, the episode remains a highlight for the season. It also showcases how the narrative has been lacking since Rollins' departure. The storytelling has tried to keep her close. She's mentioned frequently. However, that doesn't provide the same appeal as her being an active participant of the main story. She left without her character arc being fully resolved. Even now, she acknowledges she still has work to do. She has grown so much through her time at SVU and friendship with Olivia. The captain will support Rollins no matter what she decides to do next. Rollins deserves the time to figure that out. Again, it may very well lead back to SVU. The work is still significant. Possibilities elsewhere are suggested too. It just ultimately depends on whether the creative team will bring Rollins back full-time. It's easy for her to make sporadic appearances. In doing so though, it makes it all the more glaring how one-dimensional the rest of the ensemble is. They are lacking in comparison. Sure, it took time for Rollins to emerge with that emotional depth that equals Olivia's. The effort paid off because it was built on good intentions. The show was better off with that investment. It's starting over again in her absence. Not much progress has been made so far. That has resulted in Olivia always caring the emotional burden. That's still compelling. It doesn't have to be the only resource the show goes to though.
