Saving Noah – Law & Order: SVU

Law & Order: SVU resumed its 19th season on 1/10/2018 with “Gone, Baby, Gone,” picking up from where they left off in “Intent” (12/6/2017) when Olivia Benson’s adopted son, Noah, disappeared on a shopping trip with his biological grandma, Sheila Porter.

It seemed like the entire squad hightailed it to the mall after Benson got the call from Sheila that Noah was missing. We’re sure you would have been extremely surprised if anyone else BUT Sheila was behind this but grandma did manage to put a guy who had “mutton chops” in the line of fire. She ran into him at the coffee shop, he talked to Noah and she saw him in the mall later. A couple of witnesses, however, saw Noah leaving the mall with a Hispanic (er, Latino) guy and the kid wasn’t squawking or screaming. Nonetheless, Carisi (Uncle Sonny to Noah) found mutton chops and learned that it was Sheila he was really interested in and the mutton chops were fake. (That wasn’t the only nod to how great Brooke Shields looks either.) Meantime, Sheila was as distraught as Benson, who was so distraught that Chief Dodds ordered her off the case. As if.

Recalling Sheila’s testimony at the custody hearing, Benson suddenly remembered that she mentioned hiring a private investigator to track Noah down. He must have referred her to Maureen Mueller, her New York attorney. Barba went off to get the P.I.’s name and Mueller gave it to him even though it was supposed to be strictly confidential.

Tough talking Fin visited the P.I., a former cop. Raymond Green wanted to know who the hell Fin thought he was busting in and accusing him of kidnapping but he gave Fin the info he wanted, and hoped that he wasn’t a dick like Fin when he was on the force. At the mall, security footage turned up, showing Noah willingly getting in a car with a fellow who already had a car seat in there. The pieces began to fall into place. He turned out to be Sheila’s gardener, Juan Ortoli, back in Derry, New Hampshire who was introduced to the kid on a sleepover at Sheila’s New York apartment that Benson had approved. Then they found out that Sheila was the one who bought the car seat. (The clerk remembered her beautiful eyes).

Wow, now Benson was feeling stupid as hell for ever trusting Sheila, realizing that grandma had this meticulously planned from the get-go. Maybe, like us, she replayed some of Sheila’s manipulations in her mind, but she held it together and sprang into action. Carisi and Rollins staked out Juan’s house. His daughter, Maria, insisted he was out of state at a trade show. Then Juan returned home and just as he was about to open the door, Maria yelled “Cops!” When they got him inside, Carisi couldn’t get him to spill the beans. He was completely in Sheila’s power and he was sleeping with her! Rollins turned up the heat by handcuffing Maria and threatening to charge her with conspiracy. Juan confessed that Sheila was at his dumpy cabin with Noah. He took them there but it was empty. That really was all Juan knew and Rollins told him “you’ve been played.”

Benson meantime uncovered Sheila’s much nicer cabin after she had tucked Noah into bed with Eddie, conning the kid into believing that his mommy would be there tomorrow. Benson managed to get inside but not unnoticed. Out popped Sheila to knock her down with something. She picked up Benson’s gun and trained it on her and we’re like, Oh, Lord, don’t let it end here.

Mercifully, it didn’t.

Sheila tried to convince Benson that her blood claim trumped the piece of paper that said Benson was Noah’s mother. Sheila pointed out how Benson was always at work and the filthy city was no place to raise a kid and Benson could adopt another kid, whereas Noah was all she had. Benson stood her ground. Things might have gotten really out of hand but Noah emerged from his room and exclaimed “Mommy, you made it.” Sheila hid the gun and proceeded toward the mother and son. Benson shoved Noah out the door and she and Sheila struggled until the older woman realized resistance was futile and collapsed in tears in Benson’s arms. She was later led out in handcuffs and said “I’m so sorry, Olivia.” We bet you are but Benson wasn’t buying into Sheila’s professions of sincerity anymore and tucked her into the back of the squad car.

Reunited with her son, Benson told Noah that grandma is a good person but she did a very bad thing, then distracted him with an offer of pancakes.

Fin’s Karma: It was a nice touch when Chief Dodds wanted to make sure that Benson wasn’t on the case and Fin covered for her. Dodds sarcastically let him know, without making an outright accusation, that he didn’t believe it. As he walked away, Fin muttered “dick” under his breath. LOL! What goes around comes around. How ’bout that?

Selected Cast of Gone, Baby, Gone:
Mariska Hargitay – Olivia Benson
Kelli Giddish – Amanda Rollins
Ice-T – Odafin Tutuola
Peter Scanavino – Dominick Carisi Jr.
Raúl Esparza – Rafael Barba
Brooke Shields – Sheila Porter
Frank Pando – Juan Ortoli
Maureen Mueller – Susan Janet
Peter Gallagher – Deputy Chief William Dodds
Domenica Feraud – Maria Ortoli
Kelvin McGrue – Raymond Green, PI
Collin Meath – Mutton Chops
Ryan Buggle – Noah