Law & Disorder
Directed By: John McNaughton
Story By: Henry Bromell and James Yoshimura
Teleplay By: Bonnie Mark and Julie Martin
Bayliss has to investigate the shooting death of Gordon Pratt, which no one seems to be enthusiastic about pursuing. Lewis and Pembleton investigate the shooting of a woman in broad daylight, and while Pembleton believes the shooter was from the lower-class area of the neighborhood, it turns out it was a little girl who was fooling around with her father's gun. Felton goes back to work on limited duty, but finds even that might be too much for him, though Bolander does make a full recovery. Finally, Brigitta (Valerie Perrine), a gallery owner and an old girlfriend of Munch's, puts up an old photo of Munch where he's completely nude, causing him no end of grief.
This episode contains examples of:
- Bait-and-Switch: When Lewis and Pembleton visit a woman to ask her about the shooting, she seems to be expecting them, and brings them inside. It turns out she committed a different murder.
- The Cameo: Detective Mike Logan (Chris Noth) appears at the beginning of the episode, along with an extradited murderer (John Waters). Logan and Pembleton end up engaging in Snark-to-Snark Combat.
- Category Traitor: Lewis accuses Pembleton of this, even calling him "Uncle Frank", when he acts on the assumption that it's more likely that the stray bullet that killed their victim came from the projects rather than the middle-class district nearby.
- Crossover: The first (though unofficial) one with Law & Order. The two shows would end up doing three more crossovers.
- Gag Penis: The reaction of multiple characters, especially Lewis, to the sight of the nude photo of Munch indicates that he is quite well endowed.
- The Glorious War of Sisterly Rivalry: The woman who committed the murder that Lewis and Pembleton stumble upon (see Bait-and-Switch above) did so because she was supposed to go on a date with the man, only to find out he wanted to go out with her sister instead.
- I Just Shot Marvin in the Face: A little girl playing with her father's gun accidentally shoots and kills one of their neighbours while firing in the air.
- Male Frontal Nudity: The old photograph of Munch that's at the gallery, at least until Brigitta decides to forgive Munch and puts a strategically-placed flier on the photo.
- Mood Whiplash: Particularly noticeable in this episode — the serious and potentially disturbing question of who killed Pratt, and Felton's failed attempt to prove that he's recovered from the shooting, are interspersed with Lewis's and Pembleton's case(s), which until the final revelation of the shooter's identity is mostly played for humor, and the entirely comic subplot of Munch's nude photo.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Pembleton, who normally will stop at nothing to discover the truth and, in the previous season, defied Giardello to prove that a cop unjustifiably shot and killed a suspect, says that whoever killed Gordon Pratt saved the taxpayer money and has no interest in discovering whether it was a cop who did it.
- Place Worse Than Death: When Pembleton tells the extradited murderer he's lucky to be back in Baltimore rather than being in New York City, the murderer quips, "Why do you think I didn't fight extradition?"
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: After Felton has problems at a crime scene, Giardello tells him in no uncertain terms that he was a liability even before he was shot, due to his marital issues and excessive drinking.
- Riddle for the Ages: Did Bayliss actually verify Munch's whereabouts at the time of Pratt's murder, or was he just trying to make the issue go away?
- Scenery Censor: Before Brigitta puts the flyer over the genitals in the photo of Munch, the actual parts are never seen by the audience, as some person in the gallery is always in the way.
- Shout-Out: During their Snark-to-Snark Combat, Pembleton, Logan, and the murderer bring up Dorothy Parker, Babe Ruth, and Edgar Allan Poe.
- Vomit Discretion Shot: After going to his first crime scene since getting shot, Felton ends up throwing up in a toilet, though we only see it from the back.
