Written By Amanda Green
Directed By Helen Shaver
A woman goes missing and a previously convicted bank robber fresh from a stint in prison (Stephen Rea) is the prime suspect. Since the bank robber had spent significant time in solitary confinement, Stabler chooses to experience it for himself...
This episode provides examples of:
- And Starring: "Special Guest Star Christine Lahti and Stephen Rea, with the regular guest-stars lineup ending with "And Jessica Walter".
- The Aloner: The harsh nature of solitary confinement is the episode's main theme.
- But for Me, It Was Tuesday: Heroic version. Stabler doesn't recognize Donovan when they first see each other, but Donovan knows Stabler very well. Downplayed in that Stabler does remember details of the arrest and it was significant for him too because he got promoted over it; he just doesn't recognize Donovan at first.
- Continuity Nod: Olivia bring up her prison infiltration in Season 9.
- A Day in the Limelight: This episode is Elliot centric, with the perp even being the one he caught that led to his detective promotion.
- Deadpan Snarker; Paxton keeps sniping at Stabler even when he is in his hospital bed, mocking him in a hostile tone for 'sleeping on the job".
- The Determinator: Callum is seriously committed to avoiding a return to prison, throwing Stabler off a roof and, once he's been caught again and cuffed, reverse-headbutting Tutuola and demanding that Benson shoot him. It works against him as the detectives decide he's such a tough guy he must be faking the trauma of solitary confinement.
- Embarrassing Old Photo: Olivia is making fun of Elliot when she sees the newspaper of his first arrest of Callum Donovan in 1989.
- Fate Worse than Death: Callum Donovan describes solitary confinement as such, even asking for Judge Petrovsky to just order his execution on the spot when she sentenced him back there. Given what we've seen with Elliot when he tries it himself, Donovan is right.
- Foreshadowing: During Elliot and Paxton's heated argument, Paxton is left visibly shaken when Elliot (correctly) points out that her rough exterior hides a very fragile person. We find out next episode just how fragile it is.
- In the beginning of the episode Lily's boyfriend says she reported Donovan to the police before but they didn't do anything about it. At first it seems like a typical case of Police Are Useless, but it turns out Donovan really wasn't doing anything illegal.
- Go Mad from the Isolation: Callum Donovan's mental health took a huge blow after spending fourteen years in solitary confinement. Elliot nearly loses it in just three days.
- Greater-Scope Villain: the prison system and its practice of solitary confinement.
- Halfway Plot Switch: The first half of the episode focuses on Lily Milton's alleged kidnapping and attempted murder. After the circumstances behind her disappearance is revealed, the story focuses on Elliot and Callum Donovan's personal history and Donovan's ordeals during his solitary confinement.
- Handshake Refusal: After a heated encounter in the interrogation room days before, Paxton extends her hand to Elliot and asks for a truce. Elliot accepts, verbally.
- Hate Sink: Paxton really works for that title in this episode. She mocks Stabler in his hospital bed, mocks Stabler for being traumatized by his time in solitary confinement, and, after he fails to Blackmail her into showing Callum mercy, tells him "you may have lost your balls but I haven't." Ultimately subverted as she gets Callum transferred to genpop at the very end of the episode after Stabler shames her one more time.
- Hollywood Law: Donovan's attorney gives a "free pass" to the boyfriend of the missing woman for attacking her client but promises "the next time he's doing time." Defense attorneys have no say in who the state chooses to prosecute. At best she could report the assault, but the assault happened in a police precinct, so the police were already well aware.
- Made of Iron: Detective Stabler was pushed two stories backwards but is later seen with no visible mobility problems.
- Never Going Back to Prison: Callum Donovan, a Red Herring from the case, is terrified of going back to prison and being put in solitary because of his previous experiences with solitary confinement. He throws Stabler off a roof when he thinks Stabler is going to arrest him, and even so Stabler is so moved by how obviously traumatized the guy is that the rest of the episode follows Stabler's attempts to keep the guy from going into solitary in prison.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero:
- Stabler stupidly hunts down the traumatized Callum on the edge of a roof to clear his conscience by apologizing, frightening Callum into throwing him off the roof and getting Callum locked up again.
- Callum spent his entire sentence in solitary confinement as the result of a chain of events started when he told the Aryan Brotherhood to buzz off after they demanded he join their racist gang activity, and then stabbed some of them in self-defense.
- Noodle Incident: Stabler gets a prison guard to lock him in Callum's old cell, against regulations, as payment of an unspecified debt.
- Not Quite Dead:
- Lily Milton's boyfriend thought she was murdered due to her blood being all over their apartment and their broken window. She actually just panicked because she didn't want her boyfriend to find out she's doing drugs.
- Also, the Red Herring suspect Callum shoves Stabler off a roof and it seems certain that when the camera pans over we will see him splattered on the pavement, but there was a platform beneath him and he survives.
- Ooh, Me Accent's Slipping: Stephen Rea's accent slips almost constantly, but he does say he's from Ireland, though he's been in the USA for years.
- The Place: The episode title refers to a solitary confinement cell, dubbed as "the Hole" In-Universe.
- Prison Episode: The second half of the episode features Elliot trying solitary confinement for three days and later Callum Donovan being sent to it.
- Punishment Box: The eponymous solitary confinement. It's not pretty.
- Saved by the Platform Below: The team tries to track down ex-con Callum Donovan, who was desperate to avoid going back to prison and thus shoved Stabler off of a roof. Luckily for Stabler, there was a platform just below, so he suffered only minor injuries.
- Self-Fulfilling Prophecy: Donovan assumes Elliot is going to arrest him, so, to avoid prison, he throws Elliot off the roof and runs. In reality Elliot came to apologize for suspecting him earlier not to arrest him; but now he's assaulted a police officer and has to go to prison.
- Shirtless Scene: Lily Milton's boyfriend in the opening scene when he's getting Ready For Love Making, Elliot during his push-up sessions in his self-imposed three day solitary confinement.
- Shut Up, Hannibal!: Stabler delivers one of these to Paxton when the latter attempts a "Not So Different" Remark, claiming she feels sympathy for Callum, too. Stabler tells her she had the chance to do the right thing and passed. It's enough to get her to pull a face turn at the end and get Callum moved to genpop.
- Suicide by Cop: When Fin and Olivia arrested him for attacking Elliot, Donovan tried to goad Olivia to shoot him. It didn't work.
- Sympathy for the Devil: After experiencing solitary confinement himself, Elliot begins empathizing for Callum Donovan despite Donovan nearly killing him.
- Workout Fanservice: Elliot is seen doing push-ups while shirtless.
- Unwitting Instigator of Doom: Lily's lie against Donovan to cover up her drug habit and freakout over failing to score not only lands her in jail and likely ruins her medical career and her relationship with her boyfriend in the end, but it also sets off a series of events that causes Donovan to actually commit a crime (throwing Elliot off a roof) and land him back in jail.
- Elliot also unwittingly instigates Donovan's doom by inspiring Donovan to throw him off a building.
