Line #18 Recap/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnitS6E23Goliath


1	Written by Creator/TaraButters and Creator/MicheleFazekas
2
3	Directed By Creator/PeterLeto
4
5	Two police officers in two separate precincts attack their wives and later demonstrate suicidal behavior, suspected to be caused by a newly formulated malaria drug both men received while serving in Afghanistan.
6
7	----
8
9	!!This episode provides examples of:
10
11	* BoomHeadshot: One of the two police officers who are suffering from Quinium shot himself in the head. He miraculously survives.
12	* BrokenPedestal: Stabler's faith in the U.S. Military is shaken due to the entire Quinium ordeal.
13	* ContinuitySnarl: While approaching the fish market, Munch mentions to Fin that he worked in the market as a kid and made good money there. John Munch grew up in Baltimore as was explained in ''Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet'', not New York City.
14	** Stabler is referred to as a Desert Storm veteran, though he was already out of the marines by that time.
15	* DownerEnding: Due to Dr. Trainer backing out of his testimony, the main characters failed to ban the production of Quinium. The episode (and season) then ends with them watching returning soldiers from Iraq and wondering who among them took the drug.
16	** Officer Callahan committed suicide, Officer Myers killed his wife and traumatized his son by shooting himself in front of him. And Lord knows how many more will suffer a similar grim fate.
17	* HarmfulToMinors: One of the two police officers who are suffering from Quinium shot himself in front of his son.
18	* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Sherm Hempell may come off as a self-absorbed IntrepidReporter, but he genuinely wants the public to know about the dangers of Quinium and is concerned about the military's welfare.
19	* MilitaryBrat: Casey Novak's father served in Vietnam as "a door gunner on a Huey [UH-1 helicopter]."
20	* MistakenForCheating: Benson and Stabler first considered that their cop suspect might having an affair with his female partner. Turns out said partner is a lesbian.
21	* ObstructiveBureaucrat: The US Army tried to bury Novak in paperwork when she subpoenas them for records regarding Quinium.
22	* PsychoSerum: Quinium, itself not a real drug but appears to be an {{Expy}} of a similar anti-malarial drug called Lariam. Doubles as a case of GoneHorriblyWrong when the Army gave the drug as an anti-malarial, and then tried to [[GovernmentConspiracy cover it up]] after they discovered the [[ChemicallyInducedInsanity harmful side effects]].
23	* RefugeInAudacity: Novak subpoenas the Secretary of Defense, much to her boss's horror.
24	* ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections: Invoked by the wife of the cop suspect, claiming that Benson and Stabler are siding with her abusive husband due to their shared profession.
25	* SeasonFinale: The show's sixth.
26	* ShellShockedVeteran: Before discovering Quinium, the main characters first assumed that their perp cop was suffering from PTSD from Iraq.
27	* ShoutOut: When Sherm walks into the precinct he calls Munch and Novak, sitting next to each other, as "Mulder and Scully" from '''''Series/TheXFiles'''''. This is somewhat [[ActorAllusion odd]] considering that Munch has met the actual Mulder and Scully in [[Recap/TheXFilesS05E03UnusualSuspects a crossover with Homicide]] .

Context Recap / LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnitS6E23Goliath