In the Wind (Season 27, Episode 1)
Premise: After Donald Cragen’s memorial, Benson tries to keep the only eyewitness in a rape case out of ICE custody, while Fin hides the theft of his gun and a new chief of detectives takes an interest in the squad.
- Air date
- Season/Episode
- Season 27, Episode 1
- Starring
- Capt. Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay), Sgt. Odafin “Fin” Tutuola (Ice-T), Amanda Rollins (Kelli Giddish), Det. Joe Velasco (Octavio Pisano), Det. Terry Bruno (Kevin Kane), Det. Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni), Capt. Renee Curry (Aimé Donna Kelly), Chief Kathryn Tynan (Noma Dumezweni), ADA Dominick “Sonny” Carisi Jr. (Peter Scanavino), Dr. George Huang (BD Wong), Brian Cassidy (Dean Winters)
- Guest stars
- Audrey Corsa as Ella Parsons, Cayleb Long as Eric Burnett, Juan Francisco Villa as Jorge Ruíz, Natascia Diaz as Camila Ruíz, Rafael Castillo as Fat Jimmy
- Director
- Brenna Malloy
- Writers
- Story: Nicholas Evangelista; Written by: Michele Fazekas
Summary
“In the Wind” opens at a memorial for Donald Cragen, where Benson reunites with Dr. George Huang and Brian Cassidy. The new chief of detectives, Kathryn Tynan, introduces herself, praises Benson’s clearance rate and says she knew Cragen early in her career. Fin admits he has thought about retiring, and Benson and Stabler talk outside about the friends they keep losing. Heading home, Fin stops what looks like an assault in Brooklyn, but it is a setup: he is beaten and his gun is taken.
That night Ella Parsons, 29, in town for a cybersecurity job interview, is raped at knifepoint in an illegal short-term rental by a man who first cut the power at the breaker. The owner, Eric Burnett, claims he was dog sitting for his brother in Utica, but his story falls apart under Benson’s questions and he asks for a lawyer. The super, Jorge Ruíz, first says he went to bed early, then admits he saw the man on the stairs and knew him. Burnett is charged, and bail is set at $20,000. Meanwhile Bruno and Velasco quietly hunt for Fin’s gun; a man named Crockett (called Cricket in the episode) says he bought it from a woman, and Fin turns to an old informant, Fat Jimmy.
Ruíz fails to appear before the grand jury, and Benson finds ICE agents raiding his building; he is on their list over an old drug conviction. Carisi accuses Burnett’s lawyer of tipping off ICE, but the judge will not delay the trial, and a similar rape five years earlier in a Bronx sublet Burnett owned is ruled inadmissible. When Ella wants to give up, Benson tells her about the boss who believed in her. After Benson leaves her number with his cousin Camila, Ruíz comes in; when ICE agents follow him, Benson has Velasco arrest him as a material witness so he stays in police custody, and the agents arrest Benson for obstruction. Her arrest is voided, Ruíz testifies, and ICE detains him as he leaves court.
Spoiler, the ending: Rollins privately tells Benson that Fin lost his gun and that Bruno and Velasco turned up in a bar Intel is watching. Benson confronts Fin, who says he was protecting her and will not retire until he earns back her trust. Tynan calls Benson’s move smart, asks to be kept informed and reveals she has arranged a visa that frees Ruíz. She offers Benson a deputy chief post over a citywide Special Victims command; Benson declines. Tynan then insists on sending her a detective she has known since he was a child and adds that she is glad Fin got his gun back. The verdict in Burnett’s trial is not shown.
Why it stands out
- The Season 27 premiere, written by Michele Fazekas in her first season as showrunner; she is the first woman to run the series and had been a writer-producer on Seasons 3 to 7.
- Former cast members Dean Winters and BD Wong return as Brian Cassidy and George Huang for Cragen’s memorial, and Christopher Meloni appears as Stabler.
- Noma Dumezweni first appears as Chief of Detectives Kathryn Tynan, and Kelli Giddish is back as a series regular after guest spots since leaving the squad in Season 24.