Law & Order: CI Season 6 Episode 5 Bedfellows
- TV-14
- October 17, 2006
- 43 min
-
8.0 (280)
Bedfellows is the fifth episode of the sixth season of Law & Order: Criminal Intent. The episode follows the detectives Robert Goren and Alexandra Eames as they investigate the murder of a judge's clerk.
The episode begins with the judge's clerk, Emily Hoyt, being found dead in her apartment. It is apparent that she was strangled, and the detectives soon discover that she was having an affair with a married man. The man in question is a prominent lawyer named Gregory Rossovich, who is currently running for district attorney.
As the investigation progresses, Goren and Eames discover that Rossovich's campaign is founded on a platform of cleaning up the city's corruption, which makes it difficult for them to investigate him. However, they are able to find evidence that Emily had been blackmailing Rossovich. It turns out that she had discovered that he had been having an affair with a woman who had ignored him after he refused to leave his wife for her. Emily had threatened to go public with the affair, which would have ruined Rossovich's political career.
As the detectives continue to investigate, they discover that the woman Rossovich had been having an affair with is actually his sister-in-law, who is married to his brother. It becomes clear that the family is deeply dysfunctional, and that Rossovich had been using his sister-in-law for years as a way to cope with his own unhappiness. The detectives are able to use this knowledge to confront Rossovich, and he eventually confesses to the murder of Emily Hoyt.
What makes Bedfellows particularly interesting is the way it uses political corruption as a backdrop for the investigation. Throughout the episode, we get a sense of the deep-seated corruption that plagues the city, and it becomes clear that even the most "upstanding" citizens are not immune to it. The detectives are constantly butting heads with politicians and bureaucrats who are more interested in protecting their own interests than in helping to solve the case.
At the same time, the episode also deals with the theme of personal corruption. Rossovich is shown to be someone who is deeply flawed on a personal level, and who has allowed his own desires and weaknesses to consume him. His affair with his sister-in-law is just one example of this, and it becomes clear that he is willing to do anything to protect his own interests.
Overall, Bedfellows is a gripping episode that is sure to keep viewers on the edge of their seats. It deals with a number of complex themes that are relevant not just to the world of politics, but also to human nature in general. As always, the performances of the cast are excellent, and the writing is intelligent and thought-provoking. Fans of Law & Order: Criminal Intent will definitely not want to miss this one.