| "Wonderland Story" | ||
|---|---|---|
| ← | SVU, Episode 15.05 | → |
| Production number: 15005 First aired (US): 16 October 2013 First aired (UK): 17 November 2013 First aired (CAN): 16 October 2013 First aired (AUS): 31 October 2013 | ||
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| Teleplay By Julie Martin & Warren Leight Story By Ed Zuckerman & Lawrence Kaplow Directed By Jennifer Getzinger | ||
A rape victim seeks help from Detective Benson after she is raped again, while Sergeant Munch retires from the SVU.
Summary[]
Sarah Walsh wakes up from a night of partying and believes she has been raped. In shock that it could happen again, she calls Detective Benson, who handled her previous rape case, for help. The search for Sarah's attacker leads the cops to a smooth-talking cyber mogul who preys on vulnerable girls and bribes them for their silence. Meanwhile, the SVU comes together to say goodbye to the retiring Sergeant Munch.
Plot[]
Episode plot
Cast[]
Main cast[]
- Mariska Hargitay as Detective Olivia Benson
- Danny Pino as Detective Nick Amaro
- Kelli Giddish as Detective Amanda Rollins
- Richard Belzer as Sergeant John Munch
- Ice-T as Detective Odafin Tutuola
- Raúl Esparza as A.D.A. Rafael Barba (credit only)
- Dann Florek as Captain Donald Cragen
Recurring cast[]
- Sofia Vassilieva as Sarah Walsh
- Aisha de Haas as Yvette Wedmore
- Jacqueline Hendy as Defense Attorney Sofia Crane
- Michael Mastro as Judge D. Serani
- Dean Winters as Officer Brian Cassidy
- Carol Kane as Gwen Munch
Guest cast[]
- Finn Wittrock as Cameron Tyler
- Amelia Rose Blaire as Nicole Price
- Todd Almond as Andre
- Clark Johnson as Meldrick Lewis
- Ellen McElduff as Billie Lou Hatfield
- David Steinberg as David Munch
- Kaneza Schaal as Ilana
- Matt DeCapua as Matthew Forte
- Lesley Shires as Celine Dubbois
- Ilona Saic as Lia
- Dee Dee Vega as Singer
- Matt Dallow as Accordion Player (uncredited)
References[]
- Alice in Wonderland
- Speakeasy
- Lee Harvey Oswald
- J. Edgar Hoover
- Lowell Harris
- William Lewis
- Michael Wedmore
- Astor Place Cube
- Cafe Celine
- Peter Lindstrom
Quotes[]
- Munch: Are we done here yet? Because I have a party with some of my more important friends.
- Munch: I see a couple of my ex-wives are here. They want to have a three-way. Unfortunately, it's with my brother David.
- Tutuola: I learned a lot from Munch. I learned that Oswald never fired a shot, man never landed on the moon, and I learned that Hoover had a gay hit squad.
- Munch: Olivia is the heart of SVU, Fin is the pancreas.
- Munch: When I first saw Amaro, I realize I'm still the best-looking guy in the squad, but one good thing about it - it's kind of a blessing. Now in the squad room we have someone who's even more paranoid than I am. So thank you, Nick.
- Amaro: What do you mean?
- [Benson has to leave Munch's retirement party for a case]
- Munch: Ladies and gentlemen, the Mother Teresa of SVU is leaving. Was it something I said?
- Benson: No, John, it's everything you said.
- Munch: Well, I haven't even gotten to the Cassidy jokes yet. I see these two and I think they could both do better.
- Sarah Walsh: Twice in two years? What, do I have a sign on my head?
- Benson: Sarah, it's not you. It... predators, they... they have this sixth sense. They pick up on a vulnerability.
- Sarah Walsh: So it is my fault. I am a target.
- Benson: No, no, it's just that sometimes, victims don't want to be perceived as fearful.
- Sarah Walsh: Okay, so I let my guard down and set myself up.
- Benson: Sarah, please, stop. Okay? Listen to me. Let's focus on catching this guy now.
- Sarah Walsh: And what if we do catch him? Michael was on trial, and what? He's still out there. I see him wandering around free, laughing at me.
- Benson: I know how hard this is for you, and I'm so sorry that...
- Sarah Walsh: You know what? Why... why don't I just go out there again, and you guys can follow me, and that way we'll catch a lot of rapists.
- Benson: Sarah, please...
- Sarah Walsh: No, no, no. Forget I even called you. I don't want to know who he is.
- Benson: Will you just think about this?
- Sarah Walsh: You know what? Go. Leave me alone.
- Tutuola: [about a witness] Do I know her?
- Rollins: In your dreams. That's a three-time Maxim cover girl, and her boyfriend's no slouch either. He's Cameron Tyler. He just sold his game app, Sweets Rush, for $180 million. Come on, Fin, you need to get out more.
- Tutuola: No, I don't.
- Cragen: I've been meaning to give this to you. [hands Olivia a folder]
- Benson: The Sergeant's exam?
- Benson: You've been my number two for a while. Let's just make it official.
- Benson: Sarah, I know that this is hard, but the D A. says that Cameron will take a plea for four counts of aggravated sexual assault, including yours. He's gonna do 10 to 15 years.
- Sarah Walsh: All right. Good.
- Benson: You're okay with that?
- Sarah Walsh: After last time, I have no faith in a jury.
- Benson: Sarah, I'm so sorry that you had to go through this.
- Sarah Walsh: You mean again? I just couldn't believe it was him. I mean, he seemed like a nice guy.
- Benson: Some rapists, you know, that's their M.O. They can be very charming.
- Sarah Walsh: Well, obviously, I have no radar at all.
- Benson: Hey, listen to me. This is not on you.
- Sarah Walsh: Yeah, right. What, am I supposed to stay home for the rest of my life?
- Benson: Sarah, Cameron is behind bars. He can't hurt you or anyone else.
- Sarah Walsh: Okay, well, Michael is still out there. Men are still out there. My dad wants to get me a gun.
- Benson: I carry a gun. And I've been assaulted. Twice.
- Sarah Walsh: You have?
- Benson: Yes. And the hardest part is not beating myself up every day for getting into that situation.
- Sarah Walsh: You said it wasn't my fault, but it's yours?
- Benson: No. It's a feeling. Not a fact. You know, my therapist says it can help to... to change your daily routine, you know? If you take the bus, then walk. If you usually read, you know, go to a movie. Do things that make you happy. You know, if you focus on the good in life and on the positive things, then it can... it can shake the negative emotions and patterns away.
- Sarah Walsh: And that works for you?
- Benson: Some days. You know, it's a process. Little steps. They add up.
- Sarah Walsh: If you say so.
- Munch: [answering last phone call before leaving] Homicide... I mean SVU.
Background information and notes[]
- Speakeasies are notorious public locations that were popular during the Prohibition Era to bootleg alcohol for customers. In recent years, youth and social cultures have brought back the tradition of speakeasy events and haunts to popularize the novel spirit of exclusive, group-oriented nightlife as well as for retaining connections to history.
- This is Richard Belzer's last episode portraying John Munch as a series regular. He made two more guest appearances in the SVU episodes "Spring Awakening" and "Fashionable Crimes".
- The characters of Gwen Munch, Billie Lou Hatfield, and Meldrick Lewis from Homicide: Life on the Street all make appearances at Munch's retirement party, but are all credited as "Party Guest", as is David Munch.
- The flashback of Munch is from the first episode of Homicide, "Gone for Goode".
- Sarah Walsh returns from the episode "True Believers".
- Benson is given the opportunity to become Sergeant.
- This episode contains several parallels with the Season 10 episode "Smut". In both episodes, a serial rapist takes advantage of women while under the influence of mind-altering drugs. The detectives also find a victim with no memory of the attack both times, and Benson has objections about telling the victim she was attacked, as that would actually make her a victim.
- Goof: When the detectives arrest Cameron Tyler in his apartment, it is night but when he is being interrogated, it is daylight. Considering Cameron called for his attorney as he was arrested and was brought in along with Nicole and Matthew afterwards, it is unlikely that it took all night to arrest Cameron and then interrogate him.
- Amaro states that there are no security cameras in the lobby or elevators. Cragen says, "Really? Even after what happened last time?" indicating that she lives in the same building as before and that there were no cameras the last time the victim was assaulted. However, video footage from the elevator was viewed by detectives during the previous case.
- Benson mentions she's been sexually assaulted twice. The first time was by Lowell Harris in the Season 9 episode "Undercover" and the second time was by William Lewis in the episode "Surrender Benson".
- Munch has a tattoo of the word "love" on his right wrist. You can clearly see it when he answers the phone in the final scene.
Episode scene cards[]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Apartment of |
209 Lafayette Street |
Astor Place Cube |
Cafe Celine |
| Previous episode: "Internal Affairs" |
"Wonderland Story" Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 15 |
Next episode: "October Surprise" |