Spoilers ahead for the Season 21 finale of Law & Order: SVU, called "The Things We Have To Lose."
Another season of Law & Order: SVU has come to an end, and the episode was packed with enough twists for enough characters that it could have passed for a finale even if not for the production halts. The long-awaited trial of Sir Toby Moore was finally going to happen, but the SVU had even more on their hands. While Carisi faced the biggest case of his short career as an ADA, Rollins was dealing with Ivy, Kat faced a very personal investigation, Fin was trying to help out a mom and her son, and Benson was trying to keep track of it all.
While these were all big developments, there were two twists in particular that may have set up some intriguing plots for Season 22 involving Fin and Rollins/Carisi.
Fin Is Being Sued
When Fin found out that Leon Fuller, who had been convicted and sentenced to a year, was getting out of jail after six months, he reached out to Leon's wife and son to offer his support. Joelle Fuller appreciated Fin's support... to a point. She didn't want to involve further authorities and just wanted to be sure that the protection order was still valid.
After a talk with Leon, Fin wasn't confident that he wouldn't go after Joelle and young Andre, so he secretly gave Andre a phone with his number saved into it in case of emergencies. While it was kind of crossing a line for Fin to give a young child a phone and ask him to hide it from his mom, it paid off when Andre called Fin because Leon had showed up and pulled a knife.
When Fin entered the apartment, Leon was holding Joelle at knifepoint, and the blade was much too close to Joelle's neck for Fin's comfort. The situation got even worse when Leon traded Joelle for Andre, and it quickly became clear that Fin was going to do something. With Andre's life in very real danger and the situation escalating, Fin pulled his gun and shot Leon in the head, immediately killing him and terrifying Joelle and Andre.
Fin wasn't at all happy about what he'd had to do or that Andre had to see his father die, but he didn't seem to regret his actions. That said, his story ended in "The Things We Have To Lose" (and therefore Season 21) when he was served with a lawsuit. Joelle is suing Fin for wrongful death, and it's unlikely that this is something that will just go away between Season 21 and Season 22.
After all, since "The Things We Have To Lose" wound up being the finale, Fin being sued is arguably the biggest character-centric cliffhanger of the entire season. Season 21 may have been supposed to end very differently, and with some connections to Stabler rather than with Fin being sued, but Fin has officially been set up for what could be a meaty arc in Season 21.
Rollisi Might Actually Happen
Amanda Rollins and Sonny Carisi have arguably become Law & Order: SVU's most feasible long-running will-they-won't-they relationship. While the chemistry between Benson and Stabler is likely part of what made SVU a hit back in the early days, Stabler was married and they remained platonic. The only people getting in the way of Rollins and Carisi as a couple are Rollins and Carisi. In "The Things We Have To Lose," they may have taken a big step forward.
Carisi spent most of the episode becoming more and more stressed, but Rollins decided she would try and give him a break from all the pressure with a few drinks and a ride home. She even got a babysitter for her daughters, which notably happened in the same episode as Kat dropping a comment about Rollins not getting to do any weekend socializing because she's a mom. Basically, it seemed like Rollins was trying to ask out Carisi without actually asking out Carisi while also being there for her friend.
While Carisi turned her down, citing a need to focus on work, the scene may have served as a window into Rollins' feelings. Carisi has arguably been the easier one to read when it comes to their feelings; was this development in the Season 21 finale a sign that more developments will happen in Season 22? There are fewer professional obstacles in their path to a potential relationship now that Detective Carisi has become ADA Carisi, and Rollins did drop a "Dominic" in the episode.
That said, it's possible that SVU would have resolved or deepened the Rollisi situation if Season 21 had been completed rather than cut off early, like many other shows on the small screen and even set in the same TV universe. Still, a procedural like Law & Order: SVU that deals with some of the heaviest subject matter on broadcast network primetime benefits from some character development and relationships.
The Rollisi hint seems less guaranteed to pay off than Fin being sued, but it's something for fans to speculate about during the months of the wait for Season 22. The good news is that Law & Order: SVU has already been renewed for three more seasons, so the show will have plenty of time to tell the stories of the characters who stick around.
In fact, a character who didn't stick around is headed back to the Law & Order universe thanks to the upcoming Elliot Stabler project. While the Christopher Meloni series is set to be separate from SVU, it's unlikely that Stabler could be back in the New York crime-fighting game on NBC without dropping by Special Victims to hang out with his old partner and maybe help Benson with a case or two. Throw in the Chicago P.D. crossover with CBS' FBI, and there is even potential for SVU to cross over with FBI and FBI: Most Wanted.
There's a lot to look forward to on the SVU front rather than just more episodes of especially heinous offenses. Unfortunately, there is no news at this point regarding when SVU could return to the airwaves, but the 21 seasons so far are available streaming on Hulu if you want to relive some of the earlier days. For some viewing options set elsewhere than the criminal justice system, be sure to swing by our 2020 spring premiere schedule and our 2020 summer premiere guide.
