Spoilers ahead for Episode 5 of Law & Order: SVU Season 26, called "Economics of Shame."
NBC's Law & Order: SVU expanded Benson's unit to start Season 26 in the 2024 TV schedule this fall, with Griselda alum Juliana Aidén Martinez joining the cast as Detective Kate Silva. The news came in the summer along with Kevin Kane being promoted to series regular status after recurring in the previous two seasons. "Economics of Shame" was mostly focused on busting a sextortion ring and finding justice for the victims, but the episode revisiting Bruno's origin story in the Bronx combined with a conversation between him and Silva made me realize what I'd like to see SVU do with the newest detective in Special Victims.
Technically, the first mention of Bruno's Bronx days was indirect, when a victim told Benson that she'd tried to take her case to Bronx SVU but "it didn't seem like they could help [her]." That moment set up a later exchange when Bruno asked Silva if she'd looked into his background before coming to the unit, since her dad was a respected cop back in the day.
Silva said that she had, which meant that she knew about the lawsuit that had made Bruno a very rich man... and earned him plenty of enmity within the NYPD. She said that her father wasn't Bruno's biggest fan because of the lawsuit, and I was crossing my fingers in the hope that SVU would go even further in revisiting Bruno's origin story.
That didn't really happen, but I did realize that what would help me connect with Silva more is if SVU fleshed out her backstory more than what Season 26 has done so far. Admittedly, there hasn't been a ton of time, with Carisi as the MVP of the premiere and Rollins coming back shortly thereafter for what felt like a backdoor pilot, and we've seen what kind of cop she is while in action. (You can rewatch the earlier episodes of Season 26 streaming with a Peacock subscription now.)
I'd just like to see and learn more about Silva, and I'm optimistic that it will happen unless she goes the way of other newcomers who didn't last long on the show. Assuming SVU Season 26 runs for the usual amount of episodes when not affected by COVID production complications or the WGA writers strike/SAG-AFTRA actors strike, then there are presumably 17 episodes left before the final credits roll. Surely there's time in there for one or two Silva-centric episodes, right?
Only time will tell, but I did enjoy seeing SVU revisit Bruno's backstory at least, and it's a perk when the procedural show takes the time to focus on character as well as the case. Find out what's next for Benson and Co. this fall with new episodes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit on Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET, between Law & Order – which recently featured a former SVU star – at 8 p.m. ET and Found at 10 p.m. ET on NBC.
It remains to be seen how closely tied SVU will be to Law & Order: Organized Crime Season 5 when it arrives on Peacock, but hopefully there will be some crossover action.
