"The Burden Of Our Choices," On 'SVU', Suffered Flaws, But Still Pressed Some Buttons!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                   The flaw comes not just from Olivia, but the writers, who had the potential to create a great episode, but only got halfway because of mediocrity.

                                    But let's start with the best, with Zach Gilford and Lucy Walters  playing Jim and Tammy Miller, the parents of Evangeline Miller (Kira McLean) who has run away from her Fundamentalist Christian home in Ohio--where else could she have fled, but the Midwest, or the South?--and come up here for an abortion.  Her parents, whose daughter is only 13, though the actress playing Evangeline is so obviously way beyond that, are the kind of hateful monsters one might expect, but things get even more dicey.  As soon as the nurse talked about years of vaginal tearing in Evangeline, I knew the father was not her runaway friend, Isaac, whom she had come to NYC, for help, but either her stepfather, or the smirking church pastor!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                      I was hoping it would be the pastor, but having the baby sired by the stepfather, made it more controversial.  Though not a blood relative, this is sexual assault, child abuse, (having been going on since Evangeline was age 11) and, as far as I am concerned, technically incest!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                       Tammy is so appallingly joyful over expecting a grandchild;  even when she first finds out the truth, she doesn't bat an eye against her husband, calling the event a "miracle," and part of "God's plan."  This is when I wanted to put my fist though the TV and castrate the stepfather, and slap the mother across her face.  Which someone should have done.  Her daughter is abused, then impregnated, by her husband and THIS is OK with her?????????????

                                         She even takes the cliché POV of her ex husband beating her, and when she found Jim, he was good and kind..  Yeah, and affectionate with Evangeline, which is where she pauses, and Olivia makes her pitch.  Meanwhile, the child's aunt has flown in to help raise Evangeline and the baby, but everyone knows she will go right back to her parents, as soon as she lands in Ohio.
They even bring in a lawyer from Ohio to take on the justice system in NYC!  Is he crazy?  Abortion is a right here, and to bring this child into the world would be wrong for both mother and child.

                                          What gets me is there are actual people out there, who believe this tripe.  Yet all these Mama Junes and Sugar Bears don't take charge of their own bodies, but keep popping out kids when maybe they should not, yet are ready to proselytize their agenda to anyone, whether they want to listen, or not!  To these folk, I say, Go fuck yourselves!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                            The ending was unsatisfying.  Olivia convinces Tammy to testify against Jim, but I did not buy it.  Though Jim may now be prosecuted, and go to prison, Tammy and her sister will still toss their agenda at Evangeline, with no let up.  The best moment was Amanda Rollins (the wonderful Kelli Giddish) taking Evangeline to the clinic for her abortion, and waiting for her.  Best of all, Kelli, not Mariska, got the final shot!  First sign of improvement I have seen; if only the writers had had balls enough not to whitewash issues, trying to please all constituents.  This is a TV show, not a political campaign!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                             And don't get me started on Carisi's speech!  Great acting by Peter Scanavino, and I am with his mother, but very contrived!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                               Oh, and for a change, Bureau Chief Vanessa Hadid was not an out and out bitch!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Maybe there is hope!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                               Come on writers, if you are going tackle issues, then do so!  Don't try to please everyone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  That is falsity, not truth!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!