As production of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit's new season kicks into full gear, TVGuide.com talked to star Richard Belzer on Tuesday in New York at the Paws for Style benefit (where he and his pup, Bebe, were strutting their stuff in Von Dutch). Coming off of his first day back on set, Belzer said "it was great to see everybody." So what can we expect from the upcoming season? Look for an exciting season premiere: "James Brolin is in it and he's a great guy," says Belzer. Brolin will be playing an ex-military man with a connection to Detective Elliot Stabler, played by Christopher Meloni. "He's got a big fight scene with Stabler, so that should be fun," said Belzer. And for all you Munch fans out there hoping he'll have more screen time, it looks promising. As for his storylines, "Well, I can't say, but there are some big surprises coming up."Law & Order: Special Victims Unit returns to NBC on Tuesday, Sept. 23 at 10 pm/ET. — Robyn RossRelated• The Latest Meg...
read more
In an episode more given over to relatively leisurely setpieces than usual this season (and marking the return of scriptwriter Richard Price to the series, and a cameo by Richard Belzer as Munch, another reference back to Homicide: Life on the Streets), this one was all about the misallocation of resources. Of course, every episode of The Wire deals with that, but rarely so completely.For example, McNulty and Freamon fake up a call from their fictional serial murderer to Templeton, the reporter who is their unwitting partner in the fraud (or, more correctly, is running his own parallel fraud to theirs). This leads to both precisely the kind of unlimited funding Lester and Jimmy were hoping for in police department funds and humanpower commitment, and an embarrassment of riches (and the looming threat of close oversight scrutiny) that might hinder their real investigation...even as it allows McNulty to quietly fund and fold in the pet cases of many of his fellow homicide detectives...
read more
For all you bloggers who want L&O:SVU to go back to investigating sex crimes I think we can all agree that the rape of a young boy is going to qualify.Now since Olivia was the featured detective in last week's episode it was pretty obvious that we'd be treated to a little Elliot Stabler tonight. But lo and behold who is that dapper chap standing next to him? Well if my eyes don't deceive me I do believe it's our long lost conspiracy minded investigator Det. John Munch. Haven't seen too much of Richard Belzer since NBC sidelined him at the beginning of this season. NIce to have him backWonder what came first though? Did the Orthodox Jew storyline logically dictate Belzer's presence or did they figure: well we're committed to putting Richard in one episode this year so let's throw his religion into the mix? If that's what its going to take I guess we won't see Munch again until SVU starts investigating hate crimes or someone defaces a synagogue. Shame. They even dumped him ...
read more
I have more news on the Richard Belzer front. I spoke with the actor himself this week and he is very grateful that you guys all miss Detective Munch and it turns out we weren't imagining things: Belzer’s contract this year was reduced from 22 episodes to a measly 13. No word on why this happened. Belzer is as mystified as we are but the 63 year old's character was pretty much replaced by 35 year old Adam Beach this season. Nobody is saying its ageism and maybe I am just as conspiracy minded as Detective Munch but you do the math and tell me what you think.Executive Producer Neal Baer would not comment further. Although he told me last week Munch wasn't going anywhere, they have sure found screen time for Adam. I think every episode this season. Personally Munch is one of my favorite characters. He is funny, cynical and real. If you want to see more Munch let your voice be heard. Write to NBC or send a letter to TV Guide Magazine and let the show’s producers know ho...
read more
Hey there, and welcome to Beam Me Up, my blog about... whatever happens to be obsessing (or irking) me at the moment. Today's topic: the apparent phasing out of the inimitable Richard Belzer as the conspiracy-theory-spouting, comic-relief-providing Sergeant John Munch on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.Let me start off by saying that I love all things Law & Order — I've watched all three series since their inceptions (I'm ignoring the whole Trial by Jury fiasco, 'cause its five minutes on the air were regrettably forgettable). SVU has been the franchise's powerhouse in recent years — and, let's be honest, the most consistently entertaining L&O to boot.Part of what makes it so darn good is the fascinating, complex variety of personalities that comprise the cast. Which brings me to the topic at hand. Has anyone else noticed a distressing lack of Munchitude this season? He did have that brief story arc in the very first epi, when he temporarily took over for Cap...
read more
