Regardless of what happens inLaw & Order: Organized Crimegoing back toLaw & Order: SVUmay never happen for Elliot Stabler. Beginning with the aftermath of the death of his wife, Kathy (Isabel Gillies), it have navigated through the turbulent, violent realities of Stabler’s work with the Organized Crime Control Bureau as well as issues in his personal life.
WhileLaw & Order: Organized Crimeawaits news on its renewal for season 6, Stabler could have the opportunity to return as a regularcast member inLaw & Order: SVU. Based on the events ofOrganized Crime, it’s impossible to imagine a scenario where Stabler returns toSVUin a way that makes sense.
Stabler Has Changed During His Time On Law & Order: Organized Crime
Personal Tragedies And Work Trauma Have Changed Him Permanently
When we last saw Elliot Stabler onLaw & Order: SVU as a series regular, he was reeling from a shooting inside the precinct that saw him take the life of a teenage girl after she shot andkilled Sister Pegand two suspects in her mother’s murder.
After returning stateside, he joins the Organized Crime Control Bureau, chasing major kingpin figures like majorLaw & Order: Organized Crimevillain Richard Wheatley (Dylan McDermott), Preston Webb (Mykelti Williamson), as well as groups like The Collective and The Camorra.
On top of his often violent and life-threatening work with the OCCB, Stabler’s experienced a significant amount of personal tragedy, including the loss of both his wife, Kathy, and the death of his brother, Joe (Michael Trotter) inseason 5, episode 9 ofLaw & Order: Organized Crime.
With so many tragedies compounded by traumas, Stabler has become a more grizzled, darker version of who he once was, creating a greater disconnect between him and the version of himself he was onSVU.
A Grizzled Stabler May No Longer Fit With The SVU
Making Choices Based On His Current Mindset May Not Sit Well With Benson
The idea of a grizzled Stabler returning to the ranks ofLaw & Order: SVUwould likely be an easy fit back into an old routine, although the dynamics of Stabler, Benson, and the squad itself are very different.
The events ofLaw & Order: Organized Crimehave changed Stabler as a detective and as a person, and it’s hard to imagine a scenario where he functions within the boundaries ofSVU.
Benson has played an integral role inOrganized Crime, helping Stabler navigate some of his personal tragedies and issues in the field. Seeing him return to a role where he reports to her while working through his own personal feelings for her would be a disadvantage to the arc of SVU as well as their character’s stories.
With these contributing factors at play, a window does exist, albeit a small one, where Stabler could integrate back toLaw & Order: SVU.That said, it will likely be at a great cost to both himself and the other detectives around him inLaw & Order: Organized Crime.
