I've liked all the SVU ADAs over the years, even the short-term special guests like Christine Lahti and Sharon Stone. Of course, I liked some more than others, but something about Rafael Barba made him my favorite. He was an incredibly nuanced character. Raúl Esparza is one of those hardworking underrated talented actors, so it was a pleasure to see him allowed to shine. I'm sorry to see him go, but hope he may be going back to Broadway or other stage work.
Unlike others, I don't see Rafael's actions in this episode as completely out of character. Yes, they would have been when we first met him years ago. The writers summed it up well at the end when he's talking to Olivia. Before, he'd seen things as black and white. Over years of working with, becoming close to, and understanding the SVU characters and the cases he prosectuted, his views became both more open and more conflicted. Yet he never lost a sense of right and wrong, which is what made this situation even harder.
I thought his explanation of why he acted as he did was realistic. Then again, at my age, I've lost family, including my parents, and close friends. I know how painful it can be to make life and death decisions, what it's like to believe there are no good choices. Anyone who has had to make those kind of gut wrenching decisions understands that. If you haven't, you will some day. Don't think it will be any easier for you than it is for the rest of us. The question of "What would you do?" should be difficult because dealing with complex situations is never simple. Here Rafael Barba exemplified the inherent conflicts we all face.
I hope the show does not now revert to the tendency it often had in the past of one dimensional "bad man hurts good woman" plots. That is far too simplistic and unrealistic.
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