One has to wonder if anybody involved in the production of "Law & Order" even bothered to watch the original episode for which "Fixed" is based. Not a single character or plot point properly follows the continuity of "Indifference." This includes: 1) Did the lawyers even read the case file? At one point, one of the District Attorneys mentions that Dr. Jacob Lowenstein pleaded to first degree manslaughter, which is why he was out on the street so early. They even go so far as to say that they offered a plea because they didn't want to "gamble" on the jury. Of course, anyone who saw the original episode knows that the jury convicted Dr. Lowenstein to second degree murder, for which he was sentenced to 25 years to life.
2) Why is Jacob Lowenstein even out of jail? He was sentenced to 25 years, yet he was out in less than 15! Actually, this one is easily answered: The real life Lowenstein, Joel Steinberg, was convicted of manslaughter and was released in 2004 for good behavior. This episode aired in 2006,which of course, fits with "Law & Order's" penchant for "ripped from the headlines" stories.
3) Why did they whitewash the role of the mother? The episode makes it sound like Jacob Lowenstein went around abusing children on his own, when the original episode is very clear that Carla Lowenstein killed her daughter in reaction to her own abuse. Did everyone forget Det. Logan's heartfelt story of the abuse he received from his own mother? She received manslaughter as part of her own role in the murder of her daughter, and yet the episode makes it sound like she was merely a victim.
4) Why does Jacob Lowenstein act so strange? Did David Groh even watch his old performance? The Dr. Lowenstein in this episode acts more like Marlon Brando meets Woody Allen than the narcissistic monster we saw 10 years earlier. The videotaped interview shown during the trial has him acting in a manner that is completely unrecognizable from the character he portrayed 15 years earlier.
5) Why are the police officers making stuff up? Captain Cragan's rant about how heinous Lowenstein is involves almost no truth. "Tied to the radiator?" When did that happen? "When we got to Carla her jaw was so swollen she could barely talk." Was this before or after she killed her daughter? The Lowenstein's were bad people, no need to alter plot points to fit the new narrative. Cragan's glee in describing the crime in new ways sounds like he's been spending too much time over at SVU.
In the end, "Fixed" is a disappointing bookend to one of "Law & Order's" most well respected episodes. It's a sequel that had no reason to be made.
2) Why is Jacob Lowenstein even out of jail? He was sentenced to 25 years, yet he was out in less than 15! Actually, this one is easily answered: The real life Lowenstein, Joel Steinberg, was convicted of manslaughter and was released in 2004 for good behavior. This episode aired in 2006,which of course, fits with "Law & Order's" penchant for "ripped from the headlines" stories.
3) Why did they whitewash the role of the mother? The episode makes it sound like Jacob Lowenstein went around abusing children on his own, when the original episode is very clear that Carla Lowenstein killed her daughter in reaction to her own abuse. Did everyone forget Det. Logan's heartfelt story of the abuse he received from his own mother? She received manslaughter as part of her own role in the murder of her daughter, and yet the episode makes it sound like she was merely a victim.
4) Why does Jacob Lowenstein act so strange? Did David Groh even watch his old performance? The Dr. Lowenstein in this episode acts more like Marlon Brando meets Woody Allen than the narcissistic monster we saw 10 years earlier. The videotaped interview shown during the trial has him acting in a manner that is completely unrecognizable from the character he portrayed 15 years earlier.
5) Why are the police officers making stuff up? Captain Cragan's rant about how heinous Lowenstein is involves almost no truth. "Tied to the radiator?" When did that happen? "When we got to Carla her jaw was so swollen she could barely talk." Was this before or after she killed her daughter? The Lowenstein's were bad people, no need to alter plot points to fit the new narrative. Cragan's glee in describing the crime in new ways sounds like he's been spending too much time over at SVU.
In the end, "Fixed" is a disappointing bookend to one of "Law & Order's" most well respected episodes. It's a sequel that had no reason to be made.