Olivia Benson and Elliot Stabler will reunite in Law & Order: SVU season 27, which will also mark an exciting new milestone that will have taken 14 years to come to fruition. Network TV’s longest-running scripted series will be back to extend its reign on NBC with a few confirmed exciting developments to come.
For starters, after Kelli Giddish’s controversial exit, Amanda Rollins is now set to re-claim her place in Benson’s Manhattan SVU team. Law & Order: SVU is also set to bring back other familiar faces, albeit just for cameos, such as Brian Cassidy and George Huang, joining Stabler, who is also set to crossover with his old team again.
Admittedly, Stabler’s return in Law & Order: SVU season 27 is exciting primarily because of the possibility that it will lead to him and Benson finally starting their romance. Years after Chris Meloni’s return re-opened the door for their much-clamored partnership, NBC and Wolf Entertainment continue to dance around the arc. That said, their potential relationship isn’t the most exciting aspect of their reunion.
Benson & Stabler’s Reunion In Law & Order: SVU Season 27 Will Include Cragen
For context, Benson and Stabler just shared the screen in Law & Order: Organized Crime season 5, so their upcoming reunion may not be wildly exciting as it is. That said, adding Donald Cragen into the mix, and suddenly, it becomes a dream-come-true for every long-time fan of Law & Order: SVU — especially those who were plugged in during the show’s first 12 seasons.
As confirmed by Meloni on Instagram, Dann Florek will be involved in Law & Order: SVU season 27. Since Cragen retired as the captain of the Manhattan SVU, he has returned to both Mariska Hargitay’s show and Law & Order: Organized Crime. That said, he has never appeared on the screen with BOTH Benson and Stabler since Meloni’s final full-time episode in 2011’s “Smoked.”
Now, all three characters are expected to interact with each other in an upcoming episode of Law & Order: SVU, which is going to be a nostalgic trip for anyone who has loved the show for decades. There was a point that they were the faces of the series, having been part of its inaugural cast.
What Cragen’s Reunion With Benson & Stabler’s Romantic Chances In SVU Season 27
Currently, it’s unclear what brings Stabler and Cragen to Benson in Law & Order: SVU season 27. Regardless, however, the good thing is that it will highlight the relationship that they have forged after working closely together for years has transcended their professional roles. Beyond being their boss, Cragen has played a quasi-father for both Benson and Stabler.
Thanks to that relationship, Cragen can be the catalyst to finally make Benson and Stabler realize that they are just prolonging their inevitable relationship. At this point, NBC and Wolf Entertainment risk major backlash if the romance doesn’t happen. Instead of extending the already tired will-they/won’t-they situation, Law & Order: SVU season 27 is arguably the best time to pay the narrative off.
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