The latest Law & Order outing puts Lt. Jessica Brady (Maura Tierney) through the emotional woodchipper, then politely sweeps the sawdust into a manila folder labeled “Standard Episode.” It’s a solid hour, not a standout. However, it does one thing well: it drags Brady’s family life into the harsh fluorescent light of the justice system and asks, in full Dr. Phil fashion, So… how’s that working for you?
Spoiler: not great.
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| “Deam On” – LAW & ORDER, Pictured: (l-r) Reid Scott as Detective Vincent Riley, David Ajala as Det. Theo Walker. Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC @ 2025 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved. |
The Case of Zina: The Musician. The Dreamer. A Killer Night
Zina Worth (Lana Love), an ascendant musician with a relapse problem turns up dead. At the start of the investigation, Detective Vincent Riley (Scott Reid) cracks a joke about her not going out on a high note—a classic tonal callback to the Lennie Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) era.
Brady’s son Leo (Alex Neustaedter) has been living with Zina and auditioning for the role of Izzy’s dad… right up until he’s cast as a credible suspect instead. Brady is present when Detectives Walker (David Ajala) and Riley search her son’s apartment and find a kilo of cocaine.
Her son wears the coke is Zina’s. Cue the maternal whiplash. Brady vouches for her son. Reid has her back like a loyal golden retriever as he agrees not to arrest Leo. Walker side eyes them both like they're about to plant evidence,
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| "Dream On” – LAW & ORDER, Pictured: (l-r) Hugh Dancy as A.D.A. Nolan Price, Victoria Cartagena as Counselor Matos. Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC @ 2025 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved. |
Meanwhile, third party DNA under Zina’s nails eventually points to Sean Chase (Ryan Broussard), the producer-slash-sleaze who got her using again. But Chase’s Counselor, Matos (Victoria Cartagena) fires back with a nuclear alternative theory: Leo did it, and Lt. Brady covered it up.
District Attorney Nicholas Baxter (Tony Goldwyn)—usually the political weathervane—doesn’t immediately swat this accusation away. The arrival of new Chief Kathryn Tynan (Noma Dumezweni), who’s even more ruthlessly optics driven, makes Baxter look reasonable by comparison. Baxter is compelled to instruct Executive ADA Nolan Price (Hugh Dancy) to find absolute proof that Leo didn’t commit the murder—and to send Lt. Brady in to do it.
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| “Dream On” – LAW & ORDER, Pictured: (l-r) Tony Goldwyn as District Attorney Nicholas Baxter, Noma Dumezweni as Chief Tynan. Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC @ 2025 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved. |
Brady vs. Brady
Lt. Brady spends late hours at her desk quietly beating herself up. Behind the glow of her laptop, she tracks her son’s movements with the dread of someone who already knows the answers won’t be kind. She hears the lies in Leo’s voice the way only a mother can, and every breadcrumb she follows feels like a step toward confirming her worst fear: that she failed him long before this case ever began.
She’s carrying an impossible load—a son who feels abandoned, a dead girlfriend he couldn’t save, a child he desperately wants to raise, a job that forces her to treat him like any other suspect, a DA’s office suddenly willing to believe she’d obstruct justice, and a Chief who communicates exclusively in political subtext.
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| Dream On” – LAW & ORDER, Pictured: (l-r) Maura Tierney as Lieutenant Jessica Brady, Alex Neustaedter as Leo Brady. Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC @ 2025 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved. |
The show lets her fracture in the margins: the tight jaw, the held breath, the kind of hurt that never makes it into an official report. When she finally opens up to Reid, the moment is raw in its simplicity. Do parents matter? Could she have done more? Reid urges her not to be too hard on herself. Brady just shrugs, bitter and self-mocking: “My favorite hobby.”
Lying Leo
Lt. Brady finds incontrovertible evidence that Leo didn’t kill Zina. The problem is, he sees this ticket to exoneration as a betrayal. She has video of him falling off the wagon—drinking in a bar, not home with Izzy as he testified. On the stand, Price gets him to admit his lies, his grief, his shame, and his self- sabotage.
Chase Did It
The verdict brings legal closure. Chase is convicted, Leo is cleared, and Brady keeps her reputation. Most people leave the courtroom relieved. But for the Bradys, the wounds remain. Leo wants his mother to vouch for him as he pursues custody of Izzy. She declines, as lovingly as she can.
Her assessment is brutal in its accuracy: Leo’s a dreamer, yes—a gentle soul, absolutely—but a parent? Not yet. Not even close.
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| "Dream On” – LAW & ORDER, Pictured: Alex Neustaedter as Leo Brady. Photo by: Virginia Sherwood/NBC @ 2025 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved. |
And the show doesn’t pretend otherwise. Izzy’s aunt—a teacher, with a lawyer husband—represents the soft landing this child deserves, and everyone knows it: Lt. Brady, the audience, and Leo himself. The Lieutenant's refusal becomes the most honest act of parenting she manages. Unfortunately, the mother-son bond remains cracked and fragile, nowhere near ready for repair.
Final Take
Lt. Jessica Brady is the episode’s only real win, not because the case lands—it doesn’t—but because the show finally lets her be messy, human, and right. Mother and son end the hour as parallel lines of pain—still burdened, not intersecting yet, not healing yet—just carrying their respective loads more honestly. Her doubt isn’t weakness; it’s the clearest sign she’s the only adult in the room. If the writers keep giving her this sharp, unvarnished honesty, they might actually earn a return visit next week.
So, dear reader, which burden in this episode felt heavier to you: the weight of being a parent, or the weight of admitting you’re not ready to be one? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Overall rating: 8 out of 10
