[Warning: General spoilers ahead.]
Graff and Bateman are back on the case Thursday night when Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent returns for season two at 10 pm/9c on Citytv.
The titular “White Squirrel City” is the scene of the murder of an unhoused man, Mick (Kevin Drew), who was the de facto mayor of a tent city of unhoused living in a neighbourhood park. We watch his murder unfold in tandem with another crime against him, but neither are what they seem to be in the moment. From there, we follow Graff and Bateman on a circuitous path to who killed him and why.
Written by Tassie Cameron and directed by Peter Stebbings, the second season premiere presents an array of potential suspects, including the two lonely, isolated teenage girls (Yasmeen El-Kha and Sirena Gulamgaus) who got more than they bargained for when they seek friendships through a private chat app and their first real-life gathering gets wildly out of hand.
Another suspect is a neighbour (Matthew Bennett) who lives opposite the park and seethes when his young son brings home a hypodermic needle. Rounding out the list of possibles is a mother/daughter duo (played by Cameron Pictures family members — Rookie Blue alumni Priscilla Faia and Mary Kills People’s Lola Flannery, who’s so grown up I’m gonna need a minute) with a burgeoning social media following.
The investigation explores all of them as Graff and Bateman thread together who Mick was before he was unhoused vs. who he was in the present, and who could have wanted him dead. There’s also a throughline of being bullied into belonging, even when it takes a dangerous turn, and the sociopolitical climate around the unhoused population.
Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent begins its 10-episode second season Thursday night, February 20nd, at 9 pm ET on Cityyv and streaming on Citytv+. Here’s a sneak peek
Photos and video courtesy of Citytv.
