In the nation's largest city,
the vicious and violent members of the underworld
are hunted by the detectives
of the Organized Crime Control Bureau.
These are their stories.
[pensive music]
♪
I need your service weapon.
- Do you own any other weapons? - Glock 43.
Drawer, nightstand on the side of my bed.
Send a car to the residence.
Detective Stabler, you're being suspended
pending an internal investigation.
You'll be notified of any and all hearings
as soon as they are scheduled.
You are free to go.
♪
That one's on me. Frank Donnelly.
I remember you. I remember your father.
Yeah, our dads, they were like--
They were brothers.
You could use a brother who's got your back
right about now.
♪
You're gonna catch your death out here.
Donelly!
Hey, what're you doing?
I swung by your house, your kid said you were
out here jogging, trying to stay in shape.
But I'm thinking,
"Stay in shape for what?" - [scoffs]
Not like he has a job anymore.
Ah, my suspension's temporary.
Says you.
That Black chick you used to work with,
she says otherwise.
What does that mean?
Everybody's got a podcast now,
including the department.
Sergeant Ayanna Bell.
Now, before we wrap this up, Sergeant Bell,
I want to ask you about Detective Elliot Stabler.
It's been three weeks since he was suspended
for his role in the Richard Wheatley affair.
Does he still have a future with the department?
Detective Stabler's future is out of my hands,
but no one is above the law.
But wasn't Detective Stabler
an indispensable member of your team?
No one person is indispensable.
[tense music]
Personally?
I'd go to war.
♪
Okay, baby, I'll give you a call after this meeting.
Yeah, give--give Jack a kiss for me.
Okay, love you too.
Hi, Sergeant Ayanna Bell.
I'm here for Lieutenant Brewster.
Thanks for throwing me under the bus.
What are you doing here?
I'm looking for you. You got a minute?
- No. - No?
Ayanna, you throw me under the bus and you walk away?
I wanna talk to you.
I know you've been on suspension
for a while, Detective,
so I think you forgot how this works.
Let me remind you.
You will address me as "Sergeant Bell."
Why'd you throw me under the bus, Sergeant Bell?
And you can shout all you want...
- I'm not shouting. - But if you think I'm gonna
take the bait-- - I'm asking a question.
No person is indispensable, what does that mean?
It was a fact. Deal with it.
You deal with this.
You know something, in my day?
Cops...
They didn't throw other cops under the bus.
We had each other's back.
Yeah, and you know something?
if you ever become a cop as long as I have,
maybe you'll understand.
If you last that long. - You know what?
It's true.
You have been a cop for a long time.
Yet you work under me.
So if we're keeping it a buck, you need to consider...
- Yeah, keep it a buck. - What that says about you.
Sergeant, Detective.
What the hell is going on here?
It's fine, this is nothing.
It doesn't sound like nothing.
With all due respect, Captain, it's been handled.
I have a meeting upstairs. Excuse me.
Hasn't been hand--
all right, what-- what are you doing here?
I have a meeting too.
With McGrath?
Can you talk to him about my suspension?
Are you kidding me?
What are you-- what are you doing?
Having an outburst - in the middle of 1 - PP?
I'm sure he's gonna find out about it, and when he does,
he's more likely to extend your suspension.
♪
[tense music]
♪
[laughter]
One. All right.
Two.
- Three! - Go!
Carling.
- Yeah. - Yes.
Uh...
Bolton. - Okay.
Yes.
Ooh, I think he's stuck.
- Stanwood. - Oh!
- Okay! - Okay, okay!
Three left.
He can't do it, he can't do it, he can't do it.
- Parnell. - All right.
- Oh! - Down to two, final two.
And I wanna say...
Santos and Yoshida, but I don't wanna be
accused of profiling, so I'm gonna say Santos and Yoshida.
[laughter]
Excuse me?
- Apologies, Yoshida. - What'd I tell you?
This guy's sharp as a freakin' tack.
[glasses clinking]
Right? It's Stabler. - Nice.
Nice job, man.
It's a damn shame how the department's treating you, man.
You oughta be out there chasing bad guys,
not sitting at a desk shuffling papers.
Thanks, man.
And thanks for introducing me to your friends.
Don't worry about it, man, this is--
we're cops, all right?
We take care of each other.
But this group, really, we take care of each other.
- That's right. - Yeah.
You can depend on us, right guys?
- Brotherhood. - Here we go, Stabler!
Oh, he's going straight from the bottle.
- Oh, no! - Whoa!
I'm gonna guess that table after these last two shots.
[laughter]
[tense music]
Hey.
♪
Thank you so much for your help, Captain.
We could not have done that without you.
No thanks necessary.
This has to be a priority for all of us.
Where is he?
♪
Hey.
- That was uncomfortable. - It really was.
But there's nothing like a screaming match
- in the middle of 1 - PP to get the NYPD rumor mill going.
Did Donnelly buy it?
I'm willing to wager the eight shots I just had with him
at his cop bar that he did, yeah.
♪
So your UC was right about Donnelly
taking bribes from the Marcy Killers.
Well, we've all heard the stories
of bad cops out of the 3-7,
I just never thought it'd be Donnelly.
You've known him for a while, right?
Yeah, yeah.
Our fathers were friends.
How are you doing with all that?
My old man would have hated this.
"What are you doing, go after the Marcy Killers,
they're the bad guys, leave your fellow cops alone."
Elliot, that was a different time.
That was your father.
You had to go along to get along.
He was a tough ass.
Not perfect.
But...
[pensive music]
He was a good cop. - Elliot.
My friend.
You're doing the right thing.
Olivia, my friend, can I take you and Noah
out to lunch this weekend?
Let's wait, okay?
Noah, you know, he gets attached very easily,
and you're undercover again.
Am I?
You are.
You're undercover as Elliot Stabler.
[applause]
I'm not gonna take up much time
because today really isn't about me,
it's about each and every one of you.
I got a call from my old friend,
Congressman Leon Kilbride,
informing me that this school's students
were in need of a few computers.
"A few?" I said.
"Well, I think we can do a little better than that."
[applause]
What my friend, Mr. Webb, is too modest to point out
so I'll do it for him is that
his commitment to this community is so strong.
Not only did he arrange for the donation of new computers,
but he is personally bankrolling
the construction of a whole new computer lab for next year.
Not bad for a couple of homeboys who grew up
not too far from here over in Marcy, right?
[chuckles]
[cheers and applause]
[tense music]
♪
[phone buzzing]
Hello?
Mr. Webb?
It's Hugo.
He says he's been trying to reach you.
I've been busy, what does he want?
There's a little problem at the warehouse.
♪
Anything you wanna tell me, Chopper?
No, sir.
Because I understand from Hugo that you're thinking about
leaving my organization and starting your own.
♪
I got my own connects.
[all chuckle]
You know, there's something you just might not
be aware of, son.
The Colombians who dealt with the Albanians
now deal exclusively...
With me.
So that connect that you thought you had...
♪
I've outmaneuvered, outplayed, outlasted
all my rivals.
Which means one thing...
I run this town now.
Nova's undercover work inside the Marcy Killers
has led to a discovery of a symbiotic relationship
between the MKs and Congressman Leon Kilbride.
The Textbooks and Toys guy?
That's not all he is. Read.
Bribery, racketeering, money laundering,
and various forms of political corruption.
Crimes committed under the cover
of his status as an elected official.
Kilbride and Webb go way back.
Webb has several legitimate businesses,
including a construction firm that's received millions
in government contracts and PPP loans.
Looks like he got a job
building Kilbride's new library.
A chunk of the funds are going
straight into Kilbride's pockets.
I've seen it firsthand.
He's a hometown hero.
People are not gonna love it when we take him down.
Well, we're not in the business
of getting people to love us.
Nova's reported that Preston Webb
has called his lieutenants to a high-level meeting.
Moldonado and Cho, I want you outside
surveilling the meeting.
We're building a record on them,
both together and separately.
Sergeant, if we're all good here, you mind if I bounce?
Is that Kilbride texting you?
Nah, it's family.
So we'll stage the meet and greet here.
High-level donors each get a five-minute
face to face with you,
and I thought we could do it right here,
in front of Don Ocura's effacement.
What do you think?
- Brilliant. - [chuckles]
If you ever tire of the art world, Cassandra,
you'd make a superb political rainmaker.
[chuckles] Please.
As brilliant as she is beautiful.
That is why I married her. [chuckles]
As charming as he is trite.
That is why we're still married.
[both chuckle]
Got some calls, I'll leave you to it.
Hmm.
I gather you took care of that little problem
at the warehouse.
Yeah, that was nothing.
Just had to let Chopper know what's what.
And you're confident there's not a rising insurgency?
I called a summit of my five vice presidents.
A little restructuring will keep the young bulls in line.
[tense music]
[somber music]
♪
You didn't pray?
Okay.
Look, I know church isn't really your thing,
but it would mean a lot to me if you were there
to support me on Sunday.
I wouldn't miss it for the world, D.
Good.
Now let's go eat.
Bye, Mom and Dad.
I love you.
♪
What an incredible performance from...
Aw, man, this guy is unbelievable.
I mean, he's supposed to be out
the whole season with a knee injury.
He just hit an unbelievable jump shot.
[phone ringing]
Hello?
Hey, uh, now's not a good time.
Can you call me back next week?
Yeah, I know I'm past due,
but, uh, now's just not a good time, so...
[sighs] I understand,
but like I said, just call me back, all right?
Thank you, have a nice day.
[phone beeps]
[sighs]
Everything all right?
My kid's school.
They've got a bug up their ass about tuition or whatever.
Yeah.
[phone ringing]
Vultures, man. Just vultures.
Ain't none of my business, but...
We're gonna sit here and try to watch the game,
they're just gonna keep calling.
- Let 'em keep calling. - You know?
What do you want me to do, unplug the thing?
[chuckles]
Tell you what.
Let's go to my place.
I got something I wanna show you anyways.
Don't need to ask me twice, man, let's go.
[phone ringing]
[tense music]
[line trilling]
No answer.
Guessing it worked. - [chuckles]
Nothing unites people like annoying bill collectors.
[cheerful music]
[gospel choir vocalizing]
Good morning.
Good morning, Ezekiel Baptist.
all: Good morning, Pastor Riley.
So I want to talk to you today...
About love.
In the book of Luke, Jesus tells us
to love the Lord with all our hearts.
- That's true. - It does.
And to love our neighbor as ourselves.
- Yes. - That's right.
Over time,
love thy neighbor became
every man for himself
and little by little, day by day,
that's how a sense of community gets lost.
A breakdown in community creates a void,
and then what happens?
Then what happens, beloved?
Drugs and crime enter to fill that void.
Wonderful sermon, young brother.
- Thank you, sir. - Yeah, Preston Webb.
My wife, Cassandra.
It was so inspiring.
You really have a gift.
I just hope I impressed my little sister.
[tense music]
♪
Oh, Carmen is your sister?
I had no idea.
Yeah, you're full of surprises, young lady.
She sure is.
Here you go, pal.
5:00 somewhere, right?
Right.
[sighs]
Five kids?
Same.
Yeah, soon to be six.
Yeah, those five are all from my, uh, first wife
and got another on the way
with wife number two.
Well, here's to stayin' busy.
Yeah.
Busy writing checks.
Alimony, child support, getting ready for the new one.
The struggle is real, my friend.
But...
It's not all bad.
Come here, I wanna show you something.
Come on.
Eh?
That's beautiful.
Yep. It's my one guilty pleasure.
Come on, take her for a spin.
[upbeat rock music]
You know, it's not like--I don't
drive into work with this thing, you know?
Guy on my salary pulls up to the precinct
with a beauty like this, believe me,
that would raise, uh, a lot of questions.
Everybody's looking to pinch us with something these days.
Oh, yeah, man, it's crazy.
The whole world hates cops now.
You know why? - [sighs]
Cell phones. Yeah.
You could do a hundred things right in the course of a day.
You make one wrong move?
Bam, it's on video, then it's on the internet.
Next thing you know, it's all over social media,
your career's over, your life's over.
You know? [phone ringing]
Oh, hang on.
Yeah?
What?
No, no, I can't do that now.
All right, all right, relax, I'll be right there.
Listen.
My dad always spoke very highly of your dad, Stabler.
He liked him.
Hope the apple didn't fall far from the tree, my friend.
[engine revving]
[tires screech]
[tense music]
♪
Sit tight.
[grunts]
Yo, it's me.
Back here.
♪
Oh, Jesus.
Looks like a drug deal gone bad.
Neighbors heard shots and fired a couple of their own,
scared off the perps.
They left cash, drugs.
We hit the jackpot on this one, man.
Can't get greedy, okay?
Leave the drugs so nobody asks any questions.
♪
Told you to wait in the car.
Thought you might need backup.
[sighs]
Cool with that?
Be a lot cooler with two.
♪
They just walked in and robbed a crime scene
in broad daylight?
Responding officer tipped off Donnelly,
they lifted the cash before backup arrived.
They were cool, casual, they were disciplined.
So this is not the first time they've done this.
[scoffs] It's the perfect crime.
No way to nail 'em for stolen drug money
if it was never logged into evidence.
And the big news is,
these two are not working alone.
I think Donnelly's running a crew out of the 3-7.
You think it's the ones
he introduced you to the other night?
I think they're the core group.
- You get their names? - Uh.
Carling, Bolton, Stanwood, Yoshida, Santos, and Parnell.
Parnell being the guy who tipped off Donnelly.
[tense music]
Are you sure they were police?
No question.
One went in, a few minutes later,
two more January 6-looking dudes showed up.
Then they come running out with Mellow's bag.
Next thing I know, the whole block's a crime scene.
Thank you, Flip.
♪
How much did we lose?
Mellow was holding at least 50k.
It's a minor loss, but the disrespect...
Eh, that can't stand.
Somebody's gotta pay.
Stabler's gotta get back out on the street
so let's do this fast.
What do we have?
Not much on Parnell, he's pretty clean.
Same for Bolton, Carling, and the others.
I'm seeing a few awards
and a bunch of citations here and there.
Donnelly's got a commendation for placing himself
in grave personal danger in the line of duty.
That doesn't surprise me, he was a good cop.
Yeah, unfortunately,
he's also cheating on his pregnant wife.
Where'd you find that?
You're in his official personnel file, I'm in his DMs.
We are not the same.
Stop--that's his crew.
Donnelly's arm, can you blow it up?
I've seen that tattoo somewhere before.
Hang on, let's see.
A ten and a three.
Damn, they all have it.
NYPD radio code.
To stop transmitting.
They have a code of silence.
Donnelly's more than an errand boy
for the Marcy Killers,
he's the leader of a gang operating inside the NYPD.
♪
Preston Webb, Hugo Bankole, and Nova
just arrived at the location.
Welcome...
To the dawn of a new era, gentlemen.
[chuckles]
The Albanians are gone.
So are the Italians.
Both groups were felled by hubris,
greed, and infighting.
But...
There's a lesson...
[wine pouring]
In their failure.
An opportunity.
Ah...
The Marcy Killers were formed when two rival gangs
merged back in the day.
Now, over the years, I've elevated a number of you
and named you as vice presidents.
And I've encouraged my vice presidents
to operate autonomously
because the decentralized structure benefited us
when our enemies were many.
But it also led to the proliferation
of different factions,
some of which seem to believe
that their individual interests are more important
than the interests of the whole.
It's time for me to rein you in.
Effective immediately,
I am consolidating our current structure.
Nova will no longer be a vice president.
[chuckles] Good.
Instead, she will now
report directly to me,
which means each of you will now report directly to her.
Hold up, you think I'm gonna take orders from this bitch?
Sit down, son.
No, I ain't sitting down.
This is some bull.
Look, Webb, I've been rocking with you
way longer than this chick, man.
You think I'm just gonna--
[silverware clattering]
[screams]
[whimpering]
That's your second strike, Chopper.
There ain't gonna be a third.
[screams]
Second in command?
Of the entire Marcy organization?
Nova, I don't like this.
I don't like it.
This is more than what you signed up for.
Trust me, you want eyes and ears on the inside.
And, respectfully,
I didn't come this far for you to make me quit.
Here.
[apprehensive music]
[sighs]
Who's Derek, and why do I have his phone number?
Derek's my brother.
He's a pastor at Ezekiel Baptist.
You never mentioned him before.
He doesn't know I'm a cop.
He just thinks I'm mixed in with a bad crowd.
When this operation is over, I plan to tell him.
If you really don't want me to do it?
Call him, out me.
♪
Look, I know you're just worried about
losing another undercover, and I appreciate it,
but with all due respect,
I've been swimming in these waters for years.
I know what I'm doing.
You have to trust me.
[sighs]
Fine.
But watch your back.
See you at the fundraiser.
I'm here, did I miss it?
No, baby, you're just in time.
Preston...
Ah, that's nothing.
Chopper just got a little bit out of pocket.
[sighs]
I told you to get rid of his crazy ass a long time ago.
Well, you can tell Chopper the next time he ruins
one of my husband's $1,500 shirts,
I'm gonna be the one wearing his blood.
- It's a boy. - [gasps]
Ah! - [chuckles]
[clapping]
[sentimental music]
Come hold your grandson, Dad.
Aww.
Do we have a name?
Isaiah Preston Henderson Jr.
He's beautiful.
Y'all did some damn good work.
[phone ringing]
Yeah.
Thanks, Hugo.
Nice work.
All right, here comes my client.
So how much does this police chauffeur
service of yours bring in?
Blue Line'll cost you 5,000 in cash, no exceptions.
- Uh-huh. - And you get driven around
anywhere in the city,
no legal entanglements.
Thanks for cutting me in.
We all got bills to pay, right?
There he is.
What's up, Big Smoke?
Donnelly, what's good, baby?
Smoke, this is Stabler, Stabler, this is Smoke.
He's new.
- Hey, man. - What's up, man?
Any friend of Donnelly's is a friend of mine.
Yo, let's hit it.
[upbeat rock music]
Hey, yo, how's your lady?
Uh, thanks for asking, man.
She's, uh, she's good.
She's big as a house
and probably gonna pop any day now.
I tell you what, get me to Harlem
without getting pulled over by the police,
I'll let you name the kid after me.
[laughter]
Hey, screw you.
Ooh, baby, that's what I'm talkin' about.
We don't call it taking the Blue Line for nothing, boys.
Hey, yo, you don't talk a lot, huh?
No, he's, uh, he's just the money guy.
Oh, right, my bad.
Yeah.
♪ It's bad business
♪
♪ It's bad business
- There we go. - All right.
All right, man.
Hey, yo, I'll text you when I'm ready to head back.
- Okay. - All right, couple hours.
- Congrats, pal. - Hmm?
You just busted your Blue Line cherry.
[engine turns over]
What the hell?
Sit tight.
[tense music]
♪
Preston.
Seems there was an, uh, unfortunate altercation
inside one of my stash houses.
Ended with two bodies in the morgue,
50 bands in the wind.
You know anything about that?
You think I killed you guys?
I think one of your men took my cash.
I have too much respect for you
for something like that to happen.
Yeah, well, I hope, for your sake,
you're telling the truth, Donnelly,
because if you're not,
that long standing alliance between the Marcy organization
and the Brotherhood?
That's over.
I swear on everything I hold dear,
blood will have blood.
♪
Brotherhood?
So what's the Brotherhood?
[sighs]
We look after each other, you know?
Got each other's backs.
And if the opportunity to supplement
our income presents itself,
sometimes we take it.
It's basically an extension of what we do as cops.
Pretty liberal interpretation of what cops do.
Are we gonna have a problem here?
No, I just want to make sure that
I'm understanding what this thing is.
- I just told you what it is. - 'Cause it seems like...
[tense music]
You're a gang.
That ain't-- that ain't what it is.
No.
[indistinct chatter]
[soft upbeat music playing]
Oh, my God.
Hey, Ayanna! Excuse me. Hey, what's up?
Oh.
Hi, Carmen, nice to see you again.
I don't think you've met my wife, Denise.
It's a pleasure to meet you, Denise.
Pleasure.
Good evening, ladies and gentlemen,
and welcome.
My name is Cassandra Webb,
and as you may have guessed, this is my gallery.
[applause]
I think maybe Kilbride's aide is family.
- You think? - [chuckles]
But I am here tonight
as a longtime supporter of my dear friend,
Congressman Leon Kilbride.
[applause]
He's one of our most tireless and dedicated,
honest and passionate representatives
in Washington, D.C.
[applause]
[inaudible]
No, you don't--no.
[laughter]
Oh, oh.
Ladies and gentlemen,
my incorrigible husband would like to say a few words.
[laughter and applause]
Well, uh, listen, people,
my wife is far too classy to hit you with the hard sell.
[laughter]
But I'll do it.
Now, everyone here knows that campaigns cost money.
National campaigns cost a fortune.
Well, well, well.
You're late, jackass. [door slams]
And you just put a target on the back
of every single cop in this room.
- Donnelly, take it easy, man-- - Take it easy, my ass.
That was Preston Webb's money.
Even a moron knows you don't steal
directly from Preston Webb.
I didn't know it was Webb's stash house.
Ah, you didn't know.
Oh, well, then all is forgiven, huh?
You're a cop, it's your job to know!
Look, can't he just apologize?
Say they hit the wrong house? It was a mix up.
Apologize to that scumbag dealer?
No way.
What do you propose we do, Parnell, huh?
I propose those Marcy Killers
kiss my white ass.
What are they gonna do, call the cops?
Just unbelievable.
You saw Webb, he was out for blood.
Mm-hmm.
What do you think we should do?
[sighs]
You already told him it wasn't us,
so he's never gonna believe it was an accident.
- Why do we care-- - Shut up!
Just shut up.
[tense music]
So I think...
We should just enjoy the cash.
[all chuckling]
Hey, Donnelly,
sounds like your guy's got bigger balls than you.
all: Ooh!
[laughter]
[indistinct chatter]
My friends.
I want you to meet two of my favorite people,
Denise Bullock and her wife, Sergeant Ayanna Bell,
Preston and Cassandra Webb.
Nice to meet you.
Your gallery is so...
Wow. - Thank you, Denise.
Thank you, Denise.
[laughter]
Well, Sergeant Bell,
I've been hearing all about you and your remarkable career.
Leon tells me that you're headed for great things.
Oh, well, that's very flattering.
I have no idea what he's talking about, though.
She's being modest, trust me, you're looking
at a future police commissioner.
Hmm, well, the mayor's around here somewhere,
maybe we should just corner him
and get you on the shortlist early.
Sorry to interrupt.
Mr. Webb, there's a messenger here
with something that needs your signature.
Of course.
Work never ends.
[chuckles]
Please, excuse me.
♪
Yeah, it was Donnelly.
Are we sure?
No doubt.
Cop that was with him was Parnell.
Still don't know who the third dude was.
It doesn't matter.
If he's rolling with the Brotherhood,
he gets what they get.
All right, find them,
strike back, make sure they know it was us.
♪
[soft jazz music playing]
♪
Excuse me.
Mrs. Webb.
Mr. Webb.
May I have this dance?
Why, yes.
♪ Oh, what a lovely time it was ♪
♪ How sublime it was too
♪ I
[keys jingling]
Come on, Smoke.
Hey, I got an extra thousand for y'all
if I'm at the helipad by 10:00.
Gimme that.
Flashing it around.
♪ I'll say it was grand
♪ Grand to be alive
- Yeah. - Whoa!
- Hey, hey, hey, hey. - Yeah.
You might wanna roll me those jewels, Donnelly.
Now. - Hugo.
You're making a big mistake here.
You don't have to do this. - Shut up.
I said now.
♪ I'm all yours
♪ I did not know
Just be cool, let's give them what they want.
Relax.
[grunts] There you go.
It's all yours, it's all yours.
Hey!
Drop the case, drop the case!
Get your ass over there. - Get over to your friend.
Faster, get over to your friend.
He told you it was a bad idea, didn't he?
Drop that gun, drop the gun.
Get away--get to the hospital.
♪ I wanted love in paradise ♪
[engine revving]
[tense music]
[applause]
[sighs]
- You all right? - I don't like guns
being shoved in my face.
Yeah, I picked up on that vibe, brother.
[chuckling]
You gotta learn to duck.
[both laughing]
Unbelievable.
You did good, Stabler.
Very good.
Glad I had you along.
Saved my ass.
And my nose, probably. - Yeah.
[unsettling music]
I think you might be ready.
Ready?
Come on.
♪
[dramatic music]
♪
[wolf howls]