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The Best Episodes of Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2

Every episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2!

Binge this in 16h 51m•Peaking at 8.7/10

The third installment of the “Law & Order” franchise takes viewers deep into the minds of its criminals while following the intense psychological approaches the Major Case Squad uses to solve its crimes.

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  1. #1 Fan Favorite
    Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 1 - Dead
    8.5/10(503 votes)

    #1 - Dead

    S2:E1

    The murder of a mortician and the discovery of corpses at a crematorium lead the detectives to a family man claiming to have a consulting business but suspected of being a contract killer with a penchant for perfection. Goren attempts to prove this by setting up a scheme that puts his "fear of making a mistake" in jeopardy.

    Director:Darnell Martin
    Writers:Dick Wolf, Stephanie Sengupta, René Balcer

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  2. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 2 - Bright Boy
    8.0/10(445 votes)

    #2 - Bright Boy

    S2:E2

    The double murder of a social services worker and a deputy mayor lead the detectives to suspect a couple who may have a grudge against the social worker for taking away their children. When they learn that the social worker had taken special interest in a child prodigy being considered for admission to a prestigious, accelerated school, they examine both the boy and his obsessive father.

    Director:Frank Prinzi
    Writers:Marlane Gomard Meyer, Marlane Meyer, Dick Wolf, Stephanie Sengupta, René Balcer

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  3. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 3 - Anti-Thesis
    8.7/10(602 votes)

    #3 - Anti-Thesis

    S2:E3

    As Goren and Eames sift through the likely suspects in the murder of a university president and his assistant, they discover that the culprit is a wily adversary who has more than these crimes to hide.

    Director:Adam Bernstein
    Writers:Eric Overmyer, Dick Wolf, Stephanie Sengupta, René Balcer

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  4. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 4 - Best Defense
    8.2/10(447 votes)

    #4 - Best Defense

    S2:E4

    The detectives follow the trail when an assistant district attorney confronts and kills a hired gunman following a series of death threats. They first suspect his wife, a prominent defense attorney, through a convict whose case was being prosecuted by the A.D.A. and the rumors of her romantic affairs. When they realise that there are cracks in their seemingly airtight case, Goren has to keep Carver in the dark about some details to prove his theory.

    Director:Gloria Muzio
    Writers:Elizabeth M. Cosin, Dick Wolf, Stephanie Sengupta, René Balcer

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  5. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 5 - Chinoiserie
    7.7/10(393 votes)

    #5 - Chinoiserie

    S2:E5

    After a mother of two is shot dead in Chinatown, Goren and Eames first believe that her death may be connected to the Tianamen Square massacre, but then their investigation leads them to a smuggling ring dealing in antiquities.

    Director:David Platt
    Writers:B. Mason, Dick Wolf, Stephanie Sengupta, René Balcer

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  6. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 6 - Malignant
    8.0/10(405 votes)

    #6 - Malignant

    S2:E6

    A robbery that involved two fatalities leads to the discovery of a long-running case of tampering with drugs. Goren and Eames have to figure out a way of catching a pharmacist who has been diluting cancer medication without using the exhumated bodies of patients who had been given the medicine.

    Directors:Juan José Campanella, Frank Prinzi
    Writers:Dick Wolf, René Balcer

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  7. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 7 - Tomorrow
    8.3/10(516 votes)

    #7 - Tomorrow

    S2:E7

    The detectives investigate a triple murder, including the son and daughter of a wealthy businessman, that occurred in his apartment. After investigating the childrens' stepmother (his second wife), they turn to a pair of nannies, one of whom works for the family. However, the detectives must reach back to the nannies' history as children, and a television soap opera, in order to better understand the motives for the crime.

    Director:Don Scardino
    Writers:Dick Wolf, Stephanie Sengupta, René Balcer

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  8. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 8 - The Pilgrim
    7.9/10(407 votes)

    #8 - The Pilgrim

    S2:E8

    The detectives are called to investigate the adult daughter of a retired officer which takes them to a case of terrorism involving someone she knew that includes a shipment of explosives.

    Director:Darnell Martin
    Writers:Marlane Gomard Meyer, Marlane Meyer, Dick Wolf, Stephanie Sengupta, René Balcer

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  9. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 9 - Shandeh
    7.8/10(412 votes)

    #9 - Shandeh

    S2:E9

    The investigation into the murder of a Jewish woman turns towards her family once Goren and Eames find out about her husband's affair.

    Director:Steve Shill
    Writer:René Balcer

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  10. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 10 - Con-Text
    7.7/10(394 votes)

    #10 - Con-Text

    S2:E10

    Goren and Eames run a con of their own on a phony motivational speaker whom they suspect exploited a fragile disciple by convincing him to commit murder for profit.

    Director:Alex Zakrzewski
    Writers:Gerry Conway, Dick Wolf, Stephanie Sengupta, René Balcer

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  11. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 11 - Baggage
    8.0/10(429 votes)

    #11 - Baggage

    S2:E11

    When an airline baggage supervisor is found murdered in the trunk of her car, the detectives investigate the employees listed in a sexual harrassment complaint which leads them to a scam involving credit cards and credit reports with foreign links.

    Director:Constantine Makris
    Writers:Theresa Rebeck, Dick Wolf, Stephanie Sengupta, René Balcer

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  12. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 12 - Suite Sorrow
    8.1/10(400 votes)

    #12 - Suite Sorrow

    S2:E12

    After the tyrannical owner of a Manhattan luxury hotel is found submerged in her bathtub, evidence seems increasingly to indicate that the woman's death was the work of her deeply frustrated, long-suffering daughter.

    Director:Jean de Segonzac
    Writers:Warren Leight, Dick Wolf, René Balcer

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  13. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 13 - See Me
    8.1/10(399 votes)

    #13 - See Me

    S2:E13

    Detectives Goren and Eames come to believe a doctor conducted shameful experiments on the residents of a halfway house.

    Director:Steve Shill
    Writers:Stephanie Sengupta, Jim Sterling

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  14. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 14 - Probability
    8.6/10(499 votes)

    #14 - Probability

    S2:E14

    While probing the seemingly random murders of several homeless men, Goren and Eames uncover a scam involving a crooked insurance agent. However, an unsual twist leads the detectives to an unlikely suspect.

    Director:Frank Prinzi
    Writers:Gerry Conway, Dick Wolf, René Balcer

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  15. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 15 - Monster
    8.1/10(412 votes)

    #15 - Monster

    S2:E15

    The murder of a woman in her apartment results in her son, recently paroled after serving 15 years for murder, becoming the prime suspect. Having consulted with the lead detective on the old case, Goren and Eames discover he was involved in a cover-up to rush other cases to closure.

    Director:Joyce Chopra
    Writers:Marlane Gomard Meyer, Marlane Meyer, Dick Wolf, Stephanie Sengupta, René Balcer

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  16. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 16 - Cuba Libre
    8.0/10(403 votes)

    #16 - Cuba Libre

    S2:E16

    After the trophy wife of a recently released prison inmate is murdered, Goren plays on the man's paranoia to find a connection to another inmate with a hit list.

    Director:Darnell Martin
    Writers:Warren Leight, Dick Wolf, Stephanie Sengupta, René Balcer

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  17. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 17 - Cold Comfort
    8.0/10(375 votes)

    #17 - Cold Comfort

    S2:E17

    When a woman suing her brother over the disposition of their father's remains is found murdered, Goren and Eames discover a concealed parentage and a man willing to go to any extremes to ensure his legacy.

    Director:Constantine Makris
    Writers:Dick Wolf, Stephanie Sengupta, René Balcer

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  18. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 18 - Legion
    7.9/10(364 votes)

    #18 - Legion

    S2:E18

    When a father and son have their throats slit, the detectives discovers that a group of adolescent boys have disappeared from the same neighborhood. When the locals don't cooperate with the investigation, the cops think the boys are being used by someone operating a bicycle theft ring. The cops are led to a studio owner who brainwashes the boys to prove their worthiness.

    Directors:Steve Shill, Frank Prinzi
    Writers:Theresa Rebeck, Dick Wolf, René Balcer

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  19. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 19 - Cherry Red
    8.3/10(441 votes)

    #19 - Cherry Red

    S2:E19

    The detectives try to figure out a mystery after an old woman dies in a fire. The mystery gets deeper when a young woman who is left some of the old woman estate is killed. The case takes them to a state public administrator who has invented a form of grave-robbing. The detective suspects the administrator has a weakness for valuable cars, but to make his case work, he has to exploit his quarry's personal relationships.

    Director:Frank Prinzi
    Writers:Dick Wolf, Stephanie Sengupta, René Balcer, Jim Sterling

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  20. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 20 - Blink
    8.0/10(383 votes)

    #20 - Blink

    S2:E20

    The detectives investigate a murder of a math student who worked in a poker club as a card-counter. Their case brings the detectives to a group of computer nerds, but later they discover a computer gambling system which has tougher suspects. The detectives discovers that even there own workstations are hit by the ringleader of the group, who had bigger plans for his horseracing and other scams.

    Director:Don Scardino
    Writer:Gerry Conway

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  21. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 21 - Graansha
    8.0/10(394 votes)

    #21 - Graansha

    S2:E21

    Goren and Eames enter the closed world of a thieving Irish Traveller clan when they investigate the death of a Ann Lawson, a probation officer who was run over three times after meeting a friend at the bar. They soon learn that Ann, a probation officer, had been involved with Malcolm Bryce, the father of Paul, one of her charges. It appears as though Ann is also very close with the thieving Irish Travellers they are investigating, determined to save a young girl from their style of life.

    Director:Darnell Martin
    Writers:Joe Gannon, Dick Wolf, Stephanie Sengupta, René Balcer

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  22. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 22 - Zoonotic
    8.2/10(443 votes)

    #22 - Zoonotic

    S2:E22

    The investigation into the murder of a crooked cop leads to a preening veterinarian and his friend, an obsessive doctor whose ex-girlfriends who have all been infected with a rare disease.

    Director:Don Scardino
    Writer:Warren Leight

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  23. Law & Order: Criminal Intent Season 2 Episode 23 - A Person of Interest
    8.6/10(427 votes)

    #23 - A Person of Interest

    S2:E23

    Goren and Eames investigate the murder of a former nurse and discover a possible anthrax terrorist plot. The case takes a turn for the worse when Goren is blamed for driving a suspect to commit suicide. Now disgraced, Goren learns that a cunning adversary from his past may be involved.

    Director:Frank Prinzi
    Writers:Warren Leight, Dick Wolf, Stephanie Sengupta, René Balcer

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Season 2 Ratings Summary

"Dead" is the best rated episode of "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" season 2. It scored 8.5/10 based on 503 votes. Directed by Darnell Martin and written by Dick Wolf, Stephanie Sengupta, René Balcer, it aired on 9/29/2002. This episode is rated 0.5 points higher than the second-best, "Bright Boy".