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The Best Episodes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13

Every episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13!

Binge this in 16h 44m•Peaking at 8.8/10

In the criminal justice system, sexually-based offenses are considered especially heinous. In New York City, the dedicated detectives who investigate these vicious felonies are members of an elite squad known as the Special Victims Unit.

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
    Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 1 - Scorched Earth
    8.2/10(1110 votes)

    #1 - Scorched Earth

    S13:E1

    An African immigrant working as a maid accuses an Italian diplomat of rape, but is she really in it just for the money? Meanwhile, Stabler's return remains in doubt after his latest shooting.

    Director:Michael Slovis
    Writer:David Matthews

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  2. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 2 - Personal Fouls
    7.4/10(1234 votes)

    #2 - Personal Fouls

    S13:E2

    SVU investigates an accusation that a revered high school basketball coach sexually abused his players, but they ultimately may need the cooperation of a reluctant pro superstar to make the case.

    Director:Jim McKay
    Writer:Bryan Goluboff

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  3. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 3 - Blood Brothers
    5.9/10(1133 votes)

    #3 - Blood Brothers

    S13:E3

    A pregnant thirteen-year-old girl from Washington Heights claims that the son of an ambassador raped her, but the accused goes missing before SVU can question him.

    Director:Tom DiCillo
    Writers:Julie Martin, Warren Leight

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  4. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 4 - Double Strands
    8.0/10(1209 votes)

    #4 - Double Strands

    S13:E4

    Detective Rollins believes that SVU has caught a serial rapist from one of her earlier cases in Georgia, but a passioned request after a suicide attempt leads Amaro to suspect that they may have the wrong person.

    Director:Fred Berner
    Writer:John Paul Roche

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  5. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 5 - Missing Pieces
    8.8/10(1002 votes)

    #5 - Missing Pieces

    S13:E5

    Detectives search for a missing baby on Halloween after a young mother from Buffalo tells them her car was stolen while her baby was still in it.

    Director:Peter Leto
    Writers:Julie Martin, Warren Leight

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  6. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 6 - True Believers
    5.0/10(1048 votes)

    #6 - True Believers

    S13:E6

    The SVU team works together to investigate the case of a promising music student who was brutally raped at gunpoint.

    Director:Courtney Hunt
    Writer:Robin Veith

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  7. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 7 - Russian Brides
    8.2/10(1092 votes)

    #7 - Russian Brides

    S13:E7

    In order to bring down a Russian mobster running an international prostitution/kidnapping ring disguised as a Russian bride website, Cragen steps from behind the desk to go undercover.

    Director:Alex Chapple
    Writer:Bryan Goluboff

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  8. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 8 - Educated Guess
    7.4/10(1105 votes)

    #8 - Educated Guess

    S13:E8

    A patient in a mental hospital claims to have witnessed a sexual assault. However, the supposed victim is a fellow patient who has a history of making rape allegations, but she denies being assaulted this time.

    Director:Arthur W. Forney
    Writer:Judith McCreary

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  9. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 9 - Lost Traveller
    7.7/10(1146 votes)

    #9 - Lost Traveller

    S13:E9

    When a Romani boy vanishes on his way home from school, the Special Victims Unit must penetrate his insular community to find the unlikely abductors.

    Director:Jean de Segonzac
    Writers:Julie Martin, David Matthews

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  10. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 10 - Spiraling Down
    7.4/10(1361 votes)

    #10 - Spiraling Down

    S13:E10

    A retired pro quarterback is busted for having sex with a fourteen-year-old prostitute, but he may be suffering from diminished capacity because of all the concussions he had on the field.

    Director:Alex Chapple
    Writers:Warren Leight, John Paul Roche

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  11. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 11 - Theatre Tricks
    8.0/10(1155 votes)

    #11 - Theatre Tricks

    S13:E11

    SVU tries to figure out who was responsible for the real-life rape of an actress during an interactive theater performance that everybody just assumed was part of the show.

    Director:Constantine Makris
    Writer:Unknown

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  12. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 12 - Official Story
    8.4/10(1088 votes)

    #12 - Official Story

    S13:E12

    Benson and Amaro must work around a resistant victim when the CEO of a military contractor is assaulted.

    Director:Michael Smith
    Writer:Peter Blauner

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  13. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 13 - Father's Shadow
    7.9/10(1128 votes)

    #13 - Father's Shadow

    S13:E13

    A nineteen-year-old creates a hostage situation after his father is accused of sexual assault, and Olivia uses her personal experience to help defuse the situation.

    Director:Jean de Segonzac
    Writers:Julie Martin, Warren Leight

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  14. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 14 - Home Invasions
    7.8/10(1060 votes)

    #14 - Home Invasions

    S13:E14

    After a couple is murdered in their home and their daughter is critically injured, SVU uncovers a number of twisted family secrets, as well as Detective Rollins' gambling addiction.

    Director:Jim McKay
    Writer:Bryan Goluboff

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  15. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 15 - Hunting Ground
    5.8/10(843 votes)

    #15 - Hunting Ground

    S13:E15

    Detectives Benson and Amaro lead the search for a serial killer who is targeting young prostitutes.

    Director:Jonathan Kaplan
    Writer:Unknown

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  16. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 16 - Child's Welfare
    7.2/10(842 votes)

    #16 - Child's Welfare

    S13:E16

    Detective Benson calls on Bayard Ellis for legal help when her estranged brother gets caught in a child custody battle. Also, Detectives Tutuola and Rollins investigate why a newborn baby is abandoned near a hospital.

    Director:Holly Dale
    Writer:Unknown

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  17. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 17 - Justice Denied
    7.6/10(980 votes)

    #17 - Justice Denied

    S13:E17

    A closed rape case of Benson's is reopened because of it's similarities to a new case, and the possibility of wrongful imprisonment surfaces. As Benson's work is questioned, tension develops between her, ADA Haden, and Bayard Ellis.

    Director:Michael Slovis
    Writer:Unknown

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  18. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 18 - Valentine's Day
    7.6/10(974 votes)

    #18 - Valentine's Day

    S13:E18

    A man witnesses his wife's rape and kidnapping while video chatting with her on his way home from a business trip. The abductors seek a ransom, and the case grows more complex as detectives probe deeper.

    Director:Peter Leto
    Writers:Julie Martin, Warren Leight

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  19. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 19 - Street Revenge
    6.6/10(867 votes)

    #19 - Street Revenge

    S13:E19

    The task of find a serial rapist becomes more difficult when a team of neighborhood vigilante "superheroes" starts trying to avenge the crimes.

    Director:Arthur W. Forney
    Writer:Unknown

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  20. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 20 - Father Dearest
    7.4/10(916 votes)

    #20 - Father Dearest

    S13:E20

    Detectives search for a missing teenage girl who vanished while looking for her biological father, an anonymous sperm donor. A puzzling prime suspect who's targeted several young women soon emerges.

    Director:Rosemary Rodriguez
    Writer:Unknown

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  21. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 21 - Learning Curve
    8.2/10(892 votes)

    #21 - Learning Curve

    S13:E21

    As Fin tries to get justice after his gay son's fiancé is brutally beaten in a hate crime, SVU uncovers a scandal involving a teacher sexually abusing a student at a prep school.

    Director:Jonathan Herron
    Writer:Unknown

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  22. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 22 - Strange Beauty
    5.5/10(934 votes)

    #22 - Strange Beauty

    S13:E22

    The investigation of the homicide of a young woman who recently had her leg amputated sends SVU into the strange culture of body modification.

    Director:Alex Chapple
    Writers:Robin Veith, Peter Blauner

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  23. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 13 Episode 23 - Rhodium Nights
    6.2/10(1096 votes)

    #23 - Rhodium Nights

    S13:E23

    The murder of a prostitute at a bachelor party sends SVU on a dangerous investigation that could lead all the way into the highest reaches of New York power and influence.

    Director:Norberto Barba
    Writers:Julie Martin, Warren Leight

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Season 13 Ratings Summary

"Scorched Earth" is the best rated episode of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" season 13. It scored 8.2/10 based on 1110 votes. Directed by Michael Slovis and written by David Matthews, it aired on 9/21/2011. This episode is rated 0.8 points higher than the second-best, "Personal Fouls".