I agree with you on Stabler's exit and Benson stepping up. I really and truly believe the writers didn't have back stories for their new cops, which is why Molly Burnett's character seemed lost. We found out about her brother after she had been on the show for a minute, and while she was working with a permanent character. One whose own back story we didn't know. Everyone who works with Finn, gets a back story, and then, moves on to cases they get to solve with Benson. Not following that formula hurt Burnett's character, as well as officer Churlish. Had they gotten the personalized attention Rollins got while working with Finn, we would've known about Churlish's family dynamic, and seen it up close. We would've been able to relate to her by-the-book attitude better, and maybe seen it change, since they tried to stir up drama with her and Burnett's character, because her brother was trying to talk to Churlish. I don't know which writer left SVU after this last strike, but that writer should've come back to build on the characters they clearly wrote for. The writers since the strike have no clue what was being developed, and thus, cut those stories out completely.

My thoughts are that they should've developed those other characters more. This was a writer's issue. Molly Burnett just came off a hit show, and was phenomenal on it. Why wasn't she good on SVU? The writers. They didn't know what her back story was, so they couldn't develop her character more. She should've been an adequate replacement for Rollins, and had they developed her character and the young officer, Churlish,

I knew why Stable left. That was behind the scenes stuff. I didn't want him to go, but I wished, prayed for Rollins to leave. I'm probably the only fan who wanted her to butt out of Olivia's personal life, when she wouldn't accept help for dealing with her sister. I wanted her to be referenced occasionally, but basically gone. Her leaving wasn't maternity leave, which was my initial thought, so her continuing to guest star was an annoyance for me. I'm not excited about her return, but I get why Mariska would be. They made a relatable coworker/ friend out of Rollins. However, they didn't try to pursue that with Molly Burnett, who just came from a hit show, so she could've been a coworker/ friend to the team, if the writers had chosen to do so. They did not. They had a great partner pairing in the making, with Velasco and either of the female cops, and even tried to start a little out of the office drama, with Churlish semi dating Burnett's character's brother. The writers chose not to pursue those storylines. I think it was a mistake not giving Juliana Martinez more time with Benson, or Tutuola. Everyone who came in after Stabler, worked with Finn. Even Rollins, and with Finn as your partner, you can see the potential for longevity with each character. They really needed to let Finn show the new partners how the squad works, so they wouldn't fall apart when working with each other. Hopefully, Rollins won't irk my nerves, with her "advice" for Liv, and the writers will reconsider the characters they let go of entirely too soon.

I this show very well. I loved it! I wish it had continued, but where the cast went after, proved to me that it was beyond great television. Regina King showed why she should get every award she was nominated for, and Ben Mckenzie got a solid show after. Shawn Hatosy has been on 3 shows, just this season, after going from Southland to Animal Kingdom. He definitely gets the MVP award for "keeping busy."

I just want Trek. Is that too much to ask? I'm excited about Scotty and Pelia, in engineering together. Not so much about Nurse Chapel. If she doesn't want to commit, please leave Spock alone! Does this whole thing ruin love for him? Is that why he remained unmarried for, wow, ever?! She needs to leave him alone, or, let someone else find Spock "interesting," and try to connect with him. I'm not opposed to a small JJ shout out, and give Spock and Uhura a romance...

I love whoever is the main character that season. But if the writers will follow the books a little more, they'll see that there's plenty of side stories they could do, so everyone gets air time. Eloise's whole conflict about being upper class and falling for someone beneath her station could've been explored more before she became friends with Cressida. And possibly after. You can't do say, an Outlander type of season on Bridgerton, because there are more characters than the couple of the season. But season 7 of Outlander gave us more of Roger and Bri, while still telling Clare and Jamie's story. As a fan of the period piece, or historical genre, there are plenty of ways to include other characters in the main character's story, and tell a little more about them at the same time.