Law & Order: Criminal Intent is one of the few series of the Law & Order family that doesn't focus mostly on cases "pulled from the headlines." Instead, Criminal Intent revolves around the unique mind of Vincent D'Onofrio's Robert Goren, a Major Case Squad detective with uncanny psychological profiling skills and a tendency to cock his head at odd angles while interrogating subjects, as if trying to literally see through an exposed crack in their facade.
Goren's keen insight isn't won without pain. We learn during the series that Goren grew up with a mother who suffered from largely untreated schizophrenia, and there are more than a few hints dropped that Goren can see so clearly into the world of aberrant psychology because he has at least one foot firmly planted in that world. He's prone to intense bouts of anger when he doesn't get his way, and a few memorable episodes make him appear to have more in common with the killers than his comrades.
Like other Law & Order shows, Criminal Intent follows a fairly strict formula that, more often than not, ends with Goren convincing the killer to confess under interrogation. It's D'Onofrio's perfect portrayal of Goren during these climaxes — his passion, his empathy, all coupled with almost childlike glee — that make it worth watching.
