Originally set to be a recurring character a the beginning of season 2 to replace Monique Jeffries, Ice T was later signed on to play Fin Tutuola as the main character and the rest is history.
He has become the longest-running male character in television history in a live-action primetime series.
20. "No Surrender" (Season 18, Episode 12)
Fin is taken back to his army roots when he must visit his former military precinct when an army ranger is sexually assaulted. We learn more about Fin's time with the military and his perspective on it.
19. "At Midnight In Manhattan" (Season 21, Episode 5)
In an episode where SVU handled three different cases at the same time, Fin connects to a mother and son who are being physically abused by her boyfriend.
The mother, Joelle initially refused to work with Fin and SVU, unwilling to have her boyfriend, Leon, imprisoned for attacking her. Fin later convinces her to cooperate for the sake of her son, Andre, in which she agrees to take Leon to trial.
18. "Denial" (Season 3, Episode 21)
Fin takes a special interest in a case involving a junkie rape victim with more demons than most and connects with her. We see a side of Fin where he empathizes with the rape victim, only for her to spin up lie after lie.
17. "Undercover" (Season 9, Episode 15)
Although this episode is a big one for Benson, who shines undercover, let's not forget Fin was also undercover with her as a prison guard and comes to Benson's rescue when she is almost raped by the corrupt guard who was suspected of raping female inmates.
16. "Intimidation Game" (Season 16, Episode 14)
In this wild episode, a video game enthusiast who kidnapped a woman is up on a rooftop with Carisi and Rollins. Fin rushes out to the rooftop and as the criminal turns at him with the gun, he shoots him dead to the ground.
He was put on unpaid administrative leave, but Benson told him it was a good shoot and to keep his gun and badge.
15. "Outsider" (Season 8, Episode 12)
Fin teams up with Brooklyn SVU detective Chester Lake in the investigation involving the brutal rape of a friend of Ken, Fin's son.
This episode is a strong one for Fin and shows his good partnership win Lake before they eventually become partners in season 9.
14. "Screwed" (Season 8, Episode 22)
Tensions between Fin and his family when his ex-wife's son goes on trial for rape and murder and digs into the past of the SVU detectives to use in his defense in this interesting season finale.
13. "Guardian" (Season 19, Episode 21)
When a brother claims his sister was gang raped, Fin takes a personal interest in the case, seeing the family comes from the projects, rooting to his own history.
12. "Manhunt" (Season 2, Episode 18)
One of the best qualities of Fin from the early seasons was his great chemistry and partnership with Detective John Munch. In this episode, Fin and Munch go on a manhunt together through upstate New York to catch a serial rapist/murderer before he crosses the border into Canada.
11. "Learning Curve" (Season 13, Episode 21)
Fin's son returns when his fiancé is brutally assaulted by a street gang which proves to be the latest crime in a series of hate crimes against gay men. Once again, Fin must work with his son to help solve a crime, as well as come to terms with who his son is and learn to be ok with that.
10. "Gone Fishin" (Season 19, Episode 1)
After tracking down a rape suspect from six years prior all the way to Cuba, Fin basically kidnaps Byron Marks in Havana and brings him to New York City, causing a political tug-of-war for Benson and Barba. Seeing how far Fin will go to ensure justice is served, offers a new perspective to his character we hadn't seen before.
9. "The Things We Have To Lose" (Season 21, Episode 20)
When the abusive boyfriend of a former victim is released from prison, Fin makes it his biggest mission to watch after Leon Fuller, and protect his family from him. He even goes to the extent to give the young boy Andre a phone.
When he is called by Andre to the apartment, tensions arise between Leon and his family where Fin is forced to shoot him dead to the ground. He later tells Benson that no kid should ever have to see a parent die.
It takes an even more emotional toll on Fin, when he is surprised to realize that Leon's former girlfriend is suing him for wrongful death.
8. "Brothel" (Season 20, Episode 15)
The death of a prostitute at a brothel leads SVU to team up with the Vice Unit, as Fin reunites with Sergeant Phoebe Baker, his former partner from narcotics in which they shared a romantic relationship together.
When suspicions arise that Baker could be a mole, Fin defends his former partner. He later asks her out on a date, but she declines, saying she's seeing someone else now. This episode shows us a part of Fin's love life and past we hadn't seen before.
7. "Presumed Guilty" (Season 14, Episode 10)
After his ex-brother-in-law is arrested for the brutal attack of a priest, Fin works with SVU to clear his name despite his past criminal record, because he believes he's innocent.
This leads the squad to uncover a church scandal where we see Fin work greatly with Rollins, where he even invites her to a family dinner at the end of the episode.
6. "Venom" (Season 7, Episode 18)
Fin's son, Ken, becomes the prime suspect in a homicide investigation, which leads to a rollercoaster ride into Fin's family issues, where it is revealed his ex-wife was raped by her own father and had a child, Darius.
Darius who hates Fin, was the true culprit of the crime and confessed it to his half-brother, Ken, who protected him.
5. "Diss" (Season 20, Episode 22)
Fin's ties to a suspect take him off the case, leading to the reveal that his mother was killed right in front of him when he was a young boy. This was something unknown about Fin's history in an episode featuring a real-life friend of Ice T: Snoop Dog.
Fin eventually covers up for his past friend and walks away at the end as if nothing ever happened, showing his personal loyalties might sometimes overshadow those to the police department.
4. "Poisoned Motive" (Season 14, Episode 22)
When Detective Rollins is shot with a sniper while exiting the precinct, Fin's past as a narcotics officer emerge when the daughter of his former partner, who took a bullet for him, seeks revenge on him and his new partner, Rollins.
This leads to a hostage situation with Fin and his ex-partner's daughter in which he is forced to defuse, feeling everything is his fault.
3. "Strain" (Season 7, Episode 5)
While working a case with Benson involving the murder of two gay men at a circus party, Fin learns that his son Ken is gay and has difficulty accepting it. He must later come to accept him as he assists him and Benson in the investigation.
At the end of the case, where Fin is shocked to see the killer's father plead for reduced sentencing, he calls Ken on the phone in efforts to reconcile his relationship with him.
2. "Anchor" (Season 11, Episode 10)
Fin takes the lead on a case to find a racist targeting the children of local immigrants, even clashing with a local celebrity over the matter. Fin's son, Ken, then gets involved in the case when he defends the local celebrity, once again causing tensions between the two.
We see Fin struggle with himself when he is unable to find the killer early on in the episode, but then we see him in full force with passion and what makes him a great detective. This case drives him because of the racism that still exists out there in society, from all shapes and forms.
1. "Haunted" (Season 6, Episode 10)
In what might be the biggest episode of the series for Fin, he gets caught off-duty in a convenience store robbery where he is forced to shoot and kill two teenage boys becoming wounded himself.
Fin becomes reunited with his son, Ken after Manu years, but is later accused of being a dirty cop for not helping the daughter of a woman he knew from his undercover days in narcotics.
Fin later finds her murdered after trying to find her daughter. Exonerated from the convenience store shooting when the robber's gun is found by video camera footage, Fin was hailed a hero, but the fact that he killed two teenagers haunted him to his core.
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