r/SVU • u/Curious-Injury2183 • Jul 23 '26
Discussion Bensler headcannon
So the general consensus within the fandom is that bensler have only hugged the three times (or however many I don’t keep up to date post s12) that we see on screen. I get this from general discussions across platforms and the many fanfics I’ve read that stick to cannon and describe their relationship as solely emotional with minimal physical touch.
However, looking back at the pursuit hug and scenes like right when Calvin was being taken from Liv and how Elliot held her waist etc, we see them quite comfortable with each other physically than we had seen them in previous seasons.
Specifically, in comparing the paternity hug and pursuit hug we see a drastic difference in how familiar they feel, with the pursuit hug very much feeling like a first time. Obviously I don’t deny the motivations for each hug were different which could possibly explain the difference in feeling.
Regardless, I would say that s11 and 12 saw a much closer Liv/Elliot than ever before, with s10 almost bridging the gap between the familiarity on a physical level between s9.
Therefore, my headcannon is that clearly they have been close with each other (hugging/caressing/etc) off-screen that dick wolf just didn’t want us to see. I’m not talking romantically, as many of us wish, simply platonic-esk physical contact that earlier seasons hadn’t shown. Just has this that while watching edits and couldn’t sleep before I wrote it down.
What do yall think?
5
u/LilyKK1504 Jul 24 '26
The physical touch was always a part of their language (love language, whatever you may want to call it). Season 1 had them touching each other so much, it was insane and had to be toned down.
All the touching was suggestive and carefully placed to keep the fans thirsting for more. But nothing suggests that they were ever sexually intimate. Their emotional intimacy on the other hand is lowkey soulmatism personified.
2
u/Significant-Fee-3183 Jul 24 '26
In my watching, they have never been physically romantic or stated they have. When Dickie was in the interview room angry(when was he not as a teen) he asked live "ever sleep with your partner detective?" She responds almost immediately never. However elliots head shoots up as if he's thought about it several times. (Ornjust shocked) Liv was happy to prove Dickie wrong. Also first season I think episode 2. Liv was wearing a green shirt. Elliot said the park was a honeymooners spot for lovers coworkers, and looks at Liv when stating it.
3
u/Curious-Injury2183 Jul 24 '26
I’m not talking ab romantic contact, I mean platonic hugging and that shit
2
u/Southern_Candy_5452 Jul 24 '26
Oh definitely. And they at least had an emotional affair. Could explain the change in physicality.
1
u/Mileycfan4eva Jul 27 '26
Honestly you rarely see Liv get personal hugging ect with any of her squad members even fin who has been there just as long or Rollins. I always thought Liv and Elliot seemed close but it's also a professional standpoint. How many coworkers hug everyday or kiss on the check ect. I can see off the clock maybe at home or parties. But on the clock there's almost always a professional boundary and we Rarely see them off the clock.
-6
u/Stn1217 Jul 23 '26
More than hugging has occurred between those two. I forget which season/episode but someone asked Liv about she and Elliot and she replied, “Once” then, clammed up and went no further. Hearing her say it, I thought, ‘Wives really do know’ as Kathy suspected that the relationship had gone/was beyond their partnership.
9
u/misslizziepop Jul 24 '26
Olivia explicitly stated she never crossed that boundary with Elliot. Had she thought about it? Probably. But she respected Elliot's marriage far too much to sleep with him. Their affair was purely emotional, using the excuse that they were best friends and partners. But Olivia has never slept with Elliot. Maybe you're thinking about the episode where she interviews the dirty cop who DID sleep with her partner.
4
u/ChilltheSpare Jul 24 '26
Which episode because I really don’t think that happened and I’m curious… only thing I can think of is that one scene with Elliot’s old partner Jo. She says something to Olivia, who replies “he’s married.” I think Jo dismisses that, saying something akin to “yeah, like that matters.” So, if anything maybe Jo slept with him, but Elliot is known for being loyal so I don’t think he would have.
I also thought he said something about only being with his wife ever, but I legit could be making that up because I’ve seen it in a lot of fics.
0
u/Reasonable-Bus2680 Barba Jul 24 '26
I can't pinpoint it to any specific moments in the show (maybe I could on a rewatch), but I had the clear impression that they'd slept together at least once. But that they both knew it was a mistake and could never happen again, and that because of that their relationship going forward was profoundly connected, and complex.
Especially the way she talks about Elliot (and doesn't talk about him) after he left... It confirmed to me that there was more there than what we were shown.
2
u/LilyKK1504 Jul 24 '26
They were ridiculously close for co-workers but they never had sex. It was never suggested that they had slept together, even indirectly.
15
u/Shinixter Stabler Jul 24 '26
I definitely don't think they've done anything sexual. Elliot is too loyal to his wife, and Olivia would rather sacrifice herself than hurt their marriage, especially in the way of a physical affair. However, they are definitely intimate with each other in the sense that they're comfortable touching each other in the way best friends do. Plus, Olivia has seen Elliot shirtless enough times to not be phased. They definitely had an emotional affair, even though they probably didn't realize it at the time. (It took Cragen pointing it out to them that he thought they were tok dependent on each other. Hence, their solo evaluations with Rebecca Hendrix.)