Milestone episodes can be hit or miss.

As exciting as it was to contemplate Law & Order: SVU celebrating 500 episodes, there was always the chance it would just shoehorn old characters in with no rhyme or reason.

But Law & Order: SVU Season 23 Episode 6 over-delivered, not only providing a compelling reason for Amaro to return to SVU but also an emotional backstory connected to Benson's past.

The flashbacks of a younger Benson peppered throughout the hour were surprisingly effective. They were made all the more impressive by the fact that 23 years ago, the SVU writers couldn't possibly have conceived of this use for them.

However, they must have had some idea of Benson's backstory that they fleshed out for this story since everything fit together perfectly.

The episode wasn't just a blast from the past but also a callback to it -- the story was a more classic SVU story with a challenging case that spun off into something different in the courtroom.

I didn't expect the twist that Burton was a serial predator who had groomed Benson as well as a ton of other women, but I did have a feeling he was a bad guy.

When he invited Benson up to his hotel room, it raised a ton of red flags for me. Something didn't feel right, and I hoped that he didn't do anything to Benson.

God knows that Benson's been victimized enough over the years. William Lewis on Law & Order: SVU Season 15 and the attempted rape when she was undercover on Law & Order: SVU Season 9 were bad enough -- I didn't relish the idea of her first boyfriend turning out to be a predator too.

But when the truth about her relationship with Burton came out, it made total sense.

Burton saw nothing wrong with his behavior and saw himself as the victim of cancel culture or overzealous prosecution or something, and Benson had to come to terms with that.

It worked so well because of the story underneath the story.

Ultimately, the milestone episode wasn't about the case of the hour or Benson's relationship with Burton. It was about her facing her past -- all of it.

Noah: If your mom was still alive, how old would she be?
Benson: Serena would be 77.
Noah: Wow. And you were already a detective when she died?
Benson: Yes, I was.
Noah: Did she like you being a detective?
Benson: It sounds to me like right now you're the one being a detective.

• Permalink: It sounds to me like right now you're the one being a detective.

It was no accident that the hour began with Noah asking about his grandmother and ended with Benson concluding that Serena was trying to protect her in her own way.

Of course, threatening her with a broken champagne bottle wasn't the way to go and was still wrong, but Benson finally found the forgiveness she'd been looking for since Serena's untimely death 20+ years earlier.

Too bad Burton turned out to be such an ass, though. He and Benson had decent chemistry, and I'm a sucker for second chance romances.

But given the number of passionate Benson/Stabler shippers, giving her a new boyfriend out of the blue probably wouldn't have gone over well anyway.

Amaro's inclusion in the storyline was probably the best part of this.

Amaro's mellowed out considerably since he was a hotheaded detective trying and failing to fill Stabler's shoes on Law & Order: SVU Season 13, and having him work cold cases was a nice touch.

Amaro: I work in forensic DNA.
Benson: Cold cases. That's a good fit for you.

• Permalink: Cold cases. That's a good fit for you.

As Danny Pino fans may know, Pino came to SVU straight from the show Cold Case, so it was a neat in-joke that worked well as a vehicle for this particular story.

It was logical that Amaro would want to look into the Haley West case, which brought in both Cragen and Warner for cameos.

I only wish that there had been room for two more. I've been a Munch fan since his Homicide: Life on The Streets days and missed his sardonic comments during this story.

And I'd also loved to have had Dr. Haung back. He could have given Amaro some advice after Benson refused to believe Burton had groomed her too or helped profile Haley's real killer.

Huang was always my favorite of the various psychiatrists that used to work for SVU. If B.D. Wong wasn't available, though; I'd have settled for Olivette or even J.K. Simmons' Dr. Skoda.

Everyone could have used a session with one of these therapists after that intense drama, after all!

The hour went by way too fast, and it's sad to realize that Amaro and Cragen's appearances were one-time-only events.

Although the story was strong, it could have been even better if Amaro had interacted more with the rest of the SVU crew. He mostly hung out in Benson's office, though he was happy to consult with Carisi on the case.

I'd have loved for him to catch up with Rollins since they used to be lovers, and now she's secretly dating Carisi.

And it might have been fun for Amaro to cross paths with Stabler since that was the guy he was meant to replace, though there was no logical way to put Stabler into this story.

After all, Stabler is supposed to be deep undercover. Besides, he'd be way too protective of Benson if he knew about this Burton guy, and nobody needed that.

Your turn, Law & Order: SVU fanatics!

Hit that big, blue SHOW COMMENTS button and let us know how you enjoyed this trip down memory lane for the series' record-breaking milestone.

Miss the episode? No problem. Just watch Law & Order: SVU online, and then come back to share your thoughts.

Law & Order: SVU's historic 23rd season airs on NBC on Thursdays at 9 PM EST/PST.

Jack Ori is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. His debut young adult novel, Reinventing Hannah, is available on Amazon. Follow him on X.