Chicago PD - Disco Bob - Review

Well, things apparently went well between Jay and Erin. I was worried last week that it was just sex for Erin, but this first scene has me thinking otherwise.

“I need to tell you something,” says Erin.
“You’re married?” Jay jokes.

She’s off to Bolivia, and Jay is clearly disappointed. So of course, they have to...play all the scrabble they can before she leaves. They start heating things up again, but scrabble time is cut short – Intelligence has a case.

Guess who’s on scene? Disco Bob – also known as Papa Ruzek! He’s the responding officer on scene where a mom and daughter are found dead, and it’s discovered that the ten-year-old son is missing. There’s obvious tension between Bob and Voight. We don’t know much about Voight’s past, just that it does involve Bob. Apparently, things didn’t end well between the two.

Now look, I LOVE this show. The characters are fantastic and the chemistry among the group is amazing. But, the cases each week are a bit predictable. They relentlessly question the dad only to find he’s innocent – called it. The sweet, concerned boyfriend is responsible for everything – saw that coming as soon as I saw him. So let’s not waste any more time on the snooze fest that was the case this week…

I don’t know what happened between Ruzek and his dad, but I want to. They don’t seem to be estranged, but they aren’t close either. While Ruzek would love nothing more than to hear about his dad’s past working with Voight, Voight’s not having it. Olinsky, on the other hand, is an open book – he tells Ruzek exactly what went down between Bob and Voight.

Side note, I really want to know why his name is Disco Bob.

Basically, Bob accused Voight of being a dirty cop and wouldn’t relent. Voight calls Bob a dog cop (?), which apparently, is really offensive. The two haven’t been on good terms since. Later, Ruzek tells his dad that he loves being the first through the door – the complete opposite of who his dad is. But, Disco Bob tells Adam that he chose to be the cop he is because of Adam – he wanted to coach his teams, be home for dinner, be present in his life. Well doesn’t that just melt your heart.

I loved this glimpse into the backstory, but I also left the episode a bit disappointed. I wanted more, and I wanted it handled differently. The writers have teased this deep, messy connection between Ruzek’s dad and Voight and Olinsky from the series’ very first episode, and this just fell a bit flat for me.

Atwater was surprisingly not useless this week! I didn’t hate his scenes (it could be argued that I didn’t hate them because they were all with Halstead…but we’ll let that go) – oh, I’ll just give it to him. He was purposeful, present, and not entirely unpleasant. If they can keep this up with him, I won’t mind him being there so much.

Burgess is back on the job and I can’t tell who is more nervous, Burgess or Roman. I’m going to go with Roman. Guys, if I haven’t said it enough (I’m sure I have), I love Roman! He’s been not just a great character addition to the show, but he fits right in with the chemistry of the group. I am so glad Burgess didn’t accept Voight’s Intelligence offer, because I would have missed the partnership between these two. I think Burgess has learned a lot from Roman this season, and it’s making her a bit more likeable.

The Marlboro Man is absent this week and instead, we have the Island’s Jacob – scratch that – Captain Misogynist. I didn’t think it was possible, but I like Captain Misogynist less than the Marlboro Man. Anyway, the Captain takes over the task force as the trip to Bolivia gets complicated.

I have mixed feelings about Erin visiting Intelligence. On the one hand, it’s obviously great to see her with the team. But girl, you just started your new job, BE at your new job. Erin is a strong, independent woman and I think it might be a bit out of character for her to be so clingy.

Last week, I speculated that Erin was only in it with Jay for the sex and that Jay’s feelings were borderline serious – way more than what Erin has. But, based on this episode, I might have been wrong, and I couldn’t be happier about it. Yes, Jay has feelings. The man can’t contain it. But Erin is surprisingly invested in what they have too. Even when she thinks she’s jetting off to Bolivia for six months (I’m sorry, what?! That’s not happening), she wants him to leave the door open.

Back to Captain Misogynist. The trip is happening, but only six agents can go. Erin volunteers to stay back and take care of things in Chicago, but the Captain immediately shoots her down, she’s needed in Bolivia. Now, I know what you are thinking, Erin was thinking it too. He values her! He sees what a great cop she is! He sees what an asset to the team she is! Um, no. Not exactly. She’s needed to babysit the cartel kingpin’s wife – you know, go get their hair and nails done and stuff. Excuse me? In the words of Stephanie Tanner, how rude!

So naturally, I think that Erin is going to quit. But no, it can’t be that soon, right? Surely all of this hype about the task force can’t just be for TWO EPISODES, RIGHT?! Wrong. Dang it.

Erin shows up on Voight’s doorstep, asking for her job back (he of course says yes). Of course I wanted Erin back in Intelligence…eventually. But after two episodes? Let’s be honest, the task force was used only to get Erin and Jay together. I don’t have a problem with Erin and Jay together either, but now I’m hating how it happened. What about the Marlboro Man? I feel like he had a lot of great story to offer!

But, here’s where it gets interesting. How will Erin and Jay handle their situation? Will they continue to see each other? If their conversations from this episode are any indication, I’d say, definitely. Which means of course, they are breaking Voight’s rule (that isn’t really a rule because he was willing to break it for two less experienced cops – but I’m not bitter). So the big question becomes, do they tell Voight?



What did you think of tonight’s episode? Were you disappointed with Ruzek’s backstory? How will Erin and Jay move forward?

Chicago PD is on hiatus next week. Tune in Tuesday, February 3 for the first hour of the Chicago Fire crossover event with Chicago PD that will continue on Wednesday, February 4.

About the Author - Meghan Reynolds

A Colorado native, Meghan was born a raised a Denver Broncos fan. Aside from football, she loves storytelling, whether it be movies, television, books, or music. Some of her favorite shows of the past and present include LOST, Friends, The Office, Scandal, Chicago PD, and Chicago Fire. She is excited to be reviewing two of those shows for SpoilerTV, Chicago PD and Chicago Fire.