In season two’s penultimate episode, there’s a shooting with multiple casualties at the nicest fitness center I’ve ever seen. The unit apprehends one shooter on scene, but the other(s) got away. It’s assumed to be terrorism but after Olinsky and Halstead talk with a witness, it seems the victims (lawyers) were targeted for a reason. The team also finds several connections with Lancaster Chemicals—the lawyers killed represented the company in court and an unsolved murder in Indiana identified the victim as an engineer for the company.
After picking up surveillance video, Roman and Atwater chase down the remaining shooters until the shooters crash into the side of a building. They take hostages, and it’s not long before the unit along with SWAT and many CPD officers are on scene. Meanwhile, Ruzek and Lindsay meet with the partners of the law firm that represented Lancaster Chemicals. They are very uncooperative and it’s clear they are hiding something.
Voight thinks that something isn’t right and decides to go into the building alone and unarmed (but not before having Halstead positioned with the sniper rifle on the roof). When Lindsay identifies one of the shooters, she makes the connection to the other two and connects to Voight’s earpiece. The lead shooter, Owen, lost his eight-year-old daughter the year before because Lancaster Chemicals made her sick. Now, he’s set out on a revenge mission with his brothers to get justice for his daughter.
When Halstead has the shot, he takes out Owen and they bring in the other brother, leaving one shooter left to find. The trail leads to Nicholas, someone Burgess and Lindsay talk with at the fitness center previously. Their search for Nick leads them to the law firm.
It’s Lindsay who finds Nick or rather, Nick who finds Lindsay. He’s not a killer, it’s easy to see the unsteadiness of his hands and the fear in his eyes. Now I don’t know if Lindsay’s confrontation with Nick was brilliant, reckless, or a combination of the two, but it was a tense situation. Over and over again she tells Nick to shoot her instead. I wasn’t too worried for Lindsay, because the writers won’t kill her. Right? No. They won’t. They better not. Anyway, this was definitely the scene of the week. Props to Sophia Bush!
One of my favorite things about Chicago PD is the variety of criminals we see each week. Sometimes, like in the case of the serial killer who killed Nadia, the villain is terrifying, unredeemable, and simply the worst of the worst. And then there are the criminals, like this week, who we can sympathize with. Here’s a guy who lost his little girl because of a bad company. Of course, he’s not going about seeking justice the right way, but you have to feel for any parent who has to bury their child.
Elsewhere…
It’s Burgess’ first day in Intelligence. But before she has a moment to settle in, the guys come barreling down the stairs as they head out for a case. Not only will moving into Intelligence be an adjustment for Burgess, but for Ruzek as well. I still don’t understand why Burgess and Ruzek, of all team members, get the free pass. Sure she was shot, but that was her own fault. While I think these two are great cops and could thrive in Intelligence, I think being in the unit together will ultimately cause serious problems. While I don’t like Voight’s no fraternization rule (because of Erin and Jay, of course), it is completely valid.
I am worried for Erin. She’s obviously still struggling with the loss of Nadia and the only person she’s somewhat letting in is her mother—not the best choice. The people she should be turning to she’s instead pushing away and if she’s not careful, she will spiral out of control soon. After what I thought might be a breakthrough for her (talking Nick down from killing anyone), she instead goes back to see her mom. Bunny continues the bad advice when she re-introduces Erin to a childhood friend, Landon, who looks like all sorts of bad news. They go back to what I assume is Landon’s place and…play scrabble. Off in the distance on a table, we see a pile of pills. Dang it, Erin!
What did you think of the episode? Will Burgess stay in Intelligence permanently? How will it affect her relationship with Ruzek? How long will Erin continue to spiral out of control?
