Brooklyn Nine-Nine proves once again that not only is it one of the funniest comedies on TV right now, it's also one of the smartest, most well-made shows, period. Tonight's amazing first episode of three proved it in spades. It was a well needed breath of fresh air for the show to take place in a new setting, and to only focus on two of the main characters is a risky move but it certainly paid off for this outing. This decision made this whole ordeal feel like a really isolated situation and watching them try to work out these new lives to take on was very funny to watch. This episode had quips, references, and a lot of angst. Let's get to the specifics.
Anyway, this Florida reassignment has brought us two new identities for Jake and Holt. Greg and Larry: the former works at an arcade, and the latter sells ATVs. They use any excuse they can to get away from real people and talk to each other about how they're really feeling about this. Jake's depressed, sitting in his hot tub eating a burrito that he held underwater for quite some time. Holt's a pro at his appearance, so you'd never be able to tell that he's depressed to. But he is, this is proved in later scenes when the two of them clash and act out. It was really fun to see their attitudes and outlooks about this align. We normally see Jake as the immature one, whining about something or complaining and refusing to change his mind. But we also had Holt do this quite a bit, lashing out at Jake for half-assing many things, and yelling at him and forcing him to get rid of the files he was secretly keeping on the Figgis case. Wit Sec will do that to ya, I guess. Also, Holt tried to get the Assistant Manager position at his job, and when that didn't work and after he got angry at Jake, Jake swooped in and took it. That made me laugh. Jake went on to say a bunch of mean stuff about Holt, and Holt was sitting there, helpless, trying to deflect the insults. And a running gag from the episode was that Holt's a stoner. That was insanely funny, keep that up.
As I mentioned before, the angst and resentment was slowly building up between the two of them. That was something this episode truly excelled at. Holt was ticked off when Jake told him he was right (of course). Jake was trying to investigate Figgis (and keep a picture of Amy on the wall to motivate him), and it lit a fire under Holt. It's not like he didn't want to investigate him too. He has it even worse; he hasn't seen Kevin in several months! Holt reaffirmed this when Jake asked, "Don't you want to see Kevin?", and Holt's passionate reply of, "Of course I do!". Jake was being a bit selfish, of course I can understand where he's coming from, but imagine you were in Holt's shoes. It made for some great acting from the both of them. My scene of the week, for sure. Which brings me to the ending. Holt's in a corn dog costume, they're at a race track trying to talk more about this, they're both acting like upset toddlers, a car makes the both of them run over. A lady nearby was filming them on her camera phone which she took with her camera phone. Jake "half-assed" a plan to get the phone back, but it doesn't work. Or does it? Holt was blinded by his anger and didn't realize that Jake switched the phones in the meantime. But then they find their way back together and come to the idea of releasing the video online themselves. It's an ingenious idea which works perfectly in the logic of the show. But it's also really risky and dangerous. I know these characters won't die, but who knows what could happen by luring Figgis out there. Nonetheless, I am really looking forward to the remaining two parts, as well as the rest of the season! I cannot wait to review the rest of this wonderful show!
What did YOU think of "Coral Palms Pt.1"? Are you excited to see how this viral video pans out? Or are you just waiting for all this Florida shenanigans to be over? And is anyone else really curious about Holt's tattoo? Leave a comment below!
