On the heels of a season 6 renewal, The Rookie returned tonight with a jam-packed hour of hilarity paired with just the right amount of drama. This episode brought back a couple of familiar faces and with just two episodes remaining, set the stage for what will likely be an intense and action-packed finale.
Lucy and Tim are hopelessly in love, and the little moments shared between them during an adorable breakfast at Lucy’s place, could not have been cuter. Tim’s flirtatious banter about joining Lucy in the shower, undoubtedly made the collective hearts of Chenford fans skip a beat and I am sure I am not alone in wishing we could have seen that shower scene instead of just hearing about it…but I digress. As much as everyone may wish to continue basking in the glow of their new love (see what I did there?, the reality is that happy couples do not make for good television and let’s face it, real-life love is not without its share of hurdles. Lucy’s undercover career has been like a rain cloud brewing over the couple for several episodes now, foreshadowing that the two would need to face this issue sooner rather than later. The return of Tim’s ex-wife, Isabel, a former undercover narcotics cop who became addicted to the same drugs she tried to get off the streets, served to bring the issue of Lucy’s undercover work to the forefront for the couple. Isabel’s return was brought on by the need to help a young girl, Dara, from a crime family that Isabel took under her wing while doing undercover work. Dara had gone missing and became a target due to her father’s impending release from prison.
Isabel’s return was sure to bring up old feelings for her and Tim, especially since this is the first time they have seen each other since their divorce. Isabel recalled her time on long term UC assignments, reminding Tim of how difficult it was for him to be at home waiting for her, worried about her well-being. No matter how hard he insisted that things with Lucy will be different, the facts are that UC work is tough and incredibly stressful on relationships. Isabel’s very honest words of wisdom for Lucy about the pressures that being a UC placed on her entire life, definitely raised doubts for Lucy. A conversation between Tim and Lucy about this issue absolutely needed to happen, and Isabel’s return provided the perfect opportunity for it. Unfortunately, a deep conversation did not occur. Instead, when Lucy confided in Tim that she was worried that he wouldn’t be able to handle her undercover work, he reassured her that he would be just fine. His worried face as he held Lucy in his arms, told viewers otherwise. This would have been a great opportunity for Tim to share his real feelings with Lucy, instead of telling her what she wanted to hear. The best part of Isabel’s return was how it solidified that Tim has moved on and is all in with Lucy. He was literally faced with both his past and his future in the same room and although memories of the past crept in, he remained focused on his relationship and his future with Lucy. Next episode, Lucy goes undercover and I hope that it will lead to the two having a very real conversation about not only Lucy’s UC career, but where their relationship is headed. It is clear that the two are hopelessly in love with one another, it is time for them to have the necessary, difficult conversations. Hopefully Lucy heading undercover in the next episode, will be the catalyst for this to happen.
Tonight’s episode also brought the return of the hilarious “Skip Tracer Randy,” played by the talented German actor, Flula Borg. When Randy finds himself in an interesting predicament, he reaches out to Nyla for advice and while doing so, he stumbles upon a dead body and falls in a pool of the dead man's blood, just as police bust into the home. This sets up an entertaining storyline filled with non-stop shenanigans, which was to be expected with a character like Randy in the mix.
Viewers will remember Randy as the spirited and energetic Skip Tracer that Nyla and Nolan hired in season 4, to dig up dirt on their partner’s exes. Not much has changed with Randy since we last saw him. He was still the same happy-go-lucky Randy whose awkward social skills continued to land him in precarious situations. In order to assist Randy, Nyla made a deal with the detective assigned to the case. She agreed to take a difficult investigation off his hands if he let her take over this one. The problem is, this is Randy we are talking about and things are never easy when he is involved. Queue Randy stumbling upon yet another dead body and getting locked in the trunk of a suspect's car.
What appears at first to be a complicated whodunnit case, actually turns out to be incredibly simple. A friend that Randy played pickle ball with had been sending him text messages threatening to kill him, but Randy’s naivety had him interpreting the messages as harmless fun. Having Randy back brought out Nyla’s sarcastic, fun side that viewers love and it was nice to see her in a lighthearted storyline. Hopefully this won’t be the last time we see Randy on the show. He is always good for a laugh, especially after a few intense episodes. This is a dramedy, after all.
The hilarity continued with a fun storyline involving Angela and Aaron. Everyone knows that Angela is not someone to be messed with, add in being pregnant and you definitely don’t want to get on her bad side. Although she is close to her due date and utterly miserable, she is determined to continue working. Not wanting to poke the bear, Grey doesn’t push the issue when Angela tells him she is not ready to start her maternity leave, so he assigns Aaron to be at her beck and call. Despite Aaron’s help, things prove tough for Angela when even the simplest tasks like picking up a pen and climbing the station staircase are a lot for her to manage. Leave it to Angela to use her pregnancy to get a confession out of a perp, constantly interrupting her own questions to run to the bathroom to pee, and pretending to fall asleep at the interrogation table. Angela may not have been ready to call it, but Grey made the decision for her, ordering her to start her maternity leave immediately. Seeing Alyssa Diaz in a comedic light was refreshing and truly highlighted how multi-faceted she is. It’s about time Angela got a break from all the stress and drama in her life. She certainly deserves it.
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The writing was on point tonight and made for an entertaining hour of television. The only criticism is why show runner/writer Alexi Hawley felt the need to include an absolutely pointless storyline involving Bailey and her friend, that served no purpose other than to make her character relevant. It would have made more sense to have her planning her wedding to Nolan, since they’ve been engaged for what feels like an eternity already. Hopefully season 6 will feature a lot less of Bailey and a lot more of the characters fans actually care about and want to see.
With only two episodes remaining in the season, it will be interesting to see where things end. At least fans can relax a little with a season 6 renewal in the bag. Over to you, Rookie fans! What was your favourite storyline tonight? Any predictions for the final two episodes? Share your thoughts below and follow me on Twitter @MiddleofCanada.
