After an eight month hiatus, The Rookie is set to grace our screens once more, with season 7 premiering Tuesday, January 7 on ABC! It’s been a long wait, but the first episode makes it well worth it right out the gate. To recap the last season’s finale, the LAPD was infiltrated by a dirty rookie psychiatrist, Blair London, who sold officer secrets to Monica Stevens. Blair was arrested, Monica is somewhere running through the hills of Argentina, Nolan got shot in the ass, and the officer tapes are in the possession of the FBI. Meanwhile, Oscar Hutchinson and Jason Wyler (Bailey’s ex-husband) escape prison, leaving the season off with a cliffhanger. Now, the season 7 premiere, “The Shot”, starts just where the finale left off, where Nolan (Nathan Fillion) struggles with his injury and grapples with his age while searching for two fugitives. Then, after a jump, we meet the newest rookies – Miles Penn (played by Deric Augustine) and Seth Ridley (played by Patrick Keleher, making his TV debut!) – who immediately gain a lot of depth and characterization just from their first episode. We get Tim (Eric Winter) and Lucy (Melissa O'Neil) as training officers, making a flirty bet over their fresh trainees. And Celina (Lisseth Chavez) finally gets her short sleeves! (It’s never too late, apparently.) Meanwhile, Wesley (Shawn Ashmore) discovers something he wishes he could unlearn... The stakes are higher than ever in this episode. It does go back to its roots, fulfilling Hawley’s promise of a “re-pilot” (via TV Insider), with some callbacks to the first episode. Audiences will find themselves intrigued by the two new rookies, and excited for the Chenford to come. Bring on the bet! It’s a premiere worth tuning in for!
“The Shot” – THE ROOKIE, Pictured: Lisseth Chavez as Celina Juarez and Nathan Fillion as John Nolan. Photo: Disney/Mike Taing © 2024 All Rights Reserved. 
“The Shot” – THE ROOKIE, Pictured: Lisseth Chavez as Celina Juarez, Patrick Keleher as Seth Ridley, and Deric Augustine as Miles Penn. Photo: Disney/Mike Taing © 2024 All Rights Reserved.
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| “The Shot” – THE ROOKIE, Pictured: Shawn Ashmore as Wesley Evers. Photo: Disney/Mike Taing © 2024 All Rights Reserved. |
Character of the Week: Lucy Chen
Lucy gets the interim TO position and immediately knocks it out of the park. Rookie Seth Ridley might need a lot of work, but Lucy is determined to train him in a way that suits her personal style, rather than copy another TO’s methods – all while still aiming to beat Tim in their bet!
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| “The Shot” – THE ROOKIE, Pictured: Melissa O'Neil as Lucy Chen, Eric Winter as Tim Bradford, and Richard T. Jones as Lt. Wade Grey. Photo: Disney/Mike Taing © 2024 All Rights Reserved. |
Wesley and Angela’s relationship really got pushed to the background in season 6, but they start strong with this premiere!
(Chenford is a close second, I promise! But Wopez truly deserves their flowers.)
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| “The Shot” – THE ROOKIE, Pictured: Alyssa Diaz as Angela Lopez and Shawn Ashmore as Wesley Evers. Photo: Disney/Mike Taing © 2024 All Rights Reserved. |
Dialogue Teases:
“Try to suck less.”
“I'm just saying, I'll cut a bitch.”
“Cut the crusts off his sandwiches.”
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| “The Shot” – THE ROOKIE, Pictured: Eric Winter as Tim Bradford, Melissa O'Neil as Lucy Chen, and Deric Augustine as Miles Penn. Photo: Disney/Mike Taing © 2024 All Rights Reserved. |
Do you have any theories for “The Shot”? What are you most excited about? Who’s saying the teased lines? Comment below all your thoughts about The Rookie!
Be sure to catch The Rookie live on ABC at 10PM on Tuesdays—or catch up on Hulu the next day!
