Critic’s Rating: 4.1 / 5.0
4.1
For Valentine’s Day, The Rookie Season 7 Episode 6 wanted to deliver, and they wasted no time with their developments for many of the coveted characters.
Chenford took a step forward, or, perhaps it’s more sideways, in their relationship, while Wopez is in the clear, and Nyla and James remain a mystery.
However, Nolan and Bailey are in deep shiitake mushrooms right now.
Never Bring a Crowbar to a Gunfight
Nolan and Celina’s quest to track down one man’s daughter was the hour’s primary case. However, interestingly, they managed to wrap it up so quickly.
Often, The Rookie will introduce some potentially compelling cases, and you’d anticipate them to have some longevity or evolve into something that’ll take more than an installment. Somehow, they wrap it up by the hour’s end.
A situation where they had to save Claudia from a trafficker mobster guy felt like a case that could’ve had some teeth. Instead, we got Claudia’s dad taking matters into his own hands and going after the bad guy armed with a crowbar and the feral instincts of a father saving his child.
He took a bullet to the shoulder, but the resulting announcement that Claudia was marrying her girlfriend was a nice cherry on top of the sundae moment.
Even The Rookie Has Relationship Woes
Who would’ve thought Miles would become such an endearing character so quickly? I’d even argue that he became a fan favorite quicker than Thorsen and Celina combined.
At his core, he’s found a real passion in protecting and serving in the LAPD, and it’s fulfilling to him in a way that nothing has managed before. Of course, it’s hard for Miles to embrace that with Camilla in his life.
He lacked enthusiasm when she touched down in LA and claimed she was uprooting herself and relocating to be with him. We couldn’t understand what was behind the apathy.
Miles dealt with two different things at once. For one, he felt guilty about how much Camilla sacrificed to be with him. He couldn’t shake that she stayed by his side despite his pro football career falling through.
The problem is Miles felt indebted to her for that, and the guilt kept him from breaking things off with her when he wasn’t in love with her anymore.
Miles Desires a New Chapter Without Camilla
He’s in a different stage in his life, and they grew apart, but he remained with her out of some obligation that didn’t serve either of them well.
Luna was the perfect person for Miles to speak to; she remains the gift that keeps giving within this series. The Rookie knows how to properly utilize her character as a sounding board for many other characters, but she also feels fully realized and not like a prop.
Through that conversation with Luna, Miles could have a long-awaited one with Camilla, and they reached a point where they could admit their relationship wasn’t serving either of them well.
Camilla doesn’t want to leave Texas or give up her dreams and life for him. She recognized that Miles found his passion, and now she wants the same for herself.
I love a girl who can put herself first. While their breakup sucks and was a bit heartbreaking because of their long history together, it’s what both of them needed and deserved.
We can at least give the kids a high score for communicating properly, which is more than we can say about some of our veterans.
Nyla and James Are in Limbo, And My Spidey Senses are Tingling
The whole situation with Bradford taking down that drunk was badass and hot AF. It’s designed to get us to all that Chenford goodness.
However, it feels like there was something more to that situation when we know the wife is close to James and can lean on him during rough times.
Something is going on with Nyla and James. The tension between the two during The Rookie Season 7 Episode 4 remains unresolved, and there’s been radio silence as Nyla endured some challenging and traumatic moments.
Nyla is quietly going through it, and James hasn’t been around for it, which makes it seem like their marriage is in jeopardy even though they looked like the picture-perfect couple at the gala.
Could James have an affair? It seems plausible now that The Rookie makes a case for it with a couple of scenes. Whatever the case, they’ve left us in suspense regarding the future of this couple, and it’s troubling.
Wesley and Angela Need More to Do
Their counterparts are at least okay. Wesley’s determination to set Graham up with Gretchen was hilarious. He was willing to do anything to keep him from flirting with Angela.
However, the revelation that Angela knew about the crush and took full advantage was even funnier. Angela is an astute woman, of course, she realizes Graham has feelings for her.
Now Angela lost a great and effective work husband because of her real husband’s jealousy. Do you know how hard those are to come by these days?
The running gag was cute and funny, but Wesley and Angela need something more substantial this season. This can’t be the extent of what we get for either of them, can it?
Bailey Pulls the Reversal, and It’s Annoying AF
Yes, this will be another case of one criticizing Bailey, but she makes it so easy to do it, so here we are.
We all know what Bailey endured with Jason, so it warrants sympathy. Also, she had a genuine fear for her life, and you can’t fault a woman for doing whatever it takes to end her personal nightmare.
Domestic abuse is terrifying, and the dangers of it, and how it could get deadly is nothing to take light of or diminish. Perhaps that’s where the disconnect comes from with this story.
For whatever reason, The Rookie’s execution of it has been haphazard, so we’re left with many aspects of this arc having this humorous, unserious angle to it that downplays the severity.
It’s a disconnect between Bailey and the viewers when it comes to the severity of what she’s facing as a domestic abuse survivor. As a result, her actions come across as frustrating, annoying, and senseless.
Right now, it’s hard to focus on the real fear she felt and that she eliminated it because she’s stomping around like a brat and is angry at her police officer husband for his reaction to her working with a hitman to kill her ex.
The Rookie Stumbles Addressing the DV Arc Properly
Nolan is a cop, and he’s been one for as long as Bailey has known him.
He’s reacting to this as any average person in his position would, and she’s infuriated with him for not feeling the same way as her and feeling perturbed that she’s a co-conspirator in the death of two people.
Meanwhile, The Rookie plays this out as if it’s a small quibble between the couple, and somehow, amid all of this, Nolan is in the wrong for not showing his wife grace and understanding her.
What? The ethics of this situation alone should be far more significant than whether or not Bailey wants to sleep in the same house as her husband.
He didn’t forget her birthday; he found out she arranged to have someone murdered.
Bailey flouncing out of their home angry and bitter as if she shouldn’t be in cuffs right now is outrageous. But alas, this is part of The Rookie’s Bailey problem, and hell, even a Nolan one, too.
Chenford Brings Sexy Back
For the Chenford ‘Shippers, the hour delivered everything people love about the pairing.
We had them paired up on a ridiculous case that involved a tiger and Colton Dunn. It’s been a great month for him, Fillion, and Hawley, with The Rookie and The Recruit going strong.
The case brought up little things, like how well Chenford works together, their penchant for placing bets during ridiculous circumstances, and the reminder hanging in the air that you don’t put your drama on someone you love.
It was a line that hit home for this pairing and was pertinent as Bradford’s drama resulted in him and Lucy parting ways. He hurt her deeply, and he’s been trying to make up for it since then, but in the typical way where he hasn’t put himself out there nearly enough.
Of course, that changed on Valentine’s Day, since the high adrenaline of Bradford’s whooping ass had him and Lucy in a hotel room together as she tended to his wounds like some scene from a romance novel.
The Rookie Resetting Chenford Has Merits
Yes, I ate every morsel of it up as cheesy as it was. It also brought us back to their undercover hotel moment when the sexual tension was palpable between them as they were practically flying high on what was brimming between them.
The Rookie delivered on the Chenford lore as they put these two into this moment where they’d fall into bed together in a mini-reunion that wound us up and cooled us down simultaneously.
Their sex scene was hot. Bradford flinging that shirt away from him and going to town on Lucy’s neck is quality content. But we all knew it was going to be a mess.
They don’t know how to be anything but messy.
I’ve firmly been on Team “Make Him Work for It,” and Tim Bradford hasn’t worked for it long or well enough. But he’s chasing after Lucy like a dog in heat, and we’re close to the point of him putting in the big efforts to get things on track.
Chenford’s Crappy Communication Strikes Again, But We’re Making Progress
He’s the one who screwed up, and he needs to rectify things properly. One “sex with an ex” situation isn’t going to place them back on track. It sucks that neither of these idiots used their Big People words to express that they still love one another and want to try again.
However, that’s why they’re not ready for one another yet. Until Chenford can communicate properly, we’ll be in this same boat, or rather ship.
But I don’t mind The Rookie playing with our emotions, as much as they left us screaming at the screen and willing these two to get their crap together.
The Rookie is having a blast resetting and playing around with this pairing, revisiting the same relationship angst and treading similar water to get them back together again.
Their elevator scene was cute and promising. They don’t regret what happened, and they could admit it, and they were flirting with each other.
So far, they think they can’t move forward or do it again, but we know what that means: they will. It’s progress, and I’ll take it.
Over to you, The Rookie Fanatics.
How do you feel about Chenford’s hookup?
Do you think something is going on with Nyla and James?
Hit the comments below!
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