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S07.E15: A Deadly Secret

Snazzy Daisy

By Snazzy Daisy
in The Rookie

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Snazzy Daisy

Snazzy Daisy

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(edited)

It’s the time of the year again when The Rookie wants to forget its procedural nature, imagining itself as a true crime/paranormal documentary instead. UGH.

Three (3) things:

♦️ I seriously hope that Alexi Hawley will stop making this documentary-style episode, EVER.

♦️ The drug-induced revelations about Chenford have cheapened their reconciliation. It almost feels like a mockery.

♦️ Can the Hawleys and Abigail Tierney stop showing up on our screen? Let them be the throwaway characters. Madeleine Coghlan can co-write The Rookie’s episodes, but she doesn’t have to bring back her annoying character, Abigail. Geez. 🙄

Capeesh??! 👌🏻

 

Edited by Snazzy Daisy
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Zaffy

Zaffy

(edited)

I absolutely dislike this kind of episodes. So I do not intent to watch it.
Could a brave person who did watch it let me know if something important happened during this episode? Like...ermm Bailey going to prison for assisting a hitman killing two people? 
Thank you in advance!

p.s. 
does Lucy still wants to work undercover? is there a specific number of public TV appearances required to do so?

Edited by Zaffy
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tv echo

tv echo

(edited)

I'm not sure how I feel about this episode. It's interesting, I guess - maybe. But I think I spent more time clocking the guest stars than the plot twists.

I wish they'd just put Tim and Lucy together and stop this 'will-they, won't they' nonsense. Except for the youngest rookies, almost all of the regular characters are already in relationships (John and Bailey, Wesley and Angela, Nyla and James).

Edited by tv echo
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EtheltoTillie

EtheltoTillie

(edited)

Here's my best attempt at a recap of this dumpster fire.  These are events that I randomly observed while lifting my head up occasionally from a book I was reading:  Abigail was making a movie about this mental hospital where the serial killers were kept.  The bad soda delivery man is currently incarcerated there.  Everyone thinks there may be demons or spirits causing bad outcomes.  Then we find out one guy dumped poison.  He may have been working on chemical weapons for the CIA.  Also the head psychiatrist was apparently committing people to conservatorships and taking their money.  She was arrested at the end.

But also Abigail was talking to a dead body. 

Edited by EtheltoTillie
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milkyaqua

milkyaqua

Agree with the consensus, this was not needed.  One documentary type episode, fine.  But this is like a lazy person's crutch.

Who though Abigail was even that interesting a character to begin with?  Still don't care about Chenford and it's amazing that Tim and Lucy can let so much slip when they supposedly are trying to keep things on the down low.  Speaking of letting too much slip, Angela and Wesley are included.

At some point the serial killer had to pop back up and of course he was the one who paid for the billboards.

Not looking forward to next week but knew it was going to happen sooner or later.

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NJRadioGuy

NJRadioGuy

This episode was just awful. Please stop with this crap. It's fun when Celina briefly goes off on the supernatural tangent but this was just pure stupidity. They've established that Nolan et al are well trained and act appropriately but they all failed miserably in the abandoned looney bin. No, you bring in ESU or whatever LAPD calls it and bring in every bit of lighting threr is, do a full search and seal it off as you go, arrest whoever's there--at gunpoint if necessary. Oh, and get the city to file an emergency order of demolition (despite the protestations of Lou Cypher).

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Raja

Raja

19 minutes ago, NJRadioGuy said:

No, you bring in ESU or whatever LAPD calls it and bring in every bit of lighting threr is, do a full search and seal it off as you go, arrest whoever's there--at gunpoint if necessary. Oh, and get the city to file an emergency order of demolition (despite the protestations of Lou Cypher).

I haven't seen the episode with the NBA playoffs getting priority. "ESU" Emergency Services Unit as in the NYPD, that would be a Metro platoon if not the Metro SWAT platoon itself, only Tim was fired from Metro on the show so that would be embarrassing.  Local divisions do have enforcement teams so patrol officers like Maddie on Bosch: Legacy's last season are not actually the community beat cop chasing calls for police help but a reinforcing unit.

Police as dedicated rescue teams and other NYPD ESU type stuff I've seen on TV are more of Sheriff's thing as the LAPD along with suburban city police departments are too small to cut out officers for that kind of specialist and in the city limits the LAFD normally do that work.

Coming out of the Rodney King Riots and the Hammer tactics with the City Attorney getting home demolitions back in the 80s there are no emergency demolitions coming from the police. LAFD however might get it done.

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NJRadioGuy

NJRadioGuy

4 hours ago, Raja said:

"ESU" Emergency Services Unit as in the NYPD, that would be a Metro platoon if not the Metro SWAT platoon itself

LAFD however might get it done.

If only there were an LAFD firefighter who can do anything she wants out there.

I'm an east-coaster in the NY Metro area so yeah, ESU is the term that came to mind first. Real-world LA and real-world NYC are very different beasts than we see on TV, alas. They'd probably set up comfy beds for the poltergeists knowing modern-day LA.

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Red Bridey

Red Bridey

There were parts where I laughed out loud, especially whenever the ghost hunters came on camera. The crazy camera helmet the shortie was wearing was hysterical. There was so much backstory and ancient history that I did not (care to) remember.

The missing woman resembled, talked and sounded exactly like Bailey. Her vocal tones and inflections were way too similar. Dialogue writers and coaches, mix it up!

Did they start filming the true crime doc before they found (insert missing woman's name here)? Even though she was missing for what, a week? Ten days? Maybe not, because Missing Woman did show up with her own camera crew during the filming. Oh, I don't even care. There was so much ridiculousness going on, it doesn't even matter. 

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EtheltoTillie

EtheltoTillie

1 hour ago, Red Bridey said:

The missing woman resembled, talked and sounded exactly like Bailey. Her vocal tones and inflections were way too similar. Dialogue writers and coaches, mix it up!

 

This!  I couldn't get over it!  Also, I just couldn't remember any of that back story either.  That's why I hate when shows continue story lines but not in every episode. 

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Raja

Raja

14 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

The only reason I remember Nolan's son is because of the stunt casting.

 

34 minutes ago, Red Bridey said:

I barely remember the son. Who was the actor?

Looking up the son I see no apparent ties to Nathan Fillion's career he just seems to have been a child actor who got another role as a young adult. Nolan's little brother played by Pete Davidson on the other hand seems to be a stunt casting

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shapeshifter

shapeshifter

37 minutes ago, Red Bridey said:

Okay, that's what I thought. Not his son. It was his unknown half brother who was stunt casting, the completely unappealing Pete Davidson, . But I don't know why he is considered a stunt casting. YMMV, of course! 

Sorry. I didn't remember Nolan having a son, even though IMDb says he appeared in 10 episodes. 
When I said "stunt casting," I was thinking of Pete Davidson.
But you are correct. The transcript for this episode says "son," not "brother."

I've often fallen asleep during a commercial and figured I'd catch the missed part during a summer rerun. Hah! I'm old.

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Beezella

Beezella

On 4/23/2025 at 7:43 AM, Zaffy said:

I absolutely dislike this kind of episodes. So I do not intent to watch it.
Could a brave person who did watch it let me know if something important happened during this episode? Like...ermm Bailey going to prison for assisting a hitman killing two people? 

The good thing is that Bailey was not in this episode. (unless I missed her somehow.) Maybe she was away in jail.

I could not keep track of everything going on in the episode. Best and only memorable thing was that hilarious helmet.

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bunnyface

bunnyface

I know the world is a big, bad place, but I generally like my Rookie episodes to be a bit lighter.  I don't like the very dark, overarching mega bad guy that will never be stopped and that they have no hope of catching episodes.  Except Oscar.  I like Oscar.  He is light and also overly bad and will never be stopped.  

But this type of episode, doesn't really do it for me either.  I'm too picky, I guess.

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b4pjoe

b4pjoe

I guess this episode is what you get when the writers have writers block. I'm sure AI could have come up with something much better so I asked ChatGTP to write an Episode:

ChatGPT said:

Sure! Here's a full episode outline for The Rookie, structured like a typical 42-minute network drama. It blends action, character development, and police procedural, staying true to the show's tone and format.

THE ROOKIE — Season 7, Episode 9: “Thin Blue Lies”

Written by: [ChatGTP]
Directed by: ChatGTP
Runtime: 42 minutes

TEASER (Cold Open):

EXT. LOS ANGELES – NIGHT

A drone shot glides over the L.A. skyline, then cuts to a quiet suburban street. A loud crash shatters the stillness. We follow an elderly woman peeking out her window.

INT. HOUSE – NIGHT

The camera follows two masked individuals ransacking the home, clearly looking for something. One finds a hidden compartment and retrieves a USB drive. Sirens wail in the distance—they bolt.

Cut to:

JOHN NOLAN and NYLA HARPER in a patrol car responding to the break-in. The suspects vanish into the night, leaving only the broken lock and a terrified homeowner.

TITLE CARD: THE ROOKIE

ACT ONE:

Nolan and Harper investigate the scene. The woman insists nothing valuable was stolen—just an old thumb drive belonging to her late husband, a retired federal agent.

Sergeant Grey briefs the team: the house was under light surveillance due to the husband's past ties to a sealed federal case. Now it’s on the LAPD to cooperate with the feds.

Meanwhile, Lucy Chen is mentoring a young rookie, Officer Riley Tran, who is overeager and too reliant on textbook procedures. Lucy is patient, but it's clear Riley has a lot to learn about nuance.

Tim Bradford, now working in Metro, gets tapped for a multi-agency task force investigating the theft.

ACT TWO:

The stolen drive contains encrypted files linked to a decades-old whistleblower case involving police corruption. Angela Lopez and Wesley are pulled in as legal consultants when it's revealed that several current LAPD officers may be implicated.

Aaron Thorsen and Celina Juarez investigate another break-in with a similar M.O. — this one targeting a retired judge connected to the same case. They find signs that someone is trying to erase the past.

Nolan begins to suspect that this is more than a coincidence — he follows up with an old contact in the FBI (guest star: CCH Pounder) who warns him that they may have a “blue wall” problem—corruption buried deep.

ACT THREE:

Tension rises as internal affairs gets involved. Sergeant Grey is forced to make hard decisions when it’s revealed that one of his former academy classmates, now a respected captain, might be tied to the cover-up.

Lucy Chen and Riley Tran respond to a hostage situation — a third person connected to the case is being threatened. Riley freezes under pressure, but Lucy talks the suspect down, saving lives and teaching Riley a critical lesson about adaptation under pressure.

Meanwhile, Lopez discovers a link between the original case and a still-serving lieutenant in another precinct. The implications could be career-ending.

ACT FOUR:

Nolan and Harper locate the thieves — mercenaries hired to recover (or destroy) all related evidence. After a tense foot chase through an abandoned industrial area, they arrest one of them and recover a second copy of the stolen data.

Bradford’s task force arrests the lieutenant, but not before a confrontation where the lieutenant claims the department will "eat its own" before admitting the truth.

In a heartfelt scene, Nolan talks to Grey about what it means to be part of a flawed system and still believe in it. Grey reminds him: “The system doesn’t change unless people like you stay in it.”

TAG (Epilogue):

Riley Tran thanks Lucy for her mentorship and asks to ride with her again.

Nolan visits the widow and assures her that justice is finally being served — even if it took years.

Grey holds a private meeting with the Chief. They agree to push forward with a quiet but sweeping internal review.

Final shot: Nolan, on patrol at night, looks out at the city — thoughtful, hopeful, and aware that the job is never done.

FADE OUT.

END OF EPISODE

Netfoot

Netfoot

56 minutes ago, Raja said:

Sounds like the A.I. isn't up to date on the latest ranks and assignments of the cast and at least a human editor keeps their job.

ChatGPT's dataset is up to April last year. 

Remember when there was the big strike a while back and they were demanding guarantees that AI would never be used to write scripts? I'd have fired every last one of them on the spot and started using AI exclusively from then.

The AI-generated scripts may not  be very good but mostly the human-written scripts are crap too. The difference is that the AI can only get better. As for human editors keeping their jobs, nobody else is going to be spared. So what makes them so special?

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