Uncovering Clues: Non-Spoiled Spec Thread!

[WendyCR72]

A forum for any posters that do not wish to be spoiled but want to toss out speculation! (Yeah, they do exist!)

[shapeshifter]

An interesting bit on the origin of the term "boot" (https://www.military.com/undertheradar/2015/03/23-terms-only-us-marines-will-understand ):

Quote

Boot

A pejorative term for a new Marine fresh out of boot camp. The term’s origin apparently comes from Vietnam, as an acronym meaning “beginning of one’s tour.” New Marines joining a unit are usually referred to as “boots” until they go on a deployment or have at least a year or two in the Corps. Especially among post-9/11 era infantry Marines however, you are pretty much a “boot” until you’ve been to combat.

 
 

[Raja]

Just before Chief Parker, the old headquarters was Parker Center took over a Marine General from WWII was the interim Chief of Police. I do wonder if the LAPD Academy being compared to USMC Boot Camp came from that period as Chief Parker did the first clean up of LAPD in the Dragnet era or "boot" predated that time. 

[Mom x 3]

On 5/12/2020 at 12:02 PM, Lunula said:

Pretty disappointed in this finale overall.

To me, Nolan's actions make zero sense when compared to the personality traits the writers have set for him over the course of two seasons. He has a strong sense of what is right, he plays by the rules, he follows the chain of command and given that he's a mature adult in his late 40s, we've also seen that he's pragmatic, empathetic and generally not one to take unnecessary risks to "prove himself" as so many younger officers would. Yeah, there've been outliers - but in general, that's how they've differentiated him from the other rookies/officers.

Then we have this mess - he goes completely rogue and he tells no one where he is and has no back-up, breaks into a detective's house, doesn't stand still (quietly) when Armstrong comes home and continues rooting through his stuff, is stupid enough to be seen fleeing, doesn't record anything when he confronts Armstrong, doesn't have a security system in his own house (despite having a break-in with a shooting in his previous home), starts shooting at Armstrong, then leaves him handcuffed and on the floor to run back to his own house (once again, not calling for back-up or trying to tell one single person what's happening) and proceeds to tear his house apart (missing yet another opportunity to call anyone). At least we have Harper wise to what's going on, but I'm seriously struggling with almost every decision he made this episode being so incongruent to who he is. He doesn't always make the best decisions, but this is kind of off the deep end - even for him.

I have a feeling they'll resolve this pretty quickly next season when we learn that Harper went to the Sergeant and told him everything, but they'll arrest Nolan as a cover while they continue investigating Armstrong to bring him down. 

So, I don't believe for a minute Harper and Nolan would totally risk all of this.  I think after finding out that Armstrong had gotten a new burner that she clued Grey in or maybe even Lopez.  I think  Nolan told Rosalyn he wasn't going to clue Harper in to the break in case Armstrong spoke to Rosalyn.  I also don't think Nolan broke in alone. It made sense for him to do it because Armstrong would think he was smarter than Nolan.  I think if Nolan wasn't wired, then the authorities had already wired Armstrong's house.  I think Nolan dashed back because they are trying to get those crime brothers as well.  I think Grey was already clued in when that cop named Nolan as on the take.  I think once Nolan found the evidence and money, he radioed someone so they could officially arrest Armstrong.  Boom, wrapped up in one episode.  

[crowceilidh]

Gawd, I hope you're right.

 

[ParadoxLost]

On 5/15/2020 at 11:31 AM, Mom x 3 said:

So, I don't believe for a minute Harper and Nolan would totally risk all of this.  I think after finding out that Armstrong had gotten a new burner that she clued Grey in or maybe even Lopez.  I think  Nolan told Rosalyn he wasn't going to clue Harper in to the break in case Armstrong spoke to Rosalyn.  I also don't think Nolan broke in alone. It made sense for him to do it because Armstrong would think he was smarter than Nolan.  I think if Nolan wasn't wired, then the authorities had already wired Armstrong's house.  I think Nolan dashed back because they are trying to get those crime brothers as well.  I think Grey was already clued in when that cop named Nolan as on the take.  I think once Nolan found the evidence and money, he radioed someone so they could officially arrest Armstrong.  Boom, wrapped up in one episode. 

It going down this way doesn't help me reconcile the finale for me. It may be what they do but it doesn't fix the nonsensical parts that still leave it as incredulous for Nolan to keep his job even if he's cleared.  Lopez knowing doesn't help get a warrant.  Its pretty clear that Grey didn't know, or at least Harper thought he didn't, right before the final raid.  It doesn't help explain why Nolan decided to go tear his house apart to find the evidence that Armstrong hid. 

That is the part that bugs the shit out of me because it doesn't really make sense.  It doesn't make sense if anyone from the squad knows and is helping Nolan.  Because why would he leave Armstrong cuffed and go find the evidence planted into his house if this operation is sanctioned to some degree by his superiors.  The action he took destroyed possible evidence that Armstrong might have left behind. To what end?  

If Nolan is on his own, then his grand plan is to make sure when Nolan vs Armstrong start a he said, he said version of events that Nolan wants to make sure both have no evidence against them (since he hasn't gotten anything on Armstrong) and Nolan thought he had some chance of finding the planted evidence, disposing or hiding the planted evidence, and then making his house look like it was still in a construction phase versus decorated before finishing the walls phase. 

I tend to think the only way out of this is for the show to reveal that sometime after visiting the serial killer and before breaking into Armstrong's house the first time that Nolan crossed paths with either IA or Harper's old handler, who already had a case going on Armstrong that its much bigger than just Armstrong.  And everything that Nolan has done is in the service of creating a cover for an under cover investigation that requires him to be under suspicion or "fired" for being crooked.  Its really the only way to reconcile him making the dumbest choice at every decision point without career repercussions that would make the TV show not viable.

So I'm thinking that the first episode(s) of the season are Nolan undercover as a disgraced washout from the LAPD and then he triumphantly returns after they play out the drama of it and wrap the case.

Or they'll just pull out some nonsense and pretend one right fixes a half dozen wrongs and proceed as if nothing ever happened.

[Mom x 3]

23 hours ago, ParadoxLost said:

It going down this way doesn't help me reconcile the finale for me. It may be what they do but it doesn't fix the nonsensical parts that still leave it as incredulous for Nolan to keep his job even if he's cleared.  

I tend to think the only way out of this is for the show to reveal that sometime after visiting the serial killer and before breaking into Armstrong's house the first time that Nolan crossed paths with either IA or Harper's old handler, who already had a case going on Armstrong that its much bigger than just Armstrong.  And everything that Nolan has done is in the service of creating a cover for an under cover investigation that requires him to be under suspicion or "fired" for being crooked.  Its really the only way to reconcile him making the dumbest choice at every decision point without career repercussions that would make the TV show not viable.

So I'm thinking that the first episode(s) of the season are Nolan undercover as a disgraced washout from the LAPD and then he triumphantly returns after they play out the drama of it and wrap the case.

 

I never said my explanation was good, but it did work with most of what we say.  However, I like your IA theory much better.

 

[paigow]

On 5/18/2020 at 2:35 PM, Mom x 3 said:

I never said my explanation was good, but it did work with most of what we say.  However, I like your IA theory much better.

Betting that there is a time jump next season so a detailed explanation need not be provided.