S01.E03: The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly

[WendyCR72]

After Nolan and Talia lose control of a crime scene, they begin to debate whether people are fundamentally good or bad and what that means for a police officer. Meanwhile, Lucy is concerned Tim is enabling his wife’s destructive behavior and not taking care of himself.

[Moose135]

I wonder what the filming schedule is for these things - 9-1-1 had a call earlier this season where an ATM repair guy got caught inside the machine housing and needed to be rescued.  Coincidence or not?

[WendyCR72]

Alas, this show seems to be something I casually watch while I do other things. It's not grabbing me and I don't know why. Sad to say, I still don't know the names of any of the characters minus Nathan Fillion's (John Nolan). Oh, well. Casual shows have their plqace, too.

And I kind of figured this wouldn't be on next week as it will be voting night.

[stonehaven]

I'll give it this..It holds my attention better than NCIS at this point..but 911 still is my favorite of the procedurals right now.

[JasmineFlower]

35 minutes ago, Moose135 said:

I wonder what the filming schedule is for these things - 9-1-1 had a call earlier this season where an ATM repair guy got caught inside the machine housing and needed to be rescued.  Coincidence or not?

They've been shooting since at least early August. It's just a coincidence.

[TWP]

Other than the home scenes and the WTWT, Castle was pretty tedious too a good share of the time, definitely something that doesn't require constant watching. So maybe expectations are too high?  I don't know.

I'm rooting for Lucy and her cute but messed up training officer.  I'll watch to root for them!

[Moose135]

7 minutes ago, JasmineFlower said:

They've been shooting since at least early August. It's just a coincidence.

I figured as much, just seemed strange.  When they first rolled up on the call, I thought "Didn't they already do this?" then I remembered it was the firemen doing it the first time.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

So was the Medevac helicopter just flying itself? Hope it doesn't crash outside the ER.

[BlakesMomma]

I find the hour flies by holding my interest the whole time. All 3 episodes so far. 

Apparently the ATM thing is not uncommon. Someone tweeted an article during the episode of the same thing happening in NYC very recently. 

I think Bishop has a kid and the baby daddy is in prison. 

Edited October 31, 2018 by BlakesMomma

[voiceover]

Hmph.  I was in & out of it tonight (stop rerunning my Chiefs games during my series, fer crissakes), but I liked a lot of what I saw.  I don't need to watch an Italian opera every time.  

It was enough to get the shock of Tim's wife-as-ex-cop.  I continue to enjoy Nolan & Talia*, because the actors have a nice easy chem.  I just hope that if the series goes...there, they wait as long as M*A*S*H did with Hawkeye & Margaret.  Though I'd rather see Nolan and the Chief together, if it comes to Unlikelies.  Because Talia knows better; plus, a good friendship does better service to the characters ("Do you want to get tazed?"...bwah!)

* 

Spoiler

I'm crabby about the previews showing they're splitting up the rookies & TOs.  Fuck "believable"!  The teams haven't been together long enough.

[shapeshifter]

I appreciated the unlikely, feel-good plot resolutions. Real life is tough enough.
If that's how they're going to write it, I'll keep watching.
But they also kept dwelling on the 1-in-3-rookies-don't-make-it axiom, and we saw the young black male rookie flinching at gun fire and (I think?) his hand shaking when he pulled out his gun. He seems destined to be a red shirt—which I think racially would be terrible optics—but I live near Chicago, so I'm probably overdoing the doom—maybe he'll just get a Plan B. Or maybe something will happen with Nolan's gf so she'll be the 1 in 3.

Edited October 31, 2018 by shapeshifter

[TWP]

How many times have I seen a cop show that was also dessert with dinner?  I can't think of another time.  "Unlikely, feel-good plot resolutions".  It's just like Castle, in that respect as well.   They're still packing too much into each episode. How many of these goofy mini stories do they have up their sleeves?  They've got to run out pretty quickly and then?

Content-wise, I want to know, if they caught the crook on the roof, who was in the helicopter? A patient, or....

Nolan seems to me to be quickly moving from naïve buffoon to the only one who really has it together.  

I'm excited for the TO switcheroo and will also be thrilled if Nolan and Lucy are no more.

[Raja]

On 10/27/2018 at 5:54 PM, WendyCR72 said:

After Nolan and Talia lose control of a crime scene, they begin to debate whether people are fundamentally good or bad and what that means for a police officer. Meanwhile, Lucy is concerned Tim is enabling his wife’s destructive behavior and not taking care of himself.

Funny how the promo department works, It is quasi military with usage of ranks Officer Nolan Officer Bishop Sergeant Grey or "boot" and in a situation where only the "John and Lucy" couple cuddling  with Jackson as chaperone would you hear first names used. But we get Nolan and "I'm not your partner boot" Talia.

[preeya]

My Plan-B is to give this one more week. If no big improvement, I'm out.

[Raja]

12 hours ago, TWP said:

How many times have I seen a cop show that was also dessert with dinner?  I can't think of another time.  "Unlikely, feel-good plot resolutions".  It's just like Castle, in that respect as well.   They're still packing too much into each episode. How many of these goofy mini stories do they have up their sleeves?  They've got to run out pretty quickly and then?

Content-wise, I want to know, if they caught the crook on the roof, who was in the helicopter? A patient, or....

Nolan seems to me to be quickly moving from naïve buffoon to the only one who really has it together.  

I'm excited for the TO switcheroo and will also be thrilled if Nolan and Lucy are no more.

What I am getting from Nolan is no way is the plebe year BS affecting him in any way and he is just rolling with the Drill Sergeant fear tactics. Being on probation and knowing he is the target trying to take the hit for his not partner, I guess the blue wall doesn't have the I will not tolerate a lie honor code like the service academies.

 

This format of random stuff patrol cops hit has a long history and hundreds if not thousands of episodes in the can already. Then we have Cops and the clone police ride along shows, and headlines to rip from I doubt if they run out of ideal content. Having the same ATM story as 9-1-1 must have been like if you have enough monkeys on a keyboard you eventually get a message type out.

[madmaverick]

Still keeping my attention, and that's a win in my book for a procedural show.  I like the fast pace and the call-to-call nature of the show, as it maybe keeps me from being bored.  And I do feel we are learning tidbits about the various characters in their scenes so it's not full on procedural mode all the time, which I would find tedious.

Nolan & Bishop's conversations feel more substantial than many of the other ones, and I liked the discussion about their competing philosophies, and their growing relationship with Nolan having his not a partner's back, and Bishop taking a leaf from Nolan's book by bailing out the guy.  I think she was probably fostered herself and separated from her parents.

Like that Chen's speaking up to Bradford as he did put her at risk.  His test of stealing her belt was also interesting to me, as I hadn't thought about that aspect of police work.  Bradford's wife being a cop was surprising but also not; I'm not sure how invested I am though in his wife being a junkie storyline.

West and Lopez's pairing is probably the least interesting to me thus far, but the Plan B storyline was valid.  It will be interesting to see how West presumably gets over his fear of gunfire, for he must.  I'd like to know how he and Nolan became such good friends in the first place, given their different ages and backgrounds, but show is probably not going to delve into that. 

I like that all the rookies are friends, instead of making them enemies or competitors, though I'm quite sure the friendships will be tested in the season finale or something like that. ;)

Wardrobe is fine for the show, but yet another example here of the female Captain in such a low cut top.  Yes, covered by a blazer, but I'm still not sure a police captain would dress like that at work.

Another shallow note: liking Nathan's haircut and just thankful they are not ageing him with wardrobe on this show.

As for the female suspect on the rooftop, I like to believe in the better angels of our nature, but she just as easily would have shot him in the real world. 

[threebluestars]

I was also surprised/not surprised she was a cop - I'm actually more interested in how the downward slide happened than her current life.

This show reminds me of Third Watch in a lot of ways. My favourite thing about that show was Yokas/Bosco and their relationship. It was never about sexual tension, and played more brother/sister, but there was honestly so much between them that they shared more than most couples. And I really appreciated seeing a male/female friendship on TV that never crossed the line. I'd like to see that with Nolan and his not-partner.

[tpel]

I like Bishop a lot. She and Nolan are moving from a T.O./Boot dynamic toward a genuine partnership a little quickly, perhaps, but their interactions feel natural, with a good companionable vibe. She's his superior, but she doesn't lord it over him more than is necessary, and they both listen to each other. I like the emphasis on Nolan's positive view of humanity, as that is something that could carry the series a bit, once he is no longer a rookie. Also, Nolan's more chill attitude toward having a plan B makes sense. He's not a kid. He knows stuff happens in life and you roll with it. That doesn't mean you are any less committed to the job at hand. "If this doesn't work out, I'll try Beauty School" :-)

I find the scenes with Bradford to be the most gripping, yet also frustrating. This story arc would be so much more meaningful if it happened later in the season, when we know more of what his baseline is. In the first couple of episodes, he was shown to be a bit of a wild card, so it is hard to see what is truly out of character, due to stress. I liked that Chen was able to deal with him somewhat, but there seemed to be a bit of a failure of problem solving between her and Nolan. They acted like her options were narc on Bradford to his superiors, do nothing, or deal with it herself. But we, and presumably they, know that Bradford has friends among his peers. Bishop stepped outside the strict chain of command when she warned Chen about the potential consequences of her relationship with Nolan. Chen could have returned the favor by giving Bishop a heads up that her friend Tim was struggling.

[shapeshifter]

2 hours ago, madmaverick said:

His test of stealing her belt was also interesting to me,

Yes, that was one "test" of his that seemed truly worth the anxiety it may have caused.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

40 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

Yes, that was one "test" of his that seemed truly worth the anxiety it may have caused.

Except she never got to pee. I was worried about that for the rest of her shift. When he told her to stay put while trying to see his wife at the hospital,  I was hoping she'd run to the bathroom there.

[shapeshifter]

5 minutes ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

Except she never got to pee.

Maybe a little bit before he grabbed her gun and belt?

[TWP]

3 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

Maybe a little bit before he grabbed her gun and belt?

Why doesn't she hold it on her lap.  Silly.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

3 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Maybe a little bit before he grabbed her gun and belt?

Well she certainly didn't get to wipe or wash, so now I'm concerned with that!

2 hours ago, TWP said:

Why doesn't she hold it on her lap.  Silly.

I don't even hang my purse on the back of a bathroom stall for that very reason.

Edited November 1, 2018 by ItCouldBeWorse

[Raja]

36 minutes ago, TWP said:

Why doesn't she hold it on her lap.  Silly.

Lesson learned, only if were Nolan it would be issue 1 at the next roll call 

[TimetoShine]

21 hours ago, Moose135 said:

I wonder what the filming schedule is for these things - 9-1-1 had a call earlier this season where an ATM repair guy got caught inside the machine housing and needed to be rescued.  Coincidence or not?

I just got to this scene and wanted to post about but this. Why are so many shows this season using the same stories?

 

 

I want to add that I love that the rookies are all friends. Much better than one of them trying to stab the others I knew their backs. 

Edited November 1, 2018 by TimetoShine

[TWP]

1 hour ago, Raja said:

Lesson learned, only if were Nolan it would be issue 1 at the next roll call 

I was falsely accusing her, because I was thinking it happened twice, but I'm actually thinking of a very similar incident that happened on a recent Bull episode.   I wonder if it's something that commonly happens to rookies and the two shows are using the same advisor?

[Soobs]

I watched all three episodes laying in bed because I didn't feel well and I wanted something entertaining but not too entertaining. This show was perfect. Also, I live in Los Angeles and it's always fun seeing all the landmarks. I'll stick around and see how it hits me when I'm feeling better. It's an old trope but I like Nolan's sunny attitude being tested by surly and jaded superiors. I find it interesting that Bishop told Lopez to watch out regarding mixing work and relationships but said nothing to Nolan. I'll bet she's the rookie that doesn't make it.

[jaimesommers]

This is probably obvious to everyone except me, but does West know that Nolan and Lucy are a couple? They weren’t overly affectionate when the 3 of them were sitting together on the beach, but when West got up to start running and Nolan and Lucy got a little lovey-dovey, I couldn’t help thinking that West could easily circle back and see them before they saw him first. Do we know if West knows anything about them?

[shapeshifter]

2 hours ago, TimetoShine said:

I just got to this scene and wanted to post about but this. Why are so many shows this season using the same stories?

 

1 hour ago, TWP said:

I was falsely accusing her, because I was thinking it happened twice, but I'm actually thinking of a very similar incident that happened on a recent Bull episode.   I wonder if it's something that commonly happens to rookies and the two shows are using the same advisor?

I've seen this phenomenon before. I like to imagine corporate spies, but most likely the story creators are just following the same news and memes, and combing through the same old classic plots.

 

 

48 minutes ago, jaimesommers said:

This is probably obvious to everyone except me, but does West know that Nolan and Lucy are a couple? They weren’t overly affectionate when the 3 of them were sitting together on the beach, but when West got up to start running and Nolan and Lucy got a little lovey-dovey, I couldn’t help thinking that West could easily circle back and see them before they saw him first. Do we know if West knows anything about them?

I couldn't tell if West didn't know about them being a couple or if he was pretending not to know—but I'm more inclined toward the former with the (somewhat clumsy) directing trying to make it amusing that he doesn't know.

[TWP]

7 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

 

I've seen this phenomenon before. I like to imagine corporate spies, but most likely the story creators are just following the same news and memes, and combing through the same old classic plots.

 

The time proximity in usage of these concepts is suspect.  But I don't think it's espionage, maybe more it's members of various writer's rooms having drinks together or something and being a little too loose about story lines?  I don't know.  You'd think they'd be under NDA.

Edited November 1, 2018 by TWP

[AnimeMania]

On 10/31/2018 at 2:25 AM, TWP said:

Content-wise, I want to know, if they caught the crook on the roof, who was in the helicopter? A patient, or....

I think the crook told the pilot of the helicopter to take off so that the police would chase it. The crook then hides in the hospital until the police leave and escapes.

[retrograde]

I find this show a bit tonally weird -- it's supposed to be a dramedy, but only Nathan Fillion gets to do the comedy part. It's like he's on Castle and everyone else around him is on Law and Order. 

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, retrograde said:

I find this show a bit tonally weird -- it's supposed to be a dramedy, but only Nathan Fillion gets to do the comedy part. It's like he's on Castle and everyone else around him is on Law and Order. 

Yes, and even though the Law and Orders had comic relief in Fin and Munch and Lennie Briscoe, none of them were the leads. 

[ketose]

2 hours ago, retrograde said:

I find this show a bit tonally weird -- it's supposed to be a dramedy, but only Nathan Fillion gets to do the comedy part. It's like he's on Castle and everyone else around him is on Law and Order. 

I'm more annoyed with the patented Nolan speech every episode where he seems to subdue a suspect by boring them to death.

[BooBear]

On 10/30/2018 at 11:40 PM, TWP said:

I'm rooting for Lucy and her cute but messed up training officer.  I'll watch to root for them!

They seem like the only interesting aspect but it kind of bothers me that this guy can be so messed up and the force doesn't seem to know anything about it.  I enjoyed the ex-wife junky not living in a messed up drug house and being cliche'. I also thought Bradford being back so soon was unbelievable and sort of a waste of the plot about any officer getting shot. 

[mxc90]

16 hours ago, madmaverick said:

His test of stealing her belt was also interesting to me, as I hadn't thought about that aspect of police work. 

The writers were inconsistent with Bradford's abilities, he has x ray vision to know where the belt was located, super speed and is in great shape (showed no signs of being winded standing next to the squad car) but earlier we saw him struggle with the halligan at the bank (looked tired and weak). How was he cleared to return to work if his wound isn't healed?

I thought Chen should have caught a glimpse of him when she ran out of the restroom. She should have trained instead of walking on the beach.

Was Nolan wrong for telling the woman she was fired before her boss told her? Of course, she damaged a car in front of the police. Was she ever arrested?

Mercedes Mason must have laughed inside when she had to deliver a line about zombies.

Did the SWAT team give up and go home after letting the two suspects escape? Left it to the back up team to catch them.

Edited November 1, 2018 by mxc90

[Raja]

The SWAT team must have been embarrassed and continued to fire at the "missing gunman" 

[chaifan]

8 hours ago, ketose said:

I'm more annoyed with the patented Nolan speech every episode where he seems to subdue a suspect by boring them to death.

Actually, I was hoping that when his partner finally arrived she would have said something along the lines of him trying to find the good in the suspect, and he would have said "nope, I was just stalling knowing that you'd find us over here eventually".   That would have been a good time to have him acknowledge, in a meta sort of way, his speechifying ways.

[break21]

It is getting a little redundant?   The cop who keeps freezing, the cop with the druggie wife.

It's not a bad show - it entertains me, but it's missing something.  I don't feel anything for any of them. 

Who-ever is in charge of the action is doing a great job, but I don't really feel connected to any of them (including Nolan).

[MilosMama]

How does he afford that house on a Police Rookie salary and he says his former business went under, and he had to file bankruptcy? 

[Loandbehold]

5 minutes ago, MilosMama said:

How does he afford that house on a Police Rookie salary and he says his former business went under, and he had to file bankruptcy? 

A friend of his from college (I think) owns the place and is letting Nolan stay there rent free.

[TWP]

8 minutes ago, Loandbehold said:

A friend of his from college (I think) owns the place and is letting Nolan stay there rent free.

Or so he says.  Some of us think he's secretly rich.

Edited November 2, 2018 by TWP

[femmefan1946]

Content-wise, I want to know, if they caught the crook on the roof, who was in the helicopter? A patient, or....

I thought the crook was smart enough not to try to steal the helicopter, or kidnap the pilot to fly her out of there. Helicopters are noisy and slow and there aren't too many around, especially  at night. So it would be like trying to escape in a tank. Instead she hid on the roof while the evac team went about their business, most likely a pickup since there would be a lot of people around on a drop off, and just as she said, hoped that the cops would follow the copter while she grabs a clipboard and white coat,  loses the identifying jacket, and calmly walks out of the hospital.
Nobody bothers you if you are carrying a clipboard ;>)

Nolan and Talia get on so well because they are both grownups. Chen and West as still wet behind the ears with a lot of theory and not much life experience.

[break21]

I watched it again, it's an odd show.  It moves but I just don't feel anything for any of the characters.  They wrote Nolan too close to Castle.  They would have been better getting him slowly involved with an older woman instead of jumping into a relationship ( although, maybe they have an end-game).  It just seems off.  I honestly can't remember any of the character's names beside Nolan.  And if the cop with the druggie wife calls his partner "Boot" one more time, I will throw something at the screen.

[Raja]

27 minutes ago, break21 said:

I watched it again, it's an odd show.  It moves but I just don't feel anything for any of the characters.  They wrote Nolan too close to Castle.  They would have been better getting him slowly involved with an older woman instead of jumping into a relationship ( although, maybe they have an end-game).  It just seems off.  I honestly can't remember any of the character's names beside Nolan.  And if the cop with the druggie wife calls his partner "Boot" one more time, I will throw something at the screen.

You had better make safe your room because you will get "boot" until the season finale when probation is over, almost guaranteed.

[Waterston Fan]

I have to admit, this show is okay but will still give it a few more chances. I'm sure Bradley will call his partner 'Boot' for sure and I don't get that either. 

I am amazed that Bradford hasn't had any therapy or anything from his injuries but I liked that Chen found her spine a bit. 

I bet West will freeze when there is a shoot out. 

I thought it was hard to buy narcan and only doctors can prescribe them? 

[Raja]

17 minutes ago, Waterston Fan said:

I have to admit, this show is okay but will still give it a few more chances. I'm sure Bradley will call his partner 'Boot' for sure and I don't get that either. 

 

They are on probation for a year. Look at it like a service academy movie where the upper class-men don't recognize the freshmen by their first name until the year is over or a basic training movie where you are a recruit but never called a Marine until you completed training. When they are accepted into the LAPD with all those civil service protections it will be like an informal graduation, they will no longer be a "boot" and they will get to wear a short sleeved uniform to beat the heat.

 

And should the training officers prove popular enough just like Gunnery Sergeant Carter  of Gomer Pyle USMC stopped being a basic training Drill Instructor when Gomer Pyle finished boot camp after Gomer Pyle USMC's first season and found himself in the fleet with Pyle in his regular platoon for the rest of the series.  The "I'm not you partner boot" training officers will become the partners with The Rookies just like Malloy did with Reed in Adam-12's second season.,after Reed's probation without the "boot" terminology where he was even in SWAT in Adam-12's first season. So I guess this crew on that agency culture level is proving more realistic than a Jack Webb production or the "boot" terminology has been picked up after the Vietnam War era.

Edited November 2, 2018 by Raja

[Accidental Martyr]

On 10/31/2018 at 1:59 PM, madmaverick said:

 

Like that Chen's speaking up to Bradford as he did put her at risk.  His test of stealing her belt was also interesting to me, as I hadn't thought about that aspect of police work.  

I guess he was lucky there weren’t any other women in the bathroom.

[femmefan1946]

I thought it was hard to buy narcan and only doctors can prescribe them? 

He didn't buy it. The police force stock it because they are often first responders at an overdose scene. Along with paramedics and fire officers.
We have a huge problem here in BC with fentanyl in street drugs.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/record-overdose-calls-paramedics-bc-1.4766517

Many of the deaths are 'recreational' users or people who became addicted to overly generous pain medication prescriptions. "Respectable" people in other words. ( I believe this is how Roseanne Conner was said to have died. I haven't seen that episode yet.) Street people might even be luckier because they are not using privately, alone and at home. So they are found, resusitated and live.

"Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General (BC)

September 27, 2018

Highlights of Study

81% of people were male (707/872).

Sixty-five percent of people had never been married (566/872).

The majority of people lived and overdosed in private residences (72%or 674/872 and 63% or 549/872, respectively). In Vancouver Coastal, the percentage of people living in private residences was 54%(143/267).  In other health authorities, this percentage ranged from 74-82%. Thirteen percent of people in the study cohort were living in social/supportive/single room occupancy (SRO) housing, and 9% were homeless."

 

Keep in mind these are the people who died, not who overdosed and were brought back.

The quartermaster (?) said something about was he expecting a busy day. As I understand it, naloxone is supplied to all first responders without much oversight, just because it is needed so often.

The wife is using at home. If her boyfriend is not around, she is very likely to die there.

[ketose]

2 hours ago, Raja said:

They are on probation for a year. Look at it like a service academy movie where the upper class-men don't recognize the freshmen by their first name until the year is over or a basic training movie where you are a recruit but never called a Marine until you completed training. When they are accepted into the LAPD with all those civil service protections it will be like an informal graduation, they will no longer be a "boot" and they will get to wear a short sleeved uniform to beat the heat.

 

And should the training officers prove popular enough just like Gunnery Sergeant Carter  of Gomer Pyle USMC stopped being a basic training Drill Instructor when Gomer Pyle finished boot camp after Gomer Pyle USMC's first season and found himself in the fleet with Pyle in his regular platoon for the rest of the series.  The "I'm not you partner boot" training officers will become the partners with The Rookies just like Malloy did with Reed in Adam-12's second season.,after Reed's probation without the "boot" terminology where he was even in SWAT in Adam-12's first season. So I guess this crew on that agency culture level is proving more realistic than a Jack Webb production or the "boot" terminology has been picked up after the Vietnam War era.

Maybe, but I don't hold out much hope for a second season.