S06.E03: The Tattler

[formerlyfreedom]

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Jake and Gina attend their 20th high school reunion. Back at the Nine-Nine, Charles helps Rosa with her love life.

First airing Thursday, January 24, 2019.

[bethy]

I'm sorry to say that my biggest take-away from this episode is that Andy Samberg's haircut is REALLY unfortunate. 

[Spartan Girl]

"Damn you, Horndog!"

Sad that Gina's on her way out.

[festivus]

Sooo... I knew right away that sound was a Dorito bag. I should probably be worried about that.

[tennisgurl]

So is this our last "it looks like Gina is being an asshole, but is actually the most awesome person ever" episode? I have mixed feelings on Gina leaving. I am sad, as she certainly has her moments, but when she left earlier in the show, I didnt miss her all that much. 

Amy and the science fair project was adorable. And Rosa and Boyle seeing Hitchcock when she was supposed to see the person she belongs with! The horror!

[SHD]

This episode was worth it for the scenes of high school Jake.

[hendersonrocks]

The B and C plots felt pretty underdeveloped this week, but I thoroughly enjoyed seeing Amy Santiago in her high school element. Jake and Gina? I'll take them if it gets me Amy in 90s wear getting turned on by attendance records, chemistry projects, and book reports.

[Maelstrom]

Not one of the best eps for me. We got yet another “Gina is perfect” story, and I once again have “Allstar” stuck in my head (noooo!)

But on the plus side we got NerdAmy and Holt referring to himself in the third person, so there’s still fun to be had.

[thuganomics85]

Amy getting turned on over Jake having a perfect attendance and doing community service back in high school was hilarious.  And then her freaking out over the science project breaking, fixing it, and it somehow leading to her writing a paper on Jane Eyre.  I love Amy Santiago almost as much as Jake does!

Overall, some good laughs, but as usual, not only does everything come up Gina, but they even have her take credit for Jake being a cop, and he more or less goes with it.  Yeah, I can honestly say that I won't miss her when she goes.  I hate to say it, but while they generally treat all of the characters well, it still feels like she's the writers' favorite sometimes, and I wish they would quit propping her up: especially if it comes at the expense of others.

The B/C plots weren't the best, but I enjoyed watching Holt get into the game despite himself, and Boyle/Rosa are always fun.  But I guess nothing came out of Rosa and Gina Rodriquez' cab driver.  I guess she was too busy to make a return.

Speaking of returning, now that The Good Place has wrapped up this season, I hope this means Marc Evan Jackson will be available to make a grand return as Kevin!  And bring Cheddar with him!

Not the best episode, but I guess it served its purpose of setting things up for Gina's exit.

[tennisgurl]

10 minutes ago, thuganomics85 said:

I hate to say it, but while they generally treat all of the characters well, it still feels like she's the writers' favorite sometimes, and I wish they would quit propping her up: especially if it comes at the expense of others.

Its been clear that Gina is one of the writers favorite characters, and that they love her and use her as much as possible, even to the detriment of other characters, since way back in season one. While most of the characters have flaws and learn lessons and get called out when they make mistakes or act like jerks and they admit to it, everything usually works out in Gina's favor, and despite Gina being by FAR the biggest jerk of the cast, anytime someone calls her out, they will end up learning a "Gina was right all along, you should have trusted her" lesson, and Gina gets to prance around saying how awesome she is again. Whenever anything goes even mildly wrong for her, everyone gushes about how awesome she is, despite her lazy and jerky behavior at her job, and then things go well for her again.  If she does something bad to someone or acts like an asshole to them, its fine, but if someone snaps back at her, everyone is SHOCKED and the other character has to apologize. And, you know, she solves problems and crimes faster than the actual detectives half the time! Even her exit from the show is apparently "you deserve better than being here".  I dont hate her or anything, but she is definitely my least favorite character on the show, at least partially because of that tendency of the show. 

Edited January 25, 2019 by tennisgurl

[Mystery]

Yay! Gina's gone! She drags the whole show down. Though how could anyone have thought she was Jake, she's so much shorter. Especially when she was talking to the principal, so it would be easy to judge height. Maybe that football player had too many concussions. 

I liked Amy being so excited about Jake's attendance and his community service. Liked Holt getting into the contest. 

It wasn't a great episode for me, but GINA'S GONE!

[ElectricBoogaloo]

5 hours ago, SHD said:

This episode was worth it for the scenes of high school Jake.

I agree! Now I kind of want a full episode of Jake in high school. Amy was rocking her 90s look too!

[Featherhat]

Not my favourite episode but high school Jake was hilarious, as was Amy getting turned on by Jake's attendance record and community service. And Jake just going with it and grinning when she ended up in the library randomly writing a book report. 

Sigh, another "Gina is a jerk but comes up smelling like roses and people telling her she's awesome" but it was a lot better than some of the other times. We did get a last look at Jake and Gina's childhood friendship, which the show really dropped after S1 and I guess it's a sweet way for AS and CP to acknowledge that it was based on their lives. I didn't miss her when she was on maternity leave and won't now. She's such a sacred cow for the writers despite being the jerkiest character. 

The other plots were a bit weak but we did get a lot of info on Rosa and she and Boyle work well together. So glad they dropped the creepy obsession for real friendship. Holt realising things could be fun without being productive was cute. 

[Danny Franks]

So I like Gina a lot more when she's interacting with Jake, because she actually seems to like and respect him. Shame she can't show those same qualities with almost everyone else. But their backstory as childhood friends does work. The payoff of their storyline here was actually heartfelt, and the friendship chemistry between them is obviously very real.

But now they're in the process of writing her out of the show, which really works for me.

Oh, Amy. "The Tattler. That's a sexy nickname." Of course she would think that.

"Keep it in your pants, Santiago."

"Oh, that's exactly where it's going."

Good grief, Amy. She looked amazing in her nineties outfit, by the way, and she's such an adorable nerd that she feels a compulsion to fix the science project they knocked over. Not even for the kid who made it, but just because, well... it's schoolwork.

I really love Jake and Amy's relationship. They're so sweet, and genuinely supportive of one another. And they take any weirdness completely in stride. Most of the time, they like each other more, after each weird thing they learn.

It's kind of a shame that Rosa's love life is relegated to 'let me tell you what happened while we were off the air' material, but it's understandable in a show this packed. Hopefully they can give us a bit more of it, as the season progresses (after all, we had to sit through enough Rosa/Pimento scenes). It was fun, just to see the Boyle decision-making process at length. It makes complete sense that they would all just delay until the decision is made for them.

The C-plot seemed to exist for only two reasons - to give Holt, Terry, Scully and Hitchcock something to do, and because one of the writers thinks that sort of dumb FM radio competition is annoying.

[bethy]

I also loved the implication that Jake himself was kind of a nerd in high school with his perfect attendance and community service. He's never been the "bad boy" he likes to think he is, bless his heart.

[jmcd44]

5 hours ago, Danny Franks said:

I really love Jake and Amy's relationship. They're so sweet, and genuinely supportive of one another. And they take any weirdness completely in stride. Most of the time, they like each other more, after each weird thing they learn.

Same!  I love that when he was talking about how he was winning at life, it was because in addition to being a detective, he had a "smart, amazing wife"-something along those lines.  The fact that he didn't mention how beautiful she was (which-she is!) was really cute for some reason, as was him calling her Santiago.  And I appreciate her version of feminine wiles.

I also laughed WAY too hard at Holt saying "Cry me a river. Brenda from Yonkers. We’ve all had budget cuts. Just take your guess".

[iMonrey]

Quote

I'm sorry to say that my biggest take-away from this episode is that Andy Samberg's haircut is REALLY unfortunate. 

This. At the very end of the episode it was fixed better so I could see what he/they were going for, but at the beginning it was just a ridiculously hot mess. 

So is Chelsea Peretti really leaving the show? I will not miss her.

[doodlebug]

3 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

This. At the very end of the episode it was fixed better so I could see what he/they were going for, but at the beginning it was just a ridiculously hot mess. 

So is Chelsea Peretti really leaving the show? I will not miss her.

Yep, she is leaving, but, first, it appears we are going to have an all-Gina, all the time episode, not by popular demand.

[tominboston]

I knew that Chelsea/Gina was leaving the show and I wondered how they would send her off. Last night's plot worked for me because it showed Jake being so supportive of her ambitions.

I know that a lot of folks found the Gina character grating, but as one who has spent a fair amount of time in New York City over the years I think she represented a certain sort of pushy, wiseass native New Yorker that I suspect would be found in any precinct house in the city. All of the other B99 characters are so conscientious about their jobs (well, OK, there's Hitchcock and Scully...) that Gina's general smugness and indifference  was a nice comic balance. The show will do fine without her, but I'm not celebrating her departure.

[Loandbehold]

7 hours ago, Danny Franks said:

It's kind of a shame that Rosa's love life is relegated to 'let me tell you what happened while we were off the air' material, but it's understandable in a show this packed. Hopefully they can give us a bit more of it, as the season progresses (after all, we had to sit through enough Rosa/Pimento scenes). It was fun, just to see the Boyle decision-making process at length. It makes complete sense that they would all just delay until the decision is made for them.

 I love getting new information about the Boyle clan. What was it, 300 questions to get to the actual decision? Which means that by the time you get to the end, the choice has been taken out of your hands. Classic Family Boyle.

I wasn't bothered this time about Gina saving Jake. It demonstrated how long they've been friends. And, it ended w/ Jake giving her the push to leave the Nine-Nine. Which, while it plays to the character's ego, in the meta sense, it means that (after next episode) she'll no longer be a regular. So, bonus.

2 hours ago, jmcd44 said:

I also laughed WAY too hard at Holt saying "Cry me a river. Brenda from Yonkers. We’ve all had budget cuts. Just take your guess".

Oh, Raymond, never change. I always laugh when he gets all competitive and petty.

7 hours ago, Danny Franks said:

Oh, Amy. "The Tattler. That's a sexy nickname." Of course she would think that.

"Keep it in your pants, Santiago."

"Oh, that's exactly where it's going."

Good grief, Amy. She looked amazing in her nineties outfit, by the way, and she's such an adorable nerd that she feels a compulsion to fix the science project they knocked over. Not even for the kid who made it, but just because, well... it's schoolwork.

I really love Jake and Amy's relationship. They're so sweet, and genuinely supportive of one another. And they take any weirdness completely in stride. Most of the time, they like each other more, after each weird thing they learn.

All this. Their relationship remains one of the best on tv. Given how immature both can be, they avoid the melodramatic moments that so many other couples suffer on other shows. And both grow. And are doing so together.

[BoogieBurns]

Fine with being a party of one. I am so sad for Gina (and Chelsea) to leave the 99. 

[Kate47]

When Rosa was having trouble deciding between Quinoa and Couscous, all I could think was that this problem would be a bit simpler if she were poly. 

[Mystery]

10 hours ago, Danny Franks said:

I really love Jake and Amy's relationship. They're so sweet, and genuinely supportive of one another. And they take any weirdness completely in stride. Most of the time, they like each other more, after each weird thing they learn.

This. That's how you know it's true love; the more they learn about each other, the more in love they get. 

 

4 minutes ago, Kate47 said:

When Rosa was having trouble deciding between Quinoa and Couscous, all I could think was that this problem would be a bit simpler if she were poly. 

But it was Quinoa and Couscous who objected; they were making her choose after they found out about each other, I think. 

I forgot to say that even though this wasn't the greatest episode for me, even an average Brooklyn 99 episode is better than almost anything else on TV. 

[Kate47]

2 minutes ago, Mystery said:

 

 

But it was Quinoa and Couscous who objected; they were making her choose after they found out about each other, I think. 

 

Very true, but I dunno. I'm a little bored with seeing the same old relationship storylines and I always think poly deserves solid representation!

[Featherhat]

I wouldn't mind a well written poly relationship on TV, I just have no faith that any writers would be able to make it in the slightest bit longterm without turning it into a love triangle or "just having fun on casual dates". I guess unless Rosa or a character on another show had one almost completely off screen. 

Forgot to mention I also liked that the point of the 300 questions was to keep you busy until someone else had made the decision for you. 

Edited January 25, 2019 by Featherhat

[Brandi Maxxxx]

"I shouldn't (Insta)gram so much, but my brunch friends say it's the only way to promote my handmade jewelry line."

Rosa's life outside the 99 might be the best running joke on a show with the best running jokes around.

[Inquisitionist]

22 hours ago, bethy said:

I'm sorry to say that my biggest take-away from this episode is that Andy Samberg's haircut is REALLY unfortunate. 

I thought the episode was fine, but seriously, what is up with Samberg's hair?  I noticed it in the honeymoon episode and it's been bugging me ever since.  

[Mystery]

Okay kids, there's nothing substantive, and only one picture, so it must be some kind of a goof, but Andy Samberg's Hair has a Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pg/Andy-Sambergs-Hair-234095843284543/photos/?ref=page_internal

[Joimiaroxeu]

Well, I'm now looking forward to the next Thor movie with a lot more full-frontal. Thanks, Gina!

Who knew Diaz was so messy in her love life?

I'm glad Holt mentioned Kevin.

[peeayebee]

On 1/24/2019 at 8:08 PM, SHD said:

This episode was worth it for the scenes of high school Jake.

I had to rewind that because I love me some goofy Samburg.

 

On 1/24/2019 at 9:14 PM, thuganomics85 said:

Speaking of returning, now that The Good Place has wrapped up this season, I hope this means Marc Evan Jackson will be available to make a grand return as Kevin!  And bring Cheddar with him!

Yasss queen!

 

15 hours ago, Brandi Maxxxx said:

"I shouldn't (Insta)gram so much, but my brunch friends say it's the only way to promote my handmade jewelry line."

And Charles' stuttering reaction to that was great.

I agree with most people here that the show wasn't the best but still had funny moments. I think my favorites have already been mentioned.

Holt: Oooo! Are they testing the emergency broadcasting system?

Terry: Terry heard a crinkle.
Holt: Holt heard a crinkle, too.

[VCRTracking]

Except for a few episodes Jake and Gina I never really get that have been great friends for a long time.  In that final scene I felt the IRL friendship between Andy Samberg and Chelsea Perretti more than the characters.

[possibilities]

I wonder if they'll bring a new administrative assistant into the ensemble.

[PWHCHCH]

Sounds like I’m in the minority for liking Andy’s new hair and I’ve never had a problem with Gina. I’m sad to see her go. 

[Ceindreadh]

On 25/1/2019 at 9:49 PM, Kate47 said:

When Rosa was having trouble deciding between Quinoa and Couscous, all I could think was that this problem would be a bit simpler if she were poly. 

 

On 25/1/2019 at 9:55 PM, Mystery said:

This. That's how you know it's true love; the more they learn about each other, the more in love they get. 

 

But it was Quinoa and Couscous who objected; they were making her choose after they found out about each other, I think. 

 

I was hoping they’d both end up dumping her two-timing ass. And I say this as a Rosa fan, but having her cheat on her partners is not a positive attribute. (Poly relationships are fine as long as parties are properly in the loop)

 

And count me among the good riddance to Gina bunch. Has there ever been an episode or stroryline where her crappy behavior was called out and she learned from it?  Ah well, fingers crossed it’s not a fake out and there’s only one more episode of her to suffer through.

Edited January 27, 2019 by Ceindreadh
Grammar issues

[Loandbehold]

2 hours ago, Ceindreadh said:

I was hoping they’d both end up dumping her two-timing ass. And I say this as a Rosa fan, but having her cheat on her partners is not a positive attribute. (Poly relationships are fine as long as parties are properly in the loop)

If she is casually dating both, I don't have a problem with this. It's only once it's been decided to become exclusive that she becomes a "two-timer." It's certainly possible that both believed their relationship was heading towards exclusivity, but it wasn't there yet. 

[sweetandsour]

I laughed so loud at their Sylvester Stallone ska band and "stop or my mom will ska!"  It's their only song!

[jhlipton]

On 1/25/2019 at 1:49 PM, Kate47 said:

When Rosa was having trouble deciding between Quinoa and Couscous, all I could think was that this problem would be a bit simpler if she were poly. 

On 1/25/2019 at 2:01 PM, Kate47 said:

Very true, but I dunno. I'm a little bored with seeing the same old relationship storylines and I always think poly deserves solid representation!

On 1/25/2019 at 2:06 PM, Featherhat said:

I wouldn't mind a well written poly relationship on TV, I just have no faith that any writers would be able to make it in the slightest bit longterm without turning it into a love triangle or "just having fun on casual dates".

Of all shows, SWAT is doing a poly relationship well.  They're making it clear that it's not just about sex, and that all three have to care about each other, and not have any jealousy issues.

The wife approached Christina and as soon as she could tell they were hitting it off, she told her she was poly, so it wasn't dragged out or a huge surprise.  Then they had a dinner together, so Chris could see if she liked the husband.  And she didn't just jump right into it, she thought about for at least a week I think before deciding to move forward.

I've known a few poly families and think they're doing a good job with it.

[Kate47]

14 hours ago, jhlipton said:

Of all shows, SWAT is doing a poly relationship well.  They're making it clear that it's not just about sex, and that all three have to care about each other, and not have any jealousy issues.

The wife approached Christina and as soon as she could tell they were hitting it off, she told her she was poly, so it wasn't dragged out or a huge surprise.  Then they had a dinner together, so Chris could see if she liked the husband.  And she didn't just jump right into it, she thought about for at least a week I think before deciding to move forward.

I've known a few poly families and think they're doing a good job with it.

So what you're saying is now I have to watch SWAT.

[possibilities]

Seriously, I had no idea and thus no interest in watching it, but now I'm trying to figure out when I'll have the time to catch up!

[jhlipton]

5 hours ago, Kate47 said:

So what you're saying is now I have to watch SWAT.

2 hours ago, possibilities said:

Seriously, I had no idea and thus no interest in watching it, but now I'm trying to figure out when I'll have the time to catch up!

It's a really good show that's not afraid to tackle important topics without preaching, while still firing on all cylinders as an action show.

[iMonrey]

Quote

It's kind of a shame that Rosa's love life is relegated to 'let me tell you what happened while we were off the air' material, but it's understandable in a show this packed.

The same is true of every character except Jake and Amy though. Isn't Boyle married now? When's the last time we saw his wife? Or Terry's? When's the last time we saw Kevin? Are Hitchcock and Scully even married? (I guess Hitchcock is, hence the van.) So Rosa is not unique in that respect. 

[jhlipton]

1 hour ago, iMonrey said:

Isn't Boyle married now? 

We know Nikolaj (No, it's pronounced Nikolaj!) is still living with Boyle, but I don't think Genevieve (who is his SO, not his wife) was mentioned in the story of Nikolaj's half-brother)

[Ailianna]

DIdn't Jake say something about Genevieve when Boyle first mentioned there might be another child?

[Janie430]

So I think that my problem with Gina is that in the vulnerable moments, Peretti's voice doesn't change enough, and the monotone she normally has just doesn't work.  She's lied to Jake for 20 years, and let him have a horrible senior year because she was scared he was turning into a bad guy, and he's a friend and she was scared of losing him.  But her voice didn't reflect that - it was too flat. 

And if she'd put some Matthew Perry style grasping at straws into her flailing around grasping for a reason why Jake shouldn't have been angry at her, it would have worked.  You would have bought  that she knew what she had done was wrong, but needed to be forgiven.  Instead, it just comes off like another one of her "I'm sooo fabulous" moments.  And that's why I don't like the character.  She never comes off as feeling anything deeply.

[Ilovepie]

In regards to Gina leaving, let me just say in my most bored Gina voice while not looking up from my phone "Byeeeee"..............I won't miss her. At.All. My all time favorite moment with Gina was when the bus hit her.

On 1/25/2019 at 3:25 AM, Danny Franks said:

"Keep it in your pants, Santiago."

"Oh, that's exactly where it's going."

 

On 1/25/2019 at 8:49 AM, jmcd44 said:

I also laughed WAY too hard at Holt saying "Cry me a river. Brenda from Yonkers. We’ve all had budget cuts. Just take your guess".

My two favorite laughs from this episode.

[Tachi Rocinante]

Gina's leaving?  Thank Christ. A true friend tells the truth. Horrible rationalization, even if she meant well.

Chelsea Peretti is not funny and her character is a drag on the show.

[bosawks]

The Sophie’s Choice gag was wrong but hysterical.