S06.E04: Four Movements

[formerlyfreedom]

Gina spends time with each member of the squad.

Airing Thursday, January 31, 2019.

[Spartan Girl]

Gina leaves the show by doing the same thing she always does: mess with everyone's heads.

The Mario Lopez cameo was great, and I did love Jake and Gina masquerading as spoiled rich kids.

[Linny]

"You would take the losers side, Jeffords, you bitch." That line and its perfect delivery justifies NBC's decision to save the show. Holt is always magnificent, but trash-talking Holt? Give me more, please and thank you.

Gina has never grown on me so I can't say I'll miss her, but I genuinely loved her final conversation with Holt. The show gave another glimpse of its savvy handling of social issues (will Gina be okay without health care and a steady paycheck?) while also staying true to Gina's irreverent spirit ("I have a crystal in my pocket at all times"). Holt's concern was absolutely warranted, but Gina's gotta Gina, and having her leap into the unknown with no plan but full faith in her own abilities is the most fitting ending for the character.

[Trillium]

8 minutes ago, Linny said:

"You would take the losers side, Jeffords, you bitch." That line and its perfect delivery justifies NBC's decision to save the show. Holt is always magnificent, but trash-talking Holt? Give me more, please and thank you.

Gina has never grown on me so I can't say I'll miss her, but I genuinely loved her final conversation with Holt. The show gave another glimpse of its savvy handling of social issues (will Gina be okay without health care and a steady paycheck?) while also staying true to Gina's irreverent spirit ("I have a crystal in my pocket at all times"). Holt's concern was absolutely warranted, but Gina's gotta Gina, and having her leap into the unknown with no plan but full faith in her own abilities is the most fitting ending for the character.

Agreed. I actually feel that one should have been last not first. Although she was mean still to Amy, she was right. Amy just needs to be her fabulously nerdy self, and stop caring about what other people think of that, especially Gina. 

[driver18]

There were some good moments, but all I kept thinking through most of the episode was: "Thank God she'll be gone for the most part after this episode!"

[SHD]

The only "movement" I found entertaining was the one with Jake. Overall, a disappointing episode.

[thuganomics85]

As soon as I saw where this episode was heading, I knew I wasn't going to be wild about it.  I'm sure it was great for fans of Gina and I'm happy for them, but it was just basically thirty minutes of how awesome she is, and how the rest of the squad was lucky to have her.  Which, whatever.  I guess we'll ignore all the put-downs, laziness, harassing Terry, and poor treatment towards Amy (who continues to have some kind of bizarre love for her.  Love you, Amys, but you've got issues) throughout all of the seasons, but fine, I guess.  I wouldn't be as annoyed if I felt like it would have been the same way if it was any of the other characters leaving, but I'm honestly not sure if they would have gone that extreme with it.

Still, can't deny it still brought some laughs.  Holt's attempts at trash talking was awesome (how Andre Braugher simply makes Holt calling Terry a bitch hilarious is amazing to me), the stuff with Mario Lopez (likely helped that I've been binging the whole "Zach Morris is Trash" series on Youtube, and yes, A.C. Slater>Zach Morris), Jake and Gina's "rich kids" characters, and, despite my issues with Amy letting Gina walk over her, her and Rosa's crying faces. 

But overall, I don't know if I'll say it is my least favorite episode and, again, it probably was a good send-off for Gina that will please her fans, but it is certainly one that I won't watch again.  While I wish nothing but the best for Chelsea Peretti, I'm actually looking forward to seeing how the show goes forward without her.

[Lady Calypso]

Yeah, count me as another not wild about this episode. It was just Gina being mean to her friends for most of it. I feel like they could have made some actually genuine emotions here, but the only time I felt like Gina dropped her facade was with Holt, when he brought up the point about her daughter. 

Gina's lesson toward Amy would have worked if Gina actually showed a tiny ounce of emotion toward Amy. And Rosa was...there, I guess. 

I would have preferred Gina and Boyle had their own personal lesson, since Gina even said herself that she was closest with Boyle. All we got was a thirty second speech for him. I get not giving a real moment toward Terry, Hitchcock or Scully. 

I guess I was expecting more and they didn't quite deliver. Even Gina/Jake could have been much better than what we got. I did enjoy the Mario Lopez cameo. I liked Gina and Jake's mission as rich folk (and yes, I recognized the guest star at the hotel; hi Eugene from The Try Guys!!). I liked all of the Holt/Gina chess scene. But everything else? Eh, I guess I didn't really feel sad about Gina's departure like they should have made me feel. I thought Gina had a plan leaving the Nine-Nine. I thought she was starting her own business. But nope, she's just taking a risk.

That being said, I'm ok with any future appearances from Gina, since I adore Chelsea Peretti. 

[HighHopes]

2 hours ago, Linny said:

"You would take the losers side, Jeffords, you bitch." That line and its perfect delivery justifies NBC's decision to save the show. Holt is always magnificent, but trash-talking Holt? Give me more, please and thank you.

Gina has never grown on me so I can't say I'll miss her, but I genuinely loved her final conversation with Holt. The show gave another glimpse of its savvy handling of social issues (will Gina be okay without health care and a steady paycheck?) while also staying true to Gina's irreverent spirit ("I have a crystal in my pocket at all times"). Holt's concern was absolutely warranted, but Gina's gotta Gina, and having her leap into the unknown with no plan but full faith in her own abilities is the most fitting ending for the character.

I was really taken aback with the fact that the show had her casually walk around the room waving a smudging stick in the air. Which IMO, makes light of a sacred cultural practice and it shouldn't have been in the episode. Smudging to cleanse a room or a spirit is a sacred ceremony and it's not to be taken lightly, and the way that Brooklyn 99 presented it was not okay. They did it in a "Oh, Gina! You're so weird and zany!" and that's not okay. 

Edited February 1, 2019 by HighHopes

[scrambled eggs]

I didn't cry during the episode, but I enjoyed the scenes with Holt and Jake. The whole thing felt a bit rushed, actually. Maybe the cold open should have been a little shorter, and that would have allowed for more time for the scene with Amy and Rosa. 

[Mystery]

Way way way way way too much Gina, even for her last episode (please God let it be so). 

I loved Holt briskly assuring her that "Chess Kevin means nothing to me." Maybe it was the way they edited the chess game, but it seemed like two times, he made consecutive moves without them showing her moves. 

It's amazing that Stephanie Beatriz can be relatively one-note with her facial expressions and yet emote so much more than Chelsea Peretti. Really, as far as I'm concerned all this episode did was show that every single actor on the show is better than she is. 

[WorldWarIV]

Well I hope the writers understand now why the Gina character is not well-liked. How can they write the other characters so well and always screw up Gina like that? That was barely an episode, it was more like a container not even related to the actual season to showcase how awesome Gina is one last time. There was no plot at all; only that the 9-9 will be less awesome without Gina, to which I completely disagree.

Sorry to her fans, but good riddance.

Edited February 1, 2019 by WorldWarIV

[hendersonrocks]

Quote

I'm sure it was great for fans of Gina and I'm happy for them, but it was just basically thirty minutes of how awesome she is, and how the rest of the squad was lucky to have her.

For what it's worth, I thought there was a fair amount of signaling throughout the episode that the squad knows how ridiculous she is but that they love her anyways. 

[iMonrey]

This episode really lives and dies on how you feel about Gina. I never actually hated her but a little of her goes a long way. That being the case I found this episode particularly annoying. Gina isn't annoying in a bumbling way like Hitchcock and Scully, she's aggressively and deliberately annoying in a way that's off-putting when there's way too much of her. I got a kick out of the rich kids thing but that was mostly Adam Samberg yelling "daddy!" all over the place. That bit would have been just as good without Gina - anyone could have filled the counterpart role. Indeed I would have loved to see him pulling that con with Amy or Rosa. 

It's possible the show has overestimated the popularity of Gina.

[Sandman]

15 hours ago, HighHopes said:

Which IMO, makes light of a sacred cultural practice and it shouldn't have been in the episode. Smudging to cleanse a room or a spirit is a sacred ceremony and it's not to be taken lightly, and the way that Brooklyn 99 presented it was not okay. They did it in a "Oh, Gina! You're so weird and zany!" and that's not okay. 

For whatever it's worth, the show didn't leave me with the impression that this was anything other than inappropriate, selfish and wrong -- in other words, in character for Gina. I think the show wants to have it both ways with this character -- she can be breathtakingly cruel, and her own amusement and self-aggrandizing impulse are the only kind of drive she has. And yet somehow she is also entitled to unwavering loyalty and affection from "her" 99. Yeah, no.

I'm at least as horrified by the show's implication that this person can successfully raise a healthy, well-adjusted human child as I am by her appropriating cultural and religious practices for her endless self-mythologizing. I enjoyed this episode for reasons other than Gina's unquenchable need for attention. (Mostly Rosa's crying face, really.)

Edited February 1, 2019 by Sandman

[Loandbehold]

15 hours ago, Linny said:

"You would take the losers side, Jeffords, you bitch." That line and its perfect delivery justifies NBC's decision to save the show. Holt is always magnificent, but trash-talking Holt? Give me more, please and thank you.

Best part of the episode for me.

 

14 hours ago, driver18 said:

There were some good moments, but all I kept thinking through most of the episode was: "Thank God she'll be gone for the most part after this episode!"

Yep. And, I'm not the biggest Gina hater. More of "a little bit of Gina goes a long way" person. Although I believe the show did quite well in the episodes w/o Gina.

 

13 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

As soon as I saw where this episode was heading, I knew I wasn't going to be wild about it.  I'm sure it was great for fans of Gina and I'm happy for them, but it was just basically thirty minutes of how awesome she is, and how the rest of the squad was lucky to have her.  Which, whatever.  I guess we'll ignore all the put-downs, laziness, harassing Terry, and poor treatment towards Amy (who continues to have some kind of bizarre love for her.  Love you, Amys, but you've got issues) throughout all of the seasons, but fine, I guess.  I wouldn't be as annoyed if I felt like it would have been the same way if it was any of the other characters leaving, but I'm honestly not sure if they would have gone that extreme with it.

Still, can't deny it still brought some laughs.  Holt's attempts at trash talking was awesome (how Andre Braugher simply makes Holt calling Terry a bitch hilarious is amazing to me), the stuff with Mario Lopez (likely helped that I've been binging the whole "Zach Morris is Trash" series on Youtube, and yes, A.C. Slater>Zach Morris), Jake and Gina's "rich kids" characters, and, despite my issues with Amy letting Gina walk over her, her and Rosa's crying faces. 

But overall, I don't know if I'll say it is my least favorite episode and, again, it probably was a good send-off for Gina that will please her fans, but it is certainly one that I won't watch again.  While I wish nothing but the best for Chelsea Peretti, I'm actually looking forward to seeing how the show goes forward without her.

If this isn't the worst episode, it definitely ranks in The Bottom Five for me. Agree about the Holt scene, but that's b/c Andre Braugher is a freakin' acting genius.

 

13 hours ago, Lady Calypso said:

Yeah, count me as another not wild about this episode. It was just Gina being mean to her friends for most of it. I feel like they could have made some actually genuine emotions here, but the only time I felt like Gina dropped her facade was with Holt, when he brought up the point about her daughter.

This. I've enjoyed many of the Holt-Gina scenes b/c they humanize each other. But this scene felt stilted for much of it. Maybe b/c it was so long. Holt trash-talking is great. And this one time he got through to Gina that you mention was the other good part of the scene.

I think this episode was more for the cast to say goodbye to Chelsea, then it was for the audience. I wish CP the best, but I'm not going to miss Gina too much.

I'm kind of hoping that the statue remains in the precinct, but Scully and Hitchcock find different uses for it. And yes, I'll leave that thought up to everyone's imagination.

[tennisgurl]

The main reason I liked this episode is because its the last episode with Gina, and this shows never ending worship of her. Seriously, I think the only people that love Gina as much as Gina are the writers. I dont consider myself a Gina hater, she has some good lines, and I think she works well in small doses, but the show is convinced that she is the best part of the show, and that we all love and adore her and think that she can do no wrong. So this is exactly what I expected it to be. A whole episode where Gina supposedly acts like a jerk for no reason, but its actually Gina acting like a jerk FOR a reason, and she was right all along and how dare you doubt her amazingness. Really, I am just happy to move along without her for now. Like I said, I dont hate Gina, and like her sometimes, but she is by far the character I like the least, and it will be nice to spend time with the character I always enjoy. 

The best parts were by far Jake and Gina and their rich kid bit "DADDY!!!", the Mario Lopez cameo "You sure about that, Preppie?" and Gina and Holt, with Holt apparently learning smacktalk "Jeffers you bitch!" and that was all worth the price of admission. 

[peeayebee]

Loved the rich kids bit, esp Jake on the phone with "Daddy." Their snooty laughing was also great.

I'm SO so glad Gina never won a chess game. I was afraid the show would go overboard with how perfect she is, so that was much appreciated. Holt's trash-talking was great, as expected.

I'm not a fan of Gina's, but I did like what she gave to each of the main characters.

[CleoCaesar]

I only got into B99 this past summer, so when I finally found the forums I was really surprised that seemingly every fan hates Gina. She's grating but I've never really minded her and think she's had some great lines/comedic timing. The show will be just fine without her, but she wasn't the worst, IMO.

I reserve my hatred for Hitchcock/Scully who have yet to make me even crack a smile, and Adrian Pimento, the character so aggravating I actually started fast-forwarding his scenes and praying he wasn't ever going to become a regular.

[auntiemel]

EUGENE! :D Wow, that gave me a thrill!

[Maelstrom]

Guys, did you know that Gina is awesome? She’s the most awesome awesome that ever awesomed, and no one else could ever possibly be as awesome. Bow down before her awesomeness!

Seriously, that was really hard to take. The best thing about it is that she’s gone now, and I can get back to enjoying this show. Now I’m off to rewatch “99” for lots of Gina-free laughs.

[Megan]

Watched for 5 minutes saw where it was going and deleted from my DvR.

I am not going to bother with a whole episode devoted to her.

But also, Yay Gina is gone!

[Utpe]

On 1/31/2019 at 10:21 PM, driver18 said:

There were some good moments, but all I kept thinking through most of the episode was: "Thank God she'll be gone for the most part after this episode!"

Same here.

Honestly, I never really liked Gina.  Maybe in very small doses, but she was hardly ever funny to me.  I was hoping when she was hit by that bus a few seasons ago, her character would've stood gone.  When she reappeared, it's like a boulder fell directly on my head.

I'm in the same boat as some people on here - good riddance.  Let's hope it's permanent this time around.

[Ms Lark]

Jumping on the "good riddance" bus that should have taken her out back when it hit her. My only fear is that they'll feel compelled to bring in a new character that is equally annoying or even moreso. Please don't.

[Danny Franks]

Yeah, this episode was terrible. 'Let's all talk about how amazing Gina is, and get emotional over the fact that the selfish, narcissistic, asshole assistant is leaving'.

I actually got annoyed when Amy was begging to hang out with Gina one last time. Why?! Why the fuck would Amy want to spend any time with a passive-aggressive (and often straight up aggressive) bitch who constantly demeans and mocks her, never has anything nice to say, sneers at practically everything Amy cares about and is just generally unpleasant to everyone? It makes no sense, and making Amy a doormat for Gina is one of the worst things this show ever did. She should have been celebrating over Gina leaving. She should have been written as constantly trying to hide her glee that this bully who gets a pass from everyone was finally fucking off.

So that was less than ten minutes into the episode, and I simply couldn't stomach watching any more of it. I've been able to mellow to Gina a little, when she has scenes with Jake or Charles, because she actually seems to like them (Jake in a genuine way and Charles in a reluctant 'annoying little brother' way), but she's fucking appalling whenever she's bullying Amy, or harassing Terry, or being smarter than Holt.

Gina's gone. Good.

[Joimiaroxeu]

Quote

It's possible the show has overestimated the popularity of Gina.

I think it's more than possible, it's extremely likely. I almost felt bad for Chelsea Peretti but then I remembered that her husband is pretty much a king in Hollywood right now. She'll be fine. If nothing else she can probably get work as a Lady Gaga impersonator.

[Heather Lynn]

17 hours ago, auntiemel said:

EUGENE! :D Wow, that gave me a thrill!

I was thisclose to clicking FF until I saw Eugene. I was hoping there was at least one other Try Guys fan I could share my joy with on here.

Add me to the “Gina in little doses” team and this was just too much for me.

[Johnny Dollar]

Not a fan of the character. I would be a fan of Billy Eichner reprising his role as Craig Middlebrooks to replace Gina. 

[morakot]

This was the first time ever that I used the FF button on B99. I find Gina tedious and unpleasant most of the time and an entire episode celebrating her was hard to take. 

[Panopticon]

I’ve watched B99 since its pilot. This is the first episode I haven’t been able to make it through. It was the worst episode in the series for me, and it isn’t even close.

It didn’t help that this episode came on the heels of one where Gina took credit for Jake being a cop and faced no repercussions for a lie that haunted him for years. I had had no time to build up my Gina-tolerance before:

• Gina calls the detectives away from their actual jobs for a meeting she has no authority to call, but that’s charming! 
• Gina mis-spells Amy’s name to remind Amy once again how beneath contempt Amy is, but that’s okay too!
• Gina flat-out announces that nothing bad ever happens to her, which is at least honest on the show’s part. Why work hard in the face of extreme prejudice to make the world a better place, treating everyone around you with respect, like Holt does? You still won’t reach your goals... whereas Gina, who treats everyone around her badly and ignores her job duties, still has everyone panting after her for approval and will always be smarter than the actual detectives. If Gina were on B99’s sister show The Good Place, she’d be the only human to make it into the Good Place in centuries while Mother Theresa et al went to the Bad Place.

I knew I couldn’t make it through a whole episode of Let Us Worship And Revere Gina and noped  out after her talk with Holt.

Good riddance.

[Lugal]

Definitely my least favorite episode, but at least Gina is gone now.  I didn't mind her at the beginning, but ever since season three or so, it felt like none of her victories are earned, she's just always wins because she's Gina without ever facing any repercussions.  This episode was just Gina being mean to everyone except Holt and Rosa, and for some reason they all love her for it.

The parts I did enjoy were Jake's Illuminati joke "Are they just a bunch of lizards?"  and Hitchcock "the first rule of the burn barrel is don't ask what you're burning."

[ZoqFotPik]

On 2/1/2019 at 10:59 AM, peeayebee said:

I'm SO so glad Gina never won a chess game. I was afraid the show would go overboard with how perfect she is, so that was much appreciated. Holt's trash-talking was great, as expected.

I was expecting this too. So glad that they didn't. I even liked that they made Holt so much better than her that he could have won earlier, but didn't to make a point.

I'm glad Gina is gone. I remember last season, I didn't even notice she was gone until she came back.

[Ceindreadh]

On 1/2/2019 at 6:59 PM, peeayebee said:

Loved the rich kids bit, esp Jake on the phone with "Daddy." Their snooty laughing was also great.

I'm SO so glad Gina never won a chess game. I was afraid the show would go overboard with how perfect she is, so that was much appreciated. Holt's trash-talking was great, as expected.

I'm not a fan of Gina's, but I did like what she gave to each of the main characters.

 

Oh but Gina did win the chess game, didn’t you hear her say checkmate at the end? Because rules of course are for other people, not her  

 

 

On 2/2/2019 at 3:18 AM, Megan said:

Watched for 5 minutes saw where it was going and deleted from my DvR.

I am not going to bother with a whole episode devoted to her.

But also, Yay Gina is gone!

 

I lasted until the start of Amy’s scene and then figured I’d check here and see if it got any better. 

I can understand a little why Amy might want Gina’s approval.   After all, Gina is supposed to be Jake’s oldest friend and Amy would probably figure that it would make Jake happy if his wife and oldest friend were on good terms.

Gina obviously doesn’t care one way or the other.

Question though, have we ever seen Jake’s reactions to Gina dissing Amy?  Is he cool with that? I know Amy should be able to fight her own battles but Jake should have her back. 

[Samsnee]

Mario Lopez saying Preppy was the only good thing about this episode. 

[Tachi Rocinante]

A perfect example of why you never make a one-note background character the focus of an entire episode.

Especially one that's a narcissistic, self-unaware twatwaffle.

Edited February 4, 2019 by Tachi Rocinante
Cause, grammar

[Kip Hackman]

On 2/2/2019 at 11:00 AM, Johnny Dollar said:

 I would be a fan of Billy Eichner reprising his role as Craig Middlebrooks to replace Gina. 

As far as I'm concerned, they don't need to replace Gina. The show worked perfectly fine without her character. 

[possibilities]

Barney Miller didn't have a non-cop administrative assistant. That's good enough of a precedent for me to say Raymond Holt doesn't need one, either.

Edited February 4, 2019 by possibilities

[DXD526]

I didn't get this episode. From what I've read, Gina is being dropped from the show, it was a deliberate decision to write her out. So why the big, gushy send-off? Apparently the show decided she wasn't necessary - a decision I agree with - so just let her disappear, no need to give the character a half-hour tongue bath. It was weird. And unnecessary. And for the most part, unfunny. 

[Lugal]

Chelsea Peretti decided to leave on her own, which was why she got the big sendoff.  I also agree the show worked fine without her, so they don't need a replacement.  Plus when she was gone for the first part of season 5, Scully and Hitchcock got more development, and the show was better without her.

[Josette]

Actually, it wasn't totally her own choice to leave.  And she will be making at least one more appearance on the show.

[Bort]

Huh, the gist I get from that article is that it seems like it's likely that NBC probably thought the show was strongest in the Gina-free episodes and wanted her written out.

[doodlebug]

23 minutes ago, kariyaki said:

Huh, the gist I get from that article is that it seems like it's likely that NBC probably thought the show was strongest in the Gina-free episodes and wanted her written out.

Yes, and/or they wanted to pare down the cast and salaries and CP's Gina seemed the most expendable.  Good choice.

[Danny Franks]

29 minutes ago, kariyaki said:

Huh, the gist I get from that article is that it seems like it's likely that NBC probably thought the show was strongest in the Gina-free episodes and wanted her written out.

Well they're already smarter than Fox, then. The show was better without Gina, and I've long maintained that this show simply had no need for that antagonistic, discordant presence. They never needed a character to "mess with" the rest, like Gina always did. She'd be far more at home on one of those sitcoms where everyone is an asshole all the time.

[jhlipton]

1 hour ago, Josette said:

she will be making at least one more appearance on the show.

WHY??????????????

[Bort]

1 hour ago, doodlebug said:

Yes, and/or they wanted to pare down the cast and salaries and CP's Gina seemed the most expendable.  Good choice.

I think it's a little bit of both. I mean, if it were totally about money, they could've cut Scully and Hitchcock instead but... they didn't. Gina was deemed the most expendable one.

[Danny Franks]

2 hours ago, jhlipton said:

WHY??????????????

Murder victim?

[BTBAM310]

2 hours ago, doodlebug said:

Yes, and/or they wanted to pare down the cast and salaries and CP's Gina seemed the most expendable.  Good choice.

Hopefully Terry is next. Am I the only one who can't stand him? I hate the way he refers to himself in the third person, the way he talks like he has a wad of chewing tobacco in his mouth, and his line delivery is terrible - plus, the plots involving him are always so stupid.

[jhlipton]

33 minutes ago, Danny Franks said:

Murder victim?

We can only hope.  There's certainly no lack of people with motive!

28 minutes ago, BTBAM310 said:

Hopefully Terry is next. Am I the only one who can't stand him? I hate the way he refers to himself in the third person, the way he talks like he has a wad of chewing tobacco in his mouth, and his line delivery is terrible - plus, the plots involving him are always so stupid.

Jeff likes the way Terry talks.  Plus, Terry crews id freaking awesome -- it's worth it just to keep him employed.

[Trillium]

49 minutes ago, jhlipton said:

We can only hope.  There's certainly no lack of people with motive!

Jeff likes the way Terry talks.  Plus, Terry crews id freaking awesome -- it's worth it just to keep him employed.

Terry Crews is a national treasure. I spent 40 minutes watching him paint a Christmas tree Bob Ross style. No regrets. 

[Court]

I want more Terry. I won't complain if they find reasons for his shirt to come off.