S01.E14: Plain Clothes Day

[WendyCR72]

The rookies are really put to the test when their training officers accompany them out of uniform for Plain Clothes Day, which forces them to make all the decisions while on patrol. Officer Nolan tries to prove he has been progressing faster than the other rookies to justify his desire of becoming a detective within five years.

[ketose]

If Bradford had 12 rookies wash out on Plain Clothes Day compared to the others with 3, doesn't that kind of make him a bad TO? His badass cop demeanor is one reason why Chen went all Rampart on that guy.

I'm not sure it makes sense than Nolan would want to be a detective since he can "help people" more directly as a uniform officer. That seems more like if Castle was a rookie.

It was a change of pace to have West do the less sexy police work. Next week, it's back to an outsized level of danger again.

[mxc90]

The opening scenes are getting weirder every week.... So no alert from the FBI or other law enforcement about a helicopter fleeing a bank robbery? Nolan and Bishop were lucky a $100 just flew out in sight and called in. Bank robber decides to stay at the scene to argue and not run away? 

Nolan had a little limp walking down the stairs.

Why would Bradford brag about 11 rookies being bounced on Plain clothes day? Doesn't that reflect on him?

Was Bishop going to wait until the very last moment to intervene? The suspect was close to grabbing Nolan's gun and shooting him.

Chen was made to look like the biggest fool for 50 minutes until her arresting the murderer and trying to slap Bradford with the bill. Bradford should have dropped the tab on the ground and walked away. The food truck owner would have gone after Chen for payment.

If Chen was recording the first encounter, could she have made a case he was threatening?

Why is Nolan thinking about being a detective at this stage of the game?

Edited February 27, 2019 by mxc90

[shapeshifter]

21 hours ago, mxc90 said:

If Chen was recording the first encounter, could she have made a case he was threatening?

No, it's always the peace officer's job to diffuse the situation. Threatening a civilian does no good in the long run. Trust me on this one. I live near Chicago, and I'm old.
I appreciated the way it played out with Chen (hopefully) learning that lesson.

And hurray for the continuing retooling of the character of West.

NF needs some cosmetic surgery on his neck to continue in this role. 
Of course, I suppose the same could be said of me, heh, but at least in the winter I can wear pretty scarves and turtlenecks. 

Edited February 28, 2019 by shapeshifter

[voiceover]

Awwww...I dug it!  Glad to see that Bishop might get some action (love her) w/the plainclothes cop. Though I missed what he said that put her off so much, he felt like he needed to apologize.

West's talk with the widow touched me.  I know from sad experience that it's the little stupid things you clutch to your heart after a loved one is gone.  The broken/not broken watch story was lovely.  A nice moment to lighten the hideous reminder that in the case of criminal, or suspected criminal action, it's all evidence.  Making the victim of a crime, a victim twice over.

Yay Nolan for figuring out -- thanks to Bishop's nudge -- he'll be better at his job as himself.   Another universal truth.

Poor Chen.  I can so relate.  My ass would totally be kicked to the curb if I had to survive customer surveys in **that line of work (I know I've got a charming demeanor around here, but my resting bitchface has gotten me in trouble IRL).

Sorry, but aren't food trucks a "pay as you go" proposition?  Did I miss the honor system at work here?  

[mxc90]

5 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

No, it's always the peace officer's job to diffuse the situation. Threatening a civilian does no good in the long run. Trust me on this one. I live near Chicago, and I'm old.
I appreciated the way it played out with Chen (hopefully) learning that lesson.

I suppose. I was surprised no pepper spray was use by Chen tonight.

6 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

NF needs some cosmetic surgery on his neck to continue in this role. 
Of course, I suppose the same could be said of me, heh, but at least in the winter I can where pretty scarves and turtlenecks.

Maybe he can request a transfer to Alaska and bundle up. 

[rhys]

I want Bishops butterscotch leather jacket.

[AnimeMania]

2 hours ago, voiceover said:

West's talk with the widow touched me.  I know from sad experience that it's the little stupid things you clutch to your heart after a loved one is gone.  The broken/not broken watch story was lovely.  A nice moment to lighten the hideous reminder that in the case of criminal, or suspected criminal action, it's all evidence.  Making the victim of a crime, a victim twice over.

Unless the lady lived in a one room apartment, I don't see how the lady wouldn't have a least one thing in another room that might remind her of her husband. Even if it is just some old nose hair clippers in the bathroom.

[FinnishViewer]

Quote

If Bradford had 12 rookies wash out on Plain Clothes Day compared to the others with 3, doesn't that kind of make him a bad TO?

Not necessarily. It might just mean he is tougher in evaluating his rookies compared to the others.

[Brian Cronin]

They retconned Nolan's age, right? He mentioned being 50 if he became a detective in five years. In the pilot, he was 40 years old. Fillion is 47 years old, so I think they might have given up on trying to pass Nolan off as 40. If so, I approve!

[shapeshifter]

2 hours ago, Brian Cronin said:

They retconned Nolan's age, right? He mentioned being 50 if he became a detective in five years. In the pilot, he was 40 years old. Fillion is 47 years old, so I think they might have given up on trying to pass Nolan off as 40. If so, I approve!

I missed that, but I hope so too. 

[ketose]

3 hours ago, FinnishViewer said:

Not necessarily. It might just mean he is tougher in evaluating his rookies compared to the others.

Unless they really match the rookies with the TOs, it means the other TOs put marginal cops on the street because fewer wash out.

[mxc90]

When the perv was watching the girl from outside, it reminded me of young George McFly from "Back to the Future". Times have changed how this is viewed.

[FinnishViewer]

Quote

Unless they really match the rookies with the TOs, it means the other TOs put marginal cops on the street because fewer wash out.

Not necessarily, because Bradford might see some characteristics as flaws, while the others don't. I don't think there is only one combination of characteristics that make a good police officer.

[BlakesMomma]

6 hours ago, Brian Cronin said:

They retconned Nolan's age, right? He mentioned being 50 if he became a detective in five years. In the pilot, he was 40 years old. Fillion is 47 years old, so I think they might have given up on trying to pass Nolan off as 40. If so, I approve!

They were all over the place with his age in interviews and articles right from the beginning. I saw 40, 42, 45 at different points. I think the original "40 year old rookie" was a general 40-ish all along. The references throughout the episodes have leaned more toward the 45 age for Nolan, like last night.

[chaifan]

Chen failing to secure the van at the scene, calling right then for a tow to the impound lot or whatever, was a pretty boneheaded move. 

Also, I didn't see the "personal project" statement as a threat.  "Personal project" is more of "I'm keeping my eye on you".  There was no threat of violence or of any illegal/improper activity.  I would have rather seen that taken by the department as a "yeah, don't do that" type of reprimand as opposed to something that could end her career.  Personally, I think the dog owner's comment of "I know how to shut up a b*itch" is more easily construed as a physical threat than Chen's statement.

[Loandbehold]

12 hours ago, voiceover said:

Awwww...I dug it!  Glad to see that Bishop might get some action (love her) w/the plainclothes cop. Though I missed what he said that put her off so much, he felt like he needed to apologize.

He said that he wasn't asking her out on a date. It was a stumbling answer to her question and he tried to walk it back, but the deed was done.

12 hours ago, voiceover said:

Sorry, but aren't food trucks a "pay as you go" proposition?  Did I miss the honor system at work here?  

I have a feeling that b/c all the cops go there, they know them and aren't so strict w/ the pay-as-you-go policy. I can see that happening.

I'm enjoying how they're fleshing out the characters. We got to see West dealing with a victim's spouse instead of just trying to beat out his father. Lopez did a good job getting this point through to him. Chen got lucky, but she did violate standards and was called into account for it. And Nolan goes overboard when he's running the show. Bishop sets him straight. The two of them have some very nice moments.

[threebluestars]

Nolan and Bishop have a great relationship. I really enjoy them. And in a non-romantic way lol.

I'm kinda shipping Chen/Bradford. *ducks for cover*

[Waterston Fan]

Kind of a slow episode but I did wonder if maybe West's dad made West do the evidence stuff he was doing. I do have a hard time believing the woman didn't even have a picture of her late husband still in the house. I thought maybe West will get in trouble for giving her the watch at least. 

I liked Bradford and Chen part a bit more. 

[ketose]

8 hours ago, FinnishViewer said:

Not necessarily, because Bradford might see some characteristics as flaws, while the others don't. I don't think there is only one combination of characteristics that make a good police officer.

That's the problem, though. Let's say Bradford got Nolan as his boot and he didn't like the way Nolan did things and got him kicked out. Was Nolan a bad cop or does Bradford enjoy ending rookies too much? Again, if rookies are (sort of) randomly assigned, how does one TO have quadruple the failure rate of the other TOs? Since plain clothes day is where the rookies have to apply their training, it seems like Bradford trained them poorly.

[eel2178]

4 hours ago, Loandbehold said:

Chen got lucky, but she did violate standards and was called into account for it. 

However, I can't help wondering, if the guy didn't think he was being threatened, would he have killed his neighbor?

[izabella]

43 minutes ago, ketose said:

Let's say Bradford got Nolan as his boot

Every time one of them says boot, and they say it a lot, I think they are saying "boo" as a term of affection.  Then I remember, no, not boo. 

[femmefan1946]

If Chen was recording the first encounter, could she have made a case he was threatening?

I think the Department, if they were serious about investigating, would have seen the recording as proof of being firm with the bad guy.

Why is Nolan thinking about being a detective at this stage of the game?

Because the detectives have a more glamourous job? Nolan got into policing for the glamour. (Prove me wrong.)

[SharonC]

Did anyone else zoom in on the bar tab Lucy left for Tim?  Beer $72, shots $12, subtotal of $84 and TAX OF $13.43 for total of 97.43?!?  What???  How much is LA's liquor tax?? That's 16%!!  

Edited February 28, 2019 by SharonC

[eel2178]

9 minutes ago, SharonC said:

Did anyone else zoom in on the bar tab Lucy left for Tim?  Beer $72, shots $12, subtotal of $84 and TAX OF $13.43 for total of 97.43?!?  What???  How much is LA's liquor tax?? That's 16%!!  

Also, can you really buy alcohol from a food truck?

[auntlada]

3 hours ago, Waterston Fan said:

I do have a hard time believing the woman didn't even have a picture of her late husband still in the house. I thought maybe West will get in trouble for giving her the watch at least.

As soon as she mentioned she was out of town when the home invaders broke in and killed her husband, I thought she was going to turn out to have hired them to kill her husband.

[mxc90]

21 minutes ago, SharonC said:

Did anyone else zoom in on the bar tab Lucy left for Tim?  Beer $72, shots $12, subtotal of $84 and TAX OF $13.43 for total of 97.43?!?  What???  How much is LA's liquor tax?? That's 16%!!  

Where else is the city going to get the revenue to pay for the property damages caused by the rookies.

[mxc90]

1 hour ago, femmefan1946 said:

Why is Nolan thinking about being a detective at this stage of the game?

Because the detectives have a more glamourous job? Nolan got into policing for the glamour. (Prove me wrong.)

He's still in his probation period and will need 5 years to be detective. He shouldn't think that far right now.

[HunterHunted]

16 hours ago, Brian Cronin said:

They retconned Nolan's age, right? He mentioned being 50 if he became a detective in five years. In the pilot, he was 40 years old. Fillion is 47 years old, so I think they might have given up on trying to pass Nolan off as 40. If so, I approve!

10 hours ago, BlakesMomma said:

They were all over the place with his age in interviews and articles right from the beginning. I saw 40, 42, 45 at different points. I think the original "40 year old rookie" was a general 40-ish all along. The references throughout the episodes have leaned more toward the 45 age for Nolan, like last night.

This change of course means they can't really mention Nolan dropping out of college because his girlfriend was pregnant unless they add details of him having to pay his way through school.

[voiceover]

The widow might've lived in a mansion for all I care.  

What was in the bedroom **belonged to her husband/belongs to her.  It was tragic & upsetting enough that her husband was murdered (and I'll bet his body hadn't been released back to her yet); now she has to wait for those things to be returned.

It's a mileage thing, to be sure, but I would seethe at hearing, "Gee lady, take some comfort with his nose hair clipper & chill!"

[DearEvette]

5 hours ago, threebluestars said:

Nolan and Bishop have a great relationship. I really enjoy them. And in a non-romantic way lol.

I enjoyed them the most this ep.  And I just love Talia. 

[FinnishViewer]

Quote

That's the problem, though

It's always a problem when there are no specific hard quantifiable criteria.

[Reality police]

On 2/27/2019 at 12:17 AM, voiceover said:

Awwww...I dug it!  Glad to see that Bishop might get some action (love her) w/the plainclothes cop. Though I missed what he said that put her off so much, he felt like he needed to apologize.

West's talk with the widow touched me.  I know from sad experience that it's the little stupid things you clutch to your heart after a loved one is gone.  The broken/not broken watch story was lovely.  A nice moment to lighten the hideous reminder that in the case of criminal, or suspected criminal action, it's all evidence.  Making the victim of a crime, a victim twice over.

Yay Nolan for figuring out -- thanks to Bishop's nudge -- he'll be better at his job as himself.   Another universal truth.

Poor Chen.  I can so relate.  My ass would totally be kicked to the curb if I had to survive customer surveys in **that line of work (I know I've got a charming demeanor around here, but my resting bitchface has gotten me in trouble IRL).

Sorry, but aren't food trucks a "pay as you go" proposition?  Did I miss the honor system at work here?  

What if they already paid the bill and she gave to him to reimburse them?

[ketose]

10 hours ago, eel2178 said:

However, I can't help wondering, if the guy didn't think he was being threatened, would he have killed his neighbor?

The guy never thought he was being threatened. The kind of person who has a chain link fence and dirt for a lawn knows exactly what he can get away with. He also knows that the LAPD has rules about what you can say to a civilian. He even started to call the watch commander when Bradford offered him special favors if he let the complaint against Chen go.

Murdering the neighbor was a plot contrivance to allow Chen to get herself out of the situation.

[shapeshifter]

6 minutes ago, ketose said:

Murdering the neighbor was a plot contrivance to allow Chen to get herself out of the situation.

As they say in poker parlance: I'll see your plot contrivance and raise you one [murdering neighbor is a] cartoon character.
Heh.

[mxc90]

4 hours ago, Reality police said:

What if they already paid the bill and she gave to him to reimburse them?

I wish Chen luck if she thinks he will pay her.

[Clanstarling]

On 2/26/2019 at 8:06 PM, ketose said:

If Bradford had 12 rookies wash out on Plain Clothes Day compared to the others with 3, doesn't that kind of make him a bad TO? His badass cop demeanor is one reason why Chen went all Rampart on that guy.

Failure of a student is a reflection on the the teacher. I don't necessarily think it makes him a bad TO, but it seems odd to brag about it.

On 2/27/2019 at 12:55 AM, Brian Cronin said:

They retconned Nolan's age, right? He mentioned being 50 if he became a detective in five years. In the pilot, he was 40 years old. Fillion is 47 years old, so I think they might have given up on trying to pass Nolan off as 40. If so, I approve!

I missed that, but you're right.

On 2/27/2019 at 5:16 AM, mxc90 said:

When the perv was watching the girl from outside, it reminded me of young George McFly from "Back to the Future". Times have changed how this is viewed.

Sure, it has changed. However, to be fair, George's infraction was much lower on the perv bell curve (doesn't make it right - peeping toms were called out even then). The other guy was filming and pretty much at the high end of the curve.

16 hours ago, Waterston Fan said:

Kind of a slow episode but I did wonder if maybe West's dad made West do the evidence stuff he was doing. I do have a hard time believing the woman didn't even have a picture of her late husband still in the house. I thought maybe West will get in trouble for giving her the watch at least.

I have tons of pictures of my departed loved ones - but the things that mean the most, that connect me to them, are the things they wore or made. Sentimental things, which would be difficult to lose.
 

13 hours ago, eel2178 said:

Also, can you really buy alcohol from a food truck?

If you have the right permit. That truck looks like it's in a fairly static location, and may be able to qualify under restaurant liquor licenses.

[Moose135]

On 2/26/2019 at 11:46 PM, mxc90 said:

Why is Nolan thinking about being a detective at this stage of the game?

You always want to have a goal to shoot for - hell, it's a common question in many job interviews: "Where do you see yourself in 5 years..."

Having a goal helps him make choices about the sort of assignments he looks for moving forward that will help get him there.

[mxc90]

14 hours ago, Clanstarling said:

Sure, it has changed. However, to be fair, George's infraction was much lower on the perv bell curve (doesn't make it right - peeping toms were called out even then). The other guy was filming and pretty much at the high end of the curve.

Sorry to turn this into a Back to The Future discussion............

Anyway, George deserves to be moved a few spots up on the perv curve. We had the benefit to see him before his peeping moment. He bolts out of the diner (as if he memorized the time the lady or Lorraine would be changing and was running late) to climb a tree with binoculars for the optimal view (dude went above and beyond just for a peek). 

......back to the Rookie discussion.

Edited March 1, 2019 by mxc90

[Dbolt]

I had several issues with this episode. First, how long do boots stay with their TO?  I would think at least 6 months to a year. If that is the case how long has Bradford been a TO that he has washed out 11 boots just on plain clothes day?  I am assuming that he has had some wash out on other days besides plain clothes day. That makes it seem like not washing out with him is the exception rather than the rule. 

Second, it seems odd to me that the jackass who just accidentally killed his neighbor would still be as big a butt hole when they came back. I would think he would want to minimize his contact with the police at that point, not antagonize them by lodging another complaint. 

Third, I would think that making West spend the day doing paperwork defeats the purpose of plain clothes day. Since the point is to see how they handle themselves when they are in charge, spending the day doing a menial rite task doesn’t prove anything. 

[Clanstarling]

13 hours ago, mxc90 said:

Sorry to turn this into a Back to The Future discussion............

Anyway, George deserves to be moved a few spots up on the perv curve. We had the benefit to see him before his peeping moment. He bolts out of the diner (as if he memorized the time the lady or Lorraine would be changing and was running late) to climb a tree with binoculars for the optimal view (dude went above and beyond just for a peek). 

......back to the Rookie discussion.

Fair point - I'd forgotten that.

[Clanstarling]

42 minutes ago, Dbolt said:

Second, it seems odd to me that the jackass who just accidentally killed his neighbor would still be as big a butt hole when they came back. I would think he would want to minimize his contact with the police at that point, not antagonize them by lodging another complaint. 

Third, I would think that making West spend the day doing paperwork defeats the purpose of plain clothes day. Since the point is to see how they handle themselves when they are in charge, spending the day doing a menial rite task doesn’t prove anything.  

It is odd, but after serving on grand jury last year, I discovered that old adage is right - crooks are stupid. The other case for that might be that 1) the body was in the garage so he felt safe it wouldn't be discovered and 2) he felt his harassment complaint protected him.

As for West, it's a thin rationale, but since police work involves more than being on the street, the menial task assignment does prove how he deals with having to do something he doesn't want to do - and how diligent he is at logging evidence. Though I'm not sure basic officers log evidence in that manner.

Edited March 1, 2019 by Clanstarling

[madmaverick]

This was one of my favourite episodes.  I guess I like it when the rookies don't always succeed and Lessons Are Learnt TM.  The writer was one of my favourite writers on Castle, Terence Winter, and I didn't realize when I was watching so I guess his writing still works for me on another show.  The dialogue seemed just a little sharper and everything just gelled together more for me. 

The scene at the end with Bishop/Nolan was one of my faves of the series to date.  I like their snark and I like their heartfelt convos and of all the T.O.s, I think I like Bishop's teaching style and model of policing best. T heir partnership has really grown on me and is probably my favourite duo on the show.  The actors have more chemistry than other romantic pairings imo.  Fast forward to the end of the series, and bring on the dream team, Detective Bishop & Detective Nolan heh.  Actually I guess the predictable end scene would be the rookies becoming T.O.s...

100 shifts? Anyone have any idea how far that is into the rookie probation period? Just trying to get an idea of where they are in their training.

Nolan really would be great at the Front Desk lol.  I thought his brushing off the woman was a bit out of character for affable him but clearly there were Lessons to be Learnt.  I do like that he has ambition in his second police career with detective dreams.  It's good to have goals and I do think it's in character given all he put into making it through the academy etc in the first place.

Nathan wasn't that convincing as a runner last week, but I do find him convincing in the otherwise Man of Action TM Cop scenes this week.  

Cop shows sure seem to like to use trucks as sets.  Inexpensive?

Don't care (if slightly intrigued) for Bishop being with a married man, but I don't want to see her with this other cop either.

West clearly has Daddy issues but good to see he's beginning to get over them.  Good job by the actor showing how awful it was at first to not be able to help the lady.

I thought Lucy's "threat" wasn't so threatening either compared to what the man said to her, but perhaps it's best not to use intimidation of any sort in policing. You don't want to sink to perp level.

Does anyone even film video with a handheld and not a phone anymore?  Especially if you want to watch, upload and share and I guess also look more inconspicuous when filming something you shouldn't be.  Though there are loads of hidden cameras far more inconspicuous than phones.  Unfortunately for us women.

Do people even read print magazines anymore instead of being reading whatever on their phones?

Those two things stuck out to me.

[Clanstarling]

4 hours ago, madmaverick said:

100 shifts? Anyone have any idea how far that is into the rookie probation period? Just trying to get an idea of where they are in their training.

Well, if you assume 5 shifts a week, then they're at 20 weeks. I believe the period is one year. So, not quite halfway through?

[Accidental Martyr]

I guess it was lucky that the guy that Nolan handcuffed didn’t injure or kill someone after Bishop let him get away.

If this show continues to be renewed are they going to eventually have to change the title?🤔

[shapeshifter]

3 hours ago, Accidental Martyr said:

I guess it was lucky that the guy that Nolan handcuffed didn’t injure or kill someone after Bishop let him get away.

I was thinking that too until we saw (I think?) that his hands were cuffed behind his back and (I think?) he was shot in the leg. Probably it was more likely that he would've gotten rolled for spare change.

[BlakesMomma]

1 minute ago, shapeshifter said:

I was thinking that too until we saw (I think?) that his hands were cuffed behind his back and (I think?) he was shot in the leg. Probably it was more likely that he would've gotten rolled for spare change.

Yeah, Bishop doesn't strike me as a person who would have let him go if he wasn't handcuffed and shot which made him pretty much unable to harm anyone.

[Raja]

On 2/26/2019 at 8:06 PM, ketose said:

If Bradford had 12 rookies wash out on Plain Clothes Day compared to the others with 3, doesn't that kind of make him a bad TO? His badass cop demeanor is one reason why Chen went all Rampart on that guy.

On 2/27/2019 at 12:23 AM, FinnishViewer said:

Not necessarily. It might just mean he is tougher in evaluating his rookies compared to the others.

However we know that Officer Bradford was Officer Bishop's TO so he has been in this line of work longer than her and possible Officer Lopez too.

On 2/27/2019 at 3:32 AM, ketose said:

Unless they really match the rookies with the TOs, it means the other TOs put marginal cops on the street because fewer wash out.

On 2/28/2019 at 6:20 AM, Clanstarling said:

Failure of a student is a reflection on the the teacher. I don't necessarily think it makes him a bad TO, but it seems odd to brag about it.

I think the story comes from the society's elite bias. We have gotten away from the Drill Instructor who had 9 in 10 of his recruits become Marines and focus   on the 1 in 10 make the Green Berets/SEALs while the instructor takes pride in making people ring the bell and quit. On the show from the first scene by average one of those Boots won't be back for a second season.  As an instructor yes a failure rate isn't just weeding out the weak, especially if his average is an easily recognizable  percentage more than his peers.

[Clanstarling]

1 hour ago, Raja said:

On 2/27/2019 at 12:23 AM, FinnishViewer said:

Not necessarily. It might just mean he is tougher in evaluating his rookies compared to the others.

However we know that Officer Bradford was Officer Bishop's TO so he has been in this line of work longer than her and possible Officer Lopez too.

Good point. I'd forgotten he's been at this longer.

[Accidental Martyr]

19 hours ago, BlakesMomma said:

Yeah, Bishop doesn't strike me as a person who would have let him go if he wasn't handcuffed and shot which made him pretty much unable to harm anyone.

19 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

I was thinking that too until we saw (I think?) that his hands were cuffed behind his back and (I think?) he was shot in the leg. Probably it was more likely that he would've gotten rolled for spare change.

What if he had stumbled out into the street and caused an accident that injured or killed someone?