Trouble follows Officer John Nolan, but that's half the fun of The Rookie Season 2 Episode 18.

Who else would offer juvenile offenders snacks while bringing them to a Scared Straight program? 

I suppose Nolan didn't think he was supposed to be part of the program that scared them.

But Harper wasn't thrilled about this babysitting duty, nor was she about to take any flack off these kids.

Harper: Nothing like getting hit on by a 12-year-old delinquent to get your day started.
Fletcher: Hey yo, I’m 15.
Nolan: Not better.

• Permalink: Not better.

Nolan's offer of candy didn't matter much in the end because if a prison riot didn't scare these kids straight, nothing would.

It almost made me feel sorry for Fletcher, the kid who tried to steal the van. Would running for his life from violent prison inmates have changed his attitude? Unfortunately, we'll never know. 

The prison had some wonderful guest stars such as Tina Lifford, who played the warden.

I love Lifford as Violet Bordelon on Queen Sugar, and although Warden Miller was just as strong as Aunt Vi, I was still surprised she survived the riot.

Not that I have much first-hand knowledge, or any knowledge of prison riots, but it seems like violent inmates would kill a warden if they ever got their hands on them. 

Oddly enough, I found Oscar more entertaining here than when he stabbed Wesley during the lockdown. I prefer him smart and focused on self-preservation rather than violent, even though he's obviously capable of all of the above.

I’m not a tough guy, I’m a cockroach. I’ll do whatever it takes to come out on top.

Oscar

• Permalink: I’m not a tough guy, I’m a cockroach. I’ll do whatever it takes to come out on top.

Also, it was great to see Josh Wingate as prison inmate, Caine. He played the role of an ex-con on Castle Season 3 Episode 14 that was so much fun that thinking about it still makes me smile. 

All of those crazed inmates chasing Nolan, Harper the guard, and the kids to that gate reminded me of a zombie apocalypse movie. They were lucky those prisoners didn't try to make it over the razor wire!

Despite enjoying the drama of the prison story and how they tried to get through to those kids, Harper and Nolan going back inside without backup or any type of weapons tested my willingness to put reality aside in order to appreciate a good story. 

To have Nolan survive another harrowing day only to get his heart broken wasn't a surprise. It didn't take a psychic to realize that Grace and her ex, not really ex, husband weren't quite finished yet. 

Even though Grace's explanation about it not being the right time to introduce Nolan as her boyfriend made sense, given that she and her husband were discussing serious issues concerning Oliver, Nolan knew it didn't bode well for him.

If Grace and her ex think that getting back together is the panacea for their son acting out, then they are most likely in for a horrible disappointment. 

I'm sure Oliver would be thrilled in the beginning but I'd assume there are reasons why this marriage broke up.

If they truly want to be together and want to put in the work to fix those issues, that's one thing, but if they are only going through the motions believing that it's what's best for Oliver, then I fear all three of them are in for nothing but pain. 

Or, four of them if you count Nolan. 

Would it have made a difference if Nolan had told Grace he loved her? Maybe.

Either way, it doesn't sound like she's made a decision yet. Grace is a smart woman and she's taking some time to think about what she wants and what's best for her and her son. Hopefully, she'll reach a conclusion soon. 

Although I wouldn't want the show to become entirely about John Nolan's love life, he and Grace do have fantastic chemistry. They're fun to watch together, so I'm rooting for a reconciliation for these two. 

Unfortunately, or not depending upon which couple you're shipping, Tim Bradford was facing his own relationship issues.

I know there are plenty of Tim and Lucy shippers out there, but it's difficult to avoid seeing how adorable Tim and Rachel are together. 

The fact that Tim even considered transferring to the NYPD says a lot about how he feels about Rachel. Regrettably, he'd have to go through the NYPD academy and start from the bottom once again. 

You would be the John Nolan of the NYPD.

Grey

• Permalink: You would be the John Nolan of the NYPD.

As Lucy pointed out, Tim was born and bred in Los Angeles. He loves his city. Even if he loved Rachel enough to leave it, I don't think he loves her enough to negatively impact his career to that extent. 

Elsewhere, Lopez ended up on the wrong end of an algorithm. 

I know Angela can be brusque, it's one of the things I love about her, but I was a bit taken aback that Sgt. Grey would so readily believe that she was the officer to be most likely sued. 

Of course, Grey is probably used the bureaucracy of his job not always making sense. 

Lopez: Grey just wants me to play nice but how I act isn’t going to matter to a geek who only looks at numbers. I have to convince him that there’s data he’s not factoring into his algorithm.
West: And if he gets caught in the crossfire?
Lopez: Problem solved.

• Permalink: Problem solved.

Not only did I appreciate Angela's attitude about demonstrating what a good cop she was, but this storyline gave us another fantastic guest star in Graham Patrick Martin as Elvis. Martin played Rusty Beck, one of my favorite characters from Major Crimes!

Elvis thought he could use a dating app algorithm to accurately predict the future actions of police officers. Given the active shooter, it couldn't even anticipate the consequence of a bad date.

So TV Fanatics, did any of these guest stars have you calling out their previous character names? 

Are you rooting for Nolan and Grace or against them? How about Tim and Rachel?

Were you as happy to see Bradford's dog again as I was?

And did you see that promo for The Rookie Season 2 Episode 19?

Any guesses on who might be the mole in the LAPD? I know I have my suspicions but I want to hear your pick first so hit that BIG, BLUE, SHOW COMMENTS BUTTON down below and share your theories.

And until next time, you can watch The Rookie online here at TV Fanatic. 

C. Orlando was a TV Fanatic Staff Writer. Follow her on Twitter.