S.W.A.T. Season 1 Episode 8 Review: Miracle
Kassie King
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On S.W.A.T. Season 1 Episode 8 Hondo and Mumford's teams are called into work over their holiday break when bars of gold are stolen from a local cartel.
With an episode aptly named "Miracle" it seemed like S.W.A.T. was going for a lighthearted holiday feeling, but it leaned just a little bit too far toward cheesy for my liking.
There were several aspects of this hour that I think had great potential, but instead of being more fully explored, they were mushed together and glossed over.
Mumford: What the hell did these clowns decide to die for?
Hondo: What were the three gifts the Wise Men brought to Bethlehem?
Plank: Frankiense.
Mumford: Myrrh.
Hondo: And gold.
"Miracle" seemed far more like a filler episode than a winter finale.
The hour opened at HQ where a very swanky holiday party was being hosted and donations for the local children's hospital accepted.
Hicks seemed eager to show off Hondo to their wealthy guests, exemplifying his hypocrisy as he used the team leader as a show pony.
This was not his only disappointing move that we saw. Jessica also discovered that Hicks failed to give her policing proposals to the Police Commissioner, Michael Plank.
I admire Jessica's tenacity and determination, and wasn't shocked at all to see her take charge and approach Plank directly.
Although he did claim that her ideas were largely expensive and unrealistic, Plank did encourage her accountability and anti-biased training which shows which side of the line he's on (and it's certainly opposite of Hicks.)
Whether it was gratefulness at finally being heard or the glow of the holiday spirit, Jessica seemed more than a little pleased with Plank. Was there a hint of a crush I saw there?
Street: Well, there goes my plans for tonight.
Chris: PG or R rated plans?
Street: I was hoping for NC-17.
I wouldn't blame her. Of course, Hondo is the man, but Jessica deserves a love that can be shown out in the open too. Maybe Plank is that guy?
Speaking of love, Deacon seemed more distressed than usual to be leaving his wife Annie and his children when he was called into work.
Deacon was probably the most out of character this hour, in my eyes.
He desperately searched for a specific toy for his son for Christmas, and his level of despondency seemed out of line with the character of man who is so often confident, in control, and reliable.
Who was this strange mopey version of Deacon that we saw? And when is our right hand silver fox coming back?
Forgiveness starts with forgiving yourself.
Deacon
Between his distress leaving his family and the two bullets he took to his vest, I thought the show was going to focus in on the sacrifices that Deacon has had to make in order to be a S.W.A.T. team member.
It's clear that he has the most to leave behind if something were to happen to him and I'm sure that weighs heavily on his heart. I would have really enjoyed delving deeper into his need to protect, and why he feels he needs to be on the front line in order to do so.
Deacon also had a strange connection to their undercover civilian, Raya.
When he pulled his good cop routine on her in the interrogation, I assumed he was just pulling the same "connect with the locals" thing that we see with Hondo. But, it ended up appearing much deeper than that.
When you do good without the reward, that's when you find grace.
Deacon
Deacon and Raya's connection seemed to revolve a lot around faith, which does tie in with the Christmas theme, but the whole hour seemed to be laced with religious undertones and Christian imagery and I worry about S.W.A.T. potentially isolating some of their viewers.
In the end Raya got her chance at a new life, and Hondo gave Deacon the "miracle" of the toy he'd been searching for for his son. The gift was sweet, but slightly overdone in my opinion.
Hondo may have played the role of Santa Claus for Deacon, but in the future he should probably stick to S.W.A.T. I don't think he could rock the white beard and his vest probably wouldn't fit over the suit.
A fun part of the hour was certainly the S.W.A.T. Tag game that Hondo set in motion within the team. And I must say it had a pretty sweet prize: a trip to the Grammys.
(I wonder if the Tag winners Chris and Luca will make a sneaky appearance on CBS on January 28th... I guess we'll have to watch and see!)
Chris: I don't get it, how can you not like hip-hop?
Street: Well, it's just people talking, with music in the background. And even I can do that.
Hondo: Okay, Street, that's the whitest thing I've ever heard you say.
Chris: Hondo, what's your go-to music?
Hondo: When I'm working out, it's West Coast funk. I mean, if me and my girl are taking care of business, you gotta let jazz do what it does. When I'm chilling, its always the blues, and anytime's the right time for Otis Redding.
The idea of the tag game was very clever and it was fun watching the team get cutthroat with each other in order to win.
The idea of using the S.W.A.T. protocols as part of the game was also a great way to bring viewers more into the world of law enforcement and bring attention to the little things that go into making a S.W.A.T. officer.
All in all, "Miracle" was a fine episode. It was sweet, a little cheesy, and light on the drama. I'm excited to see what kind of action S.W.A.T. is going to bring us in the new year!
Don't forget to watch S.W.A.T. online to catch up on the latest episodes!
Kassie King was a staff writer for TV Fanatic. She retired in December 2017. Follow her on Twitter.
