The Rookie Season 2 Episode 4 Review: Warriors and Guardians
Christine Orlando
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John Nolan had no time to think about his complicated love life on The Rookie Season 2 Episode 4.
That's because he needed his full focus to be on the job as he finally got a new training officer in Detective Nyla Harper.
To say that Detective Harper has some edge to her is an understatement. Any cop who hopes to have to use an AR-15 on the job is a little scary.
Nyla Harper doesn't trust anyone and everyone is viewed as an adversary until they prove themselves to be otherwise, which is probably why she expected the worst of Nolan right from the start.
Nyla: Wife left you. Kid left you. Nothing like a gun in hand to make you feel powerful again.
Nolan: No, that’s not why at all.
At first, she assumed Nolan was a guy in the middle of a mid-life crisis looking for a power trip and then, a moment later, she'd decided he was some sort of nurturing do-gooder who was too soft to deserve her time.
Nolan: Because when people are having their worst day I want to be there to try and help make it right.
Nyla: Oh God, you’re one of those.
Nolan: One of what?
Nyla: A guardian. There are two kinds of cops, Officer Nolan. Warriors and guardians. One’s a hunter, the other’s a nurturer. One is only alive when they’re in the fight, the other is happy to clock out after twelve. One is worth my time, the other is not.
If Nolan and Nyla's initial meeting taught us nothing else, it was that she's used to making split-second judgment calls about people but I suppose that's a necessary trait if you're working undercover with cartel members, gang leaders, and drug dealers.
Nolan was a bit blindsided by Harper's attitude.
For a guy who took this job to help people, hearing Harper say that she decided to take the training officer position for the 5% pay bump had to be disheartening.
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Nyla's attitude was a bit difficult to take especially when she blatantly seemed to disrespect Sgt. Grey by not showing up for roll call in order to be introduced to the rest of the squad.
Not only did Grey give Nolan the heads up on Harper's background he also demonstrated his respect for the rookie he had once tried to scare off the job.
Sgt. Grey: She’s spent the last four years neck-deep in paranoia and adrenaline. Lying every time she opened her mouth. Striking out at any sign of aggression. Now don’t get me wrong, I have the utmost respect for her service but transitioning back into a uniform, that’s going to be a bitch.
Nolan: So you made her my T.O.?
Sgt. Grey: I didn’t have much say in that matter. She would eat a 25-year-old recruit alive. At least you stand a chance.
It wasn't so long ago that Sgt. Grey thought Nolan being older was a detriment to the department but it this case, he clearly saw it as a benefit.
What Grey realized was that Nolan has had enough life experience not to let a questionable training officer intimidate him or push him around, no matter how much power she might have.
And Nolan took Grey's belief and ran with it.
Nyla: I don’t answer to you, 5%.
Nolan: No, you don’t but if you are committed to making this an antagonistic relationship, don’t expect me to roll over and take it.
That The Rookie quote even appeared to earn Nolan a bit of respect from Harper herself.
I'm not completely sold on the addition of Detective Nyla Harper just yet, but I see her potential to shake thing up and keep Nolan on his toes.
It's also satisfying to see Nolan have to decide where to draw the line with a training officer he's not entirely certain he can trust.
Nyla Harper is a wild card but she seems to have a heart underneath all of that bravado and aggression.
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The fact that she appears to have used her "golden ticket" to take a position which would help her regain custody of her daughter will no doubt endear her to Nolan, eventually.
I say, eventually because there's no way she'll be sharing that information with him or anyone else any time soon.
Elsewhere, we learned a little more about Angela Lopez's background after she and West stumbled upon a couple of callous, entitled brats using their high-priced, high-power paintball guns to terrify a homeless woman.
Those kids took away her dignity, tortured her for fun. She deserves a little compassion.
Lopez
But Alice had her own secret and as much as Lopez may have sympathized with her plight, they still needed to arrest her for the hit and run that took place a decade ago.
Hopefully, we'll get to know more about Lopez's background, including what drove her to become a cop because the little bits and pieces that we've gotten so far have been intriguing.
And then there was Bradford.
Bradford's a fantastic character because underneath all of his bluster, he's a first-rate cop and a good friend.
He wasn't about to let Harper put Nolan in a bad spot without at least trying to look out for him.
Bradford: Grey’s put you in a bad position. She’s a land mine waiting to go off, so if you find yourself in a jam, you text Officer Chen. We’ll be there.
Nolan: Thank you.
Bradford: Don’t get all emotional on me. Training rookies is a sacred duty and it bothers me when cops don’t treat it that way.
When Bradford expresses how seriously he takes being a training officer, I don't doubt that he means it. He's always tough on Chen, but the hard-earned lessons, like stealing her gun belt from the bathroom stall or having the fake bomb blow powder in her face, are all for her own good.
On some level, Lucy knows that or she wouldn't bother trying to help Tim with his relationship with Rachel.
At first, I thought that Bradford was simply so self-centered that all of his birthday gift ideas automatically revolved around him, but then he said that these were the type of things he'd do for Isabel and it made a little more sense.
Lucy was able to push him into digging a bit deeper into what he knew about Rachel and in the end, I thought he made a great gift choice, especially as they'd only been dating a couple of weeks.
So what do you think TV Fanatics?
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Do you want to see more of Detective Nyla Harper? Will she be a good challenge for Nolan?
Did you miss Jessica and Grace or did we need a break from Nolan's love life?
Would you like to see Nolan cross paths with Nick Armstrong, the night detective once again or does he need more time with his fellow rookies?
As my Sunday nights are no longer complete without The Rookie, check back in for my review of The Rookie Season 2 Episode 5 and until then, watch The Rookie online here at TV Fanaitic.
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C. Orlando was a TV Fanatic Staff Writer. Follow her on Twitter.
