The Rookie Season 6 Episode 5 Review: The Vow
Jasmine Blu
at
.
Did anyone have Nolan and Bailey considering parenthood on their Bingo Cards?
We just got past the Bailan wedding, and now, thanks to sweet baby Anna on The Rookie Season 6 Episode 5, the pair may have to consider their stances on parenthood and what type of future they have together in that regard.
The hour also introduced us to a multi-episode arc involving Tim Bradford's past, which threatens to challenge him and Lucy and his position on the force.
There was so much great content within the hour, and there's only a promise for more.
The hour also did a decent job of juggling many characters with storylines.
Offhand, since my colleague was musing about how Elijah Stone is a great villain, the Oscar Hutchinson deposition has been mildly interesting.
The biggest issue with this deposition that came out of nowhere and seemingly led to nothing is the belief that there's far more to it.
They knew it was a frivolous lawsuit launched against Nolan, and both Monica and Oscar must've known they wouldn't get too far with it.
But what's the larger game plan behind why they did this in the first place? There has to be something more significant at play, and there's still plenty of reason to wonder if it has to do with Elijah planning something.
However, for now, Nolan participated in the last of the deposition, and the judge threw his portion of the suit out, so he's in the clear.
While he was away, though, it meant Bailey Nune had to confront some of her insecurities and fears regarding motherhood, and it had some interesting results.
Bailey: Ok, let's do it.
Nolan: Do what?
Bailey: Foster her!
Not in a million years did it seem as though Bailey and Nolan would ever have to consider how they felt about having children.
Nolan is a dad, and his son is grown. He's been content with that, and Bailey never expressed any interest in wanting to start a family of her own with Nolan.
But Anna changed something in her, and it was interesting to see the two of them try to navigate that. Anna was such a sweet little girl who wormed her way into both of their hearts.
She had them considering the process of becoming foster parents. It was interesting how Nolan was the one to initiate the process of keeping Anna temporarily, and then Bailey was who had to come around.
But now, it seems like something was unlocked in Bailey. Now that she's no longer paranoid about what type of mother she would be after her traumatic babysitting experience, she wants to pursue motherhood in some shape or fashion.
They'll have to navigate it together because Bailey may have caught "Baby Fever," and I don't believe John Nolan is prepared for that.
One's heart broke for Anna, though. The poor child was in a closet and didn't even realize that someone had annihilated her entire family over a scratch-off ticket.
What has the world come to, right?
I'm not Mom Material.
Bailey
But at least they got the guy after some intense shootout situation where Nolan came across like a full-blown action star using long guns, rolling around, and tossing tear gas like a pro.
The high-velocity rounds were a scary sight, and I'm grateful that Harper and Lopez were able to hold their own during that situation and Celina Suarez didn't fall victim to whatever this new thing is that has caused her to screw up at crime scenes perpetually.
She started the hour, forgetting that they had a person they needed to process in the shop, and she also failed to clear the closet at the crime scene, which could've been disastrous if it was the shooter in there and not Anna.
For some reason, Celina keeps screwing up, and I don't know if there is a storyline on the horizon based on that or if it's meant to reflect on Nolan as a training officer.
Related: The Resident Falls Short of the Perfect Binge Watch
But the hour also set up this storyline with Tim, and it's already gearing up to be intense.
We haven't learned much about his military past before this, so they've set things up well with his old army buddy returning for a sinister revenge plot no one could envision Tim ever participating in.
Whatever happened to them overseas is incredibly dark, so much so that Tim and Grier talked about actually murdering Ray if they ever laid eyes on him again.
They took a vow, and Grier wanted to come correct with it, even though he's apparently a lawyer and Tim is a cop.
Greer: You would arrest me for killing that scumbag?
Tim: Yes.
Greer: OK. Then I'm out. But whatever death and destruction Ray causes next, that's on you.
There's no going back from killing someone, even a person who was pretending to be dead all of this time after he went AWOL.
It seems they hold Ray responsible for the deaths of their other unit members, and whatever transpired must've been so heinous that they didn't see another way out.
They had Tim and Grier speaking around things instead of addressing them head-on, and it's likely deliberately misleading to build up the suspense even further.
We're no more enlightened than Lucy is with all of this going on with Tim.
Lucy: Telling me you're alive is not optional. What the hell are you into that's making you so crazy?
Tim: I can't tell you.
Lucy: Why?
Tim: Because even telling you can put you at risk.
All we know is that when Grier called, Tim went running. He left Lucy Chen on date night to meet up with this man, and he went radio silent with her, ignoring her phone calls for 36 hours.
And the little he did tell her was enough to alarm her. While he didn't outright explain everything, he shared enough to warn her that her being in the know would jeopardize her career.
She knows that for Tim to say that what he's keeping from her is pretty bad, and it's terrifying that it could also impact his career and future.
While it's on brand for Lucy to seek the advice of others in a situation like that, it was bizarre that she told Nolan as much as she did.
The moment she realized that it involved something potentially career-ending, it was probably up to her to use a bit of discretion.
Thorsen: you are the first person that I have ever felt open talking to, and I can't lose that. So, despite the physical attraction --
Blair: I need to make this very clear. There was no physical attraction on my end. I want to be very clear on that.
It was surprising that she didn't. But she also has a reason to be worried about Tim and what he's into. She loves him enough not to want to see him risk his career over something he shouldn't be doing.
But she can't make decisions for him either.
This situation is making things tense for these two, and while there's little doubt they'll get through things, it's just another challenge lobbed at this couple in a short period of time.
You get the sense that Lucy is determined to save Tim from himself, but she also doesn't take too kindly to him lying and leaving her out of things, and she's put a boundary down regarding that.
Related: Alert: Missing Persons Unit Review: Ms. Patty
As for Tim, we don't know what to expect from him regarding this storyline. He insists that he doesn't want to kill Ray, and it's evident he wants to find another avenue to make Ray pay.
It's why he's staking out Ray's spot, and he wants to do things on his terms, despite the vow he made however long ago.
However, regardless of how Tim feels and his intentions with this, everything goes differently than planned, especially when high emotions are in the equation.
Ray threatened to ruin them, so there's nothing easy about this potential arc. But there's a lot of intrigue around it!
Over to you, Rookie Fanatics. Should Bailey and Nolan pursue parenthood together? How do you feel about Tim's mysterious vow? Let's hear it below!
The Rookie airs Tuesdays on ABC at 9/8c. You can stream the following day on Hulu.
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. She is an insomniac who spends late nights and early mornings binge-watching way too many shows and binge-drinking way too much tea. Her eclectic taste makes her an unpredictable viewer with an appreciation for complex characters, diverse representation, dynamic duos, compelling stories, and guilty pleasures. You'll definitely find her obsessively live-tweeting, waxing poetic, and chatting up fellow Fanatics and readers. Follow her on X.
