The Rookie Season 7 Episode 12 Channels the Purge, Except with Chenford’s Situationship

Critic’s Rating: 3.2 / 5.0

3.2

Did anyone order The Purge?

It seems that The Rookie Season 7 is having some fun paying homage to some classic, fan-favorite films and concepts.

Fresh off a “Speed” episode, The Rookie Season 7 Episode 12 uses its April Fool’ s-themed hour to nod at The Purge franchise.

What do you expect of an hour of The Rookie devoted to a holiday filled with fun and pranks? The stakes during this one were incredibly low; it was a classic filler episode, and honestly, there’s not much to unpack.

Because we were down some rookies, and Miles, the poor chap, somehow got stuck in traffic court or something, the hour introduced us to taller Seth.

Craig wasn’t a bad guy; he didn’t seem like a capable cop, and considering that he was under the tutelage of an esteemed officer in the field, it’s no wonder Nolan thought that Grey saddling him with the kid was a joke.

What good is this kid if he can’t handle anything LA tosses at him on any given day? The problem isn’t that he didn’t have the heart or will for the job, but his errors could kill Nolan or anyone else.

It was unfortunate, and Nolan’s run-in with his first training officer was frustrating. The guy was so worried about his legacy and ending his career on a high note rather than with a trainee who took too much work and may have reflected poorly that he didn’t even consider the ramifications of his actions.

Covering up Craig’s inadequacies and passing him on to the next person is incredibly dangerous and thoughtless. It subtly indicts what can and does happen in reality, resulting in poorly trained officers in the field.

Fortunately, Nolan didn’t have it, and he allowed Craig to prove himself rather than completely washing him out as an officer, but goodness, the kid fumbled constantly.

His behavior during the purge situation was mixed, but in the end, it seems like he’ll be okay if he’s in another district with a slower speed.

I wonder if he’ll return in some capacity based on Nolan giving him his card. Hell, it wouldn’t even be surprising if he somehow turns up a victim. You never know with The Rookie.

But this random rookie who was here and gone throughout this hour only seemed like something for Nolan to do. It also left me wondering about Seth and what’s in the wake of his threats that haven’t come to fruition yet.

Craig and Nolan’s case was one of domestic abuse and more complexity to that as Anita murdered her abusive husband and tried to get away with it during the Purge situation.

Unsurprisingly, The Rookie fumbles a chance to reference the Bailey/Jason situation. But what else is new?

Meanwhile, Bradford, when he wasn’t playing tonsil hockey with Lucy, had to deal with the police’s social media intern, who literally instigated all of this chaos.

The parking tickets incident was only mildly amusing, but the second she tweeted out and instigated a full-blown Purge, I wanted the girl perp-walked to the deepest, darkest cell. She was so cavalier about it.

Then she dared to call Tim personally when the consequences of her actions came hitting her in the face as pandemonium ensued, and someone killed another person right in front of her.

I feel like there was a valid thing to address amid all of this about how the police constantly need to improve their social image for their own actions or incompetency. Still, it all goes to hell when you have this woman calling for anarchy and then regretting it.

It at least showed Chenford and Celina being utter badasses as they took down multiple people in the clerk’s office. The action of that entire situation was worth watching.

The most regrettable is that we didn’t get a full Purge episode. If The Rookie committed to it, it would’ve made for a great two-part episode filled with action and high stakes.

As for Chenford. I don’t know what we’re doing, going, or what to say anymore.

Lucy using April’s Fool’s Day to hop aboard Tim’s happy trail and go for a ride is all great and everything. Still, if they won’t have the necessary conversations and outline where they are in their relationship, it’s just sex with limited meaning.

It doesn’t seem like Tim has done whatever he needs to do to earn Lucy’s trust again and properly manage their relationship. And it doesn’t seem like Lucy wants a steady relationship.

We have them inextricably tied to each other but not together. They won’t see or pursue other people but aren’t moving forward either. They have sex together, but there are none of the meaningful couple things anymore.

Their feelings are still hanging out between them, but that’s it.

The two of them hooking up the one time was understandable and fit with the storyline, and I can understand how it happened even when Lucy said she wasn’t ready for anything else anymore.

But her heading to his house to pull a holiday April Fool’s Card Sex Card doesn’t feel like Lucy after some of the conversations she’s had already about the state of their relationship.

Now she’s giving mixed signals to Tim and the audience, and I don’t know what the series is going for with these two anymore. They want the best of both worlds: romantic Chenford without commitment.

Never mind the characters; The Rookie can’t keep straddling the line with this pairing.

Over to you, Rookie Fanatics.

How are you feeling about the Chenford situation? Did you enjoy the Purge angle? Will Craig return? Let’s hear it below!

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