Summary: Jake tries to help Terry solve an old case that he was never able to solve. Holt, Rosa and Amy attend a bomb defusing class. Charles deals with Pimento living in his house.
The Good: This episode has some good jokes throughout. Holt, Rosa and Amy trying to outcompete each other was a fun sub plot, as was Charles trying to get Pimento out of his house and being a complete beta. The main story has some fun moments too as Jake and Terry have always had good chemistry and they share some great lines throughout the episode. The Bad: This episode just feels flat. Nothing of importance is happening here, nor has it been happening for much of this season, which is disappointing. This episode feels the most filler out of all recent episodes though and that hurts it. The stories here are fine but completely unspectacular, and outside of a few chuckles throughout the episode, it really didn't do a great job of being entertaining. I'm also very tired of a case going badly only for the very next scene to have Jake immediately figure out the solution to the case. The trope has been used many times and it's starting to bother me now. I also found the reveal that the wheelchair reveal was faked to be pretty weak. Did the police really not verify if the guy was actually confined to a wheelchair? Best Moment: The cold open was the best laugh of the episode for me. It was pretty predictable (yet entertaining) stuff throughout but really shone at the end with Jake's "Goodbye tank" followed by Holt's "Tank? I gained three pounds in Paris. THREE POUNDS!" Character of the Episode: Terry. Conclusion: This was a very ordinary episode that felt like filler without much for laughs. While nothing outright bad was in this episode, I was consistently unengaged which usually doesn't happen in "Brooklyn Nine-Nine". A weak effort overall. Score: 54
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Summary: Holt leaves Jake and Amy in charge of his house while he goes to Paris. Jake and Amy take care of Charles who is temporarily blind after eye surgery. Rosa and Pimento disrupt the precinct with their constant flirting.
The Good: There was a lot of good comedy here as everyone was entertaining to watch. Jake was very good here as he tried to fix the mess he created. Gina was entertaining in her attempts to stop Holt. Charles' blindness led to some great lines and visual gags (pun intended). And Rosa and Pimento's flirting was fantastic, made even better by Terry's dumbfounded reactions to it all. I enjoyed the joke cuts to Cheddar minding his own business while Jake dramatically treats him like some hardened criminal. The overall story of the episode concluded nicely with Holt admitting to problems with Kevin and having a surprisingly serious and human moment. The Bad: This was a very by-the-numbers sitcom plot that I saw coming from a mile away. I thought that the set-up for this story was ridiculous. Why would Holt ever trust Amy since he knows full well that she is allergic to dogs and will do anything to suck up to him? Why would everyone in the precinct drop their jobs immediately to find Cheddar? Do they even have jobs anymore? Charles' blindness was handled poorly in a way that made Charles look like a complete idiot to make things worse. The writing here just wasn't up to the standard that I expect. Best Moment: Jake: I know some of you are thinking who cares, it's just a pet? Terry: No one was thinking that, you monster. Character of the Episode: Terry. Conclusion: Typical to "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" episodes, this was fun but flawed. However, I found the writing flaws to be more serious in this episode so it gets a bit of a lower score from me. Score: 62 Summary: Jake offers to partner up with detective Adrian Pimento who recently returned after being undercover for 12 years. Charles makes a huge mess in the break room and he has to go to the janitor Mean Marge for help. Holt enlists Gina to make a promotional video for the precinct.
The Good: Pimento ended up being a really entertaining character to watch. It seems from this episode that he will be a recurring character which I'm all for if he can be as unique and funny as he was in this episode. His interactions with Jake were always fun, and Rosa's awkward infatuation with him has to be the funniest that Rosa has ever been. The A-story was overall really fun to watch and it told a nice story. The side stories weren't as compelling but they at least had some really funny moments like Charles constantly making messes, Terry's rage at almost dying and the actor Gina got to play Holt. The Bad: The side stories were flat from a storytelling perspective and I felt like they underutilized most of the characters that were involved in them. I never got engaged in either story. The story of Jake coming to terms with accepting that his time undercover was lame was a good one but it was really shoved down our throats with the amount of times it was mentioned. Some restraint would have gone a long way. Best Moment: I'll go with Terry shouting that he will die saving the president or he will never die. Character of the Episode: Pimento. Conclusion: This episode was a lot of fun, especially in the A-story with introduction of an exciting new character, but there were some issues that prevented this from being as good as it could have been. Still, I'm pleased with how consistent this season has become after a really rough start. Score: 66 Summary: Jake wants to get involved with a celebrity case so he pawns off a nothing case to Hitchcock and Scully who take things too far when the case turns out to be hugely important. Holt assigns Charles to the celebrity case and works with him. Amy, Rosa and Gina face their fears together.
The Good: It was nice to see Hitchcock and Scully take center stage. I've always been a sucker for episodes that bring background characters into focus, and this one did that in a fun way. The episode comes up with a ton of excellent jokes for them and it's fun to see these two idiots work a case together with disastrous results. Jake and Terry's involvement with this story is also fun and Terry's disbelief towards Jake's actions and both of them being stunned at Hitchcock and Scully's stupidity is very funny. The two side stories are solid enough and have plenty of funny moments. Holt and Charles remains an underused dynamic, so it's fun to see them working together. The classical musicians all being broke was a fun joke to conclude their story. Amy, Gina and Rosa don't get up to very much in this episode, but it's fine because all three are on their A-game, and the jokes surrounding them are excellent every time. The Bad: Weren't Hitchcock and Scully supposed to be secretly good cops that only pretend to be dumb to get out of hard work? What happened to that aspect of their characters? The show contradicts this by simply painting them as buffoons in this episode. Best Moment: There are so many great lines in this one. My favourite will have to be the out-of-nowhere racist joke with "Black Fred" which was surprisingly funny and handled appropriately. Character of the Episode: Hitchcock and Scully. I can't possibly separate them. Conclusion: This was a really funny episode that gets a lot right. I had a consistently good time watching this. Score: 71 Summary: The Nine-Eight invades on the Nine-Nine's precinct when their own precinct is shut down due to a gas leak. Holt, Amy, Rosa and Terry struggle to make compromises with their rude guests. Jake reunites with an old friend Stevie and brings him in to work a case with Charles, who quickly gets jealous.
The Good: This was a fun episode focused on a singular story of the Nine-Eight invading. There's a lot to enjoy here and I thought that the characters were used especially well with a lot of natural jokes highlighting the characters, like Hitchcock and Scully protecting the microwave, Amy's hate for the false service dog, Rosa mocking her chatty deskmate, Charles trying to prove himself as the superior friend, Holt hating that somebody would change the lumbar support on his chair, and Terry's distress when his yogurt was eaten (see: Best Moment). The jokes here landed very well and I was laughing consistently. Everything built up really well to the climactic brawl which ended up being an immensely satisfying, and funny, moment. The story with Jake, Stevie and Charles was also quite fun and put a unique strain on the Jake/Charles relationship that felt much more natural and realistic than what happened in "Stakeout" last season. The Bad: There were some story details that really bothered me. Having a fake service dog is very implausible, and it casts a poor light on disabled people with service dogs, which seems unnecessary. Furthermore, Amy surely should have simply been positioned far away from the dog considering her allergies, and forcing her to work in those conditions is very unrealistic. Lastly, I was surprised at how easy Stevie's arrest went since arresting another cop should bring out some sort of conflict, yet that isn't brought up here at all. Perhaps there will be consequences to this in the future, if so I will retract this complaint. Best Moment: The entire rooftop scene was hilarious, but the best part of it had to be Terry's distress when the Nine-Eight ate his yogurt. After several seasons of knowing how much Terry loves yogurt, this was a hilarious and inventive take on a familiar gag. Character of the Episode: Terry. Conclusion: This episode was very fun and had a brilliantly focused plot. There were some minor problems, but overall this was a purely entertaining episode on every level. Score: 71 Summary: Jake takes Amy to meet his mother on his birthday but gets a surprise when he gets there. Rosa and Charles use bodycams on a case and end up in an embarrassing situation. Holt, Gina, Scully and Hitchcock do an escape room together.
The Good: There are some good jokes throughout this episode like Jake doing charades (see: Best Moment), Terry's reaction to the situation of Charles' nudity, Amy's awkwardness, and more. I also like the story of Jake accepting his father back into the family because his mother wants him back. The side stories are fine enough for an odd laugh here or there. The Bad: I really don't have much to say about this episode. It's completely forgettable. The jokes were average at best and the stories never really engaged me. I thought Amy was used very poorly in this episode and that she should have had a larger role. Jake's mom was incredibly bland. Charles and Rosa have been paired up for a few weeks in a row now and the pairing isn't growing as much as they probably should be. It was nice to see Hitchcock and Scully used in a main storyline, but the entire escape room story was boring filler. One more thing I want to note is a flaw that has plagued the show for a while. It seems like every single criminal in this show notices an undercover cop and runs away, triggering a chase sequence. This happens every time and it has been predictable for a while now. The show needs to stop doing this and find some other ways to showcase being a cop that hunts down criminals. Best Moment: The sharp cut to Jake's horribly vulgar attempts to tell his father that he knows about his cheating was the best laugh of the episode. Character of the Episode: Jake. Conclusion: This episode didn't have any outright problems with its writing or structure, but it was just incredibly forgettable with nothing interesting happening for most of the runtime. Not a good effort. Score: 55 Summary: Jake and Amy go on a cruise after winning a free trip and they find Doug Judy there. Holt tries to find a way out when his dramatic little sister Debbie arrives in town for a bit. Charles and Rosa go against each other to lease an apartment belonging to an old woman who recently died.
The Good: This is a very consistent episode, possibly the most consistent of the season. All 3 storylines are very solid and I enjoyed the episode the entire time. Doug's return was a lot of fun as expected and his relationship with Jake remains a highlight. The cruise setting made the episode feel unique as it showed us the same storyline of Doug aligning with Jake for a bit only to dupe him by the episode's end. Furthermore, the A story had the added depth of Amy's involvement and the interesting, brief exploration of Jake and Amy's relationship. The two side stories were decent fun. Charles and Rosa were much more entertaining as a pairing in this episode compared to the last and their friendly competition had some great moments. Holt's relationship with his sister had some fun moments and the resolution of the storyline was surprisingly touching. It was nice to see Holt behaving like the reasonable character he was in season 1 instead of having a lot of overblown comedy from him. The Bad: It was disappointing not to have Jake and Rosa together during the Doug Judy episode since these episodes had been great because the depth given to their relationship was just as much of a highlight as Doug was. This episode felt a bit by-the-numbers. The laughs weren't too special throughout, and the main plot felt like it was treading familiar ground with the Doug story. Best Moment: I'll go with Holt pretending to be really stressed and having both Gina and Terry enter the room to deliver laughably terrible lines. Character of the Episode: Doug. Conclusion: This was a solid episode all around, but one that felt too familiar and had very few risks to it. I enjoyed it, but it's nothing special. Score: 67 Summary: Jake sees that Holt has been lonely so he comes up with a fake case to work with him which ends up with the two of them getting mumps. With Holt on leave, Terry takes over at the precinct. Charles is upset when his dog Jason dies.
The Good: This was one of the funnier episodes of the show. I feel like I've been saying that a lot, but it is indicative of how the humour in the show is getting better. The episode was incredibly silly and stupid but it just worked and made for a wildly entertaining 20 minutes. Holt and Jake contracting the mumps and having to deal with it in quarantine together was stupidly fun, and Amy's inclusion played off of this dynamic brilliantly. This was a decent episode for Jake and Holt too as Holt got to show his gratitude for Jake bringing him back to the Nine-Nine while Jake shows how important of a bond he has developed with Holt by actually trying to spend time with him to make sure he isn't lonely. It's a very nice story that's not shoved down our throat for once, and it's helped along by the fact that these two have such an entertaining dynamic that has gotten better as the show has went on. The side stories had some fun moments too, like Rosa's complete lack of regard for Charles' loss and Terry destroying the captain's office with his strength. The Bad: This episode does get a bit too stupid at times, and while I love it, I can see how this would turn off some people. The episode's biggest failing comes from the plots. if the humour is getting better and better, the storylines are doing the opposite. The main storyline is done well but the side stories are pretty bad. Charles and Rosa get a good story to continue their friendship dynamic but there really isn't much memorable about it, plus it feels weird that nobody else is trying to console Charles over the death of his dog. This story feels like it should have been integrated into the episode better. The Terry storyline was outright bad. The idea that Gina would have a better idea of how to run the precinct that Terry is ridiculous, and having Terry be over-the-top when put in charge of the precinct was absurd. Surely he would know his fellow workers by now and this wouldn't be a problem. Furthermore, Terry has been left in charge before and he's never been this bad. This story was a bad idea, and even though it led to some funny jokes, it didn't work for me. Best Moment: I'll go with Jake and Holt's fight, ending with them poking each others goiters and falling hilariously. Character of the Episode: Holt. Conclusion: A mixed bag of an episode, but one with more that I liked than disliked. The middle of this season has been really enjoyable so far with each episode taking lots of risks and moving the show out of its comfort zone. This episode had its ups and downs but I'm overall very happy to see the creativity that this season is starting to work with. Score: 68 Summary: Jake tries to help Charles get his sperm back from his ex-wife who is extorting him (not a sentence I ever thought I would type). Amy gets Terry to write her a letter of recommendation. Holt and Rosa bring in Gina to help make a criminal confess.
The Good: This was probably one of the most consistently funny episodes this season. The jokes were really high quality, the dialogue was really clever and the storylines all led to some pretty funny moments. The sheer absurdity of Charles' storyline is what really carries the episode. The plot is so incredibly stupid, but that's what makes it so entertaining to watch. Plus, there are some really clever jokes thrown in there like Charles diving crotch first, Jake finding his dad as a sperm donor and Charles' reaction, the escalating seriousness of Eleanor's crime (a 90 year old priest sitting on a bench!) and Hitchcock's hilariously incompetence when making a deal with Jake. Also, the irony of this episode being called "Hostage Situation" after a literal hostage situation last episode is not lost on me. It's a rare case of the episode's title actually being used as a joke as well. The two side stories aren't as good but there are funny moments there as well. Terry Crews is consistently entertaining in his agonizing pain. Holt has some good lines as always. It was nice to actually see Gina get comeuppance for her annoying attitude for once, especially since the show always seems to let her off scot-free in most other episodes. The Bad: This episode has a lot of flaws which take away from how funny it is. The entire Jake/Charles plot is impossible to buy into. Can't they just arrest Eleanor for extortion of a police officer? I can never buy into this story since it paints the justice system in an unrealistically flawed light and relies on me making a huge suspension of disbelief to actually get into the story. The Amy/Terry side story didn't do much for me. Amy getting mad at Terry because she thinks that he wrote her a bad letter feels woefully out of character. Furthermore, this story screams of filler because I highly doubt that SAM-SAM will ever be brought up again. Lastly, I've noticed a bit of a pattern in the cold opens. A lot of them just end with Jake screaming "noooooo" as the final punchline. Admittedly it's funny but there have been so many cold opens like this recently and the joke is getting repetitive. Best Moment: There are lots of great jokes here. My pick is for Hitchcock being complete scum by trying to negotiate with Jake to free him. But in the end all he asks for is a dollar which he forgets to take from him. Character of the Episode: Charles. Conclusion: This episode is one of the funniest of the season and had tons of laughs. However, there are serious issues with the stories being told that take away from what could have been one of the better episodes of the entire show. Score: 67 Summary: Jake goes shopping with Charles and Gina when he forgets to buy Charles a Christmas present and the trio find themselves in a Die Hard situation. Amy joins Rosa and Holt on a polar dip to prove that she isn't a wimp.
The Good: This episode was "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" doing Die Hard and it was a ton of fun. This is everything that I wanted the show to be from its conception: a show with fun characters that pokes fun at the various situations that cops can find themselves in. And on top of that, it provides some wonderful comedy as a Die Hard parody. The trio of Jake, Gina and Charles works spectacularly well in this episode. By this point we understand these 3 characters very well and the dynamic between them is well established. There couldn't have been a better trio put into this situation, and all 3 of them have some wonderful moments throughout the episode. The main story of Jake forgetting to buy Charles a gift only to make it up to him by sacrificing his John McClane moment for Charles was funny, yet fitting pay-off that simultaneously provides a conclusion to this story and shows us how much Jake has grown as a character since season 1. Terry gets a wonderful story too, featuring the return of both Zeke and The Vulture. Terry has typically been portrayed a bit passively throughout the show which makes it really impactful when he stands up to both Zeke and The Vulture in this episode to protect his squad. There are some nice Die Hard parallels here, but most importantly it fits with his character. Additionally, I thought that The Vulture was used perfectly in this episode and was as scummy as ever. The C-story with Amy, Holt and Rosa was simply fine and served as a way to keep them away from the chaos in the A-story, but that didn't prevent it from having some good moments as well. The Bad: Nothing I would call bad. A very consistent episode overall. Best Moment: It's really tough to choose since there were so many fantastic lines. I'll go with The Vulture saying that the sniper will shoot Terry if he says so only for the sniper to say "no I won't". The whole exchange was great. Character of the Episode: Jake. Conclusion: Season 3 finally finds itself on something of a hot streak with this excellent episode. A Die Hard parody episode is a no-brainer and it was executed wonderfully here, leading to what is certainly the best episode of the show so far. Usually "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" throws in some really great episodes around the midpoint of the season so hopefully there are more highlights to come. Another Doug Judy episode perhaps? Regardless, this episode was outstanding and even if it was just a one-off episode that blew me away, I'm still really glad that we got this episode. Score: 80 Summary: Jake and Rosa work a case together with 2 Swedish detectives who are annoying. Holt picks Charles to compete in a squash tournament with him. Terry and Amy help prepare Gina for an astronomy exam.
The Good: All 3 stories here were perfectly solid stuff with some funny jokes. It was nice to examine Jake and Rosa's friendship in this episode and I thought that the Swedes offered a neat dynamic for Jake and Rosa to bounce off of. I also liked the emphasis on working a case in this main storyline which is something that "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" doesn't always do, like in the 2 side stories in this episode. Speaking of which, the side stories were solid fun. Terry and Amy nerding out to teach Gina was a lot of fun and the scene with Amy's mnemonic followed by Gina vanishing and Hitchcock being upset at Amy for calling him a gas giant (Gina did it naturally) was hilarious. The Holt/Charles story had some fun moments as well, and I like that the show utilized a character pairing that we don't see very often. Charles being an unhinged lunatic was actually a lot of fun and I really enjoyed it. The Bad: Something about this episode doesn't quite work. The 3 stories are solidly done but they all come off as simply fine to be. The 2 side stories explore some nice relationships but they feel out of place in a cop show and don't do anything that memorable. The main story is fun but it's lacking in laughs as I thought that the Swedes were too over-the-top to be particularly funny. Nothing in this episode really jumps out and grabs me, and while the episode is competently delivered, it's missing the usual spark that I've come to expect from this show. Best Moment: Amy's never-ending mnemonic. Character of the Episode: Gina. Conclusion: This is a good episode that's executed well and has some fun stories. But something about it just doesn't properly connect with me. Score: 65 Summary: Sharon goes into labour in the precinct and it's up to Jake and Gina to help her and keep Holt away since he makes Sharon uncomfortable. The precinct has an internet outage forcing Amy, Charles and the rest to work using fax machines.
The Good: I've seen a lot of birth episodes in sitcoms, and there are numerous tropes that come from it. However, this episode had such strong comedy and brilliant character interactions that the tropes didn't bother me much at all. The episode is built around a single plot and it handles all of the characters in perfect ways, leading to natural and fresh humour. Furthermore, we get a great story for Jake who steps up as Sharon's "god-husband" to take care of her while things in the precinct get increasingly chaotic. Also, it's nice to see the characters actually working for once instead of just messing around. Plus, the struggles of everyone make the episode increasingly funny as more and more things go wrong. Holt's story started off pretty poor (see: The Bad), but it evolved into something great once his ex-boyfriend Frederick was involved. I wish that we saw more of this storyline because the few scenes we got were hysterical and the brief look into the Holt/Frederick relationship was unique fun that felt like new territory to explore Holt's character. Finally, the Tommy Gobbler cold open was fantastic. The Bad: Holt has been portrayed strangely the past few episodes. He comes off as more of a petty buffoon than what we are used to seeing from him, especially early in the episode when he stubbornly taunts Jake for not wanting his help. I appreciate the writers trying to come up with fresh new jokes and I did laugh at him in this episode, but they need to make sure that they don't kill the character by making him uncharacteristically silly like he has been in the past few episodes. Best Moment: It's tough to choose with so many great laughs. I'll go with Hitchcock getting his arm trapped in the tube which had perfect timing for the story. Character of the Episode: Jake. Conclusion: This was an excellent episode. Birth episodes do offer an ideal situation for a sit-com to tell a story, but they are hampered by having many tropes to avoid. Thankfully, this episode was written so well and had such great jokes that any reservations I had going in were swiftly put to rest and I found myself enjoying this episode a lot. Easily one of the show's best episodes so far, and one that can hopefully signal an improvement in quality for season 3. Score: 77 Summary: Rachel tells Ross that the baby is his. Monica and Chandler go on their honeymoon. Phoebe and Joey try to sneakily get into Monica and Chandler's apartment while they are gone.
The Good: There are some really good moments here. Some of the jokes land really well and are genuinely funny. The recurring joke about condoms, the scene at the beginning when Chandler learns Ross is the father and a few other smaller moments stand out. Rachel telling Ross he is the father is very goofy (see: The Bad) but it is funny. The Bad: Unfortunately this episode gets a bit too silly for my liking. The show loves humiliating Ross now so it shouldn't be a surprise that the intelligence of the character is once more undermined when he rashly concludes that Rachel wants one more night and arrogantly walks into another humiliation. Some of the later scenes of Rachel not being able to see the baby don't really work for me. I thought that the Monica/Chandler plot was pretty bad. It really undersells their relationship when they don't seem to care about spending time together on their honeymoon and get caught up on trivial things. Lastly, while Phoebe and Joey were quite funny, their story has no plot whatsoever and feels like a waste of time. Best Moment: Ross freaking out about the condoms. Character of the Episode: Rachel. Conclusion: This episode had funny moments and I enjoyed them, but there were also plenty of familiar issues regarding the handling of characters and the silliness of the recent episodes of the show. Score: 58 Summary: Jake and Amy work their first case together since they started dating. Charles doesn't knwo what to do when he accidentally scratches Holt's car after he parks poorly. Terry tries to get Rosa to lighten up on her tough love approach.
The Good: The cold open was easily one of the best of the series with a perfect punchline when Hitchcock drinks his own fish. The rest of the episode had some funny jokes, and Andre Braugher put in a superb performance as always. You could make him say anything and it will be funny. It was nice to touch in on Jake and Amy's relationship again and they had some nice moments. I liked that the Holt/Gina/Charles story ended up tying into the Jake/Amy story towards the end of the episode, which was a nice touch. The Bad: Unfortunately the episode peaked with the cold open and none of the three plots presented here really got going. The Jake/Amy plot is hurt by being a pretty generic couple's argument. There was never any moment in the episode where I bought into their fight and it felt completely forced the entire time. Furthermore, it feels strange how the show completely ignores their relationship for many episodes at a time only to randomly bring it back up for an episode. This is a problem because I feel like the conflict of how Jake and Amy's relationship affects their work should have been explored much, much earlier. The other two storylines feel like filler. Terry and Rosa had a very similar story back in season 1 and this one doesn't offer much other than a callback to the episode with that storyline. The Holt/Charles/Gina storyline felt similarly aimless. I found Holt to be grossly out of character in this episode. He came off as far more immature and emotionally unhinged than what we usually get, and I'm wondering if the writers are going to start sacrificing the credibility of the character in exchange to get more funny line deliveries from Andre Braugher. Best Moment: The cold open. Character of the Episode: Holt. Conclusion: This episode had some good aspects to it, but it was forgettable overall, and outside of the cold open, I don't think it ever managed to get interesting or exciting. Score: 55 Summary: Jake and Charles take Terry to Lohank's cabin for a camping trip. Rosa decides to break up with Marcus and gets help from Holt. Amy gets Gina's help to present a new product idea she came up with.
The Good: This episode was another pretty funny one. The camping trip had plenty of amusing moments and Jake, Charles and Terry played off of each other very well and did a terrific job of having consistent laughs. Holt and Rosa had an overall great episode as well as the show decided to explore how these two emotionless characters deal with intense emotions, and it managed to do so in a light and entertaining way culminating in the fantastic scene where they both cry together and thank each other for acknowledging their feelings. Holt in particular was the highlight, spewing one great line after the other. Lastly, the Amy and Gina plot is also quite solid and it's nice to see Amy and Gina working together for once instead of just havign Gina insult Amy needlessly. The Bad: Unfortunately the camping storyline suffers from being filled with tropes of camping storylines, even if the character interactions kept things feeling fun. Jake's lesson in this episode was also hammered in too hard. As for the overall episode, I thought that these 3 storylines, while good, didn't get enough time to be as good as they could have been. This episode is a far cry from "Halloween III" which really goes to show the difference between messily juggling 3 storylines and running just a single storyline to focus on. Sometimes "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" bites off more than it can chew. Best Moment: I'll go with Holt reciting an entire URL to the confused Rosa. Character of the Episode: Holt. Conclusion: Even though this episode had some problems, it was still very funny and did lots of things right. It was a good episode overall. Score: 68 Summary: Jake and Holt engage in a decisive third Halloween heist to determine who is the definitive amazing detective/genius, enlisting the help of various members of the precinct. Charles tries to hook Gina up with a guy.
The Good: The focus of this episode was easily its biggest strength. These Halloween episodes are rapidly becoming iconic for the show and they feel like something special each season. This was no exception and I'm glad that there weren't any needless side stories to detract from a very exciting main story. All of the characters outside of Jake and Holt had their main storylines integrated into the heist plot which was very smart. The contest between Jake and Holt each season has become a battle of wits of sorts and it's immensely fun to watch. Seeing both Jake and Holt reach a new level of competitiveness is tremendous fun, and their various plans to steal the crown are always thrilling. This episode had the unique twist of Amy winning which made for an interesting twist and blows open the potential for the heist as seemingly anyone can win it now. I'm excited to see next season's Halloween episode. The Charles/Gina storyline ended up being pretty good. It was pretty solid throughout the episode but the hilarious ending joke with Nadia being Genevieve's twin was fantastic. The Bad: Amy winning the heist was very predictable and I saw it coming from a mile away. That reduced some of the fun of the heist since the twist ending was so easy to see coming. Best Moment: I'll go with Holt shouting at Amy's cleavage and horrifying her before apologizing for saying cleavage. Great joke in an episode that's consistently amusing to watch. Character of the Episode: Amy. Conclusion: Typical to previous seasons, the Halloween episode delivered hugely and was a tremendous amount of fun to watch. This was easily the best episode of the season so far, and hopefully it can give the show some much needed momentum. Score: 75 Summary: Jake and Holt are frustrated under the pressure of their bosses and they team up to work a case together in secret. The Vulture gets Amy and Rosa to plan a birthday party for him. Terry gets addicted to nibs.
The Good: The main plot is very good. The show always excels when it utilizes its police precinct setting and cases like these are always fun. A serial killer does make things a little tougher to joke about, but I thought the show did a terrific job of keeping things light. The episode also centered around the Jake/Holt dynamic which was tremendous fun. Plus we also got to see Holt truly enjoying his role as a cop as Jake delights at all the little things Holt did as he got invested in the case. It was tremendously fun to watch throughout. It was Gina who stood out the most though as she proved how much she has grown as a character by actually helping out here and accepting herself as part of the precinct instead of keeping to her usual "me vs them" mentality. Gina had the most consistent jokes throughout and was definitely the episode's MVP. The start of the episode was nice as it showed us how The Vulture had been inadequately captaining the nine-nine. The Bad: Unfortunately my praise of the episode ends there. The two side stories were pretty bad. Terry in a fat suit felt like a cheap joke and that entire side story felt like pure fluff and a waste of Charles who had nothing to do. The Rosa/Amy story also felt needless and it wasn't explored enough to get anything of substance out of it. Rosa calling Amy an evil genius didn't feel earned at all. Lastly, this episode provided a full reset from the events of the season 2 finale. Holt is back as captain and The Vulture is gone. Everything returned to normal surprisingly quickly and it feels like this mini arc had no purpose overall and wasn't worth the time invested. Holt's time at a desk job was forgettable and The Vulture's stint as captain didn't get explored much at all despite how easy it should have been to get comedy from it. Best Moment: Jake awkwardly kissing Gina on the head as she reprimands him for forgetting to pay the bill was fantastic. Character of the Episode: Gina. Conclusion: This episode had a wonderful A-story, but everything else didn't work. The B and C stories were lame and this episode's overall role in returning everything to the status quo is disappointing. A fun main storyline wasn't quite enough to save this episode unfortunately. Score: 58 Summary: Joey learns that Rachel is pregnant. Monica can't help herself and starts opening wedding presents without Chandler. Chandler and Ross try to take fake wedding pictures after Chandler loses the cameras.
The Good: There is a lot to enjoy here. The jokes are especially good throughout the episode as almost every character is used superbly and in unique ways. Phoebe is refreshingly not as selfish and annoying as she usually is and is portrayed as caring while she teases everyone else. Joey is really sweet in every scene and he's the most consistent character to go to for a great laugh. The episode-long joke of Joey watching porn and eating nuts from the rooms of each character was hilarious. I also really liked the mystery surrounding the baby's father and the cameo return of Tag was a delight, and was handled perfectly. Of course the ending reveal of Ross being the father was brilliantly done and Joey's late reaction was perfect (see: Best Moment). I thought that Chandler and Ross had a pretty good side plot that resulted in some very good moments. The episode was just consistently hilarious, and I can't ask for more than that. The Bad: Joey's two proposals were funny, but also jarring with how flippantly they were treated. Surely something as huge as this should be treated as a big moment and not like a simple joke. It hurts the credibility of the show to have both of these proposals lead to nothing. Monica is the one character who I feel isn't done too well here. Her depressed mood is tough to buy into and we're never given a good reason for why she feels this way. And her storyline with the presents doesn't do much for me outside of the wonderful Chandler/Monica "fight" that ends the episode. Best Moment: Once Ross picks up the sweater it becomes abundantly clear that he's the father and Phoebe and Monica immediately realize this. Then the show cuts to Joey who has a spectacularly delayed reaction that fits perfectly with the character and ends the episode with a splendid joke. Character of the Episode: Joey. Conclusion: This episode had a sense of urgency and fun to it which made it excel despite its flaws. The impressively consistent laughs also helped a lot. A great episode, highlighted by the brilliance of the main cast, to get this season into gear. Score: 74 Summary: Charles connects really well with a new girl but is shocked when she is imprisoned and sets out to prove her innocent with Jake's help. Holt attempts a new poster campaign to make cops more respectable. Rosa and Terry try to prove that Hitchcock and Scully are stealing food.
The Good: The main story is pretty good stuff. It's nice to see Charles really connect with somebody again and having him go around attempting to prove Genevieve to be innocent was good fun. The Jake/Charles pairing is well established and they work really well together. I especially enjoyed Charles' constant innuendos that he kept saying throughout the episode. The two side stories are fun enough with decent moments like Gina's "told you so" hoodie. The Bad: This episode is far too silly, something that immediately comes up with the cold open that somehow expects us to believe that Terry can't feel a gigantic tarantula walking on his head. The rest of the episode unfortunately follows through with most of this silliness. It's especially present in the Rosa/Terry storyline which was far too ridiculous to be any good. Shouldn't Rosa and Terry be doing other things with their time? And both of them went way over-the-top as they tried to prove that Hitchcock and Scully were stealing food. Furthermore, the lactose intolerance seems like a cheap joke that likely isn't consistent with what we've seen before, and I fully expect this to be contradicted in a future episode. A sloppy storyline overall. When the episode wasn't being silly, it was being repetitive. So many repeat jokes in this episode. I've seen so many episodes where Jake and Charles investigate something together, and all of the jokes used in this episode were ones that I have seen better variations of in previous episodes. It's woefully unoriginal, and just about every line felt familiar to me. Many of the other characters were also given jokes that felt familiar and it felt like there was hardly even a shred of originality in this episode. Lastly, The Vulture has already being ignored which doesn't give me much hope that this new captain story will amount to much. Is the show already going to act like everything is normal? Running a story like the Terry/Rosa one while The Vulture is still captain is completely implausible. Best Moment: I'll go with Amy's absurd reaction of "shut up Ray!" after she got picked as an exemplary cop. One of the few jokes that didn't feel like a retread. Character of the Episode: Charles. Conclusion: This was really disappointing. Not only was there a lot of silliness and poor writing, but the joke quality took a big hit as nearly every laugh felt like something I had already seen before. This was such a by-the-numbers episode and I really expected more. This season has had a very rocky start. Score: 47 Summary: The Vulture interferes with Jake and Amy's dating life and they try to stop him. Terry and Holt reflect on how terrible things have become. Charles engages in a purely sexual relationship with somebody from captain Dozerman's funeral.
The Good: This was a very packed episode that had some really good aspects. The best stuff was certainly the Jake/Amy plot. So far the show is avoiding unnecessary drama between them and their interactions remained fun. The Vulture was as scummy as always, and I enjoyed the jokes with the always ill-timed bagpipes. Also, Jake completely messing up as he tried to lie his way into getting to the front of the church was hilarious. Holt and Terry were a lot of fun too. The toasts were very funny, and I laughed quite a bit when they were drinking together. The Bad: Charles' storyline was a complete miss for me, it offered a singular good joke (Charles being disgusted that she's a vegan) and it felt extremely random for Charles to have this specific conflict now. Furthermore, Charles completely spells out why he was engaging in this relationship by the end of the episode, once again letting the show fall into its lack of subtlety with rushed, simplistic dialogue to close out storylines. Terry not being able to handle his alcohol is a silly idea, especially since we've seen him drink heavily before without any issues. Terry Crews was fun here, but the show seems fascinated with making Terry inebriated in some way for more laughs. Unfortunately it feels cheap a lot of the time, like it did in "Chocolate Milk" last season, and this was no exception. The mango yogurt joke started out funny but it became played out by the end of the episode. Lastly, I thought the role of The Vulture was a bit too silly in this episode. He came off as a typical bad guy who is imposing when the plot needs him to be but also is easy to take care of whenever the plot needs him to be. Best Moment: Holt remarking at how alcohol has turned him into a simpleton after naming the wrong style of glass. Character of the Episode: Holt. Conclusion: This episode had some good laughs but it was deeply flawed and I feel like it wasted a lot of the good laughs it had by being too silly overall. This show is always at its best when it doesn't fall into needless absurdity, so an episode like this that feels so problematic and unrealistic doesn't land well at all. Score: 53 |
Aaron DhillonJust a university student who loves to watch TV. And analyze it way too much. Archives
February 2024
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