They pulled out all the stops with this one, didn’t they?
Good grief, The Rookie Season 4 Episode 6 had it all: a woman axed to death, someone blowing himself up with dynamite, an explosion, a deadly treasure hunt, new love interests, and more.
And they still managed to leave us with an explosive cliffhanger, literally.
The deadly treasure hunt is a case that started on a fun note and seemed like something good for a few laughs, but then it got real and quick.
The one treasure seeker digging a massive hole on city property before bursting a mainline was hilarious, and Harper didn’t even know what to make of that type of foolishness. Little did she know, it would get crazier from that point forward.
At some point, you blinked, and then a man sank a hatchet into a woman’s chest, and chaos ensued. Why are people, people?
The level of violence during this mad hunt for gold was shocking. Who needed to bring axes, guns, and other such tools to a treasure hunt? Why are people killing each other for a treasure they weren’t even sure was real?
It was evident that the best way to get ahead of the treasure hunt was to solve the clues and find the gold before anyone else did. And the hour gifted us with Harper, Chen, and Nolan working together to decipher the riddles and Bradford teaming up with a veteran, Jerry.
Tim was right; Chen and Harper were such nerds about all of this, and it was precious. It’s a blast when those two women work together, and this was no exception.
Did we just exonerate a man who wasn’t even my client? I knew I was good, but damn.
Wesley
When you thought the guy killing a woman with a hatchet was terrible enough, we got the man who blew himself up with freaking dynamite. Has the entire world gone mad? Who readily has dynamite on them?
The body count kept climbing when another treasure seeker shot and possibly killed the guy who dug the holes. We never received an update on that guy. It was a hell of a day on the job.
Bradford and Jerry talking to the guy responsible for the treasure who wanted to instigate chaos seemed to give them an edge over the others. Although, Harper and Chen were great at deciphering the riddle.
Overall, despite the cuteness of Chenford’s bet, and an incentive that made you root for Chen over Bradford, I like that Bradford and Jerry technically won.
Jerry needed a win like that since it turned out to be his final day on the job. There’s a chance that if he didn’t get that win, he’d still be on the force, feeling stuck on a job that he wanted to retire from but couldn’t bring himself to do so.
Kudos to the series for giving Jerry the respect that he deserved when so often storylines like this have an ageist slant where a mockery is made of this senior-aged person deemed “in the way.”
Jerry was such a total sweetheart, and you damn near wanted him to stick around the station for the sole purpose of boosting morale. He was kind and supportive of everyone. He had the best advice and such an upbeat, positive, magnetic spirit.
He was still sharp as a tack and damn good at his job. He was such an asset to Bradford the entire time, and he appreciated that Bradford treated him with respect and like an equal.
Bradford is such a softie, and Jerry was aware of what was happening even if it took Bradford a long time to get around to it.
In the end, it’s beautiful that Jerry got to leave the job the same way he came in, working on an exciting case as he did in his younger years, solving this massive case that he had ties to, and finding the gold.
He went out with the dignity that he deserved instead of some cheap shot at his age. The final call for him with the department celebrating his retirement was the absolute sweetest.
Through Jerry, Bradford also found a new love interest, and it’s bound to send the fandom filled with legions of Chenford shippers into a tizzy.
Jerry: It’s my time. It’s my last day on the job. Thank you, Sergeant Bradford.
Tim: For what? I feel awful.
Jerry: You could’ve pushed me out for involuntary disability, but you let me go out the way I came in, working the streets again.
Ashley seems perfectly lovely, and she’s gorgeous as hell. We don’t know much else about her right now to get any more of a read on her. She and Bradford hit it off, and so far, the chemistry and flirting between them were cute and easy.
Bradford put himself out there, and ironically, he still ended up doing something out of his comfort zone, which Chen intended if she won the bet.
We’ll have to see what comes from these two, but so far, it looks like Bradford is back in the romantic relationship game.
And so is Thorsten, who frankly deserves that. He’s still finding his place in this unit, especially with West’s absence, which has had some ups and downs.
But he’s an asset, and for the most part, the others are taken by him. His posters for Nolan were impressive. And Grey has a soft spot for him.
The whole thing with Cleo, the badge bunny, felt like lighter fare to give both of them something to discuss to round out the hour.
Because of Thorsten’s past, he’s always open to learning more about others, and he’s not quick to judge. It’s one of his more exemplary traits, so it was neat that he didn’t let Grey’s words about Cleo keep him from a perfect date with her. She likes cops and doesn’t hide it, and she owned up to that during their dinner.
It was a decent spin on the whole “badge bunny” narrative you typically see that doesn’t paint the women seeking out officers in the best light.
Meanwhile, love is always alive with Wopez, and one could watch those two debate, banter, and argue professionally for hours. It’s their foreplay all day long.
Nolan and Bailey don’t have the same effect. We’ve learned that The Rookie promoted Jenna Dewan to a series regular. Inquiring minds wanted to know what that would look like for her as a firefighter.
It’s an odd powerplay between Bailey and Nolan. She’s a character who operates on a “do as I say, not as I do” type of thing with Nolan. She was pissed off at him for looking into Fred and doing his job, but then she risked her life, stepping into his position (something she chastised him about before) to get evidence on Fred.
Fred came across as suspicious from the beginning. It wasn’t surprising that Nolan would stumble upon something that gave him the impression Fred was the arsonist when he attended the party.
I thought I was going to prove him innocent.
Bailey
The shed filled with massive acetone jugs did the trick, but that wasn’t enough or anything. However, it made you wonder if Fred was dumb enough to send Nolan, a cop, into the garage with all of that if he were guilty.
However, Nolan had to follow the leads he got, and Bailey caught a bit of an attitude when she realized Nolan was doing that by calling Angela.
Bailey risking her life to find evidence to prove Fred wasn’t guilty was too risky. The entire sequence of her breaking into Fred’s home and office, searching through his drawers, and hiding in the closet was stressful. No one would accuse Bailey of being a good snoop.
Fred had trinkets and belongings from the victims. On paper, not only would that be enough for a warrant, but it gives the impression that he’s the real arsonist. He had them in his drawer, and there were other signs.
However, is anyone else thinking that Fred is the red herring?
Why else would they spend time introducing us to Fred’s neighbor who pops up at Fred’s gatherings all of the time and watches his house, thus has access to it, if he doesn’t play a more significant part?
Do you think the neighbor is the real arsonist, and he planted those things in Fred’s desk and is setting him up?
After an hour that gave us so many crazy events, the explosion still came as a shock! It’s hard to believe that Fred would resort to that after possibly assuming Bailey and Nolan were on to him.
But if someone, like the neighbor, wanted to cover their tracks, noticed Bailey snooping around the place and Nolan showing up and putting the pieces together, blowing things up, it would make sense.
The ongoing nature of this arson case is fascinating, though, and I appreciate that it’s not resolved and has so many twists and turns.
Over to you, Rookie Fanatics. Do you think Fred is the arsonist, or do you have other theories? What are your thoughts on this Bradford and Ashley development? Hit the comments below!
You can watch The Rookie online here via TV Fanatic.
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.