The Rookie’s ‘true crime docuseries’ episode offers light-hearted entertainment for the pandemic

The Rookie Season 3, Episode 7 wasn’t groundbreaking, but it was the episode we needed at this point in the pandemic. It was pure, fluffy entertainment.

I like when shows take a risk. Doing a “true crime docuseries” type of episode is always going to be a risk. Some shows make it work, and others just fail miserably.

I’ll be honest and say if it wasn’t for the fact that I just need entertainment right now, I wouldn’t have found The Rookie Season 3, Episode 7 all that great. I don’t think it’s going to stand the test of time. However, it was what I needed at this point in the pandemic.

Don’t get me wrong; I love big drama. And I have no problem with TV shows including masks and the pandemic in their storylines (but can they be more consistent with the mask-wearing, please?). I get it, especially when it comes to making things safer to film the episodes. However, I do look out for shows that aren’t including the pandemic or are set post-pandemic with no masks.

I’ll admit that Resident Alien, Snowpiercer, SEAL Team, Prodigal Son, and The Resident have become some of my go-to shows right now for just entertainment.

When it comes to cop dramas, they do also need to include the topic of systemic racism. Again, no problem with that at all, and I’m glad the shows are offering that. At the same time, shows like The Rookie draw people in because of the mixture of comedy and drama. We’ve had a lot of heavy, well-written episodes lately, so an episode that’s purely for entertainment is welcoming in the midst of the negativity and trouble online and in life.

Connecting back to The Rookie Season 2

One thing that I did enjoy was the connection back to The Rookie Season 2 when the accidental nuclear alert went out. We saw the group of cult followers ready to jump to their deaths, and it turns out that they were being filmed from another building.

It was clear at the time that The Rookie had a storyline to pick up on from this point. The mention of a prophet, and Jackson and Diaz not really looking into it, made it clear that this was a storyline for another day.

While it could have been a heavy episode, the decision to turn it into a true-crime docuseries made it all the more entertaining. After all, when it comes to cult leaders who happened to be child stars, a true-crime docuseries is something that’s going to happen.

Between the story, we got Bradford and Chen moments that were just hilarious and make me want to see these two together even more. They were like an old married couple.

Then we got Harper as she made it clear this was not the craziest call she’s had. Now I really want to know what her craziest calls have been. Do they match any of Athena’s in 9-1-1?

One thing The Rookie Season 3, Episode 7 did offer us was the reason Jackson and Sterling broke up. Surprise, Sterling is actually called Skipper (who’s Australian, not British!) and he’s a felon. Poor, Jackson! But now we have the adorable Isaac around and there’s a lot of hope for things to come there.

This isn’t one of those episodes that you’ll be drawn to for the big story. It’s one for the tiny moments in the main cast, and certainly one for when you just need pure entertainment. Yeah, there were two murders but, well, don’t all TV crime dramas involve murder? Aren’t we used to that as part of our genre?

What did you think of The Rookie Season 3, Episode 7? What would you like to see on the show moving forward? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

The Rookie airs Sundays at 10/9c on ABC. Catch up the following day on Hulu.