Spoilers Ahead
Case Summary: When a kid’s in critical condition after a gunshot wound, the Intelligence unit goes after known gangs who’ve also documented the process. One shooting leads to another and by the end of the episode, it turns out it isn’t simply one group.
Review | Analysis: “Big Friends Big Enemies” wasn’t as intriguing as former episodes of Chicago P.D. but it gave us a glimpse into Kevin Atwater’s life and if you’ve been following us for a while, then you know this is something we’ve been waiting. It also did a great job of setting up Antonio’s future departure and again, if you’ve been following us for a while, then you know that’s breaking my heart.
To be frank, a majority of this episode left me disappointed. And it essentially comes from the fact that Mouse has already been replaced. While I can understand that Samuel Hunt has gone to another show, the audience still deserved to see a goodbye between him and Jay. Hunt may not have been a series regular, but it doesn’t change the fact that Mouse’s role in the unit was incredibly prodigious. And the unit aside, he was also extremely close to Jay. And for the series to give us a moment of the two arguing over Mouse’s decision and then ignoring Jay’s desires to continue the conversation is heart-wrenching. Additionally, I can also understand that perhaps if the scene was filmed, it might have been cut, but again, it’s heartbreaking if that were the case because this was something the audience deserved to see. It should’ve been a priority. It’s sad enough that we lost such an outstanding, but the lack of a proper goodbye makes it worse. Here’s to hoping I’m actually wrong and we do get something in the next few episodes. One can hope, right?
On another note, while it’s breaking my heart, I loved watching Antonio struggle with the job because easing into his departure is great writing. I didn’t expect this and I’m thrilled we’re seeing it. It’s not going to be easy to see him go on another show, heck anytime he talks now I weep a little on the inside, but the gradual process is necessary.
Most Exquisite Moment: I loved watching Atwater interact with his siblings. The great worry and turmoil he carried throughout the day because of his fears weren’t easy to watch, but I understood it, and I’m so glad the series presented them in this episode.
Worth Mentioning:
- Kim and Kevin were excellent partners together and sometimes, I still miss them, but it’s episodes like this that remind us of how close the two of them used to be because it was great to see Kim take charge of Kevin’s family when he couldn’t. Choosing to stay with them until he got home was what the best partners would do and it was simply nice to see a little personal reunion between the two.
- I love how observant Olinsky is — generally, someone would probably brush off what Antonio said about “seeing too much of this”, but Olinsky realized something was up and chose to confront him. The way he listens and responds to his fellow detectives will never fail to impress me.
What are your thoughts on this week’s episode?
The show was filmed out of order for some reason, next week’s episode was supposed to air the week before last (as 4×03) but it got pushed. That episode will show Mouse leaving and the goodbye/talk between him and Jay.
Oh, I had no idea. Thanks for letting me know!