In a myriad of ways, Brooklyn Nine-Nine’s “The Last Day” is a love letter to the friendships that were established in this series. It is a love letter to every memory, every heist, every laugh, every tear, every failed attempt, and every single person that has ever made an impact, Gina Linetti and Michael Hitchcock, included.
One final heist to mark Jake Peralta’s goodbye would not have been complete without the two surprises, and one final heist would not have been as chaotic as it was if it weren’t for the team ultimately showing each other just how much they care through the ridiculous “betrayals.” Because that’s what the heists always came down to, glory for one, but a promise to all. Win or lose, that was never the sole purpose. It was instead a showcase of the fact that the bonds solidified between the 99th Precinct are forever.
Sometimes when a TV show ends, as viewers, we can’t necessarily be sure if the characters will remain friends. Because fundamentally, that’s how the world works sometimes. You love your coworkers deeply and you want them in your life forever, but it doesn’t always work out that way when someone leaves.
That isn’t the case with the 99th Precinct, however, because from the very first day we met them, they’ve been a chosen family. They are each other’s chosen people. They are each other’s home. And Brooklyn Nine-Nine’s “The Last Day” showing us that the Halloween Heists will continue every year in this very precinct, no matter where they all end up in life, is the proof we needed to know just how impactful this job has been for all of them.
It’s through this job that they have found home—a place to always belong and people to always count on, for game nights or for heists, whatever it might be, we know they will be in each other’s lives until they’re no longer walking this earth. Like a father figure, Holt will be there to guide Jake through whatever it is he needs as he navigates through fatherhood. Holt will be there for all of them—Amy and Terry included as they work through making the police reform a successful endeavor.
“The Last Day” is a love letter to the fact that those found families are a result of both amazing times and the ugliest of them. They are seldom perfect, they are always messy, but where there is unwavering loyalty and love, they will ceaselessly circle back to each other—uplift each other and at all times, be beacons of light, reminiscent of the good and the bad, but mostly the love.
Carrying on the heists every year equates to promising that the bonds they have fortified with each other are forever—the nine-nine is the greatest love story they have known. Interweaving their lives together like this is the promise that solidifies every fight was worth the battle, every sadness was worth the trauma, and whatever they faced, however inadvertently or by choice, they did it together.
And in every way, Brooklyn Nine-Nine’s “The Last Day” feels like a love letter to the fans too. This show has always stood as a beacon of hope in dark times, and when the world got even harsher, it tried to show us that these characters were always willing to be better. No, they did not always get everything right, but they understood a lot more than most do. They tried their best through everything. And when we needed them most, the heists came through with surprises after another to leave us grinning from ear to ear.
In all the eight years I have spent with this show, I never once lost hope or questioned a decision that was made. I was along for the ride with my trust rightfully placed.
And I’m grateful for a lot of things, but mainly for how beautifully the show honors found families. “The Last Day” is a love letter to hope, and it is a love letter to broken people who have found a place to finally belong. It’s thrilling, it’s wholesome, and it’s everything that I could have hoped it’d be during the final adventures we’d get to see.
Eight years, 153 episodes, and one astounding team. Brooklyn Nine-Nine is a series that’s hard to depart from because the relationships established during its run have been so rewarding to watch as a TV viewer. Where there are far too many great moments to excavate and episodes to highlight just what the series has accomplished, it’s ultimately a sign of the series’ strength in fortifying something memorable. “The Last Day” brought the best of it onto our screens and it did so with utmost sincerity.
It showcased the tremendous growth our favorite characters have gone through, it reiterated the fact that these relationships have changed them, and it made it perfectly clear that there’s nothing they wouldn’t do for each other. It was a love letter to them and it was a love letter to us. And it’s one I’ll always be grateful for.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine’s “The Last Day” is a love letter first, and without question, it’s also one of the most satisfying series finales to date.