Brooklyn Nine-Nine came to an end after a successful eight season-long run. The police comedy headlined by Andy Samberg, Andrew Braugher, Stephanie Beatriz, Melissa Fumero and Terry Crews, among others, bid its farewell the past weekend.
The show survived low ratings and even cancellation during its eight-year run. Cancelled by Fox after its fifth season, the show was picked up by NBC after a massive fan campaign asking for a renewal.
Tough Conversations
The final season of Brooklyn Nine-Nine dealt with real-life police violence. While most police procedural tv shows tip-toe around the topic, Brooklyn Nine-Nine chose to start a serious conversation about the reality of the situation.
While this season tackled the issue of police brutality and racial profiling head-on, this isn’t the first time the show brought up tough conversations.
The season 4 episode titled ‘Moo Moo’ dealt with institutionalized racism, opening up conversations about racial profiling and prejudice in law enforcement.
In the episode, Terry gets stopped and harassed in his neighbourhood by a white cop who thinks he’s up to no good. This episode was produced and aired years before Black Lives Matter and police violence were discussed as widely as today.
Another episode in season 6 titled ‘he said, she said’ popularly called Brooklyn Nine-Nine’s #MeToo episode, talked about calling out Sexual Harassment. It talks about how hard it is for women to be believed when speaking out against their abusers.
Amy confesses to experiencing harassment in the police department but never speaking up despite being a police officer herself. It made the episode that much more relatable.
Season 8 opened with Rosa Diaz quitting the force and becoming a private eye, and her decision acted as the catalyst for the conversations the season fully embraced moving forward. It especially allowed Jake to see the reality of the force he dedicated his entire adult life.
One Last Heist
(Spoilers for the Season 8 Episode 9,10)
The Brooklyn Nine-Nine finale, like all other finales, ties together all the character’s stories. Amy has gotten the promotion she deserves, Terry is the new captain, and Holt is the deputy commissioner.
There were call-backs to old seasons, familiar faces, all while ending on a positive note. The show’s finale is one last Halloween heist.
In a true Nine-Nine heist fashion, everyone has plans of their own to win. There is a fake partnership, multi-tiered programs, and of course, Bill, the Charles look-a-like.
The hour-long finale also brought back familiar faces throughout the show, including Gina Linetti (Chelsea Peretti), Adrian Pimento (Jason Mantzoukas), and most importantly, Cheddar.
Jake’s cannibal friend, Madeline Wuntch, and Mlepnos also make appearances. Teddy helps Amy out in the heist and, you guessed it, proposes to her again, only to be rejected again.
While the finale takes the traditional route by tying up everyone’s storylines, it doesn’t force the stereotypical idea of marriage and children. It uses Rosa Diaz to poke fun at that trope.
Talking about it to Amy, she says, “You all think for someone to be happy their story has to end with marriage and kids, I don’t want to settle down.” For a character who has always avoided commitment, ending her story with a stable partner and marriage would have been a disservice.
Her development in the show involved her opening up to her friends and feeling comfortable sharing more than just her name with them. On the other hand, Jake Peralta finally figures out the art of growing up. He chooses to quit the force to prioritize his family.
He decides to be present for Mac in a way that his father never was, and he chooses to be a stay-at-home dad.This, again, subverts the trope where the wife is usually the one caring for the children in finales.
Goodbyes
Brooklyn Nine-Nine ended on its terms and a high note. As Jake says in the finale, “Goodbyes are inherently sad. They mean that something is ending. And this one is specially sad because what we had was so great. But it’s not all sad right? We’re moving on to things we love.”
