John P. Fleenor/NBC
Brooklyn Nine-Nine’s “The Bimbo” gave us some of the best Captain Holt moments in the entirety of this show. From the secret handshakes to his confession about thinking he wasn’t good enough for Kevin, we saw sides of him never seen before but most welcome because character growth is the name of the game.
“The Bimbo” also saw Amy and Terry fighting to be the top dog when it comes to treating their people. It didn’t turn out too well, someone got shot twice with a paintball gun, and they took the office shenanigans from 0 to 10 in the span of a couple minutes. But I wouldn’t change it for the world. These are the people of the Nine-Nine and I’m always down for more!
1. Captain Holt and his secret handshakes.
This is the ultimate and most evil torture that Holt can enact on Jake. The latter loves being involved in office shenanigans and the former, not so much. So when Holt showed Jake the time and effort that went into something he could be part of if he got to work on time, it killed him. Also, Jake treats every moment that Holt gives into silliness, as the ultimate holiday or extravaganza that brightens his day. Now he won’t risk being late. He can’t miss out on another handshake!
2. This super affectionate handshake between Holt and Kevin.
As a queer person, I appreciate, love, and cherish every moment between Holt and Kevin. These two aren’t there to fill a quota or check-mark a diversity box. They are important members of the Brooklyn Nine-Nine fabric that connects them all. And seeing these two growing, flourishing, and keeping each other on their toes, is beautiful. So, yes. Please give us more Kevin. Give us more married queer life. Give us more affectionate moments like this one.
3. The death of Terry’s yogurts.
We are gathered here today to mourn the passing of Terry’s yogurts. They were delicious and well loved before they perished. And sure I might be lactose intolerant and hate the dairy, but I eat the soy yogurt and appreciate the beauty that is this goodness. Also, it’s the reason why I wasn’t hating on Terry when he got a yogurt fridge. It would’ve saved the yogurts if he still had it and I bet Terry is thinking about this now and hating himself for it.
4. Jake’s twirl and point.
The way that Jake moved during this scene leads me to believe that he’s had a professor fantasy before. Maybe it was just an Indiana Jones style dream. Or maybe it was something between him and Amy. And yes, teacher/student relationships aren’t healthy but everyone is allowed to run with whatever fantasy they want in the privacy of their home, as long as they’re not hurting anyone. I think Amy would be into it as well!
5. The beginning of an epic lunch off between Amy and Terry.
Cool, cool, cool started off as a Jake thing and has now spread across the Nine-Nine! And it feels like fate and the beginning of something truly terrifying when used by Amy. She says what she means and will do what she has to to win. Cool, cool, cool was her signal to Terry that he was going down! Sure, neither of them won, but the battle was set at this moment and I loved every second of it!
6. Jake having Holt’s back every step of the way.
Holt felt comfortable enough to tell Jake, his work colleague/associate/friend, what was bothering him and that’s big. It’s also really grounding for others who think Holt has it all together and doesn’t experience some of the woes that we do on a daily basis. Holt has doubts, fears he’s not good enough for Kevin, and has someone who has his back no matter what in Jake Peralta. It’s growth at it’s finest!
7. Hitchcock and Scully holding hands like the good bros they are.
In the span of one week we got two examples of toxic masculinity taking a hike. First we had Nate and Ray from Legends of Tomorrow saying “I love you” to each other. There’s no ifs, ands, or buts about how they feel about each other and there is no need for the words “no homo” to be uttered because they are confident in who they are and their relationship. Nate and Ray aren’t as problematic as Hitchcock and Scully, but it says a lot about the kind of men the latter are. They don’t care if you have a problem with them holding hands.Their moment has come and toxic masculinity that says they shouldn’t hold hands can go to hell!
8. Kevin standing up for Holt and his wet brain.
This was the moment where my hand flew to my mouth and I audibly gasped in joy and delight. Seriously. Kevin standing up for Holt in front of his work colleagues with no worry about how they might see him afterwards was a power move chock full of BDE. Those work colleagues don’t matter in the long run and Kevin was more than done with these assholes that made Holt feel like he’s less. And that isn’t happening with Kevin around. Holt isn’t less. He’s everything to Kevin. And now everyone knows it!
Brooklyn Nine-Nine airs Thursdays at 9/8c on NBC.
