Chicago P.D. Season 12 Episode 12 Review: ‘The Good Shepherd’

Chicago P.D. Season 12 Episode 12 ‘The Good Shepherd‘ is a good episode about Torres, because the show has actually done a pretty good job with Torres so far, but it’s also an episode that encapsulates how little the show actually utilizes Torres. Well, that, and how devoid of ideas the show is when it comes to actually using Torres.

We’ve gotten a few Torres-centric episodes since he first joined the team, but they all seem to be the same kind of episode. And in a way, is the kind of show that uses character trauma to build on who they are. But the only time the backstory behind the character has surprised us, it’s with Kiana Cook. Torres, meanwhile, remains a stereotype in more ways than one.

MORE: What did we want from Chicago P.D. Season 12 and how are we doing on the scoreboard?

exactly what we expect

And let’s be clear, stereotypes come from something. That’s why they’re stereotypes. There is a basis in reality, and there are men in Chicago with the backstory of Dante Torres. There are men all over America with his backstory, ones who don’t end up being cops, either. It’s just that in the current political climate, to see Dante Torres reduced to a stereotype over and over again feels like a deep cut.

Chicago P.D. can at least show us a different side of Dante when he’s out of the job, or when he’s with the team, but they’ve long ago abandoned the idea of this team being anything resembling a team. And, as for who Dante is outside of Intelligence, well… they’ve given no sign that the story can be anything but what we expect it to be.

This episode is hard, and it does give us a glimpse of who Torres is, his fears, and the experiences that made him who he is. We just kinda wished there was room to be surprised in that regard.

MORE: What was the last Dante Torres episode about? Here’s our review!

a step back in a season of steps forward

Chicago P.D. Season 12, Episode 12 feels like a step back in a season of step forwards for the show. Sure, this show is still perhaps the procedural that keeps its characters more isolated and foregoes the idea of team building for character-specific episodes that hardly ever give us meaningful interaction. And they still don’t seem to have a clear idea if Voight is a hero, a villain, or an antihero. But, in this season, they’ve done a good job of giving characters depth, even if they’ve stuck to that format.

Dante Torres seems like the exception to that, in a way that, as a Latina, rankles. We, as a community, are tired of the same portrayal. We’re tired of only being seen in one way. And yes, we’re even tired of the religion-based storytelling when it comes to a community that yes, is often extremely religious. Because it’s not all we are. It never has been.

So yes, this isn’t a bad Dante episode. It’s just… the only type of Dante episodes this show can apparently do. And that’s a bummer, it really is.

Chicago P.D. airs on Wednesdays at 10/9c on NBC.

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Lissete Lanuza Sáenz

Lawyer. Writer. Editor. Former Senior Editor in charge of Features, Lists, and News at CBR. Freelancer at TV Guide & Remezcla. Eternal optimist. Fangirl since the dawn of time. Hates the color yellow, olives and cigarettes. Has a recurring nightmare where she’s forced to choose between sports and books. Falls in love with fictional characters.