We’re back! The Rookie Season 7 Episode 12 ‘April Fools’ gives us some Chenford content with good intentions but a very bad outcome. Meanwhile, Nolan faces a complicated dilemma with his new rookie. Also, the city descends into chaos. Ready?
Here we go!
Unexpected Pranks in The Rookie Season 7 Episode 12 ‘April Fools’
Frankly, from the moment we read the synopsis for The Rookie Season 7 Episode 12 ‘April Fools,’ we were scared. The whole thing about Lucy and Tim playing a prank on the team didn’t seem to fit with the tension the episode was going to have. Then, when we saw the promo, that fear intensified. The promo featured fire, fighting, and chaos. Where would Chenford’s joke on the team fit into all of that? And, after watching the episode, we confirmed that our fear wasn’t unfounded.
Indeed, Chenford’s “joke” with the entire crew feels very forced and inorganic. It doesn’t fit with the rest of the episode. It feels completely disconnected from everything we’re seeing and very out of place. Furthermore, it barely has any development — we’re only counting one scene —, it changes nothing between them, and, in the end, they mention it more because they have to close the plot they’ve opened than anything else. So this whole thing ends the same way it started: quickly and out of nowhere.
So yeah, maybe this is an unpopular opinion, but we didn’t like where The Rookie Season 7 Episode 12 ‘April Fools’ took Chenford at all. Honestly, all this joking about them getting back together seemed very childish. Are Lucy and Tim schoolchildren? Because we expect something like that from ninth- or tenth-grade kids, not from functional, mature adults.
MORE: INTERVIEW: Lisseth Chavez On Her Journey as Celina Juarez on The Rookie Season 7
Chenford’s Journey Is Important
Aside from that, what’s the point of messing with the people who care about them? We mean, everyone who loves them wants them to be happy. What’s the point of making them believe they’ve solved their problems and managed to be back together, only to tell them it was all a hoax? Not to mention that when they were actually together, they kept it a secret, and now, suddenly, they want everyone to know about them. It doesn’t make sense.
Beyond that, all this thing is going to hurt them since neither of them is ready to get back together yet. Pretending to do so will only deepen their wounds because they love each other, they’ll be too close, and at the same time, they won’t have each other. They already know that playing with fire under these conditions is a mistake. So instead of wasting time on this absurd “joke,” The Rookie Season 7 Episode 12 ‘April Fools’ should have made progress with Tim’s therapy. Or to show Lucy’s point of view in a deeper way. You know, things that actually lead to a real healing of both of their wounds and, ultimately, their reconciliation.
Note that we haven’t commented on whether we liked the Chenford scenes or not. Of course, we did. Chenford’s chemistry is so explosive that there’s magic every time they’re together on screen. We love seeing them together, seeing them kiss, seeing Tim’s breath hitch when Lucy touches him… in short, we love seeing them loving each other, but not everything is worth having a few Chenford kisses or sex here and there. We love them too much to settle for just that.
MORE: The Rookie Season 7, Episode 11 Review: ‘Speed’
Doing the Right Thing in The Rookie Season 7 Episode 12 ‘April Fools’
Nolan isn’t having the best of times in The Rookie Season 7 Episode 12 ‘April Fools.’ His new rookie isn’t ready to finish his training in the time he has left. And we’re surprised to be outraged on Nolan’s behalf at the “TO legend” thing, but here we are. What he did wasn’t fair to the rookie or anyone else. It wasn’t fair to the rookie because he deserves a TO who thinks about training him, not what’s best for him. And it’s not fair to anyone else because a rookie without proper training only endangers himself, his partner, and all the citizens.
This is precisely Nolan’s point when he orders him to stay at the station. He can’t trust his rookie to have his back. He’s on his own. And if that’s dangerous on a normal day, it’s even more so when the city is a mess filled with people willing to do anything and with nothing to lose. But Nolan’s rookie has a point in telling him that if Nolan writes him off and casts him aside, he’d be no better than the TO who washed his hands and transferred him.
And he’s right. This rookie isn’t ready to be on the streets. But he showed in The Rookie Season 7 Episode 12 ‘April Fools’ that he has potential. It wouldn’t be fair for Nolan to simply dismiss him without giving him the opportunity he deserves to finish the program and without taking the time to help him find a place where he fits in and can continue learning. So yes, this rookie was incredibly brave to stand up to Nolan like that, and John did the right thing by seeing the truth in his words and taking a risk for him.
MORE: The Rookie Season 7, Episode 10 Review: ‘Chaos Agent’
Other Stuff
- Grey’s joke was better than Tim and Lucy’s. We said what we said.
- We missed seeing Angela and Nyla’s investigation, as well as a little more about Wesley’s case. We think that would have been better than this stupid “joke.”
- Frankly, the fight between Livy and Tim was better developed than the Chenford “prank.”
- Honestly, when we heard Lucy say “April fools!” in front of Grey, we felt a little embarrassed. Not for her, but for the situation.
- Yeah, we definitely didn’t like where they went with Chenford in this one.
- Too much Nolan for our taste in this episode.
- Although we’re glad he gave his rookie a second chance so he can finish his training where he fits in better.
- If they wanted us to feel sorry for that abusive pig, they failed miserably. He’s better off where he is now, and we’re glad his wife is finally free.
- We like that the series shows that abuse doesn’t only have to be physical. There are many types, and one of the most invisible is emotional and psychological. Just because it doesn’t leave visible scars doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt or that it doesn’t exist.
- Livy made her bed and now she has to lie in it. Tim made a good decision by firing her. Yes, you’d have to be stupid to believe certain posts Livy published, but people are unpredictable, and she should have been more responsible about what she published.
The Rookie Season 7 airs Tuesdays at 9 pm on ABC.
