Chicago P.D. Season 13 Episode 1 ‘Consequences’ is a great return for the show, one that brings back Intelligence and introduces a character that feels like a real mirror to Hank Voight, something the show has really needed. She isn’t really a replacement for Kiana Cook, or even for Hailey Upton. If anything, she feels like the kind of counterbalance for Voight that Alvin Olinksy was, back in the day. Talk about big shoes to fill.
Arienne Mandi’s Officer Eva Imani aside, the episode gives us the best Voight, the one trying to fight for his unit, and the one who isn’t trying to keep the moral high ground. Hank Voight has always been a more interesting character when he’s willing to use all the tools at his disposal to get what he wants, and just like in the Season 12 finale, here Voight stops at nothing to get his unit back. This requires light blackmail, not murder, so all in all, not that bad, he probably thinks. The ends justify the means and all of that.
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HAPPILY EVER AFTER
The hour starts with Kim and Adam in a really good place, if you catch my drift. Getting up before the alarm to have sex is like a really high point in your life, I’m just saying. Sleep is sacred. Still, it’s clear the lack of work is getting to Kim, which is why she jumps at the chance to help Voight. Adam does the same, even though he knows he shouldn’t. They both want their jobs back. They want their sense of purpose back.
But Adam and Kim have something that Kevin and Dante don’t have. They have each other. They have a life outside of their job. They have a family. As frustrating as the rest is, and as fulfilling as the job ends up being, that part is crucial. Because when the job fails you, you end up relying on the rest to keep you sane. And that’s precisely why the two are clearly in a much better place than their friends when this episode starts. They are each other’s rocks and support systems.
It was just a month this time, but it strikes me as a very important thing to keep in mind going into the season. Adam and Kim have each other. That’s something we have to remember as, potentially, other complicated stuff happens. For better or worse, they’re facing everything together.
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EVA IMANI
The thing that sets Eva Imani apart from other characters that have come before her is that she is actually like Voight. She is messy and kinda flawed. That doesn’t necessarily make her better or worse than others, don’t get me wrong. I have greatly enjoyed other characters, but she is undoubtedly different, and she will play a very different role because she’s not showing Voight what she could be. She’s not a better version, or the angel on his shoulder. No, if anything, in this episode, she was goading him on and mirroring his worst impulses. That was… interesting, to say the least.
We spent a lot of last season with ASA Champan telling Voight that he could be better, while we stood here shaking our heads, going “actually, he probably can’t,” because we’ve been around for twelve seasons at this point. Eva Imani hasn’t, but you know the saying, like recognizes like. So in many ways, she understands Voight. And that makes their dynamic something we haven’t seen before, and something we’re interested in exploring.
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DOES VOIGHT WANT THAT MIRROR?
The question, of course, is: is this something Voight is interested in confronting? Sure, he brought her onto the team, and he seemed to like the way she covered for him and the way she followed his lead, but when his worst impulses are reflected back at him, will he actually like that? It’s easier to ignore the things you do that are wrong if everyone around you keeps giving you the benefit of the doubt. What will happen when there’s someone who doesn’t? When there’s someone who fully understands that what you’re doing is messed up and still does it?
Unlike Chapman, there are no romantic undertones to the relationship between Voight and Eva Imani, but the relationship is undoubtedly interesting. And one episode into Season 13, we’re more intrigued by Chicago P.D. than we have been in a while, thanks to Arienne Mandi’s Officer Eva Imani. I take back what I said about not getting attached. Color me surprised.
Agree? Disagree? What did you think of Chicago P.D. Season 13 Episode 1 ‘Consequences’? Share with us in the comments below!
Chicago P.D. airs Wednesdays on NBC.
