‘The Rookie’ Season 1, Episode 6 ‘The Hawke’ Recap: Rogue Cop

Weeks after two consecutive competitions happen to spice things up; the force goes about business as usual. The Rookie‘s shift starts at an average pace until a police academy legend goes rogue. When the situation turns into a PR disaster, the entire precinct tries to take the rogue cop down. However, it is hard to stay a step ahead of someone who knows your every move.

In this week’s episode of The Rookie, Officers Talia Bishop (Afton Williamson), John Nolan (Nathan Fillion), Tim Bradford (Eric Winter), and Lucy Chen pursue Rogue Cop Jeremy Hawke (Shawn Christian). Meanwhile, Officers Angela Lopez (Alyssa Diaz) and Jackson West (Titus Makin Jr.) handle a detective case.

Strange Citizens

The midnight shift left plenty of unanswered calls to the morning shift. Each of the tandems handles strange cases when their turn begins. Bishop and Nolan encounter a senior man who surprisingly captured a murder suspect for them. Meanwhile, Bradford and Chen serve a warrant to a strange man with a long history of police searches. However, Chen’s luck runs out as Bradford tasks her with looking through the suspect’s sex toys. Unfortunately, the smooth ride (for the most part) changes as Lopez and West find out that one of the force’s legendary mentors, Jeremy Hawke, now faces charges for assault, battery, and brandishing a firearm.

Detective Work

While the rest of the force tracks Hawke down, Lopez and West handle a detective case. The victim (Spence Moore II) claims that it was a drive-by that caused his injuries. However, his father, Mr. Campbell’s (Aaron D. Spears) suspiciously hostile behavior prompted the officers to dig deeper. The father and son reluctantly answer their questions and continue to insist on their claim. Suddenly, the victim’s boyfriend, Everett York (Michael Fitzgerald) storms Mr. Campbell then stabs him. After the tension dies down, West figures the situation out. Mr. Campbell hated his son for being gay, so he snapped and tried to kill his father. Regardless of how the legal procedures go, West advises him to stop using permanent solutions to temporary problems.

Gone Rogue

Jeremy Hawke reached the lowest point of his life. His wife, Megan Mitchell (Joelle Carter) filed for divorce and wanted full custody of their son, Logan Hawke (Tyler Sanders). After having a few drinks with Nolan, one of his former students, he heads to Megan’s house, drunk and angry. Hawke assaults his soon-to-be ex-wife’s boyfriend. When the police get hold of the situation, the force orders Bishop, Nolan, Bradford, and Chen to catch him quickly.

Eric McCandless/ABC

Hawke does not make it easy for the force to track him down. Knowing their tactics, Hawke anticipated their actions, placing him one step ahead of them. Hawke even goes as far as brainwashing his son to join him. When the police corner him in a mall, Hawke leaves his son behind and proceeds to go on foot.

Eric McCandless/ABC

Sergeant Wade Gray (Richard T. Jones) heads to the mall to plan the team’s next move. They figure out that Hawke was trying to divert the force’s attention to get them off his tail. Most of the cops leave the mall, making Hawke think that he could go. Bradford and Nolan corner and engage him in hand-to-hand combat, but Chen and Bishop quickly step in and apprehend Hawke.

‘The Rookie’ Season 1, Episode 6 ‘The Hawke’ Final Verdict

Eric McCandless/ABC

Nothing hurts a cop more than going after one of their own, especially if this fellow cop is your mentor. This episode shows how difficult such situations are to handle, as well as how damaging it is to the police force’s reputation. Choosing the right person to portray a disgruntled veteran cop is no easy task, but the show made a perfect choice. Hawke’s character is the perfect representation of a good guy who snapped, and the show projected it well.

The Rookie continues on Tuesday, December 4th, with ‘The Ride Along’ at 10/9c on ABC.