Season 12 episode 2 of Chicago PD proved the aging police procedural still has life in it. The One Chicago police drama was originally popular because of Hank Voight’s (Jason Beghe) willingness to break the rules to close cases and get justice for victims and the blend of police and personal drama. However, in recent years, the series’ focus has changed, eliminating most patrol officers and toning down Voight’s behavior. Thus, it was left with stories that seemed repetitive, and in addition, it was plagued by several Chicago PD cast members leaving, which left large holes in the canvas.
During the early years of Chicago PD, the series was much more of an ensemble show. Once the other shows in the One Chicago universe were established, it had frequent crossovers and visits with characters from Chicago Med and Chicago Fire. These aspects of Chicago PD made it more interesting than other police procedurals. Unfortunately, these have gradually faded away over time. In Chicago PD season 12, episode 2, “Blood Bleeds Blue,” however, NBC restored several of the things that had made the series a fan favorite in earlier years.
Chicago PD Has Been In Decline For A Couple Of Years
Changes In Stories And Characters Have Led To Lower Ratings
Although Chicago PD was once considered one of the best One Chicago shows, in recent years its quality has gone down. The problems resulted in part from high levels of cast turnover that were often accompanied by disappointing exit stories, including Jay Halstead’s insulting send-off. Additionally, cultural changes that included less tolerance for police violence in fiction meant that the series had to tone down Voight’s violent tendencies to avoid harsh criticism. These changes resulted in boring and repetitive plots about violent and dangerous perps kidnapping and threatening police officers, with the offenders’ behavior getting more and more outrageous.
Budgetary concerns also made it more difficult to create ensemble stories, as Chicago PD adopted a policy of using different characters in each episode rather than allowing the whole cast to appear in the same episode. Additionally, Trudy Platt (Amy Morton) often had little or nothing to do because she was no longer training or supervising patrol officers, and her reduced involvement changed the tone of the series. The series also over-focused on personal relationships, including the confusing back-and-forth between Ruzek and Burgess, which distracted from its police procedural elements.
These problems were reflected in the ratings. During its first season, Chicago PD had an average rating of 8 million viewers per episode; by season 11, it averaged only below that, making it the lowest-rated year for the procedural. Despite its declining ratings, Chicago PD has still been one of NBC’s most popular shows, easily scoring a renewal for season 12. However, more high-quality episodes like episode 2 of season 12 could reverse these trends.
Chicago PD Ratings By Season | |
Season | Average Viewers (Millions) |
1 | 8.03 |
2 | 8.74 |
3 | 8.71 |
4 | 8.48 |
5 | 10.32 |
6 | 11.18 |
7 | 11.23 |
8 | 9.73 |
9 | 9.15 |
10 | 8.27 |
11 | 7.96 |
Chicago PD Season 12, Episode 2 Is Reminiscent Of Its Peak Years
The Episode Was Classic Chicago PD
Chicago PD season 12, episode 2 delivered the type of high-quality entertainment that has been missing in recent years. The story was high stakes without relying on overused tropes. Instead, the entire team had to work together to find the man who had killed Emily Martel and kidnapped a two-year-old child. The story kept upping the stakes, delivering tense scenes in which witnesses refused to cooperate or were physically unable to give much information while a toddler’s life hung in the balance.
The reveal that Roy Darrow planned to kill his sons and then himself was a chilling reminder of what would happen if the cops were unsuccessful, which made this story much more compelling than other recent plots. This tension was compounded by other cops constantly asking whether there were updates on Martel that Voight didn’t have time to answer and Ruzek working with a patrol officer who happened to be on the scene at the time of the shooting but whose abilities and intentions were unknown.
Platt had to help resolve a crisis situation and was instrumental in searching for Darrow and conveying information to keep the officers safe and lead to Darrow and his sons being found alive
The ensemble nature of this episode also made it more compelling than past stories, especially since Platt had a real role. Rather than functioning solely as a receptionist, she had to help resolve a crisis and was instrumental in searching for Darrow. The episode also introduced newcomer Kiana Cook (Toya Turner) to Chicago PD in an organic, interesting manner, offered two exciting confrontations at the climax, and moved the story along at a faster pace than usual.
Chicago PD Season 12 Shows It Can Return To Its Glory Days Despite Many Changes
“Blood Bleeds Blue” Was High Quality Despite Cast Changes
It has been more difficult for Chicago PD to offer compelling stories because of the number of actors not returning to the One Chicago show each year. However, season 12, episode 2 proved that even with a smaller, newer cast, it is possible to write intense, collaborative, and original stories. Every character was involved in this investigation except for Burgess, who was still away, yet the story was never bogged down by the number of characters participating in it.
Chicago PD can still be saved if it continues to deliver high-quality stories like this one. The series demonstrated that if it returns to its roots with tense, high-stakes stories that use its existing cast well, it can continue to offer the type of compelling police drama that has made it a fan favorite for the past 12 years. The more it relies on innovative stories like this instead of gimmicks, the more likely it is to regain an audience excited to tune in to each new episode.
