Chicago PD Review – In the Dark (9×04)

Reviews

It’s been months since Chicago PD aired a new episode, but Chicago PD Season 9 Episode 1 picked up right where we left off: Upton’s proposal to Halstead. 

Now, this isn’t your run-of-the-mill proposal because Upton is going through it. She assisted Voight in the murder of Roy, the man responsible for killing Deputy Miller’s son and causing Burgess’ life-threatening injuries. 

While everyone would agree that his death is deserved, that doesn’t necessarily make it okay. Especially not at the hands of a sergeant and a detective who know the laws, are supposed to follow them, and have (in some capacity) championed police reform prior to this moment. 

So, yeah, Upton isn’t in the right frame of mind by any means. One might argue that it makes her proposal more genuine because her adrenaline kicked in and made it clear that she only wants Jay, but I think the urgency is stemming from a place of fear. She wants her feelings reciprocated and she wants his reassurance that he feels the same way. It’s almost as if she’s conning him into it because she’s not being honest about what’s motivating her to take such a leap. 

And after everything that transpired during the episode, it becomes increasingly clear that this is far from the right way to start a new life together. 

Upton lied to Halstead at every turn to protect herself and Voight. She has several opportunities to come clean, but she never did because she knew Halstead would never look at her the same way. 

It’s another reason that feeds into her urgency; she’s scared that if he finds out the truth, he’ll leave her. It’s almost like an attempt to trap him.

I tried to look at it from every angle to find the romance behind the gesture, but I just couldn’t see it. 

The very foundation of Halstead and Upton’s relationship is built on dishonesty. That doesn’t bode well for them no matter how strong Halstead’s feelings for her are. 

Sure, I was slightly touched by Halstead getting down on one knee for a proper, old-fashioned proposal, but it was quickly overshadowed by the unfortunate circumstances that he’s completely oblivious to at this point in time. 

If he ever finds out, he’s going to feel like a fool. And I hate that for him. 

Upton and Voight led the team on a wild goose chase knowing that they were never going to find Roy alive, they exhausted resources, and they even scrubbed and manipulated evidence that could potentially lead back to them. 

It’s a pretty terrible thing to do to your team, you have to admit.

Atwater and Halstead are so good at what they do, they definitely made Upton and Voight work for it. 

And while the two technically got away with murder since the truth about what they did died with Mark Irwin, Upton still has to find a way to make peace with the fact that she’ll never make peace. 

And that’s going to be the hardest part. 

Everything that she thought she knew about herself has come undone. Upton crossed a line that she can’t come back from, and it’s going to haunt her as she tries to suppress it. Voight warned her about the consequences, tried to give her an out, and even gave her the option of coming clean, but Upton chose her path.

Now, she must live with it. 

CHICAGO P.D. — “Closure” Episode 901 — Pictured: Jason Beghe as Hank Voight — (Photo by: Lori Allen/NBC)

I’m actually surprised that the guilt didn’t get the best of her. 

I was kind of hoping to see her crack and tell Halstead the whole truth, but again, there’s a slim chance he’d have her back on this one. 

Halstead doesn’t shy away from pushing back on Voight when he disagrees with his orders; he’s a by-the-book kind of guy. 

He wouldn’t stand for murder even if it was a man that deserved every ounce of it. 

Upton’s fate is now forever intertwined with Voight’s, so I expect to see the two of them have a different dynamic moving forward.

Will she be his right-hand gal like Lindsay once was?

While Upton was in freak-out mode, Voight was cool, calm, and collected, even when there was a witness who could put them on the scene and had incriminating evidence against them. 

This isn’t Voight’s first rodeo, so he knows just what to say to ensure that none of this falls back on him. 

It’s equally as terrifying as it is impressive.

Every call he made, even if it was so he could manipulate the situation, was sound. No one was tipped off because he acted accordingly and within reason. 

As chaotic and stressful as this storyline was, it was nice to see the old Voight come out to play. 

And Upton and Voight’s nightmare might not be over yet as Miller, a dedicated mother, wants answers at any cost, despite Voight gaslighting her at every turn.

Voight and Upton may have gotten a bad man off the streets, but sadly, it didn’t bring closure to the two women who needed it most. 

It’s unclear if Burgess understood what Upton wasn’t saying when she asked her if they caught Roy, but it sure seemed like it. The look Upton gave her made it very clear that she took care of it, but maybe I was imagining it. 

I was also surprised by how quickly they wrapped up Burgess’s situation. 

One minute they were talking about whether or not she was going to survive or if she would be placed on life support, and the next minute, she’s wide-awake and on the mend. 

It would’ve been more realistic to stretch it out over at least two episodes; keep audiences on the edge of their seats a little longer!

However, I am happy that she’s going to make a full recovery. 

It was heartbreaking to watch Ruzek try to navigate this new potential reality. I felt for him because he was put in a tough spot. 

He took the responsibility of being Makayla’s guardian very seriously as he weighed his options about whether or not to tell her about what happened to Burgess. 

Unfortunately, as Trudy pointed out, there’s no right or wrong answer here. It’s an unprecedented situation, so he had to look deep within himself to figure out what he wanted to do and what Burgess would’ve wanted him to do. 

Makayla has made it very clear that Burgess’s job worries her because it’s so dangerous, but she also deserved to know the truth about what was going on with her. 

Kids have such killer instincts that they know something is off before you even say it. 

And I almost melted when Makayla said she wanted to see Burgess because if the roles were switched, Burgess would want to see her. 

Even when she’s down for the count, Burgess inspires this young girl to be strong and brave. 

Ultimately, Ruzek made the right choice and proved to Burgess that she made the right choice by asking him to look over her daughter. 

Now, that’s a romance I can get behind. 

While Burgess might have a quick physical recovery, much like with Upton’s situation, the mental effects are going to take a toll.

Will this situation force her to rethink her career? Are Burgess’s days of being a cop over?

And what will this mean for Ruzek and Burgess’s relationship moving forward? A life-or-death situation obviously puts things in perspective and reminds you that we don’t have as much time as we like to think. 

What did you think of the premiere? Did it keep you on the edge of your seat?

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