Undercover (Brooklyn Nine-Nine)

"Undercover" is the first episode and season premiere of the second season of the American television police sitcom series Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It is the 23rd overall episode of the series and is written by co-executive producer Luke Del Tredici and directed by Dean Holland. It aired on Fox in the United States on September 28, 2014.

"Undercover"
Brooklyn Nine-Nine episode
Episode no.Season 2
Episode 1
Directed byDean Holland
Written byLuke Del Tredici
Produced by
Featured music
Cinematography byGiovani Lampassi
Editing by
  • Cortney Carrillo
  • Sandra Montiel
Production code201
Original air dateSeptember 28, 2014
Running time22 minutes
Guest appearance(s)

The show revolves around the fictitious 99th precinct of the New York Police Department in Brooklyn and the officers and detectives that work there. Jake Peralta (Andy Samberg) is an immature yet very talented detective with an astounding record of crimes solved, putting him in a competition with fellow detective Amy Santiago (Melissa Fumero). The precinct's status changes when the Captain retires and a new commanding officer, Cpt. Raymond Holt (Andre Braugher), is appointed. This creates a conflict between Jake and Holt over their respective methods in the field. In the episode, Jake returns to the precinct after having been on undercover missions for six months. However, he soon finds out that a criminal from an organization managed to evade capture and sets out to find him before he escapes. He also wants to question Amy about his feelings for her. Meanwhile, Holt conducts drills for Amy and Rosa without explanation. Gina and Boyle face consequences of having slept together.

The episode was seen by an estimated 5.46 million household viewers and gained a 2.6/7 ratings share among adults aged 18–49, according to Nielsen Media Research. The episode received positive reviews from critics, who called the episode as a promising start for the season, praising Samberg's performance in the episode.

Plot

Jake organizes a raid that ends with the arrest of the Ianucci crime family. He is then commended to return to the NYPD and goes back to the precinct. Jake talks with Amy (Melissa Fumero), but when she reveals she is still dating Teddy, he denies his feelings.

Jake is notified that one member of the organization, Freddy Maliardi, managed to escape capture. Despite his status as a former cop, Jake decides to go questioning old acquaintances in the mob. He and Boyle (Joe Lo Truglio) decide to go "undercover" and find Freddy. They interrogate his girlfriend who finally gives in and reveals he is planning to flee the country. However, they arrive too late and Freddy leaves on a plane. Despite that, Jake is comforted for managing to catch the severely dangerous organization.

Captain Holt forces Amy and Rosa (Stephanie Beatriz) to do a series of drills involving Terry (Terry Crews) acting out various scenarios, without explaining why. While at first accepting it, soon they decide to quit the drills. Holt informs Terry that he did it as a new Deputy Commissioner is on his way and wants everyone prepared. Gina (Chelsea Peretti) is worried Boyle will tell Jake about their tryst together, but he manages not to out of fear of Gina. Despite this, they end up sleeping together again.

Reception

Viewers

In its original American broadcast, "Undercover" was seen by an estimated 5.46 million household viewers and gained a 2.6/7 ratings share among adults aged 18–49, according to Nielsen Media Research.[1] This was a massive 110% increase in viewership from the previous episode, which was watched by 2.59 million viewers with a 1.3/3 in the 18-49 demographics.[2] This means that 2.6 percent of all households with televisions watched the episode, while 7 percent of all households watching television at that time watched it. With these ratings, Brooklyn Nine-Nine was the third most watched show on FOX for the night, behind The Simpsons and Family Guy, fifth on its timeslot and sixth for the night, behind Once Upon a Time, The Simpsons, Family Guy, NBC Sunday Night Football, and Fox NFL.

Critical reviews

"Undercover" received positive reviews from critics. Roth Cornet of IGN gave the episode a "great" 8.0 out of 10 and wrote, "Brooklyn Nine-Nine returned with a strong entry that simultaneously reminded us of what we loved about the series in its freshman season, and paved the way for some interesting new directions as it heads into its second."[3]

LaToya Ferguson of The A.V. Club gave the episode an "B-" grade and wrote, "Coming back from summer hiatus, Brooklyn Nine-Nine feels like it's been on for a lot longer than it has. That's meant as a compliment, because the show took little time becoming a fully-formed series. But this premiere specifically feels very comfortable, like an fairly new pair of sneakers you actually love but forgot to wear on a regular basis. This is a good episode, but it's also one that's more like a reminder of what you loved about it and a precursor to greatness to come."[4]

Jackson McHenry of Entertainment Weekly wrote, "Like all of life, 'Undercover' could've used more Stephanie Beatriz, and it's a pity that Amy was mostly defined by her (lack of) relationship to Jake. But Nine-Nine proved, once again, that it has more potential than it can manage to use each week."[5]

Alan Sepinwall of HitFix wrote, "All in all, 'Undercover' wasn't an episode I'd stack up against the funniest episodes of season 1, but premieres like this often have to spend a lot of time on plot and exposition, and it just felt so pleasing to have this show back. Hell, I was just glad to have the opening credits sequence back."[6] Andy Crump of Paste gave the episode an 8.7 and wrote, "So, Brooklyn Nine-Nine's opener sets the stage, as all openers must do. If 'Undercover' is meant to play a specific role and foreshadow events that may occur further down the line, though, it does so handsomely; it's funny, maybe not as funny as it should be, but still chock full of terrific gags and punchlines, most of them property of Lo Truglio and Braugher. (If you thought Holt was dour before, you've apparently seen nothing yet, though good luck spotting the difference between his happy face and his stressed face.) 'I missed us', breathes Peralta in the episode's pre-credits sequence. We missed us, too, Jake. We missed us too."[7] Robin Harry of TV Fanatic gave the episode a 4.5 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "This side-story brought a lot of the familiarity I loved about this episode; Holt's apparent yet invisible sense of humor, Terry's quiet wisdom but loud intimidation, Amy's obsequiousness and subsequent self-loathing, Rosa's rebelliousness. My only complaint - not enough Hitchcock and Scully! This season didn't start off with a bang or bells and whistles, but it started with everything that I know and love about Brooklyn Nine-Nine. That makes it a win for me."[8]

References

  1. Bibel, Sara (September 30, 2014). "Sunday Final Ratings: 'Once Upon A Time', 'Resurrection' & 'Revenge' Adjusted Up; 'CSI' Adjusted Down". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on October 1, 2014. Retrieved January 27, 2018.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  2. Gorman, Bill (March 26, 2014). "Tuesday Final Ratings: 'The Voice', 'Mind Games' & 'Supernatural' Adjusted Up". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on August 17, 2017. Retrieved January 25, 2018.
  3. Cornet, Roth (September 28, 2014). "Brooklyn Nine-Nine: "Undercover" Review". IGN. Retrieved January 27, 2018.
  4. Ferguson, LaToya (September 28, 2014). "Brooklyn Nine-Nine: "Undercover"". The A.V. Club. Retrieved January 27, 2018.
  5. McHenry, Jackson (September 29, 2014). "Brooklyn Nine-Nine season premiere recap: 'Undercover'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved January 27, 2018.
  6. Sepinwall, Alan (September 28, 2014). "Season premiere review: 'Brooklyn Nine-Nine' – "Undercover": Joe Uterus strikes again!". HitFix. Retrieved January 27, 2018.
  7. Crump, Andy (September 29, 2014). "Brooklyn Nine-Nine Review: "Undercover"". Paste. Retrieved January 27, 2018.
  8. Harry, Robin (September 29, 2014). "Brooklyn Nine-Nine Season 2 Episode 1 Review: "Undercover"". TV Fanatic. Retrieved January 27, 2018.
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