Brooklyn Nine-Nine Review: Skyfire Cycle (Season 4 Episode 8)
This season has been pretty full of “special” sort of episodes so far, with the 3-part season premiere, the Halloween and Thanksgiving episodes, and the New Girl crossover. Brooklyn Nine-Nine Season 4 Episode 8, “Skyfire Cycle” is a return to the standard “case-of-the-week with a B- and C-plot” format, but that is far from a bad thing.
The show does excel at holiday episodes and other out-of-the-ordinary episodes that don’t necessarily include any actual police work (like this season’s “Monster in the Closet”), but “Skyfire Cycle” is a reminder that the right combinations of characters, the right case, and entertaining subplots can make a standard episode just as hilarious as a special one.
Even the pairings for each of the plots in “Skyfire Cycle” are used pretty often — Jake and Terry, Gina and Boyle, and Amy, Rosa and Holt — but all three are dependable pairings with great chemistry.
Terry has his fair share of quirks, but most of the time when he’s with Jake, he ends up being the straight man, so it’s always entertaining when he gets to let loose and be the goofier one of the two.
The plot gives Terry some good emotional moments — how sad is it to hear that Little Terry felt like he had no friends? — as well as tons of comedic moments.
Seeing 6-foot-3-inch, hugely buff Terry Crews try to meekly shrink himself down and awkwardly avoid making eye contact with his hero is one of the funniest bits of physical comedy on the episode.
This plot also highlights how, despite his immaturity, Jake is a supportive friend to everyone on the squad.
Meanwhile, Gina and Boyle’s B-plot is a fun way to bring back the fact that, since their parents got married, they’re family now. The Boyle cousins are exactly what you’d expect, with their beige and their frequent declarations of love, which makes them exactly the opposite of who Gina wants to spend time with.
In true Boyle fashion, he’s not even mad when he loses his competition with Gina, he’s just happy to include her in the family, even if that’s not what she intended. It’s a short and sweet side-story that provides a little more insight into Boyle (he, and all his cousins, got nightmares from “Pirates of the Caribbean”?) and reinforces what a genuinely good, caring person he is.
Amy, Rosa and Holt’s subplot plays to all of their strengths. Both Amy’s minor freakout where she repeatedly calls Holt “Dad” and Holt’s meltdown at Rosa’s suggestion he and Kevin need to “bone” were hysterically amazing, and Rosa is always fun when she’s playfully teasing Amy. The way Rosa starts to walk away then twirls around to whisper, “See, what happened is, your dads had sex” is especially great.
Overall, “Skyfire Cycle” has everything you want from a classic episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine and makes you look forward to more non-special episodes coming up this season.
OTHER THOUGHTS:
- The night shift plot has lasted longer than I thought it would, but it’s adding some entertaining little issues and frustrations for the Nine-Nine. I’m curious how it’s going to be resolved, but for now, I’m enjoying it.
- The only thing on this episode that doesn’t really click for me is Jake’s anecdote about accidentally pantsing his heroes. It’s amusing, but I thought it was the weakest joke of the episode.
- I don’t know which display of Terry strength I love more — him clotheslining the suspect or ripping the dictionary-thick book in half with his bare hands.
- The reminder that Gina and Boyle are step-siblings kind of makes me want an episode where Aunt Gina has to babysit Nikolaj.
- I only caught it on a repeat viewing, but the second time Holt shouts “BONE!!!!” from his office door, Amy is literally hugging herself and rocking back and forth in her chair. It’s perfect.
- I know they’re on different networks, and they’re very different shows, but it was weird to see Brooklyn Nine-Nine do the talking-to-a-person-like-a-dog joke with Gina, Boyle and Cousin Sam when Superstore just did that joke with Amy, Dina and Sandra in its season premiere in September.
What did you think of “Skyfire Cycle”? Share with us in the comments below!
Reviewer Rating:
User Rating:
Brooklyn Nine-Nine airs Tuesdays at 8/7c on FOX.
Katie Houlis
Katie is a recent college graduate who spent most of her free time at school binge-watching shows like Battlestar Galactica, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Fringe, and Hannibal. She has watched every single episode of Lost at least ten times each (yes, even “Stranger In A Strange Land”). Current favorites include a bunch of comedies, lots of superhero shows, and a few shows with quite a bit of murder in them.