Brooklyn Nine-Nine Review: The Negotiation (Season 5 Episode 13)

Brooklyn Nine-Nine Season 5 Episode 13, “The Negotiation,” is a middle-of-the-road episode. But Brooklyn Nine-Nine‘s version of middle-of-the-road is still superior to 90% of comedies out there right now.

The show is so strong and continues to provide meaningful representation — FOX needs to renew it for its sixth season!

The best part of the very fun and silly “The Negotiation” is the expertly interlaced pop-culture references.

Jake is a die-hard (and Die Hard) fanboy. When he reconnects with Judy (played by the always-amazing Craig Robinson), discussion about meeting the child stars on Stranger Things delightfully derails the negotiating part of the negotiation.

It’s so fun to be a part of the playful banter Jake has with other characters. It helps to emotionally bolster the audience, so that when Jake is hurt by Judy, we don’t feel crestfallen as much as mildly disappointed.

Fandoms can, indeed, take the sting out of real life maladies.

For Jake, a karaoke booth and a quick conversation about local politics (“For sure. Our democracy is crumbling”) helps him to heal the wound of his friend not turning away from his life on the lam.

For us viewers, it helps us to connect with Jake and see him as more than a series of funny one-liners.

Craig Robinson and Andy Samberg have fantastic chemistry. The adorable taped karaoke session is nothing short of touching.

If Ghosted is not renewed for a second season, it would be wonderful to see Craig Robinson as a regular guest star on Season 6 of Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

The Boyle storyline on the episode falls flat. His “Jekyll and Hyde” personality is a bit tired.

It would have been more interesting to see how Boyle’s perfectionism or esoteric nature interacts with food truck culture.

But I love that Gina is back! Her connection to the personality of an outdoor cat makes me nod my head and giggle. That is spot on!

However, Gina is underused on the episode, still just lingering in the background.

It is funny and reasonable that Gina executes the perfect slice on her first try. That is undercut by Boyle’s immediate dismissal of her talent because of the squished bread.

A Gina and Boyle vs. Amy dynamic would have been really interesting and would have more deftly utilized the characters’ quirks.

Gina has been missed so much! I would like to see an entire episode dedicated to her story, so we can slake our thirst for more Gina. For now, I’m still parched!

Terry and Captain Holt working together to coach Hitchcock into being a not-disgusting interviewee is charming.

I love that they accept Hitchcock into the Nine-Nine family — even with his mysteriously wet high-fives — and he just goes along offering his talents when asked.

It’s an odd dynamic that adds to the offbeat character of the show. Truthfully, I would prefer more time with Gina and Rosa. But at least the Hitchcock storylines have been sweet and add to the overall culture of the precinct.

And Hitchcock is certainly valuable as a foil for the other leads on Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

My favorite moment on “The Negotiation” is when Captain Holt and Terry have to fake conversation. Their made-up discussion is so much better than “peas and carrots, peas and carrots.”

Holt: “Spreadsheets, spreadsheets.”
Terry: “Crime, crime.”
Holt: “Precinct, precinct.”

Well, if that doesn’t just about sum up the hilarious charm of these two characters, I don’t know what does.

What did you think of this episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Reviewer Rating:

User Rating:

 

Brooklyn Nine-Nine airs Sundays at 8:30/7:30c on FOX.

Follow us on Twitter @telltaleTV_

Want more from Tell-Tale TV? Subscribe to our newsletter here!