Chicago P.D. Season 11 Episode 1 Review: Unpacking

When it comes to season premieres, Chicago P.D. Season 11 Episode 1, “Unpacking,” can be labeled as a boring start to the season.

Even though the premise for a good case is there, the episode falls short, and the audience may find itself losing interest in the storyline as it develops. It might have to do with the fact that, once again, it’s all about Upton spiraling after Halstead’s departure.

Whatever the case may be, this season premiere isn’t what we were expecting after the long hiatus.

Chicago P.D. Season 10 Episode 22, “A Better Place,” ended with Adam Ruzek being shot and on his way to the hospital. The new season begins trying to make us believe that Adam is gone.

As the episode starts, we see Voight driving and flashbacks of what happened to Adam. The ambulance leaving and Ruzek bleeding on the floor. These flashbacks are mixed with images of a man running.

When Voight arrives at the precinct, Trudy is on his case about giving her a name to replace Adam. These moments, combined with the flashbacks, trick the audience into believing Adam has been gone for six months and won’t be coming back.

However, we later see Adam running and preparing for a test that will determine whether he can go back to the Intelligence Unit or not. This is a great way to set up his return and, hopefully, see how his recovery has been.

In the end, Voight tells Trudy the only name he will give her is Adam’s because that is his spot. This is a nice nod to Voight’s loyalty to his team and his priority of always protecting them.

Even though it is nice to see Adam’s place on the team is safe, it is disappointing that this first episode does not explore what happened to him and how the team dealt with his shooting. Hopefully, the upcoming episode will make up for that.

Since Halstead’s departure, it feels like Chicago P.D. has heavily focused on Upton’s storyline and has sometimes left other characters on the sidelines.

For those viewers who were expecting the premiere to be about Ruzek, this episode feels disappointing as it once again centers around Hailey Upton. Given the fact that the character will be leaving after this season, it might be the writers’ way to set up her exit.

Starting off with flashbacks of her after Jay left, combined with her taking her ring off and showing divorce papers, is the stepping stone into her spiraling. She immediately goes against what the crisis prevention team asked of her, and this results in further issues.

However, even when her personal issues have started to interfere with her work, Upton’s instincts are still good and there is a reason she always follows her gut.

While the crisis prevention team tries to de-escalate the situation, she realizes there is something else going on. It is because of this gut feeling that she discovers two victims.

As good as her instincts are, to begin with, they fail her when it comes to finding the attacker. Instead of listening to Cam and the evidence they have, she continues to push to make him fit her instincts.

This is her downfall and one of the clear signs that she isn’t able to separate her personal life from her job.

Another clear sign of her spiral is when Voight visits her apartment, and we see she is still living out of boxes. After living in her new apartment for six months, Hailey still hasn’t unpacked.

The fact that she isn’t unpacking and that it took her so long to mail her divorce papers are signs that she is having trouble letting go of the past. However, if she wants to continue doing her job, she must find a way to move on or separate her emotions from the work she has to do.

It is also quite interesting to see Voight being the one who pushes her to move forward because Hailey has so much of him. She might not have the violence he uses to push suspects, but her words hit just as hard.

This is a comparison that has been building since Chicago P.D. Season 9, and it’ll be interesting to see how her exit affects Voight.

Chicago P.D. Season 11 Episode 1, “Unpacking,” doesn’t feel like a season premiere. On the contrary, it feels like a filler episode.

Hopefully, the season will start picking up, and the show will deliver the drama and the intensity we are used to as viewers.

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What did you think of this episode of Chicago P.D.? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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Chicago P.D. airs Wednesdays at 10/9c on NBC.

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