Will Trent Season 3 Episode 11 Review: Best of Your Recollection

Years of heartbreak cannot even prepare you for this hour. If this ABC drama ever enters the Emmy conversation, Will Trent Season 3 Episode 11, “Best of Your Recollection,” should be the submission.

It explores a criminal chase that goes very wrong — ending in the death of a minor. The show puts its best effort forward in this gripping episode.

Even the brief comedy of Ormewood’s claustrophobia cannot deflect from this very heartbreaking plot. It tackles what happens when a police officer accidentally murders someone in the crossfire. Our hero faces many emotions, the main one being guilt. 

A major theme of Will Trent Season 3 is the dissection of the concept of right and wrong. Will always plays by simple rules: wrong is wrong, right is right, and there is no room for gray.

The gray has been making a major comeback this season. There is no grayer area than accidentally killing someone to stop a criminal. We know Will never intended to harm this child.

However, is he really without fault? Guess you can assume that if he didn’t shoot, the man could have done worse things to the people in the building. However, “Best of Your Recollection” highlights all the issues with Will’s actions in this case.

He does multiple things wrong. This allows viewers to be just as conflicted as Will. His actions show that his confidence as a GBI member may not be completely flawless.

Additionally, it explores a major hot button topic in a very complicated, no right answers way. It’s a magnificent piece of writing, made only better by Ramon Rodriguez’s performance.

This is a masterclass by him. He adds so many dimensions to Will by showcasing every possible emotion, from fear to guilt to disgust to pain and so many more. You can’t help but sympathize with Will and be devastated over this boy.

The boy cruelly loses his life. He will never really get to experience life because of Will’s decision.

Will’s life has forever been changed as well. His sense of right and wrong is now shattered, and the joy that he was beginning to experience may no longer exist.

We see at the end of “Best of Your Recollection,” Will missing Marion’s call because he’s crying in Angie’s arms. This seems like an obvious nod to a potential love triangle brewing.

However, it seems deeper than that. Angie is the person who understands him the most. This gesture also likely represents their official reconciliation as friends and platonic soulmates.

It also could show Will pushing away any sense of normality and happiness. Marion and he have been so happy up until this point. Now, this moment will not only haunt him but likely push him away from joy.

We won’t be surprised if next week Will breaks up with Marion. He may not think he deserves happiness after what happened.

Of all the potential directions for Will Trent Season 3, we didn’t expect it to explore a police shooting gone wrong. It’s one of the series’s strongest episodes, but at what cost?

“Best of Your Recollection” is a powerful hour that explores the grey area of law enforcement. It doesn’t offer any simple solutions, but it allows Ramon Rodriguez to shine in yet another impeccable performance.

Stray Thoughts

• One must wonder if this is the beginning of an ongoing police brutality storyline (though that is clearly not what’s happened here). If Will becomes the villain in many people’s eyes?
• Ormewood and Faith double dating with Will and Marion…couldn’t make this future romance any more obvious if they tried.
• Glad Faith now knows about Jeremy. It’ll be interesting to see how this all develops in the upcoming episodes.
• The story of the mother who lost her son and the police being negligent is also another powerful nod to police criticism.
• I kept expecting a twist that would reveal that Will didn’t accidentally shoot the boy. Sad to see there wasn’t a twist but that makes the episode more impactful.

What did you think of this episode of Will Trent? Share your thoughts in the comments below, and don’t forget to leave your own rating!

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Will Trent airs Tuesdays at 8/7 on ABC.

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