Chicago P.D. Season 13 Episode 12 Review: Missing
Chicago P.D. has never dug into a character’s motivation as deeply as it’s doing so for Imani. Chicago P.D. Season 13 Episode 12, “Missing,” gives us a detailed look into why Imani is the way she is and why she does the work she does.
Even though we have known about her missing sister from the moment she joined the unit, this episode explains how her sister’s disappearance has dictated everything she does in her life. By having her work on a case that hits way too close to home, the viewer gets a better understanding of Imani’s reality.
This kind of character work feels new because every other time the show has looked into a character’s journey, it has done so in a vague way. While we know the characters we now love, it feels like, for the first time in a long time, Chicago P.D. is taking a chance on letting viewers look into the most vulnerable aspect of a character.
“Missing” starts with an empty-handed Imani signing the lease on a new apartment. Unlike the tenant who seems surprised to see she has nothing to pack, the audience understands this comes with who Imani is.
There is that feeling that she is never going to stay in one place for long and that she travels lightly because she is following her sister’s trail. In reality, a trail that she doesn’t really know where it starts and where it ends, or even where it might be leading her.
This is confirmed when she talks to Voight after the case is closed. She shares with him that from the moment her sister went missing, her parents followed every lead they could find across the country. Imani moved several times in a short period of time, always following the evidence.
Now that her parents are gone, she continues their search. That is what led her to Chicago. That is why we see her traveling lightly. That is why she was hesitant to join the unit, not knowing if she would stay long enough or if she should create a place for herself.
In true Chicago P.D. fashion, Chicago P.D. Season 13 Episode 12, “Missing,” uses the case to connect us to the person the episode will focus on. This time around, using a missing child’s story is the perfect excuse to open up Imani to the audience.
That hope Imani sees in Ben’s mom when she thinks her son has come home is the hope she carries as she looks for her sister. Unlike Ben’s mom, Imani seems a little more connected to reality, understanding that hope might lead to disappointment.
Everything she does in this case is what she has been doing or would do for her sister. When she suggests they use Ben’s brother to get to Eddie, she does so because she would absolutely put herself in that place if it meant getting her sister back.
What Ben’s brother labels as delusion or unhealthy is the motivator that has kept Imani (and his mom) going all these years. And she says it very clearly, he doesn’t understand what it feels like because he didn’t meet his brother.
Imani puts her motivation into words when she says that every day she feels like her sister is still over her shoulder and that she might turn and see her there. Not only has her police work been shaped by this, but also her entire life. Imani doesn’t create lasting bonds with anyone because she is afraid to lose them, like she lost her sister.
Even though Imani knows she had to kill Eddie or he would have shot at her, taking that shot is the hardest thing she could have done. She knows that by killing Eddie, she is taking away the opportunity for Ben’s mother to hear the truth and get some type of closure.
This is immediately confirmed the moment they tell her what they discovered happened to Ben. Because there is no body, his mother continues to believe he is out there. In Imani’s face, the viewer can see she understands why the mom reacts this way; she understands what that feels like.
However, Imani is still able to understand the reality of the case. Just because there is no body, it doesn’t mean that what they’re saying isn’t true. The question is whether she will be able to take that answer if that’s what comes of her sister’s investigation.
Chicago P.D. Season 13 Episode 12, “Missing,” gives us a better look at who Imani is. But it also leaves us wondering whether she can stay for the long run and whether she will be able to accept the truth when it comes out.
Hopefully, the show will give her (and us) an answer regarding her sister’s disappearance.
What did you think of this episode of Chicago P.D.? Share your thoughts in the comments below, and don’t forget to leave your own rating!
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Chicago P.D. airs Wednesdays at 10/9c on NBC.
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Lara Rosales
By day, Lara Rosales (she/her) is a solo mom by choice and a bilingual writer with a BA in Latin-American Literature known as a Media Relations Expert. By night, she is a TV enjoyer who used to host a podcast (Cats, Milfs & Lesbian Things). You can find her work published on Eulalie Magazine, Geek Girl Authority, W Spotlight, Collider, USA Wire, Mentors Collective, Instelite, Noodle, Dear Movies, Nicki Swift, and Flip Screened.