Chicago P.D. Season 13 Episode 14 Review: Meant to Be

If you’ve missed Ruzek, you’ll be happy to know he is back on Chicago P.D. Season 13 Episode 14, “Meant to Be.”  While many expected his first episode back to focus on him, the show has something else in mind, and it works perfectly.

His absence is addressed immediately as Kim and Adam discuss Bob’s worsening condition. The storyline presented to viewers makes sense, as we have seen Bob’s diagnosis from the beginning and how dedicated Ruzek has been to making sure his father is okay.

Even though he has been gone for a few episodes, the dynamic between Ruzek and Burgess hasn’t changed. We see these two characters the same way we did before his departure. They are in-synch, they understand each other, and know how to make their mess (as Ruzek puts it) work.

In true Chicago P.D. manner, the episode focuses mostly on Burgess and her storyline. This time, we find her mentoring a young officer who is trying to prove herself at her precinct.

Katy Wilson is the perfect kind of character for Burgess to mentor. Burgess might see a bit of herself in Wilson, but most importantly, she seems to want to mentor her because she knows how hard it might be for her to grow within the department.

Even though Burgess knows nothing about Wilson, she sees her potential and trusts her enough to bring her on their new case. After one raid together, Burgess puts Wilson’s name in the ring to go undercover and help them catch Mosely.

While everything seems to be going great between Burgess and Wilson, things take a turn when the medical examiner shares the news that Wilson’s gun was the one that killed Parker, the other cop. This doesn’t make Burgess believe that Wilson is bad for the job, but it makes her second-guess her mentoring capabilities.

We see Burgess reassure Wilson that everything will be okay, but it isn’t until Kim shares everything with Voight that we understand she is struggling with this, too. He has to remind her that she didn’t do anything wrong by bringing Wilson on to the case because she is blaming herself for the shooting.

This reminds us that while Voight has consciously mentored others, such as Upton and Imani, he has also indirectly mentored Burgess. With her, he has given free rein because he completely trusts her capabilities and knows she will always do the right thing. Precisely why he lets her decide whether she wants to mention Katy froze.

As a mentor, however, Burgess isn’t quite ready to be vulnerable, and she will probably learn this as she continues to grow as a detective.

When Katy asks whether she has ever frozen, Burgess replies that she has been scared before. This isn’t what Katy is asking, and Burgess is avoiding the question (or the answer). Viewers do remember that after being assaulted by a suspect, it took Burgess a long time to come back to her regular self, and this included times in which she froze in the middle of a case.

Burgess is clearly not ready to share this part of herself with Katy, but one has to wonder if it would have been information that helped Wilson stay in the department instead of handing in her badge. Would it have been encouraging to know that someone else in her position went through the same thing?

This is probably Burgess’s thought as well, and why she decides to visit Katy and talk to her after she finds out about her badge. Maybe there is a sense of responsibility for having brought her on to such a huge case as a rookie and then not being honest with her. But again, this is a learning opportunity for Burgess, and hopefully we will see her mentoring someone else.

But as Burgess is finding her footing as a mentor, she has definitely found it as a mother. Even though she wonders why it is so hard to know what is right for your kid, she is already doing the right thing. Trying to give Mack the best life possible is what a good mother would do, so she isn’t failing in that aspect.

It is great for Chicago P.D. to show the domesticity of Burgess and Ruzek’s life now that he is back, so viewers know where they are at. Clearly, they have their differences in what might be best for Mack, but they are navigating this together and doing the best for their daughter.

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

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