Summary
Unfortunately,The Rookieseason 7 won’t be released until 2025, but the good news is that the extra-long hiatus might be worth it becausethe upcoming episodes will avoid a mistake that many shows (evenThe Rookie) have made over the years.The ABC police procedural series, created by Alexi Hawley, chronicles the lives of law enforcement officers at the (fictional) Mid-Wilshire Station of the Los Angeles Police Department.The Rookiebegan with Nathan Fillion’s John Nolan, a middle-aged rookie police officer, joining the force, much to the dismay of many. Six seasons later, Nolan is now the one training rookies.
The Rookieseason 7 will consist of 18 episodes.
ABC has continuously renewedThe Rookiebecause, despite the story’s fluctuating quality throughout the seasons, it consistently has strong ratings and a passionate fanbase. Nevertheless,the disappointing finale ofThe Rookieseason 6encapsulated the series' dip in quality and demonstrated how it hasn’t been the same since the earlier seasons. However, one factor played a significant part in the previous season’s shortcomings, and it’s an issue that will be fixed in the next season. Instead of a serialized format,The Rookieis returning to its glory days of being episodic.
The Rookie Season 7’s Standalone Format Is Great News For Season 7
The Rookie Is Going Back To An Episodic Plan
While speaking toTVLine,The Rookieshowrunner Alexi Hawley revealed that season 7 would return to the show’s episodic roots. As some may recall,season 6 relied heavily on the serialized storyline of Monica Stevens' rise to power,and it failed to stick the landing (or be intriguing in any way, even though Monica was a great villain on paper). But for season 7,The Rookiewill revert to an episodic format and feature stories that begin and end within one episode. Hawley explained:
“I do think we’ll go back to being more of a standalone show with serialized elements because it’s going to be a longer season and I think people really do like that. Also, there are the many different ways we tell stories — whether it’s the big event-type episodes, the more rom-com episodes, or with a big guest star — so it’ll be fun to go back to that.”
The Rookieseason 7’s big story promiseis fantastic news that will surely make many excited about the upcoming episodes.ABC’s police procedural thrives when it has longer seasons with standalone stories,giving it space to breathe. Hopefully, the result will live up to the expectations whenThe Rookieseason 7 is releasedin early 2025.
10 Best Moments From The Rookie Season 6, Ranked
Although The Rookie season 6 was shortened due to the 2023 actors and writers strikes, its ten episodes contained several memorable moments.
Switching From Episodic To Serialized Storytelling Has Hurt Many Other TV Shows
Episodic Is The Superior Format For Procedural Series
The Rookieis far from being the only show that has fallen victim to the serialized problem. Other series that have made the jump from episodic to serialized typically experience a decline in quality. For example,Supernatural, Lost,andBonesall switched as the writers ran out of ideas,and the move only hurt them. Procedural shows in particular occasionally make the mistake of ditching their original formats, even though episodic storytelling is a cornerstone of the genre. Thankfully,The Rookieseason 7will attempt to fix its past mistakes and return to the good ol' days of episodic plots.
The Rookie
Cast
The Rookie follows John Nolan, a small-town man who embarks on a new career as an LAPD officer after a life-changing event. As the force’s oldest rookie, Nolan faces skepticism from superiors who view his pursuit as a midlife crisis.
