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Brooklyn Nine-Nine Season 7 Episode 9 Recap: 'Dillman'

Television

Brooklyn Nine-Nine Season 7 Episode 9 Recap: ‘Dillman’

A prank gone wrong brings in J.K. Simmons’ Frank Dillman to investigate.

Holt is assembling a special task force with some of the city’s best cops on it and Jake wants in. He submits his resume to the captain and to stand out, it’s written as a rap. After rethinking it, he decides not to go through with it but Holt reads it out loud. Unfortunately, he forgot to tell Charles the new plan and he jumps in to spit some fire. Peralta quickly shuts his friend down wanting to make a more professional impression. Holt informs him that he can only submit one name to be the Nine-Nine’s representative before a small explosion occurs.

[SPOILERS FOR 7.9 AHEAD!]

Scully accidently set off a glitter bomb on Jake’s desk. Everyone assumes it was a prank gone bad but it becomes a more serious issue not only for the damage it’s done in the office but because it also contaminated the only evidence for a high-profile murder lawsuit. Without it, the assistant district attorney’s thin case becomes even weaker.

Since the whole squad has recently fallen victim to one of Jake’s pranks, Holt brings in an old associate, Frank Dillman (J.K. Simmons) to find the culprit of the glitter bomb. He comes in with an objective mindset and he’s the best detective the captain has ever known. Dillman gets right to work and plays mind games with the crew to test who may be lying.

Jake thinks this is a perfect opportunity to impress Holt and wants to solve the case before Dillman does. He accuses Terry because he finds glitter on his suspenders but is quickly shot down when Frank notices it doesn’t match the glitter from the bomb. The SFPD detective then interrogates Rosa because he senses she’s hiding something. She admits to sneaking off during her lunchbreak to watch a soap opera that her and her mom bond over.

Afterwards, Peralta points the finger at his boss and wants to know his alibi. Reluctant at first, Holt then shares he was having lunch with Boyle because he is his pick for the taskforce. Jake is obviously hurt and his best friend goes to console him. Charles says he’s not taking the position because he’s been working too much and feels he’s neglecting Nikolaj.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine Season 7 Episode 9 Recap: 'Dillman'

Dillman walks in on the conversation and feels he has the final piece to the puzzle. He gathers everyone and says Jake set the whole thing up so he could solve it and be put on the task force as a result. He even found a receipt for a gas tank paid in cash at Jake’s desk. Peralta counters that Dillman framed him so he could be on the task force. He finds that Frank is no longer on the SFPD and is employed at a Yarn Barn upstate.

The two begin to argue but Charles breaks it up and finds the real culprit. The ADA was worried he’d lose the case and sabotaged the evidence so it wouldn’t go to trial. He sent his brother in law, who is an officer at the Nine-Nine, to set up the glitter bomb. Later, Jake convinces Boyle to take the task force position because it would probably make Nikolaj proud of his dad.

J.K. Simmons’ Frank Dillman is a real treat and you can totally see him and Holt being good colleagues. They both have the same staid and serious demeaner and possess excellent detective skills. It was a real battle of heavyweights during the interrogation scene as Dillman and Diaz matched wits. The way the actors played it and their delivery made the scene one of the episode’s highlights. After Dillman, and Dennis Haysbert’s Bob Annderson, Holt should watch out which old acquaintance he brings back to the Nine-Nine since they always end up disappointing.

While Jake and Dillman made a show of everything and were so dramatic, Boyle stuck to the facts and performed good old-fashioned police work to solve the case. It was good to see him succeed and recognized positively by his peers since a lot of the humor involving him is at his expense. After being the cool bad ass and joining the special task force, it seems season 7 is coming up Charles.

Despite a great guest star, ‘Dillman’ suffered from a dip in the quality of writing. The show is held at a high standard for its comedy and this time the jokes didn’t live up to the normal expectations. It’s not to say they aren’t good, but many of them elicited an amusing chuckle more than real laugh out loud moments.

My Favorite Lines:

Jake: It appears what we have is a classic “Whodunit”.
Holt: The phrase “whodunit” is a grammatical abomination. Please use the proper term a “Who has done this”.

Jake: Case closed. <closing folder>
Rosa: Did you put that folder there just so you could close it?
Jake: Yes Rosa. Obviously.

Jake: It’s not far fetched at all. Holt is not the joyless robot that he once was.
Holt: Is that about that time I ate a burrito? I was pressured into it.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine Season 7 Episode 9 Recap: 'Dillman'
Brooklyn Nine-NIne S 7 E 9: 'Dillman'
Is it good?
J.K. Simmons is another in a great line of guest stars on Brooklyn Nine-NIne.
Dillman and Diaz's interrogation scene stands out.
The jokes, though good, don't achieve the usual high standard set by the show.
7.5
Good

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