SPOILER ALERT AND WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Chicago PD Season 13, Episode 9. It also contains discussion of suicide.

Chicago PD Season 13, Episode 9 is a win simply because it’s a Trudy Platt episode. Trudy has been underused for years, often appearing in just a scene or two per episode now that there’s no longer an active patrol element on the NBC show. But every now and then she gets an episode to herself, and “Heroes” is one of the better Trudy hours.

Because audiences often don’t see much of Trudy, fans may not recall just how accomplished an actress Amy Morton is. She has two Tony Award nominations. “Heroes” utilizes Morton to the fullest. It may not be the most dramatic Trudy-centric story; thankfully she’s not hurt or almost blown up this time. But it lets her drive the plot from beginning to end, and it gets the most out of Morton’s emotional range. Hopefully it serves as a refresher to the writers to use her more often.

The plot surrounds the death of one of Trudy’s recruits, a Narcotics cop named Bobby McKay, who dies just hours after Trudy visits him at home. She is convinced he was killed by the drug dealers he was about to arrest; Trudy’s close friend Kim Burgess believes that McKay died by suicide. This difference of opinion is a bit awkwardly executed; it takes the viewer a minute to realize that Burgess’ theory is the right one. But Chicago PD deserves props for addressing the subject of police suicide. It’s a topic that isn’t discussed enough, and telling that story through Trudy and Burgess is the right way to do it, both in terms of plot and performance.

From a plot point of view, the push and pull between the two ideas only works with Trudy and Burgess, because of the characters’ friendship. Trudy wouldn’t necessarily listen to anyone else in the way she (sort of) listens to Burgess. Burgess also has experience with suicide; she saw an acquaintance of hers take his own life in Season 5’s similarly titled episode “The Thing About Heroes.” But in terms of acting, Morton and Marina Squerciati are perfect in their work. Morton gives the episode its gravity and emotional impact, and she gets to do so much more here than usual, including being out in the field and being the person to lead the case-explaining scene. Squerciati is the right foil; she’s patient and empathetic and Burgess has always been an effective contrast to Trudy. That’s why the characters are such a great duo.

Furthermore, “Heroes” also includes a shoutout to the long-neglected friendship between Burgess and Kevin Atwater. When Burgess locates McKay’s cell phone in a dumpster, she calls Atwater to get its passcode. He asks if she’s okay, and when she admits she isn’t, Atwater asks if she needs him. Burgess and Atwater are another of the great dynamics on Chicago PD, and there have been other episodes that missed big opportunities for them. Even though that phone call is brief, it’s a small nod to how important Atwater and Burgess are to one another. That scene and the last scene between Burgess and Trudy, in which Burgess reveals McKay’s video suicide note, are powerful and they also serve as reminders that Chicago PD can dig deeper than just “good guys versus bad guys.”

Sometimes the show can get caught up in its ongoing mystery or vendetta against Voight of the season. But “Heroes” is character first and it’s an example of that team feeling that the best PD episodes have. Burgess trying to console Trudy, and talking through the situation with her, feels very much like the conversations Trudy has had with Hank Voight in the past. It’s proof of how Burgess has grown and continues to grow as a detective, that now she can take the lead in a hard moment like that. Yet it also is a moment where Trudy can be supported, when so much of what she does is supporting everyone else.

“Heroes” is a lot like “The Thing About Heroes,” beyond the fact that the titles are close. Both hit the emotional beats of being a police officer and both are sobering moments for the characters at the center of the episode. Chicago PD needs more episodes like this one, and it absolutely needs more Trudy Platt, because there’s really nothing that Amy Morton can’t do.

Chicago PD airs Wednesdays at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT on NBC. Photo Credit: Courtesy of NBC.

Article content is (c)2020-2026 Brittany Frederick and may not be excerpted or reproduced without express written permission by the author. Follow me on Twitter at @BFTVTwtr and on Instagram at @BFTVGram. For story pitches, contact me at tvbrittanyf@yahoo.com.