SPOILER ALERT AND WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Chicago PD Season 13, Episode 11. It also contains a mention of pregnancy loss.

A lot of Chicago PD Season 13, Episode 11 feels like the NBC show’s version of a Fast & Furious movie. The parallels may be more obvious since that franchise also comes from NBCUniversal. But the bigger talking point is that it repeats old ideas from Kevin Atwater’s character arc—until an ending that comes out of nowhere.

The first scene of “On the Way” establishes the episode’s theme: that Atwater has no life outside of his job. However, Chicago PD viewers know that the reason that’s a problem is because the series got rid of so much of his personal life. Atwater being a surrogate father to his siblings ended when they were sent out of state. His father and the residents of his apartment building likewise only pop up now and then. Atwater’s love interests have all been short-lived (although the sudden end to his fling with Val Soto might be attributed to actor Natalee Linez being cast in Dick Wolf’s upcoming FBI spinoff CSI). And Kim Burgess encouraging Atwater is a reminder that Burgess and Atwater’s friendship was also left on the back burner for a while. Kevin Atwater had a really cool personal life with several unique story angles, but it always seemed to be forgotten about.

Therefore, it’s hard to entirely get behind the idea of this episode, because fans have seen this before. Atwater opines about his lack of a personal life, angsts and then tries to do something about it—but for how long? This latest attempt also isn’t wholly convincing because it involves a character viewers only met once: Tasha Fox, the old friend turned love interest from the Season 13 episode “Miami.” The audience hasn’t seen enough of them to be invested in that relationship beyond wanting Atwater to be happy.

So when Tasha reveals that she’s pregnant with Atwater’s baby, it feels like a plot twist for dramatic effect rather than a genuine revelation. There are three reasons to be skeptical about it: their relationship is barely off the ground; Tasha is in another state (and was quite vocal about leaving Chicago), and the One Chicago universe has a trend of pregnancy storylines ending badly. Multiple characters—including Burgess and most recently Stella Kidd—have lost children. There are good intentions here, but there’s also plenty of reason to reserve enthusiasm.

It would have been much better to do a story like this after Atwater had an established relationship for a season or two, and fans cared about that pairing and saw a future for it. Even better, what about reinvesting in some of the other facets of his life? His character development doesn’t have to be strictly through a romantic pairing. One thing “On the Way” gets right is remind viewers how well Atwater and Burgess are matched together.

LaRoyce Hawkins and Marina Squerciati deserve more scenes together—or even an episode that’s wholly centered on both Burgess and Atwater. Burgess is present in this story, but she’s in more of a support role; an episode letting them partner up again for whatever reason would be gangbusters. It would also be perfectly timed, since Patrick John Flueger’s leave of absence means that there’s not any Burzek screen time for a while. Why not use that opportunity to look at how Burgess and Atwater have evolved since they were patrol partners? And speaking of partners, Atwater and Dante Torres is a fun combination worth further exploring, too.

Personal incongruities aside, the other niggle with “On the Way” is that it’s hard to shake the Fast & Furious comparison. It’s not just that the show has a “street takeover” scene and talks about car culture. There’s a moment where Atwater and Torres visit a police garage to select a car, and it feels like it’s a homage to the Fast & Furious movies, from the shots of hugely expensive cars, to the music, to the fact that they pick out a bright orange Lamborghini Aventador. At least Chicago PD doesn’t bring anyone back from the dead or reveal a submarine. But once that idea is in the audience’s mind, it’s hard to shake.

The story also gets wrapped up in an almost deus ex machina way, as Intelligence gets an off-screen confession out of one of the bad guys telling them where the rest of the stolen cars are. That’s somewhat forgiveable since the dynamic between Atwater and the getaway driver he befriends is more believable than what unfolds with him and Tasha. The show is clearly prioritizing the emotional arc over making a complex mystery, and fans will be relieved that Lawrence survives (while still feeling sad about Mark, the episode’s main victim whose backstory gave him potential to be a really interesting character).

And as ever, LaRoyce Hawkins delivers when he’s put front and center. He is an incredibly underrated performer. “On the Way” is just not the best use of his talents. It’s not a complicated enough case of the week to feel like it truly challenges Atwater, and the personal story is an uneven version of what audiences have seen before. Chicago PD is trying, but there’s a lot more that can be done with Kevin Atwater beyond this.

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.