Since The Rookie premiered on ABC, the show has developed a passionate fan following who loves to talk about fascinating topics like the fact that one of the show's notable actors has a shocking past. Since I started watching the hit police procedural series, I have become one of those viewers who is surprisingly invested in what will happen next to the show's many characters that I can't help but love.
Since I have grown to care about The Rookie, I have strong feelings about topics like which characters from the show's past I want to see return. Similarly, I have spent time considering how Lucy Chen's major promotion could change the show in a bigger way than many viewers seem to realize. Most of all, the fact that I love The Rookie has led to the fact that I've developed one huge pet peeve with the show because of how illogical one aspect of the series is.
Why The Rookie's depiction of Bailey Nune drives me nuts
I want to immediately point out that this article is not about the complaints about The Rookie's Bailey Nune that some of the show's outspoken viewers bring up all the time on social media. Most notably, there are some viewers who like to complain that Jenna Dewan's character is portrayed as being too good at everything. I find that and many of the other common complaints about the character to be overstated and tedious to see come up constantly. That said, I still can't help but severely roll my eyes or sigh during many The Rookie episodes when Bailey suddenly shows up onscreen for a specific reason.
While the vast majority of The Rookie's characters serve the public as police officers, Bailey helps people in a very different way, as a firefighter and EMT. While cops and firefighters often support one another, the fact that Bailey isn't a cop could have made it difficult for the show to involve her in many of its main storylines. Despite that, it seems like the team behind The Rookie has come up with a baffling solution for that storytelling hurdle.
When Bailey originally showed up on The Rookie, the show featured relatively realistic reasons to occasionally involve the character as a part of the investigations conducted by the show's police. Over time, however, it has often felt like episodes have skipped that step. Instead, it now seems like anytime that a crime scene requires the aid of an EMT or firefighter, it is Bailey who shows up.
If there is a shoot-out on a freeway, Bailey will be there with another random EMT who can be hit by a bullet with no major storyline complications. If the police officers that the show follows find an elderly person who has been abandoned in their apartment, Bailey will show up to check them over and take them to the hospital. If one of the show's officers gets in a car chase that ends in an accident, Bailey will be the EMT who appears to save the day. In all three cases, Bailey can then reappear later during the episode to help the officers get answers about what went wrong.
Of course, there is a presumption that the show's police officers are regularly getting help from other EMTs offscreen. However, based on watching the events of The Rookie, it feels like only a minor exaggeration to say that Bailey might as well be the only EMT and firefighter that serves the district that the show's police officers work in. Considering Los Angeles currently has a population of nearly 4 million, The Rookie's district would require a small army of EMTs to be there to help the citizens and police officers. With those odds, it is truly ridiculous to think that Bailey would show up to help the show's main characters so often. While many aspects of The Rookie are incredibly unrealistic, there is something about this one that just drives me nuts.