'The Rookie', copaganda I really like
I really like copaganda. Agents of Shield is my favorite. Will Trent is good, then The Rookie autoplayed after the latest Will Trent episode, and I'm really liking it too.
But I have to catch myself, getting roped into the narratives that they're painting... a lot of really problematic stuff.
Every single episode of 'The Rookie' involves shootouts and badass policing, where some really bad dudes get arrested. And there's new cops (rookies) with new perspectives who are basically trying to be good people, kind of sort of pushing back against some of the nasty police stuff.
Nolan is very sympathetic and sees the good in people, and tries to achieve non-violent resolution sometimes. What's-her-face (sorry) tries to push back against her Training Officer's toxic & harmful B.S.
But at the end of the day, even with the flakes of wokeness added, it paints this picture of cops as uber-necessary heros doing a hard job, doing their best. Most episodes.
Yesterday's (for me, ssn1 ep5) involved a competition, where the three Training Officer / Rookie teams were competing for the most points. 7 points for felony arrests 4 for misdemeanors, 3 for something. Nolan's super into it, but his TO says NO. Good on her.
She pushes back on how problematic it is ... but she reveals why in the end ... because the competition pits the cops against eachother, causing turmoil in THEIR community. Her main concern was not that it incentivizes corrupt police work and bad arrests.
She (and others) do address some of these problems throughout the episode, but the winning narrative is that the competition is good because the cops are doing their jobs, and one of the TOs needs the "win" because of his unresolved personal/emotional issues.
A frequent issue in police shows (not much encountered in Rookie so far), is the system getting in the way of catching bad people, and the "good guy" cops working around the system. Yaknow. The system of accountability that protects our freedoms as citizens, and defends our rights. That system is the problem in cop shows, all the time.
(Sidenote: People constantly give up their rights in The Rookie, letting cops in their house, running their mouths and admitting to crimes. Sets a bad example.)
I believe policing is hard work. I believe police do perform necessary duties. I've had to call them before, and I've had friends who needed their protection in moments of crisis.
But I also believe policing is extremely problematic. That we outsource accountability to state forces. That police enforce horrible laws. That police fail to do their job sometimes when it is important. That there are domestic abusers and corrupt cops, and many aspects of the system encourage that kind of behavior.
I like these cop shows because they have loveable characters who are trying to do the right thing. They're motivated by good, to do good. And the stories are usually interesting, the dialogue is well-written, and there's ACTION. Who doesn't love a good action scene?
But as far as painting an accurate picture of policing, they do an awful job. The majority of what my local police do is categorized as "Calls For Service" without another category. There's really very little gun confiscation or drug confiscation. They don't seem to keep kids out of gangs. They don't alleviate poverty.
(Note: The 'Calls For Service' might actually encompass all categories. The way its reported to our city makes it appear to be its own standalone category, but I'm not sure.)
They aren't interested in getting drunks home safe, because they have no sympathy for drunk drivers. They're more interested in arresting those bad people. (Literally, this is based on a conversation I had with our current police chief.)
I believe free-rides-for-drunks would do more to prevent DUIs than the system of enforcement. But we spend hella money on enforcement, and little on free rides.
My police take about 40% of my city's general fund budget.
It is just way more complicated than these shows let on. And policing is far more problematic than these shows let on. And they build an image in our minds of needing cops all-the-time for every-little-thing. And they make excuses for every single bad thing cops do. And they convince us that the system of accountability is the problem, the reason bad guys get to be free.
I'm gonna keep watching them. But I'm also going to stay mindful.
Is Dr. Who copaganda? What about Batman? What do you think of journalists who out criminals? Are they "police" too? Is it different when the "criminal" is a leader of an institution misusing power?
P.S. Nolan and his TO spend several hours trying to find a temporary shelter for a homeless mother and her ~3 year old boy. They were unsuccessful. At roughtly $60 per hour for the two officers (probably more), they could have just spent $180 to get her a motel room for the night. But then the cops still need paid because we live in a capitalist system and you gotta have that MONEY.