‘9-1-1,’ ‘Blue Bloods’ & More Shows That Should Do a Bottle Episode
Bottle episodes can end up being the best, most memorable installments of a series, allowing for a few or more characters to shine while sticking to (mostly) one location (and without fanfare or splash). (Take, for example, “The Box” on Brooklyn Nine-Nine, with guest star Sterling K. Brown being interrogated by Andy Samberg‘s Jake Peralta and Andre Braugher‘s Raymond Holt.)
And so in looking ahead to the next seasons of our favorite shows (premiere dates for which remain up in the air due to the writers and actors strikes), we can’t help but wonder which would do well to feature one (and how). Wouldn’t it be fun to see the 118 at the firehouse for a shift that’s actually quiet (meaning no one utters the dreaded word) on 9-1-1? Each Blue Bloods episode features a family dinner at Frank (Tom Selleck) and Henry’s (Len Cariou), with a few scenes related to a family conflict occasionally taking place there as well, but what if that got flipped around a bit? FBI: Most Wanted is on the move a lot, but what if the agents just … weren’t?
Scroll down as we take a look at the current shows we’d like to see feature a bottle episode.
9-1-1
We’ve seen the first responders at the firehouse between calls, sitting down for meals, just talking, or dreading when Buck (Oliver Stark) brings out the clipboard. But what about a shift that has zero (or minimal, nothing requiring the full team to go out) calls? We could get some great character moments, with everyone or broken into pairs or groups we don’t see together very often, as well as perhaps someone getting injured (and for some reason, they can’t get outside help so it’s up to the others to step in).
Alert: Missing Persons Unit
The Missing Persons Unit relies on the tech and tools available in their headquarters and boots on the ground to track down people’s loved ones. But what if, for some reason, a lockdown means that the officers are all stuck inside headquarters, they don’t have access to their computers for whatever reason, and they can only communicate via phones or walkie talkies with others outside following their orders and relaying information? The focus would be on the members of the MPU, with the only parts of the case we get from them and what we hear from officers elsewhere looking for the missing.
Blue Bloods
It wouldn’t be an episode of the CBS procedural without the Reagans (and the occasional special guest) sitting around the dinner table on Sunday, but why not have more of that? Follow the family (and not necessarily all of them) at Frank and Henry’s over the course of a day, with a dinner (of course) and different groupings in various rooms (and during those conversations, we find out what’s going on in their lives that week).
Chicago P.D.
An episode could stick to Intelligence’s offices. Or, while we don’t need to see Sergeant Hank Voight (Jason Beghe) or anyone else put a suspect in the cage again to try to get them to talk, that entire downstairs area — the garage, the room with the computers, etc. — would be the perfect place to see the officers stuck while trying to solve a case (or perhaps while the rest of the station, and even a couple members of Intelligence, is under attack). (But we have to be upfront: No bottle episode in One Chicago will ever beat Fire‘s “My Lucky Day,” which saw David Eigenberg and Joe Minoso‘s Christopher Herrmann and Joe Cruz trapped in a freight elevator.)
FBI: Most Wanted
On FBI‘s spinoff, the Fugitive Task Force pursues criminals in the field. These agents are, more often than not, constantly on the move. But what if for one episode, they just weren’t? What if some of the unit couldn’t leave their Mobile Command Center and were instead held hostage inside by the fugitive they were after? It would offer a chance to maybe show off some parts of the vehicle we have yet to see, too.
Law & Order: Organized Crime
This unit tends to be very much on the ground (and occasionally undercover) for its cases, but what if something kept them inside their office, especially early enough on in the season that they’re still grieving for the loss of one of their own? If there are cracks or tension between officers, this would be a great way to explore that while also perhaps moving a case (or a multi-episode arc) forward.
S.W.A.T.
What better way to celebrate the drama’s un-cancellation than with an episode highlighting the actors and core of the show — the team — in its final season? Something could keep at least a few of the team (including Shemar Moore‘s Hondo) at HQ, relaying information to those in the field (the action of whom we don’t see). If there are going to be any major changes coming for anyone as the show nears its series finale, key conversations about that could take place.
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