Recap / Brooklyn Nine Nine S 1 E 15 Operation Broken Feather

Operation Broken Feather is the fifteenth episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine's first season.

Detective Pembroke, aka "The Vulture", continues to loom large over the Nine-Nine by stealing their cases just as they're about to be solved. To make things worse for Jake, Amy is considering transferring to the Major Crimes Unit and work with Pembroke as a way to advance her career. Jake tries to talk her out of this decision as they work to solve a string of hotel robberies.

Meanwhile, the rest of the squad has to complete a large amount of paperwork but progress is slow. Captain Holt and Terry decide to try and use Sabermetrics to increase productivity in the squad room.

This episode provides examples of:

• Adam Westing: Adam Sandler's cameo has him playing himself and apparently averting this, showing that he has Hidden Depths as a person... then he reveals that Kevin James' wife in his next movie never wears a bra.
• Brick Joke: Near the beginning of the episode, Scully has the "bright" idea to use tear gas to delay the Vulture, but only succeeds in making everyone else suffer while the Vulture makes it through safely. Then at the end of the episode, Jake offers a "peace offering" to the Vulture which is actually tear gas. He pulls the pin and he and Amy run out of the room as the Vulture gets engulfed in smoke.
• Call-Back:
  • Just like in his previous appearance, the Vulture weirdly comments on Jake's "big, white ass".
  • There's also a call back to "The Bet", as Jake once again wants to eat nuts because he's "snack-y".
• The Cameo: Adam Sandler and Joe Theisman appear at an auction of Greek antiquities. Theisman's leg is horrifically broken when Jake tackles a suspect into Theisman's seat.
  Jake: What a day, huh? Met Adam Sandler, broke Joe Theisman's leg, and solved a case together!
• Curb-Stomp Battle: The team's flag football game against FDNY is a blowout in their favor as all they need to do is hand the ball to Terry.
• Dumpster Dive: Jake and Amy have to retrieve a jacket from a dumpster as a key piece of evidence of the jewelry theft case. Jake even sings a song about it, to Amy's annoyance.
• Funny Foreigner: Mlepnos from the pilot makes a reappearance as a guest at the hotel Jake and Amy are investigating. Once again, he provides zero help towards solving the case.
• Hypocritical Humor:
  • After the precinct finds out about Terry's and Holt's secret experiments on increasing the precincts efficiency, Rosa gets pissed that they thought she had anger issues.
    Rosa: You think I have an anger problem? I don't. You are both dead to me.
  • When Adam Sandler informs Jake he's working on a film about the Russian Revolution:
    Jake: Oh yeah? Who does Kevin James play in it?
    Adam: Ha ha ha. It's a serious movie. [beat] Trotsky.
  • Rosa gratuitously sprays a fire extinguisher during her eruption. When she later tries to use the same extinguisher to put out an actual fire, she calls the rest of the bullpen morons for having an empty extinguisher.
• Hoist by His Own Petard: Terry wants to quit while they're ahead, but Holt insists on continuing to rearrange the office to make the office even more productive. Then some files catch fire in the break room...
• Icarus Allusion: Lampshaded by Terry, who starts getting concerned about Holt's continuous rearrangements for maximum efficiency.
  Terry: Sir, are you familiar with the story of Icarus? He didn't know when to quit. He flew too close to the sun, and his wax wings melted, and he died.
  • It's then literalised when Boyle's fringed coat is set on fire.
• Insult Backfire: Jake realizes mid-sentence that his insulting nickname for Amy actually isn't so insulting:
  Jake: From now on, I’m gonna call you the Cheetah. They're scavengers just like vultures and I kinda wish I hadn’t said it because they’re pretty cool.
• Know When to Fold Them: Gina is able to realise when she pushes her gloating over exposing Holt and Terry just a mite too far...
  Holt: Okay, message received. Jeffords and I will get right to work.
  Gina: Great! That will be all. Thank you.
  Holt: [coldly] Get the hell out of my chair.
  Gina: [instantly capitulating] Alright, I pushed it a little bit on that one. Ohh-kay. Bye. [scurries quickly out of Holt's office]
• Pop-Cultural Osmosis Failure: Jake emphasizes the "Iago" of Santiago's name, calling her a backstabber. Santiago assumes he's referencing the villain from Othello, but Jake has no idea what she means because he meant the parrot from Aladdin.
• Production Posse: Adam Sandler's tendency to collaborate with Kevin James is lampshaded In-Universe.
  Sandler: I'm writing a movie right now about the Russian Revolution.
  Jake: Oh, really? Who does Kevin James play in it?
  Sandler: Haha...Trotsky.
  Jake: Ah, there it is.
  Sandler: But he's got a wife who never wears a bra.
• Running Gag: Jake continues his long-running joke that Holt is actually a robot.
  Holt: Brief me on the hotel robberies.
  Jake: Helpful hint to the scientists who programmed you: most humans say "hello" at the beginning of a conversation.
• Ship Tease: Jake gets very closed off and uncomfortable when Amy presses him about why exactly he's so resistant to the idea of her transferring out of the precinct.
• Spanner in the Works: Holt and Terry's careful rearrangement of the office falls apart when Jake comes in and sets things off balance.
• Sweet and Sour Grapes: Peralta spends most of the episode trying to convince Santiago not to accept the transfer to Major Crimes Unit. He finally realizes that he's being unfair to Santiago, and that he should be encouraging her to pursue career opportunities like that. Peralta apologizes... at which point Santiago reveals she independently decided to decline the transfer and stay with the Nine Nine. Peralta then rescinds his apology.

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