The Chopper is the twenty-second episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine's second season.
Jake gets assigned to work on his dream case, but Holt becomes wary when Wuntch actually approves of the case and lets Jake and Charles work on the case. Worried that Wuntch set them up to fail, Holt joins Jake and Charles to prove Wuntch wrong.
Back in the precinct, Amy, Rosa, and Gina help Terry host a field trip for a local magnet school as Terry tries to suck up to the principal to ensure Cagney and Lacey's acceptance.
This episode provides examples of:
- Batman Gambit: Yet again, Wuntch pulls another one over Holt. This time she lets Jake take on a high profile case with practically unlimited resources, leading Holt to fret over Jake potentially failing, thus torpedoing Holt's career. This drives Holt to help solve a triple homicide and recover 21 million dollars. The success gives Wuntch an excuse to promote Holt and put him back in Public Affairs.Holt: I knew you hoped we'd fail.
Wuntch: Oh no, I couldn't be happier.
Holt: Wait, why would you say that? And why aren't you clenching your little rat hands in anger? <Beat> You didn't want me to fail! You wanted me to succeed!
Wuntch: That's right! I was looking for an excuse to promote you to a desk job. And you handed it to me on a silver platter with your little rat hands.
Holt: Oh no.
Wuntch: Say goodbye to the Nine-Nine, Raymond. I'm making you head of NYPD Public Relations. - Big "WHAT?!": Played for Laughs when Wuntsch reveals that she's going to support the mission, giving the 99 any resources they need:Holt: what?
Jake: He meant that more excited, like WHAAAAAT? - Captain Morgan Pose: Charles uses it as a tactic to distract Wuntch by showing off his quads. He has to sit down after a few minutes.
- Class Trip: Terry organizes one for the magnet school he wants his girls to go to. The kids find it boring until Rosa shows them the gory things she would have liked to see at their age.
- Cliffhanger: The episode ends with Wuntch forcing Holt off the Nine-Nine without the knowledge of Holt's detectives.
- Continuity Nod: Amy is proud of knowing Latin. The misuse of Latin on counterfeit currency drove her nuts in "The Boyle-Linetti Wedding".
- Did Not Think This Through: Terry probably should have considered how his wife would react to seeing him change his Facebook status to "It's Complicated" before he used it to win the bet to provoke Gina into looking up from her phone.
- Hoist by His Own Petard:
- Terry changes his relationship status to "It's Complicated" to win a bet to get Gina to look up from her phone. His wife sees it, of course, and he has to go into damage control mode.
- Jake, Charles, and Holt's drive to solve the case of the week is what gets Holt promoted and sent back to Public Affairs.
- Kicked Upstairs: Wuntch's plan was to get Holt promoted out of the Nine-Nine and back into Public Affairs.
- Not So Above It All: After spending most of the episode trying to reign Jake in (and being dubbed "Wet Blanket" as a result) Holt snaps and joins in on solving the case, realizing that it's the opportunity to do the police work he used to do before being assigned to Public Affairs the first time around.Holt: Maybe we should take the chopper.
Jake: You said chopper!
Holt: Death Blade! Sidewinder! It's go time!
Jake: Roger that, Wet Blanket!
Holt: No! From now on call me...Velvet Thunder.
Jake: Okay! - Oh, Crap!: Holt realizes something's wrong when Wuntch isn't angry about the Nine-Nine successfully solving a major case.
- Pet the Dog: While it's Played for Laughs, as it shows she's just as shallow and childish as the middle schoolers, Gina does spend her day chatting with some young girls and helping them sort out their personal drama, even getting them to befriend a girl they'd previously spent a significant amount of time hating.
- Pyrrhic Victory: In the Cold Opening, Terry wins the bet of whoever can get Gina to look up from her phone by changing his relationship status to 'It's Complicated'. Unfortunately, this has the repercussion of him getting an earful from his wife.
- Sitcom Arch-Nemesis: The Holt-Wuntch rivalry continues. Throughout the episode, Holt describes Wuntch in a series of increasingly colorful ways.Holt: Unfortunately, because this case turned out to be important, that she-skunk, Madeline Wuntch, has her hindquarters pointed right at it.
- Team Power Walk: After Jake, Holt, and Charles get off the chopper.
- Tranquil Fury: Holt.(Holt paces around slowly)
Jake: Oh, man. Look at the Captain. He's pacing slowly. For him, that's like a full on rage-fueled freak out.
Charles: The only thing worse is when he stands perfectly still.
(Holt stops pacing)
Charles: Oh no. He's standing perfectly still. - Tontine: The A-plot features four people being killed over 21 million dollars hidden away somewhere. While not a literal tontine, it fits the pattern for a tontine plot.
- Two-Keyed Lock: Actually a four keyed lock to the safe with the $21 million, but the killer is taking the keys when he kills his old accomplices
- Wham Line: "Say goodbye to the Nine-Nine, Raymond."
