Chicago P.D. Episodes That Aged Poorly
It's no secret that the shows encapsulated in the "One Chicago" universe, "Chicago Fire," "Chicago Med," and "Chicago PD," have strong and loyal fanbases. However, fans definitely prefer some series over others. According to Fansided's One Chicago Center, when it comes to ratings from a recent week, "Chicago Fire" took the cake with 6.85 million live viewers, followed by "Chicago Med," which raked in 6.81 million viewers.
In last place was "Chicago PD," which brought in 5.83 million viewers. While that is still an impressive amount of live views, it can't compete with the other two series in the franchise. According to Showbiz Cheat Sheet, fans have found that "Chicago PD" has become predictable. They feel that the magic the show once had has been lost and now they are capable of seeing what will come for the characters before it happens.
Aside from the predictability, fans have found that the show is a bit controversial. Some "Chicago PD" episodes have not aged well.
Corrupt cops leave fans upset
On a Reddit thread, fans weighed in on their thoughts about the show. What makes "Chicago PD" so controversial, one fan wrote, is the fact that the officers are not upstanding citizens. "Worst of all is the fact that the top cops on the show are corrupt, evil people every bit as bad as the criminals they takedown," they added, "Hank Voight is a monster on the show. He literally has a cage that he calls 'the cage,' where he orders suspects (and others) to be taken so they can be beaten, tortured and threatened with death while he pumps them for confessions or information."
There have been some episodes of "Chicago PD" that show the context these fans are upset about. Several episodes that center around Hank Voight have aged poorly. According to Distractify, Vought's dirty cop mentality has left fans feeling uncomfortable. At the end of the show's eighth season, Voight covered up an accidental shooting by one of his fellow officers. Given the current political climate and the real-life police shooting coverups we have seen over the last several years, this episode was insensitive and left fans angry.
The show's attempt at covering the Black Lives Matter movement has left fans uncomfortable
Another episode that did not age well for "Chicago PD" is from season 5. According to the TV Guide, the episode attempted to tackle the Black Lives Matter movement and provide some sort of acknowledgment for the controversial practices of real-life police officers when it came to the unjust shootings of people of color. However, the episode was disappointing.
After the one Black officer on the show, Kevin Atwater, played by LaRoyce Hawkins, witnessed a racist cop shoot an unarmed man, he finds himself in a moral dilemma. Hawkins told the TV Guide, "I remember talking with [writer Ike Smith] and him saying that he wanted it to feel like more than a police brutality story that happened to a black man by a white racist. He wanted it to really envelop all of the vibes and vices that create this conundrum in the city of Chicago."
Fans and critics alike found that the episode's attempt to show the racist incident from "all sides" barely scratched the surface of the issue (via Prime Timer). The show has attempted to portray race several times but has failed, according to most fans. These episodes have aged poorly, as the Black Lives Matter movement continues to gain momentum in the United States and the show still attempts to show things from the officers' point of view.