Brooklyn Nine-Nine: Four Movements (6x04)

Aww Gina. You goofball. This episode is tricky because I liked everything in it, but I do have some complaints about what we didn't get.

Cons:

I feel like Charles and Gina should have had a bigger moment. Gina acknowledges that she's been closer to Charles than almost anyone, and yet their "Gina Moment" felt tacked on at the end. I liked the subverted expectations of Terry's moment, but I thought it was odd that Charles didn't get more time. I also felt like the whole team didn't get to spend that much time playing off of each other. Gina had separate moments with various characters, but we didn't get to see the whole gang interacting at her party, and I wanted that group energy before Gina's departure. See what I mean by complaining about what we didn't get?

Pros:

I love that Holt and Gina played chess for their goodbye. Gina is horrible at it, but her confidence lets her rewrite the rules of the game to pull off a victory, over Holt's objections. That was adorable. I also like that Holt doesn't try to stop her from leaving, but he does question her, grill her, and try to get her to open up and admit that things aren't going to be easy for her. He's worried that she's making a hasty decision, and this is his way of making sure she's making the right move. Of all of the "Gina Moments," this one felt the most out of Gina's hands, which was appropriate for a guiding force like Holt.

I love Gina constantly acting like Amy doesn't matter to her, and giving her this appropriate goodbye that was really touching, and also so Gina-like. Notice that she didn't lie to Amy and pretend that they're suddenly such good friends who have so much in common. But she gives Amy a great gift - she tells her that it's okay for her to be herself, even if it's not what Gina would do in any given situation. I also like that Amy makes this extravagant gift that actually would be something Gina might like, but the sentiment behind it ruins it for her. I love that Rosa gets swept up in the emotions, and the group hug, and all that good sentimentality. Adorable!

Gina and Jake's section was my favorite, because they're such a fun duo. They get in to all sorts of fun hi-jinks, and then turn Mario Lopez away at the door to Gina's party. Again, Gina has a lesson for Jake - she didn't need anything flashy for her goodbye party. She just wanted to hang with her friends. It was really lovely. Also, A.C. Slater! That was hilarious! I like well-integrated celebrity cameos. And Jake totally had a big crush on Mario Lopez.

The traditional trajectory for an episode like this would be to spend a bunch of time at Gina's goodbye party, get lots of speeches and goodbyes, and end the episode there. While I might have enjoyed a bit more of the group dynamic, as I said, I actually thought it was really funny that we don't see much of the party, and instead we're back at the Nine-Nine, and Gina isn't leaving. She just keeps showing up every day for increasingly odd reasons. First it's because she hadn't finished packing yet, then it's to show Holt her nonexistent filing system, then to cleanse the room of her aura because nobody's paying her to share it anymore. Terry and Jake both think that Gina has cold feet and that's why she's still around.

And then... the gang enters the precinct to see that Gina has left, and there's a golden statue of her. A message left on the computer gives Terry his "Gina Moment" - membership to a yogurt of the month club. And we learn that Gina wasn't stalling because she was lacking confidence, but because there was a shipping delay with her statue. What a hilarious way for her to bow out! I've also heard that this actress isn't going to be out of the show altogether. Her character will still pop in and out every once in a while, which I'm really happy about!

Gina is often underutilized as a character on this show, but she's so hilarious, and I'm really glad that her final episode as a member of the Nine-Nine was so fun. It might not have had everything I wanted, but it had enough, and the stuff that was here was really quite nice.

8/10