Brooklyn Nine-Nine: The Honeypot (6x07)

Oh man, this show is so freakin' hilarious.

Cons:

I really did like almost everything in this episode, but I'll admit that the subplot paled in comparison to the main story. For one thing, I was excited to see Amy tackle the organization of the office, but instead the focus was all about getting rid of personal items on people's desks. That didn't seem to be the real problem with organization, so it was odd that it got all of the focus. Also, it occurs to me that this is just the kind of subplot where Gina would have had an opportunity to shine, so her absence felt all the more acute when we spent this whole plot thread in the precinct.

Pros:

That said, this plot thread still had a ton of laughs for me. Amy's utter joy at being put in charge of organizing, Terry's attachment to his suspenders, Charles having his ancestor's shoes, one of which is tiny because he had one baby foot, Amy revealing that her organizational idol froze to death because he got rid of all of his clothes, Rosa being indignant about getting rid of a DVD of The Intern because of all the bonus content, the list goes on.

As is usually true with this show, there was a kernel of emotional resonance buried under a lot of silly humor. We learn that Terry's attachment to a new pair of suspenders has to do with his failed Lieutenant exam. I'm glad we're spending time focusing on Terry's career and I hope we see more of that soon. Amy can be a rigid task master, but she's also willing to understand the complexities of individual circumstances, and she's supportive of Terry's goals.

The main plot is just great. Holt is trying to find a new assistant, and Jake finds him the perfect match, but Holt is convinced the guy is hitting on him. Then, it turns out he's a spy for the commissioner! In the end, there's a lot of back and forth, and the spy tries to triple-cross Holt and Jake, but Holt come out on top and is able to leverage the commissioner to get what he wants. It was a satisfying enough plot, one that advanced Holt's main goals as a character, but it was also just plain hilarious.

One of the greatest gifts of a good ensemble show is all of the fun combinations of characters that we get to explore. Holt and Jake have amazing comedic chemistry, and I was kept smiling the whole way through. There's Holt's outrage at the supposedly scandalous behavior of the new hire, there's his encyclopedic knowledge of barrels, and Jake's exasperated reaction to it, there's Jake's hilarious disguises and backstories when they're on the stakeout. We have Holt telling us that Kevin was angry about the hot new assistant, Jake taking Amy to the barrel place and being super turned on by Jake's knowledge, Holt's joyful explanation of the hidden microphones and cameras, and more.

Underpinning this comedy is of course the genuinely delightful friendship between Jake and Raymond. They clearly know each other very well, and you can see that in the way this plot plays out. Jake finds someone who he genuinely thinks would be a good match for Holt as an assistant. And while he thinks Holt's definition of inappropriate behavior is bizarre, he actually does research and learns the truth. Holt is a pragmatic guy, but he lets some of Jake's enthusiasm for spies and heists filter in to his own method, and he's inspired by a "Thomas Cruise" movie to double-cross the double-crosser and win the day. That just goes to show how well these two know each other, and how much they make each other better.

That's all for now, folks! This show can pretty much do no wrong in my eyes.

9.5/10