Pilot

**"Pilot"** is the first episode and series premiere of the first season of *The Rookie*. It was written by Alexi Hawley, and directed by Liz Friedlander. It makes the first episode of the series overall, which premiered on October 16, 2018.

## Summary

Starting over isn't easy, especially for small-town guy John Nolan who, after a life-altering incident, is pursuing his dream of being a police officer. As the force's oldest rookie, he’s met with skepticism from some higher-ups who see him as just a walking midlife crisis. Throw in a workplace romance, a hostage situation, and some tough love from their new training officers, and the latest Los Angeles police rookie class has an uphill battle ahead of them.

## Plot

John Nolan goes to his local bank in Foxburg, Pennsylvania, to stow his divorce papers and wedding ring in a safe deposit box. The bank manager is apparently a friend; when a group of robbers invade the bank and hold customers at gunpoint, Nolan draws their attention so that the manager can sound a silent alarm. Just as one of the robbers is about to shoot Nolan, the police arrive to prevent the crime and free the hostages. The incident gives Nolan some thoughts as to what to do next with his life.

When next we see Nolan, he's arriving at the Los Angeles Police Department Mid-Wilshire Station, ready to start his first shift as a rookie officer. He meets up with two of his fellow rookies, Jackson West, and Lucy Chen, and is introduced to the station's captain, Zoe Andersen, and the watch commander, Sergeant Wade Grey. The three rookies are assigned training officers and sent out on patrol: Nolan with Officer Talia Bishop, Chen with Officer Tim Bradford, and West with Officer Angela Lopez.

Each rookie has their own challenges to meet on their first shift, and each deals with them in their own way. West, who is the self-proclaimed "most prepared rookie in the history of the LAPD", freezes under fire; Chen finds that her education in psychology is not going to come in handy in her interactions with her apparently hard-nosed T.O., and Nolan confronts a child in a locked car, a thug holding a woman hostage, and trying (and failing) to save a man dying from his wounds.

By the end of the shift, Nolan is questioning his decision to reinvent himself, but he stands his ground when Sergeant Grey promises to put pressure on him to perform as a cop.

## Cast

### Main

* Nathan Fillion as John Nolan
* Alyssa Diaz as Angela Lopez
* Richard T. Jones as Wade Grey
* Titus Makin as Jackson West
* Mercedes Mason as Zoe Andersen
* Melissa O'Neil as Lucy Chen
* Afton Williamson as Talia Bishop
* Eric Winter as Tim Bradford

### Guest starring

* Julie Ann Emery as Stacy
* Kai Lennox as Unicorn Father
* Mircea Monroe as Isabel Bradford

### Co-starring

* John Nania as Pistol
* Michael Chaturantabut as Shotgun
* Mary Albee as Female Foxburg Cop
* Lauro David Chartrand-DelValle as Male Foxburg Cop
* Anthony Bonaventura as Selby
* Eugene Shaw as Darius Nguyen
* Dorian Kingi as Phoenix
* Kelly Connolly as Hostage
* Tessa James as Rey
* Renes Rivera as Carlo
* Patrick Sabongui as Ghost Head
* Johnny D'Esposito as Blaze
* Dominic A. Iannitti as Lucas (A.K.A. Unicorn Kid)
* Andrea Alvear as Indigo
* J. Francisco Rodriguez as Gardener
* Teya Patt as Woman

## Trivia

* California Penal Code 459 - Burglary.
* The bat used by the Unicorn Father in this episode is later used by Nolan in the Season 2 finale.
* BOLO is short for Be on the Look Out
* T.O. is short for Training Officer
* R.A. is short for Rescue Ambulance
* Bishop, Nolan's Training Officer, used a window punch to enter the vehicle to save the boy
* RD is short for Reporting District