What I’m Watching: The Chicago Code (Series Finale)

The Chicago Code: Season 1, Episode 13 “Mike Royko’s Revenge” (B+)

Now this is how you end a show. Season one’s arc comes to a fantastic end while the show manages to wrap itself up well enough that it’s appropriately self-contained and won’t forever leave its loyal fans like me hanging. This was an intense episode from the start, with Gibbons taking a preemptive step to announce his call for Theresa’s resignation before she had a chance to start taking him down. The transition from undercover cop to wounded hero for Liam, also known as Chris, was very well-handled, and it’s good to see him get somewhere positive. I was genuinely surprised by the killing of Killian, mostly for the sheer boldness of Gibbons’ secretary being the one to pull the trigger. I like how Wysocki’s brother ultimately proved to be the key to taking him down, and his noble posthumous deed it makes up for him having been corrupt. That final shot of Gibbons in the prison cell was a powerful one, and I won’t soon forget it. I’m glad that Wysocki ultimately got back onto good terms with his fiancée, since it’s a rarity to find him being gentle and comforting with anyone. I’m very pleased with the way all these plotlines have wrapped up, and that final shot of Theresa picking up a random guy at a bar was a perfect way to send out that particular character. This show hasn’t always been perfect, but with only two weak episodes in its first season, it deserved better than just one year.

Series grade: B+
Series MVP: Jennifer Beals