The first season of the comedy sitcom Brooklyn Nine-Nine is 22 episodes long. The series is set in New York Police Department's fictional 99th precinct and starts off with a new Captain coming on board. The new Captain, Holt, is completely different from the previous one who had let the team do anything they want. Holt is a lot more serious and focused. Widely known as the first gay black police officer, he is determined to make a mark and not fail.
Unfortunately for Jake Peralta, a detective, his leash is immediately tightened. We're introduced to Peralta as a highly competent detective, but full of wisecracks and a less than serious attitude. Peralta is the source of a lot of the comedy in the series and while he may be a pain to work with in real life, he is likable as a character. His over confidence, smile and dialogue fits perfectly with the character. Peralta's rival, so to speak, is Amy Santiago, who is nearly the complete opposite of Peralta. She's more serious at her job but equally competent. She finds Peralta's methods annoying and not by the rule book. Peralta and Santiago are constantly at odds, so no prizes for knowing that they'll probably be a couple. There are plenty of teases throughout the season to support this.
Rounding out the cast are your standard archetypes from characters that are useless at their jobs to the muscular Terry actually being a softy inside. Some other characters, who could potentially be annoying, such as Gina being selfish and sarcastic, ends up being likable thanks to their funny quips. While you can't help but feel sorry for Boyle at times, as he's constantly being insults and made fun of. Other characters think he is disgusting but he's a good guy at heart.
Initially, Holt brings with him a raft of changes and these clashes mainly with Peralta. As Peralta tests how far he can push Holt, we get to learn more about them both. Holt is funny in that no one knows what he is thinking; he always keeps a stoic face. He can be hard but at the same time, you suspect that he may have a heart of gold and is actually teaching a lesson to the characters. A key highlight is how Peralta slowly defrosts him and how they play off with each other.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine doesn't have an overarching plot, rather opting for an episodic style of storytelling. Each episode can be watched standalone and focuses in various matters and cases. In one, Peralta may be experiencing a slump, while in another, one of the side characters may be worrying about their love life. There are plenty of times where Peralta will cause issues thanks to his personality. He constantly jumps the gun and everyone else has to pay the price along with him. A few of the laughs is how he ropes the team in to help him resolve the problem that he caused himself.
The pacing and humor gets better as the season goes on. The amount of stupid things that the characters do are numerous but also extremely funny at the same time. The episode involving the challenge between Peralta and Holt worked really well, especially seeing the teamwork between some of the characters. In most episodes, there are various subplots happening involving the different groups of characters, pretty much like any other sitcom.
Everything we know about the characters that were set up in the beginning of the series doesn't stick. They overcome them and move on, which makes it more interesting as new things come into play. Just as the season is heating up and the final episode hits, it leaves you with a cliffhanger. It's somewhat annoying particularly since Peralta was put into a situation with major consequences. It's at this point that you'll realize how much you were enjoying the series and how much better it got over time.
Overall, the first season of Brooklyn Nine-Nine is fun and enjoyable. While the early episodes weren't bad, it's really noticeable at how much better it gets as the season progresses. Once you get to know the characters, the jokes are funnier, the situations are crazier and the episodes are very enjoyable. It leaves you wanting to watch the second season straight away.
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