Caution: This post contains SPOILERS for S.W.A.T. season 8, episode 18.As S.W.A.T. closes in on the end, we know that original characters can and probably will be written out. That has happened in S.W.A.T. season 8, episode 18, with the first big loss of the season. Commander Hicks (Patrick St. Esprit) has been forced out of S.W.A.T., and rather than go to the post that he was assigned, he has chosen to resign.
This could have been an excellent ending in the series finale had it been done for the right reasons. Hicks has thought about retiring in the past, and to have him retire and pass on the baton to someone else in the finale would offer a sense of closure and celebration. However, the arc chosen in the latest episode makes the entire resignation pointless since there is no S.W.A.T. season 9, and it makes us worried about how the series could come to a rewarding conclusion.
Hick's Resignation Is Fueled By SWAT's Push For New Blood
Ending S.W.A.T. Means We Won’t See This New Direction
Deputy Chief Bennett (Merrin Dungey) shared that the decision to move Hicks to the art theft unit was to bring new blood into S.W.A.T. She believes new leadership is best to take the team in a new direction. While Hicks has done an excellent job running the department, he’s seen as one of the older generation. That makes little sense considering he’s been willing to change, taking the unit in new directions when needed. The start of S.W.A.T. saw him promote Hondo (Shemar Moore) and not Deacon (Jay Harrington) for the good of L.A.
However, Bennett doesn’t see that, and she's managed to convince the top brass in the L.A.P.D. to make some changes and push Hicks out. She has a list of potential new commanders, with Hondo’s name potentially being on that list. Clearly, Bennett was happy to either push Hicks out or see him resign, and she didn’t fight back when he said he was resigning in S.W.A.T. season 8, episode 18.
SWAT Needing New Blood Is Moot, Considering Its Nearing Cancelation
We Need To See The New Leadership Take Over
If S.W.A.T. season 9 was happening, I could see a need for this type of storyline, and it could have worked out well. We could have had a chance to see the new blood take over and witness how the dynamics within the team could change. There would be some teething problems, as we’ve already seen in S.W.A.T. season 8, as Deacon didn’t like the way Tan (David Lim) trained the new recruits but realized that people have their own way of doing things.
Yet, the show has been canceled, and with just three episodes left until the S.W.A.T. series finale, there isn’t the time to see someone new come in and shake things up effectively. It makes the entire storyline for Hicks pointless, as we don’t get to see the pay-off for writing out an original character in such an anti-climactic and disrespectful way. Even if Hondo fought to get Hicks back in charge, this arc has then been for nothing, when time could have been better spent wrapping up everyone’s development.
SWAT Needs To Focus On Its Existing Characters For A Satisfying Ending
Closure Is Essential In The S.W.A.T. Series Finale
After eight seasons, we deserve to see the arcs of current main characters come to a close. While S.W.A.T. showrunner Andrew Dettmann has said that he wants the finale to feel like the team is still working together and that there are still cases to solve, personal storylines need to feel fulfilled so that we’re not left wondering how characters are doing. There needs to be a reward for the years of watching religiously and supporting the characters through their ups and downs.
That’s especially the case for the original characters of S.W.A.T., as it’s important to feel like their arcs have come full circle. That’s why a retirement storyline for Hicks could work well, if it was done in the right way and on his own terms. While it could be difficult since S.W.A.T. was canceled while in the middle of production and with the finale already written, reworking small elements could have been possible as there was the time available to ensure closure.
