Chicago PD season 8 finale preview: The Other Side

Will Chicago PD really kill off Kim Burgess in tonight’s season 8 finale?

That’s the fear of One Chicago fans going into “The Other Side,” which picks up from last week with Burgess (Marina Squerciati) abducted by human traffickers and Intelligence on a desperate hunt to find her before she’s executed like their other victims.

There haven’t been any rumblings about Squerciati leaving the show, and frankly it would be very different without her. But let’s talk for a second about what this means for Burgess.

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Kim is just over a season removed from getting into a violent fight that also caused her to lose her unborn child. In season 6 she and Hailey Upton (Tracy Spiridakos) were held hostage. A few seasons ago, her sister was raped. There’s no doubt that Burgess is tough, but she’s also taking an awful lot of punishment. If she survives this latest incident, the show needs to cut her a break and find her some different storylines.

Squerciati will give a great performance; she always does. But it’s clear the dilemma that Chicago PD is setting up, similar to the argument from last week—is there a point where playing outside the rules, as Intelligence usually does, is justified?

The unit has spent most of season 8 going along with the reforms instituted under Deputy Superintendent Samantha Miller (recurring guest star Nicole Ari Parker). But Hank Voight (Jason Beghe) questioned those reforms when Miller’s son was in danger, and he ultimately died. Will the finale take the point of view that any means are necessary when it’s someone close to you, and therefore Intelligence’s modus operandi has been right all along?

Or will our heroes find some other way to save Burgess, and they’ll have to make some choices about how they want to proceed in the future?

“The Other Side” could be a really in-depth episode, anchored by Marina Squerciati and pushing the Intelligence Unit in ways it hasn’t been challenged in a long time. It depends on how much time the writers want to spend going into the underlying issues versus actually focusing on the rescue attempt. (And will anyone address why Burgess went off alone in the first place, especially when it had already been established how violent these suspects are?)

With Chicago PD season 8 being pretty tumultuous between the reform ideas and big changes in characters’ personal lives, it’ll be interesting to see what idea or emotional note the show decides to leave us on. Will it be positive or grim? Changed or back to the team’s old ways? Hopefully it won’t end on another cliffhanger, but expect something big in the final few minutes.

Jesse Lee Soffer previews Chicago PD finale. dark. Next

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