SWAT season 7 finale questions Hondo's future on the show

SWAT fans have been on an absolute rollercoaster over the last two years. The show was canceled, uncanceled, canceled and then uncanceled again (!), effectively making each new episode a gift and a potential sendoff for a main character. This unpredictability is what makes the plot for the upcoming season 7 finale so intriguing.

The finale, which is set to air May 17 on CBS, suggests that Hondo (Shemar Moore) is going to step back and reflect on his career as the leader of the titular squad.

Hondo "questions" his leadership skills in the finale

“Honeytrap” – When a female robbery crew “honeytraps” and kills several rich VIPs, HONDO and 20-SQUAD are called in to assist FBI Agent Jackie Vasquez in capturing the dangerous fugitives before the death toll rises. Commander Hicks is shocked when his new love, Maggie, abruptly ends their relationship without rhyme or reason. With help from Deacon and Dr. Wendy, Hicks makes an important decision about his romantic future, on S.W.A.T., Friday, April 19 (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television /

The episode is titled "Twenty Squad" and the synopsis reads as follows:

""SWAT faces their deadliest adversary yet when a violent cell of extremists looks to extract vengeance by blowing up half of Los Angeles, potentially killing thousands. Still reeling from the anger and outrage directed at him by his own community, Hondo questions if he still has what it takes to lead 20-Squad."

That is a lot of drama to sift through in one hour. The bit about extremists trying to blow up half of the city is enough to power a multi-episode arc, but the real juicy part of the episode comes towards the end, as Hondo experiences a crisis of confidence. It runs contrary to everything we know and love about the character, but that's what makes the plot point all the more interesting.

The finale was made before SWAT's renewal

“End of the Road” – While training with Long Beach SWAT, Street discovers a biker club has stolen a cache of armor-piercing bullets and brings 20-Squad into the hunt for the gang before they can pull off a daring and deadly heist. As Hondo struggles with changes at work, Nichelle finds herself at odds with her former colleague Bruce, in part two of a two-part episode of S.W.A.T., Friday, March 8 (9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network, and streaming on Paramount+ (live and on demand /

The finale episode was written and filmed before CBS decided to renew SWAT for another season, so there may be notes of finality or ambiguity that the show will now get to address in season 8. Shemar Moore confirmed the scheduling of the episode versus the renewal news during a recent interview with TV Insider:

"we've had to change nothing. When you get up to the finale, you'll see when you watch it, you'll go, oh, this was their way of saying goodbye. But it was also our way of saying we could still keep going. This will either be our goodbye or this will be our new beginning."

It's tricky to balance these two goals, but if any show knows how to survive, it's SWAT. We're pretty confident that Hondo will regain his confidence and be back to his old self in season 8. Still, it'll be fun to watch him overcome his demons while saving the day.

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