While The Rookie continues to deliver fun, fresh storylines, losing its secret weapon has left the show feeling off-balance. Some yearn for the ease of The Rookie’s early seasons, which delivered more episodic case-driven stories featuring the show’s trio of rookies and training officers. However, others have enjoyed the more complicated, at times serialized version of the series that’s evolved.
The Rookie’s approach to cases, which includes both case-of-the-week stories and longer, serialized arcs with their familiar villains, has always been fascinating. In its earlier seasons, The Rookie was dominated by case-of-the-week episodes, allowing viewers to get to know the rookies, training officers, and higher-ups at the Mid-Wilshire division of the LAPD without over-complicating the narrative.
After the show’s original trio of rookies graduated, however, the show chose to stick with its core cast rather than branching out to new officers, which left them in a bind. The structure of the show began to shift, and longer villain arcs became normalized. One of the show’s most notorious villains, however, left The Rookie with an even bigger balance shift.
The Rookie’s Villains Being A Rotating Group Lessens Their Impact
Viewers Struggle To Keep Track Of Their Arcs
Although The Rookie has seen many case-of-the-week criminals over the years, their main villains are typically seen as the show’s real villains, while their day-to-day criminal cases are less offensive. With The Rookie’s officers working on patrol and in other specialized departments of the Mid-Wilishire division, the LAPD officers can find themselves in deep with specific criminals who continually appear.
While some of The Rookie‘s villains have made a massive impact, like serial killer Rosalind Dyer (Annie Wersching) and bumbling yet cunning con artist Oscar Hutchinson (Matthew Glave), others have been confusing to follow. Monica Stevens (Bridget Regan), for example, first appeared as Elijah Stone (Brandon Jay McLaren) but has continually plagued The Rookie’s team long after he was arrested.
Though The Rookie showrunner Alexi Hawley has shared that he’s happy to keep returning to Monica’s storylines, the series hasn’t been the same since she stepped into one of her fellow villains’ shoes. Throughout the early seasons of the series, a haunting figure loomed large for The Rookie’s core group, and there’s yet for someone to suitably replace them.
Rosalind Dyer Was The Rookie’s Scariest Villain
Her Season 2 Arc Was A Series Highlight
As a prolific female serial killer, Rosalind was easily one of the most terrifying villains that The Rookie has ever seen. Working behind bars, Rosalind was a central figure throughout The Rookie season 2, which saw her enlist an emissary to abduct Lucy Chen (Melissa O’Neil) during her rookie year. The terrifying mid-season finale and triumphant return are some fans’ most-rewatched episodes.
Rosalind’s presence continued to haunt The Rookie, but when she returned during the show’s fifth season, it was for a specific mission. Rosalind, close to being caught, was looking to play a game of cat and mouse with John Nolan (Nathan Fillion) that she always knew would end her life. Regardless, Rosalind’s presence remained disturbing until the end.
Actress Annie Wersching’s Tragic Passing Left The Rookie Without A Compelling Villain
The Show Has Scrambled To Fill The Void
Tragically, Wersching, who brilliantly portrayed Rosalind for seasons, had a long-hidden battle with cancer that took her life in 2023. Diagnosed in 2020, Wersching kept her illness a secret as she continued her work, but just months after her character’s traumatizing onscreen death, Wersching passed. While it seemed likely that Rosalind was intended to be The Rookie’s long-term villain, the show shifted paths.
Rosalind is a one-of-a-kind villain, and things have been off on The Rookie since they lost her.
While it’s entirely understandable that The Rookie needed to make a change when it came to their big villain arcs after losing Wersching, the villains who have tried to step into the show haven’t been able to match her looming, unnerving presence. Rosalind is a one-of-a-kind villain, and things have been off on The Rookie since they lost her.
Source: ABC/YouTube
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