Why I Was Hooked on Rookie Season 7’s Celina Replacement – Until Grey’s Twist Ruined It

Once Celina Juarez graduated from being a rookie in The Rookie season 7, it was only a matter of time before John Nolan replaced her with a different trainee. Celina’s perfect successor appeared in episode 12, “April Fools,” but unfortunately, Lieutenant Grey stole him from us quickly after his arrival. Nolan is one of the few training officers left in the ABC police procedural series. Aside from Tim Bradford (and briefly Lucy Chen), there is no one else. Consequently, it’s partly up to Nolan to keep the foundation of The Rookie alive, meaning he needs another rookie asap.

Although they had a few hiccups along the way, Nolan and Celina made for a great team, and he skillfully prepared her for the job. It will be tough to replace Celina. However, it must be done now that The Rookie character is a P2 and can handle herself in the field without supervision. Nolan’s next rookie stepped up to the plate in The Rookie season 7, episode 12, much to his dismay (and mine once the show wrote out the new character shortly after meeting him).

The Rookie Season 7, Episode 12 Introduces Nolan’s New Rookie & Discards Him By The Ending

Connor Comes & Goes Quickly In The Rookie

At the beginning of The Rookie season 7, episode 12, Connor Craig introduces himself to Nolan, telling the older man that he’s his next rookie. Nathan Fillion’s character doesn’t believe him at first, thinking it’s just an April Fools’ joke. Nolan quickly finds out it isn’t, but he soon wishes it was. Despite spending most of his rookie year with the LAPD’s most renowned training officer, Connor is a dud. He can’t drive or write a ticket and doesn’t have enough experience in the field for someone who has been a rookie for as long as he has.

Connor learns a lot from Nolan during the hour. So it makes sense to continue building their rapport, molding Connor into the perfect replacement for Celina.

Nolan later learns that Connor’s previous training officer passed him off because he was about to retire and didn’t want to finish his career teaching someone with “no instincts.” Nevertheless, Nolan isn’t ready to give up on him. He tells Connor that he has until the end of the day to prove himself capable of being a cop, and he surprisingly succeeds. Connor handles himself well during the purge and solves a murder. Despite displaying his potential, Grey transfers Connor to a “much quieter” division during one of the closing scenes in The Rookie season 7, episode 12.

Why Connor Could Have Been A Great Successor To Celina As Nolan’s Rookie

Connor Has An Intriguing Backstory

The Rookie episode puts a lot of work into developing Connor’s character and his relationship with Nolan in just a short time. Still, “April Fools” concludes with Connor leaving for no good reason. His transfer is abrupt and disappointing, given that he proved himself in the field and has the potential to be a good police officer, despite his flaws. Connor learns a lot from Nolan during the hour. So it makes sense to continue building their rapport, molding Connor into the perfect replacement for Celina. Instead, he is seemingly gone for good in The Rookie.

Connor could also have been a great successor to Celina because his introduction and backstory are unlike those of any other rookie in every season of The Rookie. Firstly, he’s terrible (at first). Yes, many “boots” have made mistakes over the years, but Connor takes it to another level. Secondly, Connor spent most of his first year as a rookie learning from a famous LAPD training officer who didn’t teach him anything. Ultimately, Connor has an intriguing story and would be quite a challenge for Nolan — it would be boring if Nolan’s next rookie was great at everything already.

Will Nolan Get Another Rookie By The Season 7 Finale?

It’s Unclear Who Will Officially Replace Celina

As of the writing of this article, ABC hasn’t announced any new additions to the Rookie season 7 cast. So, it doesn’t appear as if Nolan will receive a new rookie anytime soon. Perhaps he’ll take a break from his role as a training officer for the remainder of the season and focus on adopting a child with Bailey. The married couple starts going through the adoption process in episode 13. However, with six episodes remaining in The Rookie season 7, the show can still tease Nolan’s next trainee before (or during) the finale.