Chicago PD season 5 episode 2 review: The case of Frank Toma
After a bomb went off while at a festival he was working, suspicions started to circulate around if he was behind it. He acted jittery and nervous while at the event; after the fact, Burgess found links to terrorist websites within his browser history. The more that Voight and Intelligence started to look into it, the more that it started to become clear that clearing Toma’s name was going to be difficult. He had reportedly attended a radical mosque, had multiple friends who know him by a different name, and unfortunately this is still a culture where Muslim men are targeted.
While this was a case about finding out who was responsible for the bombing, there was also a different but still-powerful additional story to throw into the mix here: Trying to find Frank in general. After a heated conversation in interrogation they were able to determine that there was not only a much larger terrorist attack coming, but the man at the center of it was a prominent terrorist in Europe.
All of this looked back, but eventually Burgess and Antonio were able to get a different insight on Toma through the lens of his boyfriend. He claimed he was growing distant and depressed because of a racist, homophobic partner. It was Kim who finally found him and in turn the truth. He made it pretty clear that she’d find the answers she needed within his backpack … and then he took his own life. Heartbreaking. What’s equally so is that nobody really wanted to believe Burgess when she followed up on some of the leads Frank gave her before he died. One of them was a way into a place that was chock full of evidence and while there things started to get a little bit clearer. Frank was actually trying to investigate some of the terrorist cells from within but failed at it. He should’ve spoken out and gotten people more involved before he did.
All that was left for Intelligence to do was to try and honor his legacy. The best way for them to do that was to use his clues to figure out where the terrorists could be hitting next. They realized before long that it was a high school football game, and as a result of that they were able to stop the bomb in time. Intelligence, and in turn Frank, saved countless lives. It’s a shame that he lost his own in the process.
The aftermath of the case
There wasn’t anything that Burgess could do in order to bring Toma back, but she could go after his partner for the abuse that he put on him. She warned him that someday, when his father isn’t pulling strings, she will be the one to track him down.
CarterMatt Verdict
This was a heartbreaking episode in many ways, anchored by a great Marina Squerciati performance as she had to say goodbye to a good friend. This was a fantastic showcase of everything Burgess brings to the table as a member of Intelligence, and we also like that it was nuanced and complicated. She managed to stop a terrorist threat, but did she get everything that she wanted? Far from it.
What’s coming up next on Chicago PD season 5 episode 3?
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