The Rookie Season 5 Episode 12: Lucy's Undercover Work Makes No Sense

The following contains spoilers for "The Rookie" Season 5, Episode 12, "Going Under"

In "The Rookie's" Season 5, Episode 12 ("Going Under"), Michael Rooker makes an appearance as bad guy Frank Tesca. Frank was a crime boss who ended up going to prison for manslaughter and was recently released after serving eight years. When his brother, who took over when Frank went to prison, turns up dead, Frank is the prime suspect. When the police discover that Frank is looking for a new chemical company to help make 3D-printed weapons, Lucy Chen (Melissa O'Neil) decides to go undercover at the business as a means of getting closer to Frank.

While Lucy has been undercover previously, most notably in Season 3, viewers don't understand how Lucy can successfully go undercover anymore, given the true crime documentary she and Tim Bradford (Eric Winter) participated in during Season 5, Episode 18 ("Double Trouble"). "Lucy has been interviewed for documentaries, how could she go undercover?," u/FamousChemistry wrote on a "The Rookie" subreddit. "How did she before with her alias Juicy?" Fans are confused about the safety of Lucy doing undercover work when her face has been seen by millions around the world.

No one even thought twice about Lucy going undercover to get closer to Frank Tesca in "Going Under," and fans are confused about the obvious plot hole. After showcasing the true crime documentary episodes so prominently, would the LAPD really allow her or Tim to go undercover again? To make matters worse, one of the documentaries even focused on her undercover work. "[Chen's] UC [undercover] storyline and her always being in [the] media just doesn't make sense," u/BurnerAccount66999 wrote in a subreddit. "But the writers continue to skip over it for some reason. Guess it's something we just gotta ignore."

Many viewers agreed that it doesn't make sense, but that it's only a TV show, so they should be forgiven for holes and inconsistencies. "Just roll with it," wrote u/Lakinther. "The show is not exactly a pinnacle of realism and it will get worse. Personally, her UC [undercover] storyline was my favorite of that entire season." The show may continuously ask fans to suspend belief, but most are willing to go along with it. "The realism diminishes with each season, but it's still fun in other ways. Accept it and keep watching," wrote u/thepittstop.