10 Brooklyn Nine-Nine episodes focused on Captain Holt

Brooklyn Nine-Nine is an ensemble show where every character is funny, but Captain Raymond Holt (Andre Braugher) manages to find humor in an otherwise serious and stoic character. Holt begins the series as a reserved, emotionless manager, but by the end of Brooklyn Nine-Ninehe slowly revealed layers that make the team and viewers fall in love with him. Holt has some of the funniest scenes in Brooklyn Nine-Ninebut he’s also at the center of some of the most soulful beats.

Braugher’s Captain Holt begins the pilot as the new captain of the 99th precinct. Holt is a dry and unimpressive character compared to the rest of the cast. Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Holt develops familial bonds with everyone under his command throughout the show. As the anniversary of Andre Braugher’s death approaches, his role as Captain Holt will always be preserved. Holt’s typical seriousness makes the moments when he leans into his petty or competitive side that much funnier. Many episodes summarize everything Holt brought to Brooklyn Nine-Ninebut 10 in particular stand out.

10

Christmas

Season 1, Episode 11

Captain Holt receives a death threat, and Detective Jake Peralta (Andy Samberg) is thrilled to be assigned his protection detail. Holt tries to downplay the threat and run away from Peralta, but ends up admitting that he suspects the threat comes from a killer he arrested in his youth. Peralta gives him the kind of good advice Holt normally gives him: don’t be a hero, use the squad.

“Christmas” is one of the first episodes where the audience begins to understand Holt’s stoic nature. He explains to Peralta that the death threat is his fault; he impetuously provoked the murderer when he was making the arrest. With age and wisdom, Holt struggles to not allow his emotions to overwhelm him as they did back then. He doesn’t want the team to risk helping him, as he thinks the death threat is his fault. Fortunately, he listens to Peralta and the team is proud to be able to help protect their captain.

9

Beach house

Season 2, Episode 12

Blending awkward comedy with surprising emotional weight, “Beach House” is an archetype Brooklyn Nine-Nine episode. The story begins when the detectives are on their way to their annual detective-only getaway. Peralta realizes that Holt, who was an openly gay black police officer in the ’80s, wasn’t included in this kind of bonding activity, so he invites the chief. Everyone is uncomfortable and unsure of how to act around Holt. Holt’s vacation activities include walking along the beach in winter, sitting in the hot tub without jets, and asking people if they have formal workplace complaints.

Eventually, Peralta realizes that the solution is not that everyone should rise to Holt’s level, but that Holt should sink to their level. This episode sums up how Brooklyn Nine-Nine subtly weaves a backstory for Holt. Being a black queer police officer wouldn’t have been easy, but that’s not the only thing that defines him today.

Holt is such a multidimensional character that of course he would find the hot tub jets childish, calling them “bubble bath.” This episode shows how Holt can stay true to himself and still bond with the team. Jake creates a game, “Real Radius or False Radius”, where the team must guess whether the quote is something Holt actually said, much to the team’s delight.

8

Coral Palms: Part 1

Season 4, Episode 1

After a mobster makes death threats against them, Holt and Peralta are placed in the Witness Protection Program and transferred to Florida. Holt tries to make the best of it for six months as “Greg Stickney”, a heterosexual widower. Holt is so talented that he really tries to follow the rules and find joy in his new life, walking in power with the neighborhood women and climbing the chain of command in the Fun Zone. But in the end, Holt agrees with Peralta: they are detectives and will work the case until they can go home.

This is a rare episode set outside of New York and without the full set. Holt and Peralta are the focus of the entire episode. Holt is a natural rule follower, so sometimes he needs Peralta’s encouragement to break a little. Holt is a terrible undercover, describing his late wife as “a strong woman with beautiful, heavy breasts.” Holt is on such a different level than most of the characters that he can’t even pretend to be someone else. When Peralta tries to teach Holt how to ride an ATV, Holt demonstrates the perfect mastery he acquired while “antiques in the Berkshires.”

7

Your Honor

Season 4, Episode 19

Holt asks Peralta to help him solve a special robbery case. The victim is the Honorable Laverne Holt (L. Scott Caldwell), Holt’s mother. While Holt discovers a suspect, Laverne confesses to Peralta that the man is her boyfriend and that her son doesn’t know her. Peralta encourages Holt to be more emotionally vulnerable with his mother, but Holt dismisses the idea, saying they aren’t “Cowabunga people” like Peralta.

Seeing how similar Holt is to his mother provides a lot of context for his emotionless behavior. Holt decides “be Jake”And open the door to a frank conversation with your mother. Holt is often credited with helping Peralta mature, but Peralta helps Holt learn to soften and connect with other people. But Raymond Holt will always be true to himself, so in classic Holt fashion, he agrees with his mother to be “15% more approachable in personal details and 5% more physically affectionate” while “implementing a 12% increase in impromptu communication.”

6

The box

Season 5, Episode 14

In “The Box,” Holt joins Peralta as they spend the entire night interrogating a suspect (Sterling K. Brown). Holt is eager to get his hands dirty again, and Peralta knows that many interrogation tactics are more effective with two people. The episode revolves entirely around these three characters and the interrogation and observation room. Breaking with Brooklyn Nine-NineIn the usual ensemble format, the episode allows Samberg, Braugher, and Brown’s performances to shine. Braugher has been able to flex his dramatic muscles from days onwards Homicide: life on the streetswhich had a similar bottle episode, “Three Men and Adena.”

Holt’s dry humor pairs perfectly with Peralta’s silliness. Their interaction turns meta, with Peralta unsure if he is playing the “dumb cop”Or if Holt really thinks of him that way. Some of the best moments come from Holt’s dry humor, like when he says Peralta trying to get angry is like “How to hear a children’s cereal mascot scream.” Peralta’s need for Holt’s approval actually helps him figure out how to figure out the suspect. Holt’s placid demeanor shatters when Peralta gets a confession, blurting out three “Oh, damn!

5

honeymoon

Season 6, Episode 1

Peralta and his new bride, Amy Santiago (Melissa Fumero), are on their honeymoon in Mexico, but unfortunately Holt is there too, wallowing in self-pity after losing his campaign to become Police Commissioner. Seeing Holt surrounded by so much sunlight is shocking, but without the proper bags, he is forced to wear novelty t-shirts with bad jokes like “So, beaches?” or “DTF – See you at the Party.” Holt’s depression is a new layer to his character. He has been notoriously difficult to read in the past, but is now downright depressed, asking “what is it about me that screams ‘loser’?”

Holt follows a very emotional arc in this episode. Peralta and Santiago convince him that there is more to life than being a Commissioner, while Holt is once again inspired by Peralta’s irreverence toward authority. The captain decides that after an uneventful career, it’s time to make his voice heard. It’s a relief to see Holt re-energized, even if he’s still wearing a yellow T-shirt adorned with a G-string pineapple.

4

The pot of honey

Season 6, Episode 7

This episode shows Holt at his full power. Holt’s new assistant is a spy sent by the Commissioner of Police to spy on the police station and Holt. Holt’s detective instincts kick in immediately upon meeting Gordon Lundt (Karan Soni), noticing subtle signs that he was sent as a honeypot, like his Windsor knot tie, “the easiest knot to undo,” which Peralta misses. Holt’s version of what flirting is like is hilariously awkward, but in the end he was proven right. He even manages to make Lundt fall in love with him while exhibiting about barrels in a barrel museum.

Holt spent much of Brooklyn Nine-Nine Season 6 in a rivalry with the commissioner. At the end of this episode, Holt scores a victory by recording a scathing confession from the commissioner with a tape recorder disguised as a pen. Holt borrows some of Peralta’s love of spy films in a subtle nod to Peralta’s influence on him, while his droll delivery is deliberately direct – which makes him all the funnier.

3

Bimbo

Season 6, Episode 13

Holt and Peralta work together to solve a robbery at Columbia University, where Holt’s husband, professor Kevin Cozner (Marc Evan Jackson), works. At the police station, Holt is a confident and eloquent leader, but seeing him with her husband’s academic colleagues reveals a completely different side to Holt. The captain makes it clear that they perceive him as the “working class idiot”Affects your behavior. Among her husband’s colleagues, he is “Jake.” Holt is confused. When the dean asks what the investigation plan is, Holt can barely choke out: “Clues.”

Watching Holt and Peralta switch roles in one episode is a fun reversal. Holt’s relationship with Kevin is delightfully distinct, so their time together on screen is a joy. Taking Holt out of his element reveals new nuances to his character. When the Captain admits to Peralta that he’s worried Kevin will realize he’s too good for him, it adds a new dimension to how distraught he’s been this entire episode.

2

Ding Dong

Season 7, Episode 7

Holt has a long-standing rivalry with Deputy Commissioner Madeline Wuntch (Kyra Sedgwick), which has brought out his petty selves. Holt’s insults to Wuntch were legendary, and when Wuntch’s death is announced, Holt celebrates openly. The title refers to the death of the Wicked Witch in The Wizard of Oz. Throughout the episode, Holt tries to find a way to mask his true joy when speaking at her funeral.

Holt spends much of “Ding Dong” in a posthumous game of chess with Wuntch, going so far as to throw a fake funeral. His cheerful cheer is funny, but when he reflects on how their rivalry drove them to be better officers, Holt finds himself expressing sincere condolences over her passing. Holt’s turn to the sincere is surprising, which makes it all the more moving.

1

Renewal

Season 8, Episode 8

After spending time apart, Holt and Kevin reunited and will have a vow renewal ceremony. As Holt’s workaholic nature has always been a source of contention, he announces that he will soon retire. However, on Vow Renewal Day, Holt and the squad are drawn into work shenanigans to save a police reform program.

Holt’s willingness to put Kevin’s needs first shows how much the captain has grown. But their relationship is special because Kevin understands how important Holt’s work is. Kevin shows up to save the day and tells Holt he knows he’s too passionate to retire and would never ask him to do that. Holt has fully combined his work and home life, coming a long way since “robot captain” from Brooklyn Nine-Ninepilot.