Brooklyn Nine-Nine is one of the greatest sitcoms of all time due to its incredibly smart writing, impeccable comedic timing, relatable characters, and much more. The Andy Samberg-led series ran for eight wonderful seasons, for a total of 153 episodes, and among those were an abundance of great stories centered around the holidays, particularly Thanksgiving.
Whether it be an intense family drama, trips to the hospital, an anthrax scare, or Boyle dressed up like a turkey, this show never disappointed when it came to Thanksgiving episodes. While all these Thanksgiving (or Turkey Day, as Charles would say) episodes are great, some stood out more than others.
- Release Date
- September 17, 2013
- Creator
- Dan Goor, Michael Schur
- Seasons
- 8
5 “Lockdown” (Season 2, Episode 7)
IMDb Rating: 7.7/10
It’s Thanksgiving Day, and Captain Holt (Andre Braugher) and Terry (Terry Crews) are heading out of town for an event, leaving Jake in charge. Soon after, they discover a package filled with white powder and must lock down the entire precinct until they find out whether it’s dangerous. Jake’s reluctance to crack the whip as the interim boss leads to many problems, including a riot resulting in a couch fire. It isn’t until Jake finally steps up and takes charge that things begin to turn around. Meanwhile, Terry is dealing with his overbearing brother-in-law Zeke, who always finds ways to make Terry feel small physically and emotionally. Crews does such a wonderful job playing this meek version of his character.
While still a solid episode overall, this is the weakest of all the show’s Thanksgiving ones. The Thanksgiving vibes are definitely a bit lackluster this time around since the gang is still stuck at the office. In other Thanksgiving episodes, things felt a lot cozier, with the precinct members gathering at each other’s homes or celebrating with their families. This time, the fact that they’re working through the holiday kind of saps the festive cheer. Plus, we don’t get to see the whole squad together for most of the episode since Captain Holt and Terry are off running their own errands. The usual warm camaraderie is missing because everyone’s too busy trying to keep things under control during the lockdown.
4 “Two Turkeys” (Season 5, Episode 7)
IMDb Rating: 8.0/10
The last Thanksgiving episode of the series sees the Peraltas (Bradley Whitford and Katey Sagal) and the Santiagos (Jimmy Smits and Bertila Damas) meeting for the first time, and it does not go as planned. Jake and Amy (Melissa Fumero) do everything they can to make things go smoothly, but both parents are just too stubborn to play nice. Also, Captain Holt’s pie goes missing, and he launches an investigation into the squad to find out who the culprit is. This episode starts with the return of Boyle dressed as Tommy Gobbler, as seen in the Season 3 Thanksgiving episode, “Ava.” It’s not quite as good as his first appearance in the turkey costume but is still hilarious when he gets his tail feathers stuck in the elevator.
Between this and “Mr. Santiago,” we get to see Jake’s level of love for Amy and how he’s willing to do whatever it takes to show her that love, especially regarding her parents. We learn in this episode that Jake has several half-siblings, one of whom we eventually meet. And after an intense night of family squabbling, both sets of parents wind up bonding in the end in true “Thanksgiving miracle” fashion. Also, we get to see Hitchcock (Dirk Blocker) and Scully’s (Joel McKinnon Miller) detective skills at work, as Captain Holt asks them to help track down who stole his pie. It’s some of the best work we’ve seen from those two, making it even more hilarious. There’s nothing more nerve-wracking than introducing your parents to each other for the first time – especially when they’re total opposites. Jake’s folks are laid-back and bohemian, while Amy’s are all about being prim and proper. At first, it seems like these two families have nothing in common, but after a little help from some very pricey alcohol, the holiday spirit starts to kick in. That is, until the competition begins to see who can out-parent the other. And of course, no holiday would be complete without a chaotic twist, such as Jake’s dad accidentally slicing off his thumb while overzealously carving the turkey.
3 “Ava” (Season 3, Episode 8)
IMDb Rating: 8.1/10
In this episode, Terry is called away to Rikers Island, leaving his very pregnant wife, Sharon (Merrin Dungey), at the precinct. But while he’s gone, she goes into labor, and Jake must keep her as comfortable as possible so that he can follow their birthing plan. Of course, things never go as planned, and Jake must step up and be the God Husband Sharon needs. Meanwhile, the internet is out in the precinct, and the rest of the squad must find a way to get all their work done by the end of the day. We start the episode with the first appearance of Charles Boyle as Tommy Gobbler. This scene is amazing, as he walks in, all confident and boisterous, but then he learns that he must give some tragic news to people waiting for information about their grandmother. It’s hilarious, and the sharp turn it makes so fantastic, made even more so by the incredible performance by Joe Lo Truglio.
This is a fun episode, as we rarely see Jake interact with Sharon. Stepping up as her “god-husband”, he does whatever he can to ensure that Sharon remains calm throughout her labor in the middle of a very frenetic precinct. But what’s even funnier is how surprisingly petty Captain Holt becomes when he learns that Sharon doesn’t feel too comfortable around him, despite wanting to help her. In the end, the always astute and rational Captain Holt confesses to Jake that sometimes his ego gets the best of him. We also get a little insight into Holt’s past as we are introduced to his ex-boyfriend Frederick, played by the always-entertaining Nick Offerman. The chaos doesn’t stop at the precinct. Outside, Terry and Rosa try to get back to the station at record speed so that they don’t miss Sharon’s birth. Of course, the journey back is far from smooth sailing. From getting stuck on the subway to traversing the jam-packed streets of New York on a police bike, Terry isn’t determined to not miss the miracle of life. And finally, seeing the rest of the squad struggle to get their paperwork filed by hand is made so much better with the antics of Hitchcock and Scully, who cause a bunch of fax machines to burst into flames and get Hitchcock’s arm stuck in a pneumatic tube.
2 “Mr. Santiago” (Season 4, Episode 7)
IMDb Rating: 8.1/10
Jake and Amy are hosting a Thanksgiving dinner so he can finally meet Amy’s father, and Jake and Mr. Santiago wind up working an old cold case together. While they’re out, the rest of the squad prepares for dinner, and Charles brings a live turkey to butcher. The incredible Jimmy Smits pops into this episode as Amy’s dad knocks it out of the park with his performance. His dynamic with Jake is great as he plays the straight man to Samberg’s funnyman. It’s the first time Jake is meeting Amy’s uptight dad, and for the first time in his life, he wants to take things seriously. He even made a binder documenting Mr. Santiago’s likes, dislikes, the whole gist – not too shabby for a detective boyfriend. But the twist comes up when Mr. Santiago, who initially takes a liking to Jake, reveals that he too has a binder on Jake days before visiting town, keeping tabs on Jake’s hilariously questionable traits and declaring that he’ll never make a great boyfriend for his daughter.
The episode follows a similar path to the very first Thanksgiving episode, by having Jake and a father figure track down a case involving a family where the culprit isn’t who they first suspect. Also, watching the squad get chased around the apartment by a turkey is one of the things that make this such a great episode, as well as the side story with Captain Holt, Pimento (Jason Mantzoukas), and the dog show. Finally, we get one of Brooklyn Nine-Nine‘s best cold opens, where everyone does their best impersonation of Holt eating a marshmallow, and Boyle nails it with his goofy, high-pitched giggle, which nobody saw coming.
1 “Thanksgiving” (Season 1, Episode 10)
IMDb Rating: 8.1/10
The very first Thanksgiving episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine sees the entire squad head over to Amy’s for the big feast. Turns out, Amy’s little shindig is part of her efforts to politely suck up to Captain Holt and ask him to be his mentor. However, nothing seems to go right, and every attempt to make this night a success seems to fail. Meanwhile, Jake and Holt must track down a thief who stole $10,000 in cash out of the evidence locker. This episode gives the audience a great look inside most of these Brooklyn Nine-Nine characters, showcasing their neurotic tendencies, childhood traumas, and the overall camaraderie of this eclectic group of people. Right from the get-go, we get a hilarious cold open with Boyle Bingo. Boyle is shown to be a huge fan of Thanksgiving – he loves it so much to the point the entire precinct knows what he’s going to do or say about the holiday every year. Jake reveals that he hates Thanksgiving because, as a kid, he was regularly left alone by his parents to fend for himself, even on the holidays. He disliked it so much that he’d rather spend the night at the precinct to work on any case up for grabs (there were none).
With no other choice, he ends up going to Amy’s party, only to find out that there’s a case still unattended. This leads to him and Holt leaving Amy’s mid-dinner to track down a thief, and we witness some of Jake’s brilliant detective skills, even if they are somewhat shrouded by his silly, immature behavior. Meanwhile, Amy isn’t too pleased with Jake getting Captain Holt all to himself when it should’ve been her. Also, after Boyle inadvertently ruins all of Terry’s food in the refrigerator, he spends the rest of the episode being hangry and taking it out on those around him. This becomes a bit of a running gag throughout the series, as food is very important to Terry. We learn that Amy is a terrible cook, which is interesting, as she is such a perfectionist that you’d assume she would be great at that too.