Caution: This post contains SPOILERS for S.W.A.T. season 8, episodes 21 and 22.The two-hour S.W.A.T. season 8, it’s clear that lives go on and work still needs to happen.

There were some major moments for various characters throughout the two episodes, bringing a little bit of closure considering there is no S.W.A.T. season 9. Gamble (Annie Ilonzeh) needed to deal with her two families, while Deacon (Jay Harrington) and Tan (David Lim) had some big decisions to make for their futures. On top of that, news came out about a S.W.A.T. spinoff starring Shemar Moore, and it leads to a lot of questions about what to expect in the future.

Gamble Struggles To Be A Good Sister And A Good Cop In S.W.A.T. Season 8, Episode 21

Gamble Makes A Questionable Choice

In the S.W.A.T. series finale, Gamble turns to her brother for a tip. It turns out that a car thief from Hondo (Shemar Moore) and Deacon’s past was still alive, despite being believed to be dead for 10 years. As Gamble’s brother is in the car business, he may have heard of something. He lies to her, saying that he has nothing to do with it, but she finds one of the high-end stolen cars in his backyard. The newest member of 20-Squad has a big decision to make, as she realizes she will need to arrest her brother.

As much as she’d tried to keep her two families separated, that wasn’t going to be possible, so she’d put in for a transfer to Oakland.

In the end, she chooses not to, and she tells Hondo that she can’t be both a good sister and a good cop. As much as she’d tried to keep her two families separated, that isn’t going to be possible, so she puts in for a transfer to Oakland. While Hondo initially agrees as he can't trust her, he realizes that she is someone he wanted on the team, and he makes it clear in the end that he isn’t going to her transfer.

S.W.A.T. Targeted In The Series Finale Explained

HQ Becomes The Main Target In The S.W.A.T. Series Finale

In S.W.A.T. season 8, episode 22, 20-Squad learned that a group of Russian mobsters had planted explosive devices all around Los Angeles overnight in an attempt to break one of their guys, Dmitri Rykov, out of prison. Hondo quickly realized that it wasn’t a prison break at all, however. Finding out that Rykov was going to be traded for a U.S. prisoner in Russia, Hondo surmised that he had some valuable information that put the Russian mob at risk.

With Rykov brought back to S.W.A.T. HQ, the building became the target of the mobsters. This led to a shootout at HQ with all of 20-Squad involved, including Gamble, who had come back to clear out her locker and so happened to be there when the violence unfolded. While Ryvok originally worked with 20-Squad, he ended up betraying the team in an attempt to escape. He was captured again, while the rest of the mobsters were killed or arrested. While HQ had faced damage, the people inside were safe, and Deacon made it clear that’s all that mattered.

How Deacon's Unexpected Wealth Impacts Hondo's Team

Deacon Buys A Meaningful Gift For Himself And Others

During the beginning of the S.W.A.T. season 8 and series ending, the team learned that Deacon had donated $50,000 to a charity. Deacon’s g bonus for the mall security job was sizable enough to pay off the mortgage, fill up the children’s college funds, and donate to worthy causes. Of course, 20-Squad wanted Deacon to use some of the money on himself, but that’s not the type of guy that he is.

He chose to buy Rolex watches for all of the team, with each one engraved with “20-Squad, Stay Liquid.”

He eventually did find a way to make a purchase worthy of his aims, and it wasn’t just for him. He chose to buy Rolex watches for all of the team, with each one engraved with “20-Squad, Stay Liquid.” My only complaint is that there wasn’t a mention of watches for Luca, Chris, and Street, who are still beloved of the team, but it was still a nice moment

At the same time, Heather took her stalking to the next level by interacting with Deacon’s children, leading to Deacon working on getting a restraining order. With Annie and the children out of town, Heather decided to break into Deacon’s house, and with that, he called for backup, and he and Hondo were able to arrest Heather to protect Deacon and his family.

Tan Gets A New Job Offer (But He Doesn't Initially Want It)

Tan’s Task Force Is Shut Down

Unfortunately for Tan, his task force was shut down in the series finale, but not because he was doing a bad job. Hicks explained to Tan that the criminal his squad was after had been caught, meaning there was no longer a need for the task force after all. These routine traffic stops are always going to put task forces to shame, it would appear.

Hicks did offer Tan another job, though, making it clear that he would be well suited as the Mayoral Liaison for S.W.A.T. At first, it wasn’t a job that Tan wanted, noting that he is better in the field, and that’s where he wanted to stay. Deacon eventually talked Tan into doing it, sharing that there was always the potential for danger but that it was also a worthy step up for Tan’s career. So, by the end of the series, we learn that Tan had taken the job, but is still working with 20-Squad.

How S.W.A.T. Season 8 Finale Sets Up Season 9 & Hondo's Spinoff

It’s Not The End of S.W.A.T.

After the release of the S.W.A.T. series finale, news broke that there would be a surprise S.W.A.T. spinoff starring Shemar Moore. In the spinoff, Moore will reprise his role of Hondo as he comes out of forced retirement to lead the next generation of officers. The S.W.A.T. finale certainly set some of this up, showing that Hondo remains focused on bringing new team up through the ranks and ing their growth. The downside is that Hondo wasn’t forced into retirement in the finale, so that would need to be explained at the start of the spinoff.

At the same time, the finale set up a potential S.W.A.T. season 9, by making it clear that there is still work to be done. This series finale didn’t completely close off all arcs, with nobody leaving the team or ending up severely injured. We get to see Miko, Powell, Gamble, Tan, Deacon, and then Hondo leave HQ to work on another case, allowing for any of them to come back in their own spinoff in some way or for the S.W.A.T. to be revived in the near future.