The wait for unnecessarily bad The Rookie season 6 was.

The Rookie season 7 premieres on Tuesday, January 7, 2025, at 10 pm ET on ABC (per TVLine). Season 7 is expected to contain 18 episodes, a large step up from season 6's 10-episode run.

The good news is that The Rookie season 7 has the opportunity to bring the TV show back to its glory days. Since it reportedly has 18 episodes, season 7 has the time and space to introduce thoughtful, entertaining, and surprising stories. Given what happened in The Rookie season 6 finale, though, season 7 has to address some previous developments before it can move on to bigger and better things.

8 Resolve The Rookie Season 6 Finale Cliffhanger

Oscar & Jason Escaped Prison

As some may from the chaotic and jumbled finale, The Rookie season 6 ended with a jailbreak. Oscar, who had been tormenting Nolan for years, and Jason, Bailey's ex-husband, broke out of prison with the help of Monica. Whereas Oscar might not be in a vengeful mood in the next episodes, Jason sure will be. After leaving prison, Jason told Oscar to drop him off in Los Angeles, where he is bound to seek out his ex-wife and her new husband. So, The Rookie season 7 must follow through with Jason's return and obvious desire for revenge.

Jason doesn't have to stick around for a long time when The Rookie season 7 premieres. In fact, it should be the opposite. The first episode should feature Jason's plans for Nolan and Bailey but end with him back in a jail cell. Unfortunately, Jenna Dewan will reportedly be missing from season 7's first few episodes due to her maternity leave, which might mean Jason's stay in season 7 will be extended. Whatever the case, the cliffhanger cannot be solved with one throwaway comment about how the police caught Oscar and Jason and took them back to prison.

7 Introduce A New Big Bad Who Can Live Up To Rosalind Dyer

The Rookie Needs Another Iconic Villain

Once season 7 deals with Oscar and Jason, The Rookie can look ahead to bigger and better villains. The police procedural had a couple of amazing and iconic Big Bads at the beginning — Rosalind Dyer and Nick Armstrong. Since then, though, The Rookie has failed to introduce any antagonists worthy of standing where they stood, posing a real threat to the main characters. The writers attempted to follow up Rosalind and Armstrong with villains like Elijah Stone and Monica Stevens, but both of their arcs fell flat. Monica was exciting, but the season 6 finale dulled her villainous run.

But once Monica is gone, the Rookie writers must return to the drawing board and incorporate one unsuspecting, evil, complex Big Bad to cause chaos.

Throughout the past few The Rookie seasons, the show has tried again and again to make Elijah and Monica work, and they just haven't. Both had great potential. However, Elijah and Monica's stories were too drawn-out and convoluted for the audience to care. Elijah can be left in the past, while The Rookie season 7 has no choice but to close out Monica's villain arc given her escape during the season 6 finale. But once Monica is gone, the Rookie writers must return to the drawing board and incorporate one unsuspecting, evil, complex Big Bad to cause chaos.

6 Say A Proper Goodbye To Aaron

Tru Valentino Exited The Rookie After Season 6

One The Rookie season 6 cast member won't return in 2025 — Tru Valentino, who has played Aaron Thorsen since season 4, exited the show ahead of season 7. While losing Aaron is sad, the fact that Valentino didn't get the chance to give his character proper closure makes it all the more disappointing. However, season 7 can still do right by Aaron, even without Valentino around.

The Rookie season 7 must genuinely say goodbye to Aaron. One person can't simply explain Aaron's absence with a throwaway comment that's easy to miss (although this will likely happen). He meant a lot to Deric Augustine and Patrick Kelehe will The Rookie season 7 cast as Miles and Seth, respectively).

5 Give Lopez, Harper, & Grey Better Storylines

Lopez, Harper, & Grey Barely Got Any Action In The Rookie Season 6

A 10-episode season doesn't allow much room for an ensemble cast to breathe, and Angela Lopez, Nyla Harper, and Sergeant Grey paid for it. To make up for their lack of screen time or memorable storylines, The Rookie season 7 should prioritize them. Lopez, Harper, and Grey shouldn't be around just to the other characters, like John Nolan, Lucy Chen, and Tim Bradford. They need their own thoughtful, interesting arcs. Yes, Lopez and Harper crashing Nolan and Bailey's honeymoon was one of the best moments of The Rookie season 6, but it still primarily revolved around the couple.

Most of Lopez, Harper, and Grey's time in The Rookie season 6 was spent working on cases or chiming in on other characters' storylines. While complex and entertaining cases are also a must, it would also be fantastic if Lopez, Harper, and Grey were given plots not directly related to their job (or fighting over a babysitter). It's unclear what awaits these three characters in the episodes of The Rookie, but they deserve more than what they got in season 6.

4 Chenford's Reunion (But Not Too Soon)

Tim & Lucy Shouldn't Rush To Get Back Together

Of course, one of the things at the top of The Rookie season 7's to-do list is getting Tim and Lucy back together. However, it comes with one condition — Chenford's reunion must be a slow burn. They must go back to where they started, which is a good thing, given how well done Tim and Lucy's initial slow burn was. Season 6 rushed through their breakup, making it hard for viewers to get truly invested in their drama. But by returning to a slow build-up concerning Tim and Lucy's relationship, The Rookie can pull the audience back in and make them care.

So, if the writers are smart (and they are), fans shouldn't expect Tim and Lucy to get back together in the season 7 premiere. The Rookie season 6 ended without a Chenford reunion, meaning that the couple likely has a long road ahead of them. However, viewers shouldn't have to wait seasons for Chenford this time. Tim and Lucy should rekindle their relationship towards the end of The Rookie season 7, and not a second sooner.

3 Nolan & Bailey Adopt A Baby

The Couple Discussed Having A Baby In The Rookie Season 6

Aside from the Oscar and Jason jailbreak, The Rookie season 6 finale ended with Bailey agreeing to at least consider adopting a baby with Nolan. As some may recall, the couple tried to conceive a child naturally, but Bailey would need to pay for expensive IVF treatments. So, Nolan and Bailey decided not to go down that route, leading to heartbreak for both of them.

Hopefully, Nolan and Bailey adopting a child will happen much quicker than it took for them to get married after their engagement.

At the beginning of The Rookie season 6 finale, Nolan came up with the idea of adoption and presented it to Bailey. She didn't get on board the adoption train until the episode's end. But fans should still expect to see more of this storyline in The Rookie season 7. Hopefully, Nolan and Bailey adopting a child will happen much quicker than it took for them to get married after their engagement.

2 Incorporate More Episodic Cases

Season 6 Was Too Serialized

ABC's police procedural series tried out a serialized approach to its storytelling in The Rookie season 6, and it failed epically. With only 10 episodes to work with, it's understandable why the writers would want to tell a season-long story. Unfortunately, it just didn't work in The Rookie season 6. The entire plot with Monica became too convoluted and chaotic, making it hard to keep up with.

The good news is that the writers have seemingly learned from their mistakes and promised to present more standalone arcs in The Rookie season 7. This means that the season will feature many episodes with stories that begin and end within the hour. Of course, there will be serialized elements tying the whole season together. However, The Rookie season 7 will return to an episodic format, which undoubtedly contributed to the early seasons' success.

1 Nolan Gets A New Rookie

Celina Should Graduate

Nolan has been training Celina for about two seasons now, and it's time for her to take off the training wheels. Celina has an okay dynamic with Nolan, but she would be better off interacting and working with some of the other characters (like Lucy, her new roommate). Tru Valentino exiting The Rookie season 7 cast is a blow to Celina's arc, given how Aaron and Celina's storylines often overlapped, and they were good friends. But if she is to stand out in season 7, Celina has to graduate and move on from Nolan.

Perhaps one of the two new characters in The Rookie season 7 will be Nolan's new rookie, and they can form a better training officer/trainee dynamic than he and Celina had.

Nolan could also use a new rookie who is much better suited for him. It certainly shouldn't be too hard to find someone who has good chemistry with Nathan Fillion's character. Perhaps one of the two new characters in The Rookie season 7 will be Nolan's new rookie, and they can form a better training officer/trainee dynamic than he and Celina had.

Source: TVLine