Characters of the Week: Chicago PD, NCIS: Origins & 5 More Standout Performances

The TV season is winding down, and the powerhouse performances and compelling character moments are aplenty.

From heartbreaking goodbyes to long-overdue victories and quietly powerful character moments, this week’s lineup of Characters of the Week reminded us why we stay so invested in these stories and the people at the center of them.

Whether it’s a quiet hero, a devoted son, or a man reconciling with his past, these are the characters we can’t stop thinking about.

Cate – Monarch: Legacy of Monsters

Cate Randa’s storyline has been gripping on Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, but she threw it out of the park on Monarch: Legacy of Monsters Season 2 Episode 10.

Cate’s theories about the Titans have been dismissed all season long, so seeing yet more of them proven legit as she lured Titan X back into the rift was both satisfying and emotional.

There’s been this beautiful symmetry between her and her grandmother, Keiko’s storyline, and knowing that they’re getting to work together to usher in a new era of Monarch is chef’s kiss.

Hopefully, Apple TV renews Monarch: Legacy of Monsters for Season 3 to showcase the pair co-leading Monarch. – Paul Dailly

Jinx Millet – Margo’s Got Money Troubles

Although Margo’s Got Money Troubles Season 1 Episode 5 “Flamingos” was primarily about Shyanne and her Vegas wedding, it’s ex-husband Jinx’s quiet and steady behind-the-scenes “manny”-ing that steals the show.

As Shyanne descends into a spiral of anxiety and self-absorbed obsessiveness, Jinx leans in on being of service.

Recognizing how awkward it must be for Shyanne to have her baby daddy on-site at her wedding, he strives to stay out of the way and keep Baby Bodhi as unobtrusive as possible.

It’s Shyanne who drags him, Margo, and the baby to the seedy Bottom Dollar Bar, where she and Jinx have a sexy history.

It’s Shyanne who stirs up old feelings at the pool table and reminisces about the bathroom. Shyanne pushes on the pain of Jinx’s regret.

But Jinx never rises to the bait.

He doesn’t let his regret manifest in a negative way. He cries the honest tears, expresses genuine sorrow, but also celebrates Shyanne and Kenny, letting them revel in their special day.

Jinx epitomizes non-toxic masculinity. He spends quality time caring for Bodhi and teaching him a wide range of facts about Vegas and Ancient Rome.

When Margo’s distraught, he’s supportive. He treats Kenny with respect and accepts the path that Shyanne has chosen. His evening ablutions prioritize his self-care. He’s a walking, talking #LifeGoal.

Margo might drive this story. Shyanne might be every sort of obstacle. But it’s Jinx’s zen energy that holds its heart together. – Diana Keng

Young Amanda – Will Trent

We’re still reeling from Amanda’s death, but Will Trent fulfilled a promise by providing closure for Will and having him and Amanda share the most emotional scenes to date.

Sydney Park reprised her role as a younger Amanda on Will Trent Season 4 Episode 17, and her mannerisms matched Sonja Sohn’s so much that it was uncanny.

You could tell how much Amanda loved Will in her interactions with each of the Wills. She wanted him to have a better life, but she couldn’t provide one initially.

She never forgot him, and that’s why she rescued him again when he was in trouble. Their relationship was complex since neither of them expressed their genuine feelings until after she was gone.

While I wish these scenes were real, I love that Will envisioned Amanda and how she helped him solve a case, just the two of them.

That’s why there wasn’t a dry eye as Amanda and Will finally hugged each other, as she revealed how proud she was of him, but that he had to let her go so he could survive.

Amanda will always live in Will’s heart and in ours.

Shane Florence – The Hunting Party

We love it when twisty cases correlate to character arcs, and Shane’s military experience and his personal life are intertwined with the twisty case on The Hunting Party Season 2 Episode 12.

While the Pit’s treatments never sit well, Shane had difficulty with the ethics of giving a patient MCAM+, an opioid antagonist, without their consent.

He’d seen it used in the military to help with addiction, but it was a temporary fix. At the same time, he wondered if something like that could have helped his mother.

Poor Shane waited so long to meet his birth mother, only to realize Col. Lazarus truly was a monster.

He’s such an optimist that he wanted to believe there was some good in her, but it’s likely the opposite, and we fear he’ll go down as collateral damage in her plan to form a Pit prisoner army.

She probably needs his military experience. – Laura Nowak

Cliff Wheeler – NCIS: Origins

Cliff Wheeler is often one of the most underrated characters on NCIS: Origins, which is why it’s such a delight when the series actually does place him in the spotlight.

Because he’s never exactly how anyone expects him to be, which is part of what makes him so realistic and compelling.

And NCIS: Origins Season 2 Episode 17 showcases Commando Cliff, which, on the surface, is amusing, as we see his Take-Charge attitude, likely how he ended up the man in charge at NCIS.

But beyond that, it revealed the layers of the quiet, unusual man in a suit who sits behind the desk and is too often overlooked or taken for granted. Cliff was fierce, protective, and the embodiment of leadership on the scene after an explosion.

He was also a loving father who was uncertain about what to do next with his son, who was going through a rough period.

In both ways, we saw this vulnerability to him, yes, but also just how human he is. That Cliff is a man figuring life out just like the rest of us.

Cliff is a man who doesn’t go around demanding respect, but the hour reveals just how much he’s earned it, simply by being himself, and everything clicks into place when others take the time to truly understand him.

It’s his own son finally seeing Cliff, as if for the first time, as a man and a figure beyond just his father, that ties everything together well, resulting in this quiet win for Cliff and the viewers who love him, and, with these peeks, it’s hard not to love and value him.

Adam Ruzek – Chicago PD

It’s been a difficult season for fans of Ruzek.

The series’s character-centric episodes often sideline characters who aren’t directly in the spotlight, and the actor had to step away on hiatus, so we didn’t get nearly as much exploration of the character as we normally would.

But Chicago PD Season 13 Episode 19 made up for that, and it also served as a reminder of how Patrick John Flueger is one of the most captivating actors on network television.

When given the material, Flueger delivers outstanding work, none more so than as a son quietly but relentlessly working to solve his father’s cold case as a unique way of honoring his father and his legacy.

The hour was all about memories, how they haunt us, how they’re precious, how our minds are complex and fragile.

Ruzek spends some of the hour trying to make peace with the fact that his father’s Alzheimer’s has declined so rapidly that he was in his final days.

And the rest of the hour, Ruzek works to solve this case and faces his own cognitive issues from an injury he sustained in the field.

There are moments when the temporary loss of his short-term memory weighs on him, when there’s clarity in what his father’s facing as Ruzek tries to claw at his own recall.

And there’s satisfaction when he succeeds in this win, for his father, when he hears stories about the impact Disco Bob has made on Carlos.

But it’s the final moments of the hour that are the most powerful. Ruzek, a devoted, loving son, sits with his father in his final moments. Tells him the things he needs Bob to hear, as we hope that maybe, just maybe Bob isn’t so far gone that he can’t understand.

And Ruzek tells his father that he can go—he doesn’t have to hang on for him any longer; it’s okay. And Bob… does.

It’s raw and devastating, and painfully realistic and resonant. Ruzek’s growth as a character sneaks up on you — the reality of a man at that point in his life where he’s a father doing what’s best for his child, but he’s a son doing what’s best for his dying parent, too. – Jasmine Blu

Ben Warren – Grey’s Anatomy

In an episode that could have been a cameo for the sake of fan service, Grey’s Anatomy Season 22 Episode 17 brought us the reunion we needed and did it in style. As soon as Warren heard that a firefighter was being brought into the ER, Warren worried.

Once he realized it was Maya from Station 19, he stepped up but didn’t overstep.

He waited for approval to be brought into the team to treat her, and it was the first sign of how far he’s come. In the past, he would have taken over and made things worse.

Ben utilized every aspect of his career. He took what he knew as an anesthesiologist and a firefighter to make sure Bishop got the care she needed, and he had no fear of putting emotion first.

He proved himself to be a doctor and a friend, treating her like any other burn patient until he could focus on her as a friend once she was in recovery.

And he did all that while disagreeing with an attending he was trying to impress. Ben Warren was the GOAT of the hour, and he’s definitely proved he has found his place. – Alexandria Ingham

Over to you, TV Fanatics. Did your favorites make the cut? Sound off below!

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