The Promise – Season 7 opens with the 10-year-old memory of the night that Sergeant Daniel “Hondo” Harrelson (Shemar Moore) found Rita Martinez dead at a safe house. After reporting to dispatch, Hondo proceeds upstairs where a quick tussle with Gaz Verdugo (Anthony Aguilar) ensues. When Verdugo escapes, Hondo turns his attention to Pia Martinez (Dani Oliveros/Caroline Valencia), who is hidden in an upstairs bathroom. He promises he won’t rest until he finds Verdugo.
In the present, Hondo is wrapping up his phone call with Commander Robert “Bob” Hicks (Patrick St. Esprit) when he notices Nichelle Carmichael (Rochelle Aytes) eying him from across the room. After apologizing for waking her, he shares the news that he’s been chosen to join a small team overseeing Verdugo’s extradition from Mexico City to the States, where he will be trailed for murder.
Hondo, Bob, and Officer Zoe Powell (Anna Enger Ritch) arrive at their hotel in Mexico City. Hondo continues his attempts to contact Pia while Bob and Zoe discuss the case. Having only just learned about the case on the flight, Zoe didn’t know it was Hondo who convinced Rita to flip on her boyfriend, Verdugo. Verdugo is also described as a high-ranking member of the Salvadorian mob before their contact, Officer Gabriel Bautista (Rick Mancia) arrives. Zoe and Bob joke about being referred to as VIPs and although they had plans of sleeping, they can’t resist Gabriel’s invitation to a free dinner at one of the finest restaurants in town.
During the dinner, Captain Olvera (Angela Alvarado) reveals what little they’ve been able to get from Verdugo since his arrest. Zoe focuses her attention on Gabriel’s background while Hondo claims to be happy that Verdugo is finally in custody.
Hondo is surprised by the media presence at the station the following morning when his team arrives for the op. He’s even more shocked to see Pia there. She doesn’t just give him the cold shoulder, but she practically tells him that she wants nothing to do with him. Chaos ensues in the form of a smoke bomb and stun grenades before Verdugo is even officially handed over in the parking lot. Verdugo makes his escape when three armed motorcyclists arrive and open fire.
A foot chase ensues when Hondo notices the smoke bomber hanging around the parking lot where he placed the device. Any hopes of questioning the man fade when he comes up several inches short while trying to jump to an adjunct balcony.
Captain Olvera doesn’t waste any time gathering her team and handing out orders at the precinct. Olvera finds Bob and Zoe studying the surveillance footage from the parking lot. Once Olvera officially invites them to join the investigation, Zoe brings attention to the letter “B” tattooed on one of the motorcyclist’s hands. Bob shines a light on a missing decal.
After giving his statement to the locals, Hondo rejoins Pia to learn that she dropped out of school to dedicate all her time to tracking Verdugo. It was her that phoned in the anonymous tip that led to his rest. It also becomes clear that she doesn’t trust cops and specifically blames Hondo for her mother’s death.
While Olvera brings Bob up-to-speed on their bomber Mario Gutierrez and his ties with Verdugo, Bautista arrives with info about the motorcycle decal. He’s managed to trace the bike back to a salvage dealer, east of town, who has known ties with Las Bestias. Olvera confirms Zoe’s request to join Bautista while he questions the Salvage Yard Owner (Alberto Manquero).
Bautista questions the Salvage Dealer while Hondo’s call to Zoe reveals that the search in Mario’s apartment didn’t turn up anything useful. Zoe uses the call to canvass the salvage area, where she discovers a motorcyclist with the Las Beastias hand tattoo. Although he makes it to his bike, Zoe manages to catch him at the last second. Meanwhile, Hondo parts with a decent amount of cash to learn from one of the locals (Armando Duran) that Pia was also there asking questions about Mario. He also reveals that Pia told him that she could be found at Café Terraza.
It appears that Zoe and Bautista aren’t going to get anything useful from their interrogation of Fernando (Marsuvio Sanchez) until Olvera arrives with his unlocked phone. Pictures of Fernando with the “Butcher of Delgado’s” 16-year-old daughter get him talking. Fernando claims that Verdugo has a big business deal brokered through someone named Emil (Louis De La Costa). He says Verdugo won’t leave town without that money, so if they can find Emil, they’ll likely find Verdugo.
Hondo tries a new tactic to lure Verdugo’s whereabouts from Pia when he finds her at the café. She claims that she has exhausted all her leads and is simply tired of chasing Verdugo. She also says that she has a flight booked to Miami and hopes to be able to re-enroll in school or find employment. He appears to believe her and says her mother would be proud.
The investigation heats up when Bob reveals that the explosive used to aid in Verdugo’s release was traced back to the heist of an army artillery truck. Along with that device used this morning, the hijackers also RPGs, mortars, and a thermobaric vacuum bomb. A plan to stake out Emil’s known hotspots is formulated when Olvera announces Emil’s arrival in the States. Disguised as tourists, it is Bautista and Zoe who not only spot Emil but lose him in the proceeding chase.
The following morning, the team’s lack of success inspires Hondo to reach out to Pia again. As he does, Hicks notices a more than friendly interaction between Zoe and Bautista. He clearly upsets her and she ends up storming off when he mentions it. Hondo returns with the news that Pia might have actionable information and will meet them at her hostel.
Pia doesn’t show and the hotel clerk, Lucia (Yuli Zorrilla), along with the security footage leads them to Boki (Rodrigo Olguin). He admits to selling Pia a gun and leads them to factory 521 in the shipping district.
Verdugo and Olvera both have teams staged at the warehouse when Pia arrives. It doesn’t take her long to find Verdugo and take several shots at him. When a gunfight ensues, Pia, Verdugo, Hondo, and Hicks find themselves inside the warehouse alone, where Pia becomes a hostage. Ultimately, Verdugo ends up dead and Pia is unharmed.
As the operation comes to a close, Zoe and Bautista learn and inform Olvera that Verdugo may have already sold the thermobaric vacuum bomb. Zoe also accepts his invitation to dinner.
Pia not only apologizes to Hondo for being so harsh with him but admits to sneaking a cell phone to the safe house, which likely led to her mother’s death. He tells her that his becoming a parent made him realize he should have never made the promise to bring Verdugo to justice when he didn’t really know if he could or not.
Bautista arrives on time at Zoe’s hotel to pick her up for their dinner but claims their reservation has been pushed back two hours. Nearly as soon as he arrives and makes himself at home, he retreats to the balcony to take a call. Zoe’s attention is soon drawn to another phone in his discarded coat that reveals Bautista took the missing bomb from the crime scene. He soon learns of her discovery as well.
Elsewhere, Hicks phones Hondo for a nightcap but is turned down. Although outside her room, Hicks mentions overhearing her and Bautista’s dinner plans. Hicks can overhear the struggle inside but attributes it to the TV. The episode ends with Zoe’s death.
S.W.A.T. Review
I was a huge fan of Shawn Ryan fan back in the epic days of The Shield. I almost felt like Jason Clarke did a commendable job in The Chicago Code, although it only got a single season. That said, SWAT is absolute trash in comparison. I’ll give the creative brain trusts credit for not only killing off a main character but it was executed fabulously.
The killing didn’t just set the likely plot for the entire season, but it offers a redemptive tale of revenge. Hicks is going to be eaten up with grief and it’ll be interesting to see how he responds throughout the season. I don’t know if it’s modern TV, the pressure for quantity over quality, or the lack of new content, but SWAT certainly doesn’t hold a candle to The Shield. I’d give this episode a 4 out of 10.
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