The Place of Poetry According to Brooklyn Nine-Nine

In the Season 3 episode "Yippie Kayak," Amy's reaction to Christina Rossetti's "In the Bleak Midwinter" tells us a little something about poetry, politics, and policing.

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The cast of Brooklyn Nine-Nine (via NBC)

We’re going on a weird and important ride today, from Christina Rossetti to Brooklyn Nine-Nine to Ross Gay. I won’t offer you any escapism today: here, in the bleak midwinter, we’re going to talk about “In the Bleak Midwinter,” the 1872 poem by English poet Christina Rossetti. I’ll also talk about poetry and policing: a question the show openly invites whether it knows it or not.

Rossetti’s poem pops up on a wintry episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, whose eighth and final season wrapped up late last year. The Season 3 episode “Yippie Kayak” contains all the things that always made the show funny in spite of its utterly lighthearted take on policing in a world gripped by police violence: a serious dose of Captain Holt (Andre Braugher), copious in-jokes about Die Hard, and loads of physical humor. Let’s jump in the icy sea!