This season has had a lot of problems.
Frankly, I've grown tired of listening to Chen whine for a hug in every scene. She behaves like a petulant child rather than a woman who's maturely pushed herself through the training academy. (Let's face it, with her neediness, insecurity & body type, she'd never have gotten over the 6 foot fence or through the incredibly strenuous physical fitness program). - Training Academy's require cadet officers to be tased, CS gassed (tear gas) & pepper-sprayed. Chen being a whining, overly sensitive "fragile" personality would have gotten over her little-girl drama or failed out. - As would anyone in military boot camp.
In this episode Chen, who has previously brought a dog into the apartment without consulting West (resulting in the dog destroying all of West's possessions) becomes upset when West is suspicious that their new homeless-car-thief-roommate might have stolen a prized possession. She forces West to feel guilty and to apologize while never taking responsibility herself ( or apologizing) for lying to him about her involvement. - Typical Chen manipulation. Exhausting.
It seems that the writers have grown bored with their original purpose of the show. The focus seems to be increasingly shifted away from the stated plot of the series, the "story of the oldest rookie" in favor of story about everyone BUT him.
I'm pretty sure most people came to watch this show because it had Nathan Fillion. The first two seasons also treated us to some wonderful cameos by actors like Alan Tudyk, Ali Larter, Sarah Sahi, Enver Gjokaj and others from Firefly to Battlestar Galactica, Justified, Supernatural, Dollhouse etc.. We got a lot of comedy, drama and insight into the characters without getting too dark, too preachy or too ridiculous. This season we get Emily Deschanel (her character was so annoying in Bones), in depth family drama with baby & wedding drama, roommate drama, poorly constructed preachy political scenarios and more time in hospitals than most police ever spend.
Shame. The show had become a favorite in our house until this tattered season.