00:00 A running theme on Chicago PD with Atwater
00:02 is that the PD doesn't actually really have his back
00:06 when things start to go wrong.
00:09 So how does Chief O'Neal fit into that
00:12 as opposed to the others?
00:14 - I think Chief O'Neal means well, right?
00:18 I think Chief O'Neal does his best.
00:21 And, you know, but I also, I'm not surprised.
00:28 Chief O'Neal doesn't really show me anything different
00:31 necessarily from anybody else in the blue,
00:37 within the blue system.
00:39 You know what I'm saying?
00:40 I think the blue system,
00:44 especially in Atwater's experience,
00:47 has been so conditioned to, you know,
00:52 finding ways around, finding ways around issues
00:56 and finding ways to hide issues if they can.
01:01 You know what I'm saying?
01:02 Whatever makes us look better in the end
01:05 is really the story that we wanna grow with.
01:08 And Atwater isn't built the same, right?
01:11 And so this idea of sympathetic reflex, right?
01:16 The idea that one's body
01:21 can, within the fight or flight mode,
01:26 can accidentally take over, right?
01:32 It can be scientifically proven.
01:34 And I think that's a part of science
01:36 that the system has used to its advantage.
01:41 It push comes to shove when it has to.
01:44 And that's a escape tactic
01:47 that they try to convince Atwater to utilize.
01:51 And Atwater knows better, you know?
01:56 Atwater, believe it or not,
01:59 approached the entire circumstance
02:03 more so in a parasympathetic type of style,
02:08 which is a lot more empathetic
02:11 and a lot more from the heart, you know?
02:12 I think that's more his style than anything.
02:17 And so, yeah, yeah, yeah.
02:19 Atwater's not surprised.
02:22 And what we wanted to do this time
02:25 is not show an Atwater that has all the answers already,
02:29 not showing Atwater that already knows
02:31 what he's gonna do and why he's gonna do it,
02:34 but in Atwater that honestly struggles with the decision
02:39 and you ultimately watch him do the right thing,
02:43 but you don't know exactly where it was gonna go,
02:47 which was something that was a goal of mine as an artist,
02:50 as I approached this episode.
02:53 - It's such a shame that this happens for Atwater
02:55 because of all the people in the intelligence unit,
02:58 he tends to follow the rules more than the others.
03:02 So do you think it kind of weighs on him at all
03:05 that he does everything right on a general rule
03:10 and yet this always kind of falls back on him?
03:12 - Yeah, yeah, I think so.
03:14 I think it does.
03:15 But I also think that's a part of his strength, right?
03:17 I don't think that's anything that, you know,
03:20 I think that's what makes him different.
03:22 I think that's why he's a part of the unit.
03:24 You know, I think, you know,
03:27 there's a reason why Atwater can't really do the wrong thing
03:32 you know, and I think those reasons are obvious, right?
03:39 It's one of those, it's a dual consciousness
03:44 that W.E.B. Du Bois talked about all the time,
03:47 about how, you know, you have to know who you are
03:49 and who you're not.
03:50 Being a black, just being a black person in America
03:56 and especially being a black officer in Chicago,
04:00 you know, there are things that you can't get away with,
04:03 more so than anybody else.
04:05 So there's an extra layer of discipline and diligence
04:10 that you have to attach to the job,
04:14 which is a cross you have to bear.
04:18 You know, if that's not something that you can handle,
04:21 then, you know, it's obviously some,
04:23 you should move around.
04:25 But I think Atwater does his best to exemplify that example.
04:30 And time and time again, we're going to watch him
04:35 prove himself to be the gentleman that he claims to be.
04:40 And I think that's what helps him earn detectiveship,
04:45 if that makes sense.
04:46 [BLANK_AUDIO]
Comments