Upamanyu Biswas
By the end of ‘On Call,’ officers Traci Harmon and Alex Diaz manage to grow into their stride by acknowledging their deficiencies and learning more about one another. The show pits them against a whole retinue of dispatch calls that test their mettle, ranging from distressed household situations to wounded animals on the roadside. Meanwhile, the pair also have to navigate their clashes with the East Barrio clique, whose shenanigans grow bolder and more desperate with each passing day. The murder of an officer unravels the delicate balance between the authorities and the gang, leading to increased vigilance and battles on the streets of Long Beach, California. Both Harmon and Diaz become entangled in the criminal affair but manage to showcase their integrity and drive throughout the ordeal, albeit not without challenges. SPOILERS AHEAD.
On Call Season 1 Plot Recap
The show begins with Officer Maria Delgado flagging a car with three suspicious passengers sitting inside. After seeing an unconscious young girl in the front passenger seat, Delgado asks everyone to step out of the vehicle. However, matters go out of hand as the man in the backseat shoots Delgado through the neck before the car peels away. Delgado passes away on the road from the fatal wound. Her supervisor and trainer, Officer Traci Harmon, takes it particularly hard. As the police precinct mourns the loss of one of their own, the two shooters are identified as Eddie Watson, also known by his street name Maniac, and Juan Cortez, two members of the East Barrio clique. Harmon takes on a new rookie named Alex Diaz under her wing as the pair begin their patrols.
As Harmon and Diaz begin attending to numerous dispatch calls, it becomes clear to the latter that his experienced partner is actively investigating the death of Delgado, which falls out of her jurisdiction. In one of their first call-ins, Diaz uses his body cam to capture Harmon threatening a suspect to reveal what he knows about Delgado’s shooters. This video becomes an important lynchpin later in the story. Presently, Harmon and Diaz begin learning more about who they are as people and what drives them. They also learn about each other’s complicated family situations, with Diaz’s brother involved in the criminal underworld while Harmon’s sister is a drug addict. The duo makes headway into the Delgado case with the help of a powerful gangster named Smokey, who has a longstanding working relationship with Harmon.
Although Smokey asks Harmon to stop pursuing Maniac, she persists in her hunt. Meanwhile, the other suspect in the murder, Cortez, is killed early in the narrative, as cops discover his severed head and hand in a camp for homeless people. His death is seemingly a peace offering from the East Barrio clique to the police. Harmon and Diaz continue attending their call-ins, dealing with a wide variety of affairs that require them to be on point at all times. During one such dispatch, Harmon learns that an East Barrio-affiliated party is about to take place at the Oceanside Motel, and Maniac is expected to be there. Harmon breaks protocol to follow up on the lead. However, she still calls in backup when necessary, not taking any chances with her life or the opportunity to nail Maniac.
On Call Season 1 Ending: Does Harmon Avenge Delgado? Does She Kill Maniac?
After the contingent of cop cars line up outside the Oceanside Motel, Sergeant Lasman asks Harmon how she knows Maniac is in the building. She convinces him that he is, and he hands her the lead on staging the raid. The team swiftly begins their break-in, which attracts gunfire from the East Barrio members from the adjacent room. Harmon kills two gangsters before Maniac escapes the building through a window. She races behind him, unwilling to give up on Delgado’s killer now that she finally has him in her sights. They have a brief fight outside, where Harmon’s body cam becomes dislodged. However, the experienced cop manages to somehow gain the upper hand by placing a gun against Maniac’s temple. With her body cam no longer functioning, she has the chance to kill Maniac but refrains from doing so. Lasman arrives shortly after to cuff Maniac.
While it is evident that Harmon is desperate to avenge Delgado, her decision not to kill Maniac showcases her integrity and ability to know when not to cross the line. If she murders Delgado, she is basically walking down the path of vigilante justice, opening up a whole can of worms that would undermine her position and LBPD’s image in the public eye. Harmon is later questioned by Lieutenant Bishop and Sergeant Lasman on her ordeal, with the former wondering how she learned about Maniac’s whereabouts while the latter is more interested in why she didn’t shoot him when she had the chance. She tells Lasman that by not killing Maniac, she avenged Delgado the “right way.” Still, the whole affair seems to shake her up as she breaks down inside her car after everyone leaves.
Does Diaz Survive? What Happens to Leona?
Although Maniac’s arrest finally closes the chapter on Delgado’s tragic death, East Barrio’s influence on the story remains strong as internal politics strikes the gang. Diaz finds out that his convict brother, Gabriel, has become the target of a hit put out by the gang because of the police rookie’s hand in Maniac’s apprehension. Meanwhile, the East Barrios also turn against Smokey, targeting him for weak leadership and his inability to protect Maniac like he is supposed to. Near the end, Harmon and Diaz learn that Smokey is planning a drug trade. The police arrive at the scene and witness a fight breaking out between different sections of the East Barrios, forcing them to step in. However, Diaz gets too emotional during the fight and chases after Leona, Smokey’s daughter. Smokey himself makes an appearance and engages Diaz in a brief gunfight before fleeing.
Meanwhile, Leona takes Diaz by surprise and shoots him around the upper chest and neck region, mirroring Delgado’s fatal wounds. Incapacitated, Diaz can only watch and record on his body cam as Leona looms over him and prepares to finish him off. Before she can, Sergeant Koyama shoots Leona in the head, effectively saving Diaz from a premature death. Still, his wounds leave him in a bad place as he requires urgent attention. Later, he is shown to be recovering in the police infirmary, frustrated at his mistakes and brashness, which nearly cost him his life. The fact that he survived when Delgado didn’t showcases the tight margins of failure the LBPD cops operate under at all times. Additionally, his death might have compounded Harmon’s guilty conscience, particularly as she has been going to such lengths to ensure that Diaz lives up to his potential.
Is Smokey Apprehended? Does He Survive?
After Smokey’s altercation with Diaz, Harmon chases after the gangster on her own while Koyama treats Diaz’s injuries. She finds him at a diner booth, bleeding out from a bullet wound inflicted by Diaz. Harmon lowers her gun and sits down opposite him, and the pair have a frank discussion about their partnership through the years. Smokey is devastated after learning that Leona died. He expresses his frustration at the tragic events that have unfolded because of the needless murder of one cop. He also states that he has no wish to go to prison. Harmon tells him that she does not want him to die either. She passes him some tissue papers and asks him to press down on his wound to stop the bleeding. Although he seems hesitant initially, he listens to her advice and stems the bleeding, showcasing that he is not ready to die.
As Harmon and Smokey have known each other for a long time, the latter’s death would be hard to take for the police officer, even if he may be a shady character. Additionally, he has suffered a huge tragedy with the loss of his daughter, and it would be easy for him to give up on his life now. However, Harmon convinces him not to give up on his life and to serve his punishment as he should. It closes the circle of the whole domino of events that sparked into life following Delgado’s death. Without Smokey’s capture by the end, the LBPD would have nothing to show for their troubles. Thus, his arrest at the end means that the circle can finally be rounded off. Later, it is confirmed that Smokey recovered from his wounds while being imprisoned at the county jail.
Who Holds Back Harmon’s Promotion? Why?
An important plot point explored near the end is Harmon and Diaz’s future as police officers. The latter is awaiting his performance review, while the former is touted for a position on Koyama’s team. In the final portions, Harmon learns from Koyama that her transfer has been blocked due to a negative input by one of her superiors. She is frustrated by the incident, immediately suspecting that it must have been Sergeant Lasman who gave her a bad review. She confronts him in his office, only to learn that he has done nothing but help her thus far, including the deletion of the body cam footage where she threatens a suspect for info on Delgado’s shooters. Subsequently, she questions Lieutenant Bishop on the matter, learning that it was she who held back Harmon’s transfer.
The revelation comes as a major blow to Harmon, especially as she feels she deserves the opportunity to be on Koyama’s team. However, after holding the performance review for Diaz, where she puts him back on probation, Bishop points out that the reasons for Harmon’s transfer being canceled are similar to the ones she stated for her trainee. Both Diaz and Harmon have showcased themselves as good officers who are genuinely interested in upholding the law. But Bishop feels that they are both reckless and headstrong when it comes to chasing down clues, leading to a number of investigations that have gone off-book. Harmon feels particularly aggrieved about the whole incident, especially as she confided numerous personal matters with Bishop. Still, she manages to see the truth in Bishop’s words.
Do Harmon and Diaz Remain Partners? Why Does He Hand Her the “Get Out of Jail Free” Card?
Diaz is angry with Harmon after she puts him back on probation at his performance review. After growing closer to one another throughout the narrative, Diaz feels that she finally understands him and vice versa. However, her decision to hold him back feels like a backstabbing move that he believes was brought about by her own transfer being canceled. He confronts her about the fact, having a frank and honest discussion about his future. Harmon explains that her reasoning for putting him back on probation has nothing to do with his competence but more to do with Diaz’s reckless attitude. She fears that if Diaz continues to operate in the field like he usually does, he may similarly lose his life to Delgado. Thus, she puts him back on probation and under her watch to ensure that no such thing occurs.
The police rookie is surprised to learn that Harmon is willing to partner up with him again in an effort to educate him further. However, he also feels blessed to have the chance to learn as much as he can from her. As they sit down in their patrol car, Diaz fishes in his wallet and hands over the “Get Out of Jail Free” card Harmon gave him at the start of the series. It symbolizes his acceptance to start anew with Harmon and rebuild his career without repeating the same mistakes he made earlier. The rookie can see the reasoning behind her actions and is not bitter towards her for holding back his promotion. Instead, he understands that she simply wants to keep him safe by training him further and hashing out his rash impulses that may get him in trouble when he is on his own. It also means that the pair will continue their call-in adventures for the foreseeable future.
