Original subtitles

Tell me about college, baby.

It's good, Grandma.

I have some really good professors this semester.

What course is you taking?

Yeah, this one on entrepreneurship that's really good.

What about that white boy?

Let's do this.

So we're a team.

Always going to be a team.

Because we don't win unless we win together.

I hope you're taking some history, too.

Because you don't know where you're going unless... You know where you've

been.

People don't fall all at once.

It's slower than that.

A crack here, compromise there.

Till one day you look up and the life you built is leaning the wrong way.

SWAT was my dream, my world, my life.

And with one mission, everything changed.

Now the world's turned upside down and all that's left is the grind.

I used to protect people from the worst the city could throw at them.

Now I protect bad people from the people.

We're on the move.

It's the problem with giving people a purpose.

You start to think they matter.

Hondo!

You're a hard man to find.

You look like shit.

It's called post-loyalty chic.

What do you want, Higgs?

I want you back at SWAT.

Let me guess.

Another raid went sideways.

Yeah.

It ain't my mess.

The council's been gunning to dismantle SWAT for years. You know that. They

finally got the votes.

It's done.

Maybe that's the way it should be.

You don't believe that.

20 David was the last real squad and they tore it down.

After that, it was nothing but ego and optics.

If it burns, so be it. You may have been gone for two years. The job still

matters.

Or it could.

With the right leadership.

You mean me?

No unit.

Ground up.

No legacy squad, no old command structure.

You know, it's funny, I don't remember all the support coming from you when I

got hung out to dry. I warned you what would happen if that footage got out.

And you watched it happen anyway.

That kid died for nothing.

And you still moved up. I got a race. He walked out a hero.

The public.

They saw a man who stood for something.

He's still the only name they trust.

I ain't your PR stunt.

PR stunt?

Who the hell are you now?

Huh?

Working security for some tech bro who thinks unions are terrorism?

You used to say SWAT meant something.

I'm asking you to prove it.

Rebuild it.

Hey.

What's up, fam?

First day of SWAT, y'all. I'm so excited.

Made it past election.

Academy, as you guys know, was a grind. But I'm here assigned to the newly

formed 44 Squad.

Can't wait.

Let's check the fit. I got a Combat Master, Custom Stipple, SRO Optics, Mag

Pouch. Modded it myself. And yes, I wore gloss to my e-belts.

Sue me.

Mystery team reveal begins now, starting with this guy.

I'm on live.

Do you want to say hi to my followers?

Why are you doing that?

Because people think that girls like me don't belong in rooms like this. I like

proving them wrong with views.

So what's your name?

Ethan Cole, tactical analysis and drone reconnaissance specialist.

Do you always talk to people without looking at them? We're just pretty girls

with ring lights.

Eye contact is neurologically inefficient during multitasking. Okay,

science.

What you working on?

Wind resistance modeling.

Turbulent flow.

You see, indoor air isn't as turbulent as the air outside. Boring. Moving on.

Dream team, baby. Okay, let's see who's ready to go tactical.

Okay.

We got bionic.

I mean, if I had that leg, I'd never wear pants again.

Are you filming this? Yeah.

This is just a vibe check. You look amazing.

Total inspo. Come on. Delete it.

No, no, no. It's about representation.

Visibility, uplifting.

My followers are super supportive, and I just, I want them to meet everyone.

It's their first date, you know?

This is a locker room, not your goddamn content farm. Dude, boundaries.

You already crossed them. There's no filming in here.

Ever. And if I see that thing go live again, it's going in the burn bin.

Okay?

Oh, no teen TikToks then.

Okay, Niko, you gotta breathe.

No, Niko. Niko!

Niko!

Sergeant Harrelson, hi.

Welcome. Clinton Myers. I'm your section commander.

Well, technically, I'm covering your team and the red team, because the gold

team is still grounded post-raid.

So, I'm a little stretched.

But I'm really grateful that you're here.

I appreciate the welcome, Commander.

New place has got Character yeah sometime after you left they

stuck us in an unused wing of the old admin building technically wasn't zoned

for people It's budget repurposing, please So we're the reform unit and this

is a rehab facility We have a work order and on that

Loose mechanicals here if you ever And up here's reception.

It's actually really nice in here.

This is where we hold all the press conferences.

So that's Deputy Chief Bowman Carrero.

Yeah, I know him a bit.

Straight shooter.

Well, he's the one backing the whole reform unit in this department.

Transparency matters.

Today we are proud to welcome back...

Daniel Harrelson to the LAPD.

Sergeant, please, a few words.

A heads up would have been nice.

Hello.

I appreciate the opportunity.

There's been a lot of noise around SWAT lately.

This new team is going to show you what quiet looks like.

We're going to do the job right, with purpose.

What do you think of your new team?

I haven't met them yet.

But they're all hand-picked, right? So I'm sure they're great.

I, uh... I trust the process.

Well said. We're so proud to have you back. Thank you. That's all. Thank you.

You got something to say?

Not yet.

A lot of bark from a guy too shy to give a name.

I don't need the backup.

Suit yourself.

Vibe's immaculate either way.

Statistically, cohesion will be lowest in the beginning.

Thanks, Captain Obvious.

That's why leadership selection is critical.

So then why bring a relic like Hondo back in? Hondo Harrelson is our new team

leader?

Yeah. Guy's a legend.

Didn't he get canned for leaking body cam footage?

Or took the fall. Either way, he's still a legend.

You been quiet?

You got an opinion?

I ain't coming for the politics or the perks.

I came here because of Hondo.

Everybody else turned their body cams off. He didn't. And he didn't bury it.

It was never proven that he leaked it. I believe he did.

Shows he's got integrity.

That's leadership.

Inspirational. I heard he broke a guy's shoulder while cuffed.

Dislocated it before he was cuffed.

I'll put it back after.

I'm Sergeant Daniel Harrelson.

Most folks call me Hondo.

Welcome to 44 Squad.

SWAT, that's who the cops call when they need help.

When the wheels fall off, we're the ones who go in, and we go in hard, we go in

fast, and we go in clean.

There's no margin for error, and there ain't no room for egos.

This patch right here, it ain't about swiping.

It's about showing up when it counts.

All right, that's enough with the icebreakers.

The best way to get to know y'all is to see you run.

I want everybody outside in five minutes. You're doing the PFQ.

What? The physical fitness qualifier takes, like, weeks to drain for.

Well, then consider this your final exam.

You show up late, you fail.

Oh, well, if you really can't gel, that's my own, that's really my team.

I'm talking my fam, doing my thing, living that dream.

Let's move, now we're trying to keep it cool. Quarterback, gonna get it on

three. Let's run, let's run.

Let's do that too.

It's fun, it's fun.

Now we can't lose.

Let's go.

First Malik right Anderson, sir You serve echo company to five

Semper Fi Cassidy Reid, that's two

Samantha Bishop three

Good job, would be nice.

Jude Callen.

And that's four.

Is that it?

No, we're still waiting on one more. Where is he?

Do you mean me, sir?

How long you been standing there?

Three minutes, 12 seconds.

What'd you do, skip the wall?

High injury potential, not worth the risk. Okay, less talking.

More running.

We're not done yet.

Now comes your real test.

Move in.

You got three checkpoints. One flashlight, one map.

Finish as a unit or not at all.

Block's already started. Let's go.

Let's go.

That wasn't training.

That was an exorcism with burpees.

The elevation gain was 3,900 feet.

He breaks us on the field, breaks us on the mountain.

Tomorrow he's gonna make us fight a bear.

I can take hard.

I just want a reason. Reason was supposed to be simple.

Train the team.

I felt like it was about him.

I mean, we already made the squad.

What's the point of this boot camp bullshit anyways?

Get out

of the car!

Now! Walk or die!

Get out of the car! Get out of the car!

Vamos!

Yesterday, traffic cams at the border and witness video confirmed four Los

Emperados assassins entered L.A. They killed a civilian and tried to kidnap

another off the street. If this goes live, our training becomes a reality.

We need to be ready for that call.

Today we hit a hostage center.

Finally. Multiple armed suspects.

Your breach point is the front door.

Entry team stacks and clears.

Inner perimeter wraps and secures the hallway and covers our six.

Why not hit the rear?

The front's a funnel.

You're asking for crossfire. Because the back is fenced. No clean sight lines.

You'll waste time clearing corners that don't matter. Sounds like a page out of

a playbook from 15 years ago.

It is the fastest, most controlled option with the team I got.

A clean entry is everything.

You get it right, the rest flows.

Even if it's hard.

Fuck. It's a dead end.

Shots fired. Secondary priest point.

Why don't we know how many suspects are inside?

Incomplete intel.

Thermal imaging was inconclusive.

Secondary drone should have been deployed.

That's protocol.

There was no time.

And no backup.

So you adapt.

Hold up. Thermal's not syncing. Just watch the damn corner.

I had it. I was calibrating. Is that me on me?

Negative. I got this. What happens in here shows your readiness for what's out

there, where there's nothing but live rounds.

Ain't no second chances.

You dial that in, or you get yourself killed.

God damn it, Ethan!

That was a hostage, Cassidy.

I've seen better organized train wrecks. I ain't never seen nothing like that. I

don't even know where to start.

Your entry, trash.

You left him hanging. And you watched the whole thing happen and said nothing.

Malik's the only one who held the line.

Y'all call yourself operators, you better act like it. Because this right

here gets people killed.

Entry coordination fell apart because Ethan left me hanging. Who saw it's

Ethan's fault now? You moved without communicating.

All right, that's enough.

It doesn't matter who screwed what. Fault doesn't save lives.

Discipline does.

Trust does.

And from where I'm standing, I ain't seeing none of that.

You want to talk trust?

Why'd you lie?

Lie? That scenario is rigged. Door we couldn't breach, hostage we couldn't

save. It was a controlled op. I needed to see how you handled chaos. Chaos is

fine.

Sabotage isn't. You broke trust before it was earned. I don't owe you trust. I

owe you readiness.

You got a problem with that? I might.

Because this was supposed to be different.

You were supposed to be different.

Or maybe you're just soft.

If a little withheld intel's got you crying about what's going to happen to

you when it's real. Oh, you want real?

Lead like it.

Because it feels like you're just swinging a ghost.

I ain't coming to survive your past, man.

I came to serve.

If that makes me the problem, I'm good with it.

Did he just quit?

Yo, Hondo, right?

I'm Jesse's cousin, Nico.

Yeah, that's right.

I'm glad to see you made it through selection.

And I'm glad to see you rolling with us today. You're a legend.

Last minute swap.

Hey, so, I'm on the entry team today, and it's my first time running point and

up.

To be honest, I've been kind of breaking lately, so I got any tips?

And they got you running scalp, leading the stack.

Yeah, I said I was up.

Rotation.

First thing is you need to tighten your lid.

You lose that, it's game over.

Second, clean entry.

Clean entry? It's everything, kid. You hit that door clean, and everything

locks in after that. In an entry, career, and in life.

Got it.

Hey, Nico.

You dropped something.

What's this about?

Me and my cousin used to bet with it. It's a stupid tradition.

How about this?

I bet between us, you make the cleanest entry.

For real?

You win, chip's yours.

You lose, I hold on to it.

Until you buy me a beer.

Deal.

What's up, Hondo?

You got a sec?

So, I know today was rough for everyone, but I was thinking I could give you

some, like, tips on your leadership style.

You probably haven't worked with anyone my age, and that's okay.

Not saying you're old, just seasoned, you know?

But I found this, and it's really good. It's not preaching or anything. It's

just strategies on... How we respond better to empathetic leadership and

shared decision making.

And you don't even have to read it. There's a TikTok summary I can send you

and an audiobook with sound effects.

It's Sammy, right?

Yeah.

Get out.

Okay.

You still hate the Valley, don't you? With a passion.

I don't know how you do it. Oh, come on.

It's not that bad.

Well, I know you didn't come here to insult my zip code.

No. Then why'd she call?

What's up? This team they stuck me with, they don't listen, they don't trust each

other. One kid quit today like it was a damn summer job.

You remember when we first met?

Shit. Yeah.

I remember you yelling a whole hell of a lot. I was a kid, all heat, no aim.

You were the kid that didn't back down from anything.

I had to change how I carried myself.

I realized that if you and I were going to exist as teammates, I needed to meet

you halfway.

These kids wouldn't recognize halfway if it bit them in the ass. Well, then maybe

that's the job now, showing them how to do it.

you ever get the feeling that the whole thing's wired to blow you think

someone's trying to break you it just feels like someone's idea of a real bad

joke but i don't know maybe i am just seeing ghosts

what'd you end

up doing with your mom's place i sold it i couldn't drive by that

place without hearing her voice

Still catch myself reaching for the phone sometimes.

Why are you asking me that?

Because you have been through hell, brother.

Your mom.

That raid.

Your divorce from Nichelle.

And yet, here you are.

Still standing.

Which tells me only one thing.

You're not done yet.

Doesn't always feel that way.

Duty calls go go I did it go Deacon

Thanks, you got

Yeah,

what's up Ethan yeah, so

one of those Los Emperados shooters that showed up? I think I know why they're

here.

I'm on my way.

The shooters were after him. His name is Carlos Faminez.

Who is he?

Ex-Los Emperados Sicario.

Disappeared back in 2016.

There's got to be some kind of payback. You sure it's him?

Matches, walk, body type.

Posture, even the way he turns his head when he checks his blind spot.

Same guy from 2016.

No doubt.

How'd you even put this together?

I don't know. Something felt off.

I wanted to know why.

If you look close enough, you can usually see a pattern, and patterns make

sense.

People, not as much.

Do we know where this Carlos guy is now? No, but I know where he'll be.

Same job site in Southgate. Three weeks in a row. Always shows up at payroll.

Tomorrow is week four.

So he's going to get his money and disappear.

All right, let's go pick him up, you and me.

To intercept, you'll need three-point containment. Otherwise, escape odds

spike above 50%. Who's top marks on the range?

Sammy.

Who's second best?

Cassidy.

Call her in.

Find him, we find the Sicarios.

Drones up.

Trailer's east end.

30 meters from breach.

Carlos is here to get one last check and then he's gonna vanish. If he heads for

the subway west stairwell, I'll intercept.

Cassidy, cover his back. No heroics, just contained. Do you understand?

I got this.

Movement.

Carlos inbound.

Check.

Cassidy, he's coming your way.

Damn it.

Shit, I got him.

Get done!

I'm sorry, back there. I got caught on the... Save it.

You've got to be kidding me. Ethan and Cassidy went on the op.

So, this is the dream team?

We all got picked for this squad.

No fast tracks.

No favorites.

I mean, look around.

This crew, not exactly the all-stars.

This isn't a rocket ship.

It's a lifeboat. We're gonna have to row for ourselves.

We gotta stand out.

Be useful.

Loudly.

Are you thinking what I'm thinking?

No.

But I'm in.

Hondo.

Let us take a run at Berminez.

Absolutely not.

Come on, man. Why not? He's just sitting in a box.

Let us rattle the cage.

He's a cartel enforcer. He's been stacking bodies since he was 15. He will

stonewall you.

His lawyer's gonna get him out on bail, and once he's released, we'll tail him,

let the cartel show itself.

Or he cracks, and we stay ahead of it.

Listen, I've got certs in crisis negotiation, even a course at Quantico,

and I had a viral polygraph show.

Ten million views.

And I know guys like him. There is a language to men like that.

Now trust me when I say, I speak it.

We're already behind.

This is a chance to get ahead.

One shot.

What do you got to lose?

You get one.

I already told you, I ain't helping you.

It's okay.

We're not here for help.

We're here to settle a bet.

You see, I say it's personal.

You crossed the wrong line with the wrong woman.

Insulted someone's ego.

Now they want to send a message.

My partner thinks it's money, but he's not really saying much.

Seriously, you got anything to add here?

There was this guy in Chihuahua.

He thought he was slick.

He had some product on the side.

Now, Lazario's crew, they found out, of course.

But they didn't say anything.

They just waited for his daughter's first birthday party.

They pulled him out in front of the bouncy house.

They cut his tongue out so he couldn't beg.

You could have disappeared.

But you didn't.

What's her name?

Your daughter.

She did that, right?

Purple.

Sparkles. My guess is six.

Maybe seven.

Six.

Her name is Celine.

I left that life after Juarez.

They told me to kill a woman holding a baby.

And I couldn't.

So I walked.

Changed my name.

Found peace.

Life.

My daughter.

Real life.

Then came the message.

They never really let you go.

They're making an example out of you. I don't care what they do to me.

You have to let me go.

If I don't show, My wife runs.

She won't get far with our little girl.

We can protect you. No one can.

Not from them.

Please.

You must let me go.

They'll kill her. I'm begging you.

Nice work in there.

You got him talking.

He's free to go?

I asked the DA not to press charges.

Black and whites are en route to try to find his wife and daughter. Let's hope

they get there first. And if they don't?

Then he's not the only one with something to lose.

Almost there, baby.

Just a little longer and we're with Papa.

We got anything on the girl?

Maybe. So they got something, but it's all circumstantial. They need more intel

for a warrant.

That's from a witness.

Intersection near Vernon.

Traffic cams missed the van, but a weather cam two miles down picked up

this.

Wasn't there earlier. Showed up outside an abandoned theater a few minutes after

the grab.

Areas got upgraded. Lamp posts, motion sensors, gunshot mics.

One of them picked up a scream.

88% voice ID match.

Command says unless there's hard proof, SWAT should not be called in.

Hey, tell them she is in there and she is bait.

They want Carlos to come alone so they can burn the past down right in front of

him. Tell them.

Uh, yeah, you can tell them. They're listening in.

What's the evidence?

No visual yet, but we got location data, a scream, and the timeline fits.

This ain't a guess. This is how they move. This is how they lure and trap.

Shaky intel is what lit the last fire and...

They're not eager to repeat that.

This is not shaky intel. It's experience.

20 years of chasing crews like this. This is how they move.

This is how they trap.

I know what I'm talking about. Okay, wait.

Just... Yeah, okay.

Okay, so due to exigent circumstances, command has pushed the button on this.

SWAT is now a go.

They said it's your up now.

Gather the team.

I know what you all signed up for.

You saw the gear.

You read the mission briefing. You said, hell yeah, this is SWAT, right?

It ain't.

I read your personnel files, all of them.

And I saw what they saw.

Flaws.

Rejections.

And reasons to pass you over.

And then they paired you with me.

A disgrace has been clinging to his badge. That is what they say about me

behind my back.

And just now, command greenlit an op.

No confirmation, no backup. Almost like they want us to fail, and that's when it

hit me.

They didn't pick us to succeed or reform anything.

They picked us all to burn together.

And I haven't helped you all either.

I came in barking orders, trying my hardest to keep my distance from you.

One of you tried to tell me, but I wasn't trying to hear it.

Look, the truth is what we are about to walk into is so real.

There is a little girl out there with her life on the line.

So I'm asking, if you roll with me, don't do it for the badge and don't you

do it for me.

You do it because SWAT is supposed to mean showing up when no one else will.

Do it because you believe we are more than what they think we are.

You in?

4-4.

The 4-4.

The 4-4, baby.

Let's do this.

Roll swap.

Thought you bailed. Ethan told me about your speech.

Figured I was being stubborn.

And if it's cool, maybe I can help out.

You're up.

Ethan, you're up.

Confirmation, hostage is downstairs.

Two bogeys guarding, another one is back behind the stage.

Two more on the upper levels.

Another heat signature just entered the chat. All right, we need to move now.

Carlos is here.

It's go time. Cassidy, you're up.

LAPD!

No!

No, Daddy!

Sandra, Jude, help Carlos. I'll cover you.

Cassidy, go upstairs, go!

Shoot a pin! Come on, get him out of there!

Ethan, with me!

Move, move!

Moving.

Third floor.

Yeah.

Let the girl go you don't want to do this You

don't

walk out if she doesn't

First stops never clean.

If it is, somebody's lying.

This generation wears things out loud.

Pain, fear, confidence.

Sometimes I don't get it.

But maybe that's the point.

I came up believing strength meant control.

Hold the line. Don't let anyone see the cracks.

Turns out that's not strength.

That's just pressure.

Waiting to fail.

This job doesn't deal in clean lines.

Right?

Wrong.

Just people doing the best they can with what they're carrying.

Everyone's got weight.

You can only shoulder it alone for so long.

Sooner or later, it'll put you on the floor.

They're not a team yet.

Not the way I understand it.

But when it counts, they step into the fire.

And that's a start.

Yes, I lost the bet.

I stumbled on the entry, kid.

But I'm working on it.

You saved the girl.

You did good.

Thanks for coming.

Yeah.

As soon as they gave me that team, you vanished.

They made sure I did.

They shoved me out the second you stepped in, the same way they burned you

last time.

Those bastards do what they do.

Your name was on every personnel file, that's how I knew.

You'd never give me that team, not like that.

Files must have been, Doctor.

You still got contacts downtown?

Yeah.

Why? Because this whole thing, the team, me, it was a setup. Someone powerful's

making moves, playing chess, and I'm done being a pawn. I want names.

What are you gonna do with them?

You're late.

You were supposed to check in with me after the op. Show me.

Hondo doesn't deserve the badge or the command.

I'm gonna make sure the whole world knows it.

down down