theoaktree | Challenge 9: Have You Met...Flashpoint?

Flashpoint (2008-2012) is a Canadian cop show for people who like their good guys, well, good.

The show tells the story of the Police Strategic Response Unit (SRU), a police unit modeled on the Toronto Police Service Emergency Task Force. The fictional SRU is responsible for all of the things a regular SWAT team does, plus a little more. They’re the ones you call to rescue the hostages or take down the gunman, but they’re also the ones who try to negotiate for the release of the hostages or talk down the gunman. In other words, talk first, shoot only if necessary.

There’s no room for thoughtless violence or rule bending here, and the show sometimes does a nice job of upending some of the typical police show stereotypes. Shooting people brings real consequences, PTSD is a problem, and team members are encouraged to talk about their feelings while simultaneously being discouraged from using alcohol as a way to deal with their jobs.

The Characters

The focus of the show is on the six or seven (depending on the season) members of Team One. Five of the members are around from beginning to end, while a few others cycle in and out for various reasons.

Sergeant Greg Parker (Enrico Colantoni)
Sergeant Parker is hugged by a women he just helped save

Sergeant Parker is hugged by a women he just helped save

Greg Parker is the team’s chief strategist and lead negotiator. The most senior member of the team, Parker is the the one responsible for making the final call on when negotiating has failed and it’s time to switch to force. A recovering alcoholic with an ex-wife and a son he hasn’t seen in years, Parker relies on his team as a surrogate family.

Constable Ed Lane (Hugh Dillon)
Ed takes up a sniper position on the roof of a high rise building

Ed takes up a sniper position on the roof of a high rise building

Ed Lane is the leader of Team One, tactician to Parker’s strategist. He’s also Parker’s closest friend on the team, and the only one on the team who remembers Parker’s wife and son. Like all members of the SRU, Ed lane is a trained negotiator, but most of the time, he’s the guy on the roof ready to shoot if negotiations fail.

Constable Julianna "Jules" Callaghan (Amy Jo Johnson)
Jules walks down a hallway carrying a sniper rifle

Jules walks down a hallway carrying a sniper rifle

A former Mountie with an ex-cop father and four brothers, Jules starts the show as a sniper, and gradually transitions into Parker’s second, specializing in negotiations, intelligence gathering, and general strategy. She has an on-again, off-again relationship with Sam Braddock.

Constable Sam Braddock (David Paetkau)
Sam searches a car for information

Sam’s the team rookie at the start of season one. The son of a general and a former special forces (Joint Task Force 2) master corporal, Sam gradually takes on the role of Ed’s second, handling tactics, close entry, and sniper duties. He also has an on-again, off-again romantic relationship with Jules Callaghan.

Constable Michelangelo "Spike" Scarlatti (Sergio Di Zio)
Spike cuts a wire to disarm a bomb

Spike is the team demolitions and tactical tech expert, equally comfortable with a gun or keyboard. He spends a lot of time in the command truck, cracking encryption, controlling traffic lights, and tracking down background information on the people they’re dealing with, but he’s never as excited as when he has a bomb to disarm.

Former/Sometimes Members

Constable Kevin "Wordy" Wordsworth (Michael Cram) - Wordy is close entry specialist and a member of Team One for most of the first four seasons. Wordy is a family guy, devoted to his wife and young daughters. He’s also best friends with Ed Lane.

Constable Lewis Young (Mark Taylor) - Like Spike, Lew tends to get assigned to handling "less lethal" approaches when the team turns to force. Lew is one of the younger members of the team, unmarried and with no children. He and Spike are best friends.

Constable Donna Sabine (Jessica Steen) - Donna Sabine is an experienced officer with extensive undercover experience who transfers to the SRU because she’s tired of the ambiguity of undercover work. She mostly works on the tactical side, and she and Ed are especially close.

Constable Leah Kerns (Oluniké Adeliyi) - Leah is a former firefighter turned cop turned SRU member. She takes a leave of absence from the SRU after the earthquake in Haiti in order to check on her parents and help rebuild.

Constable Rafik "Raf" Rousseau (Clé Bennett) - Raf joins Team One in season four. He’s headstrong and occasionally reckless, but eager to learn, and shows a talent for negotiating.

Recs

Vids!
Okay, yes, it's possible I have one particular favourite ensemble vid maker.

All Fall Down by climbinfreak1
Running Up That Hill by csimaja and climbingfreak1
Echo by climbingfreak1
Calls Me Home by climbingfreak1 (contains spoilers for season four)

Fic!
Flashpoint fic mostly lives on FFN, but as all of my favourite stories there are WIPs, I'm going to give you a rec from AO3 instead:

Special Teams (2872 words) by Aderam
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Flashpoint
Rating: General Audiences
Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply
Characters: Julianna "Jules" Callaghan, Mike "Spike" Scarlatti, Ed Lane, Greg Parker, Kevin "Wordy" Wordsworth, Sam Braddock
Summary: In Hockey the Special Teams are a subset of the Roster which are trained to deal with specific types of game play. In particular power plays and penalty kills when teams are not playing at even strength.
OR
“Greg informs me that we’re a family,” Ed bellowed in the men’s locker room as they were packing up their things. Jules could hear him clearly from the hallway. “So we need to spend some quality time together. And we’ve been spending far too much of that time sober, my friends.”