7 Biggest Unanswered Questions & Mysteries After The S.W.A.T. Season 8 Finale

The S.W.A.T. series finale wrapped up a lot of storylines, but left others slightly open for a potential future. Knowing how decisions had been made in the past, crafting a S.W.A.T. season 8 finale that could work as a series finale was the right thing to do, but it was clear everyone wanted to do more. This has meant a few questions and mysteries left unanswered, as there wasn’t time to flesh everything out.

In some good news, there is a chance of a S.W.A.T. spinoff starring Shemar Moore. The finale didn’t set things up for this finale, so some of the mysteries certainly revolve around that. At the same time, if CBS wanted to build the franchise, there are plenty of characters to follow, and there are many questions to answer if another U-turn is eventually made.

7How Are Annie And The Children After Heather’s Arrest?

Annie Wasn’t Mentioned In The S.W.A.T. Series Finale

In the first hour of the two-part S.W.A.T. season 8 finale, Deacon (Jay Harrington) finally had to deal with his stalker situation. Heather (Yael Grobglas) made it clear she wouldn’t take no for an answer, and she infiltrated his day with his children at the park. That meant Deacon had to tell his wife, Annie (Bre Blair), everything, and naturally, she was concerned about what this meant for her and the children.

Fortunately, Annie had already booked a trip away, so she and the children weren’t in the house when Heather broke in. Deacon and Hondo (Moore) were able to arrest her, but she wasn’t mentioned again. While Annie has moved on from dangerous situations in the past, it’s odd that she wasn’t even mentioned in the finale to say how she was doing. All the focus was on the money Deacon came into due to his work, almost like everyone had forgotten about Heather.

6Do Powell And Jace Make Their Relationship Work?

Powell Mentioned Jace And Thomas In The S.W.A.T. Series Finale

While Annie wasn’t mentioned, Powell (Anna Enger Ritch) did at least mention her ex and son, Jace (Jake Allyn) and Thomas (Matt Anspach). The last time we saw, Powell and her ex had decided to give things another chance. They had come to know each other more as they got to know their son, who Powell had given up for adoption years earlier, and they realized that maybe, as adults, they could be more mature about disagreements.

ScreenRant interviews Annie Ilonzeh about what happened to Leon in S.W.A.T. season 8 episode 22 and her hopes for season 9 despite the cancellation.

However, when Powell mentioned the two of them, it was to say they had their own families. She wasn’t the emergency contact for either, which makes it clear that the relationship with Jace isn’t that serious. It was still early days at the time of the S.W.A.T. season 8 finale, so there would have been plenty of time had season 9 happened.

5What Happened To Miko’s Mom’s Ex After His Arrest?

Miko And His Mom Seemed To Be Business As Usual

Another character also mentioned in the series finale was Miko’s (Niko Pepaj) mom (Nikiva Dionne), as he was immediately on the phone to her and his girlfriend Nicole (Tory Trowbridge) when he heard about the bomb situation in Los Angeles. His main focus was keeping his mom in the house, who wanted to go out to search for her missing dog. While it was great to see Miko so concerned, it’s surprising another conversation didn’t come up.

In S.W.A.T. season 8, episode 20, Miko came face to face with his mom’s ex, after learning that he had been back and beaten his mom again. Tan (David Lim) had to step in to prevent Miko from doing something he would regret, and it eventually led to Miko finding a reason to arrest his mom’s ex. Nothing was mentioned after that, almost like Miko made the decision not to mention the situation to his mom.

4How Long Does It Take For Gamble’s Family To Forgive Her?

Gamble Struggles Balancing Her Two Families

At the end of the penultimate episode, Gamble (Annie Ilonzeh) was supposed to arrest her brother, but she let him go. When she tells Hondo this, she also shares that she had put in for a transfer. While Hondo initially accepted that, he realized that he was wrong not to give Gamble the benefit of the doubt, and by the end of the series finale, he welcomed her back to the team. That was when Gamble shared that her other brother wasn’t talking to her, and her mom blamed her for everything that had happened.

Powell said Gamble’s family would come around, but it’s hard to tell if that will happen. This seems to be a family that holds a grudge, but one by one, they may realize that Leon (Nick Creegan) was the one in the wrong and put Gamble in an awkward position. For the time being, she has her family with S.W.A.T., so she at least has people to turn to for support.

3What Could Have Happened Had S.W.A.T. Season 9 Happened?

The S.W.A.T. Writers Were Not Finished With The Story

It was clear that while the episode had been written to work as a series finale, there was always the intention of doing S.W.A.T. season 9. The finale left open-ended, with 20-Squad heading back out on another call. With this happening, there wasn’t a chance to bring back former characters or the big wedding that we’ve waited eight seasons for.

CBS may have canceled S.W.A.T., but there are ways to keep the franchise going. Victor Tan is the best character to lead a spinoff series.

If S.W.A.T. season 9 had happened, it would have been nice to finally see the Stris’ wedding. Next season would also need to show us some of Tan’s new job as the Mayoral Liaison, while also giving us a look at Deacon continuing to balance his time with 20-Squad and his successful security firm. This would also have opened the space to show us more of Powell’s life with Jace and Thomas in it, while also focusing more on Gamble dealing with a family that hates her job.

2Where Could Hondo’s Story Go In The S.W.A.T. Spinoff?

Hondo Is Set To Lead A New Generation In S.W.A.T. Exiles

The new spinoff is titled S.W.A.T. Exiles, and the synopsis tells us Hondo is called in from forced retirement to train a new group of recruits. They are all young and untested, and this is described as a last attempt at a unit, with Hondo having to find a way to bridge the gap between his way and the new way of doing things.

This would open the door for Hondo to learn a few new things about what technology can do and how it can be used. We could also see him with a chip on his shoulder after being forced out and then asked back. After all, he’s going to want a few people higher up to eat some words. One of the fun elements of the story is seeing him bring a group of outsiders together, which he’s done with individuals now and then, such as Street and Miko, but not with an entire group of people.

1How The S.W.A.T. Season 8 Finale Set Up Hondo’s Spinoff

Hondo Is Still With The 20-Squad In The Finale

When a spinoff is planned, there are usually hints in the series finale. That didn’t happen with this series finale, as CBS canceled S.W.A.T. too late to make changes to the ending arc. However, with the way the episode was written as an ending, I can’t see any changes being made even if there was time.

In the new spinoff, Hondo is coming out of retirement, but in the S.W.A.T. season 8 finale, he is still the leader of 20-Squad. He hadn’t talked about retirement, and nobody was pushing him out, and yet, that has happened at the start of the spinoff. One thing the finale did do was see him change his mind about how he needed to help members of his team by giving Gamble a second chance, and this could set up his way of thinking with the new recruits in the S.W.A.T. spinoff.