Spoilers ahead for Episode 16 of FBI Season 7, called "Covered" and available streaming next day with a Paramount+ subscription.
CBS has a good thing going on Tuesday nights with FBI as a mostly procedural crime drama, but an ongoing storyline that started way back in the Season 7 premiere involves the team moving on without Tiff. That's been harder on Scola than anybody else, with John Boyd sharing what his character needed in a new partner. Now, the 2025 TV schedule finally introduced S.W.A.T. alum Emily Alabi as a potential long-term member of the team, and I was surprised by what it took for Agent Dani Rhodes to win me over.
Dani didn't get the smoothest start with the team, as she was irate with Jubal that she'd been pulled out of her undercover op for no good reason... as far as she knew, anyway. Once Isobel explained that hers was one of several FBI files that had been leaked, she was ready to pitch in with Scola and the rest of the team even though she was used to working solo.
She didn't immediately fit in for the team to run as cleanly as it did before Katherine Renee Kane's exit as Tiff Wallace, and she made some moves that were a little too bold for Scola's taste. Still, the stakes were sky-high as soon as they all learned that Maggie's file had been leaked as well while she was undercover with an eco-terrorist group, so the extra help was welcomed.
Emily Alabi's character turned out to be a pretty good fit, and there's no sign that she'll be leaving almost as soon as she arrived. Lisette Olivera's exit being announced before her debut meant that I never really got attached to her as Agent Syd Ortiz, but there's no reason to feel the same about Alabi.
While I liked her well enough in the first 55 or so minutes of the episode, her final exchange with Isobel is what officially has me on board for Dani Rhodes to stick around. After Isobel commented that most agents would want quieter work after being shot three times and closing 21 cases in two years, Dani responded:
When I'm undercover, it's only myself I need to rely on. But when I'm out in the field, I learn the hard way. You're only as strong as the weakest link on your team. But you know, today was different. I kept looking, but you guys don't have a weak link.
Isobel seemed pleased with the sentiment, and invited her to stick around because they "could always be stronger." Dani would still need to go undercover "as needed," but she could "have a home" with them if she wanted, and Dani responded that she'd take a chance on them if they'd take a chance on her. So, welcome to the team, Agent Dani Rhodes!
All in all, I was won over by FBI not presenting the new character as the fix for a problem. Instead, she was introduced as somebody who could make the team even more solid, so there were positive vibes rather than any kind of cloud of negativity. She didn't see a weak link that she wanted to replace; she just wants to help make it stronger. Season 7 also isn't wasting any time in incorporating her, as she appears in the promo for the next new episode:
The next new episode of FBI airs on Tuesday, April 8 at 8 p.m. ET on CBS, and fans can watch without the fear that the end is nigh like it is for the cancelled FBI: International and FBI: Most Wanted. The original series was renewed for three more seasons last year, guaranteeing that the hit drama will return through Season 9.
