History Series / SWAT2017

** Their superior Captain Jessica Cortez is a Latina woman, who is also a naturalized American. This all conspires to make her career more difficult. When Commander Hick's discovers she's in a relationship with Hondo, he outright spells out to him how as a woman this will destroy her career if it comes out and Hondo falling on his sword for her won't make a bit of difference.

** Chris Alonso is the only female member of the team, as well as being a bisexual Latina. When her team members are angered at her being held to a different standard in a physical evaluation, Chris is so used to it that she just outright expected the examiner to be prejudiced. She tries to use her position to open doors for other women in the police force but admits to worrying that the higher-ups see her as their necessary good deed and won't carry on the progress.

** The main protagonist Sergeant "Hondo" Harrelson is a Black cop, who gets promoted in charge of his own S.W.A.T. team at the start of the series effectively as a PR stunt (his predecessor and friend accidentally shot a Black teenager). Whilst often struggling with balancing his loyalty to both the uniform and his background, Hondo strives to make the best of his position, trying to build trust and improve minority relationships with the police force, believing it's the only way to tackle the underlying issues that ruin so many lives. Hondo likewise admits that he feels the need to always excel so that he wouldn't get passed over because of his race.

* RevengePornBlackmail: Revealed to be the MO of a gang of home invasion robbers the team investigates in [[Recap/SWATS01E05Imposters Imposters]]. Targeting wealthy families and gaining access by [[ImpersonatingAnOfficer impersonating SWAT officers]], the robbers MO is to forcibly drag the families teenager daughters away, strip them naked and then force them to do increasingly sexual activities on camera, with them threatening to publish the footage on the internet if the families cooperate with the police. To make matters worse it turns out this aspect of the plan was cooked up by a [[SpoiledBrat spoiled classmate]] of the girls, who had the extra intention of holding the videos over their heads as revenge for a [[EvilIsPetty perceived minor slight]]. Everyone involved is beyond disgusted that a [[TeensAreMonsters 16-year-old]] could do something so horrific.

* SpecialEffectsFailure
** The series heavily relies on CGI fire instead of actual pyro-effects, and quite often it is painfully obvious that a flame or explosion isn't really there. Especially frustrating if behind the scenes footage shows a real explosion/fire which was painted over.
** Season 5 Episode 9 has a bad guy relieved of his hand gun in hand-to-hand combat. The stuntman nudges the actor's arm and the pistol is sent flying in a straight line through a window several feet away with a trajectory and velocity making the serious scene a big laugh. Even if the actor had thrown the gun it won't have moved the way it did.

** Even before the suspension, Hicks benched Victor from field duty for a month, even though it left the team a bit short-handed. No matter how capable an officer Tam is or how he's needed, there was no way Hicks could ignore a cop caught in this mess.

* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: In "Gut Punch", Victor's suspended from the LAPD after news got around that he was involved in a [[BarBrawl brawl in a bar]] while drunk. Even though it's his first time, the department has him suspended for a couple of weeks without pay to send a message that officers who start things and violate the law will not be tolerated (the guys he beat up didn't press charges). His teammates and immediate superiors are all surprised he got this.

* BitPartBadguys: Many of the episodes begin with a BatmanColdOpen where the team deals with a threat that usually have nothing to do with the episodes' ''actual'' VillainOfTheWeek.

* BitPartBadguys: Many of the episodes open with a BatmanColdOpen where the team deals with a threat that usually have nothing to do with the episodes' ''actual'' VillainOfTheWeek.

** [=S3E1=] "Fire in the Sky" has the team about to arrest a guy robbing celebrity mansions and collects semi-automatics. The raid ends because of a [[AttackDrone done strike at the beach]] by true VillainOfTheWeek.

** [=S5E20=] "Quandary" has an AxCrazy [[SamusIsAGirl female]] [[TeensAreMonsters delinquent]] shooting with an assault rifle from the real VillainOfTheWeek's house.

* PrivateProfitPrison: The team was called in to deal with a riot in a privately operated state prison. They soon discovered that the corporation has been CuttingCorners left and right. The prison is overcrowded and its infrastructure unmaintained. The prisoners are made to work in sweat shops. To make the situation worse, experienced guards have been replaced with cheaper new employees who have barely any training. Even the model prisoners are ready to rebel and the prison's vicious gangs are using the riot as a distraction for their own schemes.
* PublicityStuntRelationship: In "The Tiffany Experience", the titular [[BadInfluencer Tiffany]] is officially happily dating a fellow online celebrity Tristan who makes elaborate prank stunts. However, as Jessica Cortez discovers whilst guarding her from a [[StalkerWithACrush crazed stalker]], the two aren't actually together and are simply "cross-pollinating" each other's feeds, further empathising how shallow and fake Tiffany's supposedly caring brand really is. It ends up going horribly wrong as said crazed stalker ends up seeing Tristan as an obstacle to him being with Tiffany and murders him, ignoring his pleas that they're not really dating as further a sign of him not being worthy of her.

** [=S3E10=] "Monster" opens with a man holding a Somali warlord hostage.
** [=S3E13=] "Ekitai Rashku" has the team (sans Luca) arresting a fugitive at an Japanese massage parlor.

** [=S5E16=] "The Fugitive" has a duo of robbers who stole barrels of nitroglycerin. One of them tries to jump off a bridge but is captured by Hondo.

* BitPartBadguys: Many of the episodes open with a BatmanColdOpen where the team deals with a threat that has nothing to do with the episodes' ''actual'' VillainOfTheWeek.
** [=S1E9=] "Blindspots" has a misogynistic office employee holding his co-workers hostage due to getting passed up for promotion yet again by a woman.

** [=S3E6=] "Ekitai Rashku" has the team (sans Luca) arresting a fugitive at a kinky massage parlor with karoke.

** [=S4E6=] "Hopeless Sinners" has a former forklift operator of a tire center who shot and killed his boss ([[AccidentalMurder albeit accidentally]]) for firing him due to old age.

** [=S5E20=] "Quandary" has a AxCrazy female [[TeensAreMonsters delinquent]] shooting with an assault rifle from the real {{VillainOfTheWeek}}'s house.

** In [=S1E3=] "Pamilya" Luca is kicked out by his girlfriend and says "... tell me whose car to throw my stuff in," indicating he does't have his own vehicle. In [=S2E10=] "1,000 Joules" Luca talks about driving his vehicle on an empty freeway because people are gone for the Christmas holidays. This implies he's done it more than once. A truck, presumably owned by Luca, is seen in [=S2E23=] "Kangaroo."
** In season one, the team is shown hanging out together at an abandoned mall hitting golf balls, and at a bar where they appear to be semi-regulars. These team hang-outs are only shown once, and are then never mentioned again.

** In season 3 "Monster" Aden Syed, a former Somali warlord famed for his brutality escapes to LA and has a wife and child. His wife described him as being a "kind man" and a "good father". [[spoiler: Subverted, when he chooses to let them die rather than read the confession the hostage-takers have given him.]]
** "Memento Mori" has an arms dealer willing to give up the buyer who purchased an assault rifle with a M203 attached since his daughter and her kids were going to a memorial concert the buyer was going to target.

* BitPartBadguys: Some of the episodes open with a BatmanColdOpen where the team deals with a threat that has nothing to do with the episodes' ''actual'' VillainOfTheWeek.
** "Blindspots" has with a misogynistic office employee holding his co-workers hostage due to getting passed up for promotion yet again by a woman.
** It is mentioned that in "Invisible" that the team (sans Deacon) had thwarted a hostage crisis at a massage parlor.
** "Encore" has an abusive ex-husband confronting his ex-wife on the whereabouts of his children.
** "Ekitai Rashku" has the team (sans Luca) arresting a fugitive at a kinky massage parlor.
** "Hopeless Sinners" has a former forklift operator of a tire center who shot and killed his boss ([[AccidentalMurder albeit accidentally]]) for firing him due to old age.

** 5x11 "Old School Cool": Wil Wheaton plays a tech assistant to help hunt for a hacker.

** In S1:E3 "Pamilya" Luca is kicked out by his girlfriend and says "... tell me whose car to throw my stuff in," indicating he does't have his own vehicle. In S2:E10 "1,000 Joules" Luca talks about driving his vehicle on an empty freeway because people are gone for the Christmas holidays. This implies he's done it more than once. A truck, presumably owned by Luca, is seen in S2:E23 "Kangaroo."

** In season 3 "Monster" Aden Syed, a former Somali warlord famed for his brutality escapes to LA and has a wife and child. His wife described him as being a kind man and a good father. [[spoiler: Subverted, when he chooses to let them die rather than read the confession the hostage-takers have given him.]]

** Used In 3x18, with the team finding a woman brutally murdered in her own kitchen trying to protect her infant daughter, who has a gunshot wound to the face herself. All the viewer sees is a pool of blood, with the horror of the scene being conveyed on the faces of the team.
** 5x16 "The Fugitive": A faked video shows Hondo shooting two police officers, but the video remains focused on "Hondo" as he shoots the two officers. [[spoiler:This is, however, a plot point in the episode.]]

** In the Emancipators' final episode, S2 ep23 "Kangaroo," the bad guys outsource the killing and don't live broadcast the second of three deaths. This is very unusual and is their undoing as the good guys rescue the victim and it is not discovered by the bad guys.
** In S3 ep 12 "Bad Cop," Street quits SWAT after being AWOL for a few days as he tries to help his foster brother get out from under his drug dealer boss. This runs contrary to all of his CharacterDevelopment from the prior season as he looks to be making the same mistakes that cost him his spot on the team in the first season - with TheReveal at the end of the episode that he’s undercover with Hondo & Hicks’ knowledge, Street’s actions are the biggest hint that everything is not as it seems.

** Generation One Franchise/MyLittlePony characters are named in S2:E2 "Gasoline Drum" - Ela lists Peppermint Crunch, Banana Surprise, and Peachy, then Deacon asks about Swirly Whirly and Cherries Jubilee.

** S2:E5&7 "SOS" and "Inheritance": Devlin, a black man in the academy alongside Street trying out for the only open SWAT spot due to budget cuts; Devlin makes SWAT over Street, but doesn’t appear in any subsequent episodes of the series
** S1:E18 "Patrol": Luca realizes a visiting elementary student has dyslexia and offers to her mother to help her and Deacon tells a wheelchair-bound student about a friend who plays in a special basketball league and Deacon can hook the boy up; she is mentioned in S2:E19 "Invisible" and even appears in S2:E22 "Trigger Creep" but there's no mention of Deacon's wheelchair-bound boy.

* OpenRelationshipFailure: During season two, Chris goes on a date with a woman called Kira who reveals she already has a boyfriend named Ty, and that the pair of them are polyamorists looking for an equal third. Being bisexual, Chris decides to give it try and is initially happy finding it fulfilling and that their personalities compliment hers. However, as time goes on Chris begins to realize that due to being initially attracted to Kira she is always going to closer to her than Ty, whilst despite their best efforts the fact they were already together before they met her means that Kira and Ty will always be closer to each other than her. Realizing its not going to work out, she breaks up with them.

* BadInfluencer: In one episode, Jessica took her niece to a party hosted by an influencer who established herself as this trope when she made her party guests wait for her by pretending to have just left the airport; she was actually in L.A. the whole time. She showed very little concern for the girl that died at her party. It's then deconstructed when the influencer reveals that she has been playing her online persona since she was 15, and her audience won't let her grow up.

* BitPartBadguys: In some of the episodes, the team deals with a shooter that has nothing to do with the episodes' ''actual'' VillainOfTheWeek.
** "Blindspots" opens with the team capturing a misogynistic office employee holding his co-workers hostage due to getting passed up for promotion yet again by a woman.
** "Encore" opens with the team dealing with an abusive ex-husband confronting his ex-wife on the whereabouts of his children.
** "Hopeless Sinners" opens with the team arresting a former forklift operator of a tire center who killed his boss for firing him.

* ActionGirl: All of the female officers in SWAT, and the police overall naturally. They are trained professionals after all. However, it's a plot point that Chris especially (as the first female officer in SWAT) has to fight against prejudice and doubts they're capable of the job. I don't know whether this qualifies, as it's the characters who matter. Neither looks much different, in spite of the actors' ages. No one comments on this either that I recall.

* BitPartBadguys: In some of the episodes, the team deals with a threat that would have ''nothing'' to do with the episodes' actual VillainOfTheWeek. This can range from [[DudeWheresMyRespect disgruntled employees]] ("Blind Spots", "Hopeless Sinners") to [[DomesticAbuse abusive domestic partners]] ("Encore").

* ActionGirl: All of the female officers in SWAT, and the police overall naturally. They are trained professionals after all. However, it's a plot point that Chris especially (as the first female officer in SWAT) has to fight against prejudice and doubts they're capable of the job.
%%I don't know whether this qualifies, as it's the characters who matter. Neither looks much different, in spite of the actors' ages. No one comments on this either that I recall.* AgeGapRomance: While ages haven't been stated for characters, Shemar Moore is 49 and Stephanie Sigman is 32 as of 2019; this is a 17 year age gap.

* BadInfluencer: In one episode, Jessica took her niece to a party hosted by an influencer who established herself as this trope when she made her party guests wait for her by pretending to have just left the airport; she was actually in L.A. the whole time. She showed very little concern for the girl that died at her party. It's then deconstructed when the influencer reveals that she has been playing her online persona since she was a teenager, and her audience won't let her grow up.

* BrokenPedestal: Marcus thought Saint lived up to his name as a proud community leader and ignored Hondo's warnings the man was a criminal. Imagine his reaction when he not only sees Saint beating up a cop but even prepared to kill Marcus to hide his crimes.

** {{Invoked}} in "[[Recap/SWATS01E013Fences Fences]]", where an illegal immigrant fleeing an ICE Raid is apprehended and arrested by [[NaiveNewcomer Street]], who had no idea they were one and [[NiceJobBreakingItHero assumed they were just a regular criminal fleeing the authorities]], leaving them facing deportation. Being in violation of California's status as a sanctuary state, it leads to SWAT facing a major public backlash, complete with the immigrants sister leading a protest outside police headquarters, and putting Street in hot water with the brass. Matters are only made worse when all the publicity the case is recieving inspires [[RightWingMilitiaFanatic radical anti-immigration group]] to kidnap and forcibly deport his sister.
** In "[[Recap/SWATS05E08SafeHouse Safe House]]" the team's sting operation to rescue a hostage from a dangerous gang members is irrupted by ICE agents launching a surprise raid in the same area with them recklessly turning up guns blazing, throwing the entire situation into chaos and endangering multiple civilians, all cause ICE didn't bother to give local law enforcement a heads up to their activities; with one agent even nearly shooting Officer Chris Alonzo just for being a Latina woman. [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure Commander Hicks]], who holds a suspicion for all "three letter agencies" due to seeing them as arrogant, irresponsible glory hounds, openly admits to considering ICE easily the worst of them all.

* PassedOverPromotion: Deacon was the most senior member of the team after Buck, but because of the racial issues surrounding Buck's dismissal (white cop pursuing a white suspect accidentally shooting a black kid), the team lead post was given to Hondo at least partially because he was black. Tensions between Hondo and Deacon over Hondo getting promoted over his head, and Hondo needing to prove himself because him getting promoted out of place for political reasons, are plot points in early episodes.

* FromCamouflageToCriminal: "Payback" has the LAPD facing off against a group of ex-Army soldiers who are upset about a private security company double-crossing them after being recruited due to the fact that they're experienced in the field.

S.W.A.T. has aired five seasons. The sixth season is airing as of October 2022. On May 5 2023, it was [[https://deadline.com/2023/05/swat-canceled-cbs-6-seasons-reasons-no-season-7-1235357982/ announced]] that the sixth season would be the last, and that the final episode will air on May 19. Three days later, CBS [[https://tvline.com/2023/05/08/swat-renewed-season-7-final-episodes-uncancelled-cbs/ reversed course]] and announced that the show hadn't been cancelled after all, having been renewed for a seventh and final season.

S.W.A.T. has aired five seasons. The sixth season is airing as of October 2022. In May 2023, it was [[https://deadline.com/2023/05/swat-canceled-cbs-6-seasons-reasons-no-season-7-1235357982/ announced]] that the sixth season would be the last, and that the final episode will air on May 19.