Characters / Cold Case S 7 E 9 Forensics

Luke Cronin

A champion debater who was wrongly believed to have committed suicide in 1999 after losing his first debate three months into his scholarship-funded schooling at a competitive top private high school.

• Broken Ace: Quickly found out to be this after joining Maynerd.
• Dying Moment of Awesome: After Musk insults his dad, Luke orders him to get out of the car, telling him he's not asking for permission anymore to quit. After being screamed in his face that he'll regret this, Luke tears Musk a new one with a Kirk Summation, Shut Up, Hannibal!, and "The Reason You Suck" Speech all at once. It gets him killed, but still...To quote Scotty earlier, he had some serious stones.
• Fatal Flaw: Alyssa points it out very well.
  Alyssa: Luke was so good moving forward, he couldn't see who he was leaving behind.
• Kirk Summation: His specialty.
• Missing Mom: His mother is never mentioned.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Ronnie notes that he's not himself since joining Maynerd, to the point of taking drugs to stay focused in school.
  Ronnie: Before Maynerd, Luke wouldn't even sip a beer.
• Rookie Red Ranger: Deconstructed. The second he joins Maynerd, he's put on the A-Team with Alyssa. The pressure to get good grades and win, left him a total wreck. It got so bad that he decided to quit.
• Rule of Symbolism: When we first see him, he's wearing a simple hoodie to show he goes to Jefferson, a more public school by Oak Lane. When he joins Maynerd, he only wears the school uniform. When his dad see's his ghost at the end, he's wearing the hoodie again, showing that he was committed to quitting Maynerd.
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Read below:
  Darren: THIS IS THE YEAR, LUKE! YOU BLOW THIS CHANCE AND YOU WILL REGRET IT FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE!
  Luke: ...I won't. Because I'm not you.
  Darren: Me? I went to National Finals.
  Luke: And lost.
  Darren: Because of my partner.
  Luke: Because of you!
  Darren: Watch your mouth, that's not what happened!
  Luke: We all know what happened, you're a liar!
  Darren: THAT'S NOT TRUE!!
  Luke: Hanging on to a victory that doesn't exist. That you didn't earn!
  Darren: SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP! (Grabs the gun and shoots Luke)
• Victory Is Boring: Doesn't find winning with just evidence and not saying a single passionate word enjoyable. Makes winning hollow.

Stan Cronin

Luke's father.

• Condescending Compassion: An unintentional trope, given that he thought that going to Maynerd would give Luke opportunities he'd never had, and thus won't repeat the life he's living. It ends up having a lot of harmful consequences nobody could've predicted.
• Doesn't Like Guns: Admits that he doesn't think highly of them after the Gulf War. He buys one to kill himself.
• Driven to Suicide: His attempt to kill himself out of loneliness inspires his son to quit Maynerd Green, and thus his murder.
• Heroic BSoD: Breaks down in tears when he tells the cops he gave the gun he was going to use on himself to his son...The same gun that would be used to kill his son.
• It's All My Fault: Believed he pushed his son to kill himself.
• My Greatest Failure: He sums it up in this quote.
  Stan: I put into my son's hand the gun used to kill him...I can't be awake without wishing I could take that moment back.
• Outliving One's Offspring: He still misses his son.
• Shell-Shocked Veteran: Served in the Gulf War, and has developed a dislike of guns, and is in constant pain. He sees a therapist specializing in PTSD.
• Small Role, Big Impact: He only appears a few times, but greatly influences his son.

Darren Musk

Luke's debating coach.

• All for Nothing: In 1987, Darren was a part of a debate team that made it to the FTA, but then he insulted the other team and had a "profound level of arrogance," which disqualified him. He immediately quit law school and became a high school debate coach at Maynerd. It was all part of some twisted My Greatest Second Chance where one of his students could win instead. Said student decides he doesn't want to do it anymore, so Darren kills him in cold blood in 1997. Ten years later, he's arrested, and by then he still didn't accomplish what he wanted.
• Aristocrats Are Evil: An elitist, who thinks lowly of people who served their duty for their country. And that's not even going into him killing Luke.
• Believing Their Own Lies: Truly thinks it was his partner's fault losing the finals. He becomes a Psychopathic Manchild when told otherwise.
• Big "SHUT UP!": Screams this over and over again right before he shoots Luke.
• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Comes off very affable at first. So when it's figured out he's the killer, he seems like he's Affably Evil...He's not. AT ALL.
• Broken Pedestal: Luke ends up thinking he's "elitist, shallow, and obsessed with winning." But this hits full force when Darren shows he's Not Good with Rejection, during his rant insulting Luke's father. Similarly, Alyssa loses all respect when she learns he killed Luke, giving him a Death Glare as he's dragged away.
  Darren: —And then what? End up like your dad, losing your mind to the army and spending the rest of your life in an autoshop?
  Luke: My dad...is twice the man you are!
• Condescending Compassion: Crossed over with Lack of Empathy. Whenever Luke tries to do something with debate that would give him passion, Darren barely helps him outside of winning for the team. He also thinks that it'd be better if Luke stayed even if his dad needs help.
• Consummate Liar: Only tells the truth when push comes to shove.
• Disproportionate Retribution: Luke wants to quit debate, he kills him. Enough said.
• Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: It completely goes over his head on why Luke wants to quit.
• Fatal Flaw: Pride. Whether in himself or in Luke and Alyssa, he oozes Pride. That same pride cost him the victory he's obsessed over since '87, made him quit law school to become a high school debate coach, and kill Luke.
• Foil:
  • Luke Cronin: Both are or were star debaters, but where Luke is a Humble Hero who enrolled into Maynerd on a scholarship and genuinely enjoys the sport, Darren is (in Luke's written word) elitist, shallow, and obsessed with winning, only seeming to care about the accolades. And where Luke won't regret leaving Maynerd, Darren can't get over the Glory Days.
  • Stan Cronin: Both are father figures to Luke, but where Stan only thinks about what's best for Luke, Darren thinks of what's best for Darren.
  • Ronnie Jacks: In the present, Ronnie became a debate coach like Darren, but unlike him, Ronnie does it to teach the next generation and help them, as shown when he uses one of Luke's quotes. Darren does it to win and get back at the FTA for his ego.
• Foreshadowing: You can tell something's off from the beginning on two things: 1) He immediately brings up he went to national finals, and 2) when he invites Luke to Maynerd, Luke wonders aloud about Ronnie, but Darren shoots down the idea very coldly...in front of Ronnie.
• Freudian Excuse: Explains his quite well.
  Darren: If I hadn't lost in '87...Everything would've been different.
• Freudian Excuse Is No Excuse: As Luke points out, the loss was Darren's own fault and he's done nothing but tell lies to his students (implying that everyone knows the truth), and puts kids through a Training from Hell they cannot possibly cope with just so he can win trophies. This adds into Luke's last words.
  Luke: We all know what happened, you're a liar! Hanging on to a victory that doesn't exist, that you didn't earn!
• Hate Sink: This guy goes out of his way to show what a selfish prick he is by the end.
• I Coulda Been a Contender!: Feels immensely about this in regards to his debating career.
• If I Can't Have You…: A platonic, academic version.
• I Never Said It Was Poison: When Lilly and Scotty interrogate him.
  Scotty: The problem is that Luke was fed up with Maynerd Debate.
  Lilly: He even made a list: Elitist, Shallow, Obsessed with winning.
  Darren: Luke wasn't serious about quitting.
  Lilly: I never said anything about quitting, Darren.
• It's All About Me: The only reason he's even teaching high school debate is to mend his bruised ego.
• Lack of Empathy: When he learns that Luke plans to quit the debate team to be there for his mentally struggling father, he tries to pressure Luke into changing his mind, mocks his father, and when things get really heated, grabs the gun from Luke's lap and shoots him in the head.
• Never My Fault: Blames his partner for making him lose a debate in the eighties.
• No Sympathy: He doesn't even try to look at things from Luke's point of view when he wants to quit. He also gets it from Lilly.
  Darren: Look, I know that the drugs was a really stupid idea, but I could lose my job if anyone finds out.
  Lilly: You should have thought of that before you gave them to Luke.
• Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: Turns out all his pressuring on Luke and Alyssa to win was not so the school could win, but so HE could go back to the National Finals.
• Politically Incorrect Villain: He's an elitist with a low opinion of others. As he reveals in his rant to Luke, he doesn't think highly of somebody that loses their mind to the military.
• Psychopathic Manchild: He quit law school, throwing away a promising career, to become a high school debate coach, just to win a tournament. Outside of this childish and banal fantasy, he is so obsessed with winning that he can't comprehend somebody having more important things to do. And kills in a blind fury.
• Resignations Not Accepted: When Luke wants to quit Maynerd Green to take care of his father, Darren kills him in a blind rage.
• Small Name, Big Ego: "I went to National Finals!"
• Smug Snake: Gives off this vibe.
• Stupid Evil: At the end of the day, he's not as smart as he thinks he is. When confronted finally, he just digs himself deeper and deeper.
• Suddenly Shouting: His last conversation with Luke devolves into this.
  Darren: THIS IS THE YEAR, LUKE! YOU BLOW THIS CHANCE AND YOU WILL REGRET IT FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE!!
• Villainous Breakdown: Twice. First, a very Tranquil Fury one in the present, then one where he's a screaming mess like a kid who didn't get what he wanted in the past.

Alyssa Lane

Luke's debating partner.

• Academic Alpha Bitch: Alyssa is a preppy, confident, skillful, and very arrogant debater who angrily, but not seriously, threatens a teammate's life once he costs them a round. Deconstructed with the reveal that she's a C-student who views a successful debating career as her only hope of getting a good scholarship.
• Death Glare: Gives one to Darren in the ending flashbacks.
• Motor Mouth: Speaks super speedily. The first lines of the episode:
  Alyssa: (in the span of ten seconds)...they have nothing to answer it. Jefferson's trying to skate by on nice ideas without a lot of facts to back them up. Sorry, guys, but if you want to take a trophy, you got to do the work. Extend across our unanswered DA harms and we win this round cold.
  Luke: Oh... Alyssa, you sure talk fast.
  Alyssa: You know what they say, speed kills.
• My God, What Have I Done?: Experiences this after Luke's apparent suicide.
• Took a Level in Kindness: Implied, as she mentions volunteering at refugee camps during her interrogation and helps the detectives interpret Luke’s message.
• Unwitting Instigator of Doom: Although she had no way of knowing, her berating of Luke lead to his decision to quit debate, which got him killed.

Ronnie Jacks

Luke's old classmate and friend from Jefferson High.

• "Angry Black Man" Stereotype: Downplayed. Yes, he did punch Luke but it was him thinking Luke stole his bin, and he later apologises for his mistake. He does quote Malcolm X, according to Oliver. And he has an issue with security or police targeting black people.
• Black Best Friend: To Luke.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Trespasses into Maynard to apologise to Luke and gets concerned about Luke's use of Dextroamphetamine.
• Spotting the Thread: Sees Luke's short attention span and fidgeting with his pocket, which makes him ask if Luke is high.

Oliver Calhoun

Another of Luke's debating partners.

• Big Jerk on Campus: Gives off this vibe during the flashbacks.
• Jerkass: Is mentioned getting himself off the hook for several misdemeanors and steals Ronnie's tub.
• Out of Focus: Compared to the other people who have flashbacks, he appears in others, but only gives one. In the ending, he's not even seen in montage.
• Karma Houdini: Managed to get out of a long list of misbehavior during school thanks to his daddy. Vera and Jeffries clearly don't treat him with respect because of this.
• Screw the Rules, I Have Connections!: Oliver has lots of DUIs and possession charges in his past, but got them all quashed because his father is a powerful lawyer.
• Sore Loser: After being replaced with Luke, he tells him the quote below. He even admits that he didn't really care about debate.
  Oliver: It's a good thing coach wants you on this team, because nobody else does.