The Rookie’s Tim and Lucy Face Their Next Relationship Challenge: A Surprise Motherly Visit!

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As revealed in a promo for the Feb. 23 installment, TV vet Sela Ward (FBI, CSI: NY, Once & Again, Sisters, etc.) guest-stars as Tim’s mom, who unexpectedly shows up at his and girlfriend Lucy’s door — but mom doesn’t even know about Lucy! “Who are you? One of Tim’s coworkers?” she asks Lucy, who awkwardly replies, “Among other things,” while shooting Tim a look.

As when any familial character is introduced, the appearance of Tim’s mom opens up new aspects of the Watch Commander, who is “able to get a lot of stuff off his chest,” his portrayer Eric Winter told TV Insider. And of course, it ends up impacting his romance with Lucy as family dynamics comes to light, allowing her to “understand a bit of Tim’s baggage and relationship with his parents and the struggles,” Winter added.

But lest you think the two women in Tim’s life will come to odds, Melissa O’Neil (aka Lucy) instead previewed “a beautiful conversation” between Lucy and Tim’s mom that offers up “a lot of insight there into who her partner is and how all of this has come about and potentially why he is the way that he is.” The actress also noted that “we don’t villainize the mother in the process, which I think is important. Families aren’t perfect. And I think in this way it makes them stronger, but that’s all to be seen.”

Winter, meanwhile, was surprised by the dynamic between his character and his TV mom, which is “so different than what I had always anticipated when I thought it out in my head as me wanting my mom to come on the show, and it makes her very fun,” the actor shared. “Tim’s in shock, nervous, happy, and I think we’re going to see a nice dynamic that keeps it interesting.”