Warning: Spoilers for FBI season 7
Scola has had several partners over the course ofFBI’s seventh season. Although he has been paired with Tiffany Wallace for a while, he was left partnerless afterTiffany exitedFBIin the first episode of season 7. Tiffany’s exit made sense because she had been forced to shoot Hakim, the man who had killed her other partner, Hobbes. Thus, it was unsurprising that this traumatic event caused Tiffany to leave service and move to Georgie to be with her sister.
Tiffany’s absence proved to be a difficult problem for Scola, however. He had two partners who left as quickly as they came before being paired withFBI’s Syd Ortiz, which was supposed to be permanent. However, the procedural decided to go in a new direction, writing Syd out of theFBIseason 7 castof characters. Syd left to take a new job after only a few episodes, leaving Scola without a partner once again until a replacement could be found.
6Chris Ulrich
Played By Cory Jeacoma
Chris Ulrich overstayed his welcomedespite only being featured in one episode ofFBIseason 7. Ulrich was an FBI Special Agent who seemed determined to lead the investigation instead of following Scola’s directions. He either directly defied Scola or argued with him at every turn. Fortunately, he only lasted one episode, and he was such an unimportant part of Scola’s arc that no explanation was given for his absence, nor is he a particularly memorable guest character.
5Syd Ortiz
Played By Lisette Olivera
On paper, Syd was an interesting idea. She wasn’t experienced in field tactics. Her expertise was in behavioral analysis — profiling killers to predict when and where they would strike next and the best methods to stop them. A partnership between her and Scola should have been an interesting dynamic, ashe had to train her while also keeping both of them safe during missions.
In retrospect, it’s not hard to understand why this character did not work out and had to be replaced so soon after she arrived.
Unfortunately, it didn’t work out that way. Ortiz constantly made serious mistakes, some of which risked lives, and began her run by getting lectured by Maggie. In retrospect, it’s not hard to understand why this character did not work out and had to be replaced so soon after she arrived.
4Sofia Ortega
Played By Adriana Ducassi
In some ways, it was disappointing that Sofia Ortega didn’t last. She was the first partner that Scola tried out after Tiffany left, and she seemed like a good fit for him despite some hiccups. In an early scene,Scola was unhappy with her because she sneaked up on a suspect aloneinstead of alerting him to what she was doing. However, this incident didn’t necessarily mean that Sofia was not partner material, as conflicts around one partner being a lone wolf is a common trope in procedurals.
There have been manydisappointing character exits in theFBIuniverse, but Sofia’s was one of the worst. It seemed tacked on, as if the writers needed an excuse for her not to appear again.She decided she wasn’t a good fit for the New York Field Office for no apparent reason and left at the end of the same episode she appeared in, likely because the writers were expecting to introduce Syd soon and didn’t need Sofia.
3Maggie Bell
Played By Missy Peregrym
Maggie is a familiar character inFBI— but she usually is partnered with OA. However, on several occasions after Syd left, Maggie worked with Scola instead. Allowing Maggie to shift gears and work with Scola instead of with OA helped keep the procedural freshwhile not drawing attention to Scola’s lack of a permanent partner.
Having Scola and Maggie work together was a fun way to address the partnership issue.
Scola and Maggie work well together. They don’t have the close friendship that Maggie has with OA, but they complement each other well and have enough familiarity to make their partnership interesting. Having Scola and Maggie work together was a fun way to address the partnership issue at times when Scola needed to be part of the story but had no available partner.
2Tiffany Wallace
Played By Katherine Renee Kane
Tiffany’s exit wouldn’t have been so problematic for Scola if she had not been such an important part of his professional life. Tiffany was still Scola’s partner inFBIseason 7, episode 1, but she made it clear it was her last day and that she was leaving the unit.Her departure was made even more poignant by her reaction when Scola was hurt during their final mission.
Scola and Tiffany were a near-perfect unit, but her leaving makes her slightly less of an ideal partner for him.
None of his other partners (except Maggie) know him well enough to know what to say or bring him while he’s recovering from his injuries. Scola and Tiffany were a near-perfect unit, but her leaving makes her slightly less of an ideal partner for him. However, she is near the top of the list because of how well they knew each other and worked together.
1Dani Rhodes
Played By Emily Alabi
Dani Rhodes is the newest member of the team, making it hard to judge how well she will fit in. However, so far she has done excellent work. She is similar to Sofia in that she is a lone wolf who is trying to fit into a team paradigm, but with more experience. Additionally, she chose to stay with the unit despite her reservations.
Dani is intended to be Scola’s permanent partner inFBI.She is learning to work with the team and has good chemistry with Scola, so hopefully she will continue to be part of the series onceFBIseason 8begins.
