S09.E02: That Kind of Heat

[jewel21]

Brett and Mackey find their lives in peril. Casey and Brett tread in unfamiliar territory. Severide chases a memory while Kidd adeptly solves a firehouse problem. Ritter puts himself in harm's way during a harrowing call.

Airdate: 11/18/2020

[SuzieQ]

Freakin GABBY!  She's not even on the show anymore and she's still messing things up!

 

[dovegrey]

Welcome back, Casey. Good to see a strong emotion or two for once. Loved him jumping out of 81...that's old school Matt. 

Oh, man, that ending. That was painful. I actually want to see Casey and Brett happen, and I was pretty happy (er, THRILLED) with the non-firehouse make-out session, but good for Brett for not settling for second place. I was really hoping Casey was going to turn around and go back inside.

(But, uh, Brett? Maybe instead of avoiding your crush like you’re still in 9th grade, bring up the Dawsey Baggage BEFORE you’re two seconds from getting pregnant.) (And I think I’d actually rather it be Casey putting the brakes on with Brett, because he’s lost a father to spousal murder, a fiancé to murder, and a wife to abrupt nonsensical divorce, and maybe this guy who puts everything he has into his relationships doesn’t want another emotional catastrophe that wipes him out again for another two years.)

(God damn it, Gabby.)

Cruz needs a good punch to the face. I don’t care what history he has with Mackey, or what history Mackey has, but that extreme mother-henning was horrendous. It makes Mackey’s traumatic, near-death experience into an event that requires Cruz to be comforted by her. And I really wish her talk with him about not wanting to stay at 51 wasn’t about Brett rescuing the addict but rather about Cruz’s constant helicoptering and managing of her work life.

Herrmann’s advice about never learning something you don’t want to do is 100% on point. It’s the most sensible thing he’s said for a good, full season.

I love Mouch and Ritter.

Severide doing all that to get Shay’s ambo door was sweet. It’s too bad he was on his own for most of it…half the cast is still OG from season 1. But I loved the spirit of this, and I'm really happy the writers remembered Shay and Shayveride.

Derek Haas told ET that the ambo crash was the original season 8 finale. I wonder if Foster was originally supposed to die?

I don’t understand why Boden couldn’t keep one of the real bullpen “assistants” due to COVID but was able to hire a high school student to be an assistant. And of course a girl who wants to be a firefighter starts with clerical/secretarial work, because the boys just can’t handle copy machines and paperwork. Perhaps uncharitable but for effing real?

The sound mixing in this episode was bad. I could barely hear any of the dialogue in the opening scene. (And, yeah, I know they’re basically filming a week ahead of air dates. Rumor has it episode 3 isn’t fully filmed due to their COVID outbreak on set.)

I liked this one.

Edited November 19, 2020 by dovegrey
spacing

[Josh371982]

11 minutes ago, SuzieQ said:

Freakin GABBY!  She's not even on the show anymore and she's still messing things up!

 

Exactly what I said! FUCK Gabby and FUCK the Writers. Shipping Brett and Casey Big time and loved they starting Kissing 

[Josh371982]

11 minutes ago, dovegrey said:

Welcome back, Casey. Good to see a strong emotion or two for once. Loved him jumping out of 81...that's old school Matt. 

Oh, man, that ending. That was painful. I actually want to see Casey and Brett happen, and I was pretty happy (er, THRILLED) with the non-firehouse make-out session, but good for Brett for not settling for second place. I was really hoping Casey was going to turn around and go back inside.

(But, uh, Brett? Maybe instead of avoiding your crush like you’re still in 9th grade, bring up the Dawsey Baggage BEFORE you’re two seconds from getting pregnant.) (And I think I’d actually rather it be Casey putting the brakes on with Brett, because he’s lost a father to spousal murder, a fiancé to murder, and a wife to abrupt nonsensical divorce, and maybe this guy who puts everything he has into his relationships doesn’t want another emotional catastrophe that wipes him out again for another two years.)

(God damn it, Gabby.)

Cruz needs a good punch to the face. I don’t care what history he has with Mackey, or what history Mackey has, but that extreme mother-henning was horrendous. It makes Mackey’s traumatic, near-death experience into an event that requires Cruz to be comforted by her. And I really wish her talk with him about not wanting to stay at 51 wasn’t about Brett rescuing the addict but rather about Cruz’s constant helicoptering and managing of her work life.

Herrmann’s advice about never learning something you don’t want to do is 100% on point. It’s the most sensible thing he’s said for a good, full season.

I love Mouch and Ritter.

Severide doing all that to get Shay’s ambo door was sweet. It’s too bad he was on his own for most of it…half the cast is still OG from season 1. But I loved the spirit of this, and I'm really happy the writers remembered Shay and Shayveride.

Derek Haas told ET that the ambo crash was the original season 8 finale. I wonder if Foster was originally supposed to die?

I don’t understand why Boden couldn’t keep one of the real bullpen “assistants” due to COVID but was able to hire a high school student to be an assistant. And of course a girl who wants to be a firefighter starts with clerical/secretarial work, because the boys just can’t handle copy machines and paperwork. Perhaps uncharitable but for effing real?

The sound mixing in this episode was bad. I could barely hear any of the dialogue in the opening scene. (And, yeah, I know they’re basically filming a week ahead of air dates. Rumor has it episode 3 isn’t fully filmed due to their COVID outbreak on set.)

I liked this one.

To add more yeah the end was painful and I do love that Brett wasn't settling for second place just man Fuck Dawson. Hoping its just it gets addressed and then they hook up 

[mxc90]

"It's always been you..." sounds like: "Damn! I have dated a lot of guys and now I have to force myself to settle for you! FML".

Why are these writers obsessed with Gabby? She's a stench they refuse to put away.

Shouldn't Casey be written up/scolded for jumping out of a moving truck and leaving his gear behind? Of course Gallo can blab to everyone except Boden. 

A rescue situation for ambulance 61/the drug brother and Squad 3 is no where to be found?  

Did they leave all the drugs in the ambulance for the curious drug fiends to loot later?

Sylvie with no cuts or broken bones. Gianna only a small cut. Show knows to keep these ladies looking good.

Why is Stella hounding this girl?

Not sure I understood what was bothering Gianna. The writers never bothered to have her and Sylvie discuss what happened.

Boden can help Stella with GOF but not do his clerical work that's been piling up for a year. 

CFD sent the full time staff home for Covid a year ago. How are they approving for part-time help and ignore the staff sent home?

Once the civilians were sent home, shouldn't someone in the house be assigned to clerical duties? What kind of operation is Boden running!!? How were supplies ordered the past year?

Severide hasn't put his burglary skills to use in a long time. Came through like a pro. Also, he managed to not damage the door tossing it over the fence. And ladies the door color doesn't match the rest of the paint job, so live with it.

Looks like there were more than 10 able people on the platform and no one felt the need hop down and get her off the tracks or call 911. Just yell, hoping a fire truck will pass by. Way to represent the fine people of Chicago.

 

Edited November 19, 2020 by mxc90

[dovegrey]

1 hour ago, Josh371982 said:

To add more yeah the end was painful and I do love that Brett wasn't settling for second place just man Fuck Dawson. Hoping its just it gets addressed and then they hook up 

I think Casey's answer was odd, though. It sounded like Brett asked if Casey would leave Chicago with Gabby, and he said, "It's complicated." Well...no, not really? He's flat-out refused to leave Chicago with Gabby twice now. And it looked like he wanted to say something more or was holding something back, but then Brett told him to leave before he could. In the moment, the thought crossed my mind that Gabby got pregnant last season and they secretly have a 2-3 month old kid he can't see because of COVID travel restrictions, so, yeah, complicated. But that's a total tinfoil hat moment. Surely this show wouldn't be that soapy.

It just seemed like a weird exchange. And it seems weird to have Casey pull one of his "do or die to save another love of his life" stunts and then do a "they are totally in-love with each other" crescendo moment at Molly's ... only to have the Ghost of Gabby Past cockblock the whole thing. WTF, show? Let it go.

(...I usually hate the soapy stuff, but I'm totally eating this all up. Ugh.)

[DanaK]

I can’t believe the Chicago shows are going on hiatus until January after only 2 episodes. It’s similar to This Is Us and The Good Doctor (the latter at the end of this month). They are likely barely keeping up as it is and they likely wanted some shows for November

Good episode overall but the Casey/Brett ending was sad and annoying

[preeya]

22 minutes ago, DanaK said:

I can’t believe the Chicago shows are going on hiatus until January after only 2 episodes. It’s similar to This Is Us and The Good Doctor (the latter at the end of this month). They are likely barely keeping up as it is and they likely wanted some shows for November

Actually, I don't know it that is correct. The TV calendar I use has all the Chicago shows (Med, Fire, & PD) on the schedule thru 12/16 and they are not listed as re-runs.

[CoyoteBlue]

So did Jesse Spencer just get bored during lockdown and give himself a box-dye-from-CVS dye job in "one-note matte brown"? Jesus, who in hair and makeup is letting him leave the house looking like that? (Ok, I guess at some point they fixed it because he gets something resembling highlights/lowlights in some scenes.)

Honestly, Chicago is a TERRIBLE place to show "TV COVID" times because Gov Pritzger and Mayor Lightfoot went f'ing HARD right off the bat and anyone walking around all barely-masked would all but get a personal smackdown. Seriously, so many Lori Lightfoot memes...Save Lives, Stay Home #whereslightfoot

Also, thanks for making it seem like Chicagoans don't know how to slow down their cars when a fire truck screeches to a halt and someone jumps out. We don't keep drivng and honk at them like an asshole, thank you. Likewise the El platform.- 

Edited November 19, 2020 by CoyoteBlue

[sheetmoss]

1 hour ago, preeya said:

Actually, I don't know it that is correct. The TV calendar I use has all the Chicago shows (Med, Fire, & PD) on the schedule thru 12/16 and they are not listed as re-runs.

They announced at the end of all the Chicago shows they would be returning Jan 5th

[MsJamieDornan]

I have no clue why I watch this show. The acting is horrible. Really bad.

[Guildford]

So are we really supposed to believe that two paramedics dive their rig off a bridge & they don't need to go to hospital. Ummmm OH&S anyone? Shit, they didn't even need to show them at the hospital if they didn't want to waste time on that scene, but that was just freakin' stupid. 

The whole GOF story just needs to die. Not only is Stella completely obnoxious now we get to see her pet project mess up and Stella go running to Kelly to help save her poor little soul. And as mentioned, yes sack all your staff because of CoVid & then hire a random. If I was one of those staff let go, man I would be pissed. And I am not sure in what world would they leave nobody to run the admin duties at any place of business, let along a firehouse with a Battalion chief, it's an essential job. Have them reduced hours, working from home but this was just inane & contrived.

Please, please, please stop with the Gallo/new paramedic flirt fest, we already have two eye-rolling monotonous ships sucking the life out of the show, we don't need another.

[Waterston Fan]

Meh...  

I think Casey just sounded a bit stalkish the way Gallo talked about him jumping out of the truck. That was some bad assed though. 🙂

GOF storyline just needs to die and if I was a staffer I'd be pissed that my job was taken over by some high school girl. I like the new paramedic but I think Gallo needs to hold his horses. 

(So glad this site saves the messages..)

[nittany cougar]

1 hour ago, Guildford said:

So are we really supposed to believe that two paramedics dive their rig off a bridge & they don't need to go to hospital. Ummmm OH&S anyone? Shit, they didn't even need to show them at the hospital if they didn't want to waste time on that scene, but that was just freakin' stupid. 

It made no sense that Brett was working the scene after being in that horrible accident.  She should have immediately been sent to the hospital.

I don't like the Casey/Brett story in this episode.  She acted like a teenage girl with her crush on the cute guy.  I hated the apartment makeout scene.  I thought it was out of character for Casey to go to her apartment and go straight to sexy times.  He seems too shy for that, to me.  Also, why would Brett bring up a past relationship at the moment when they are about to have sex? It would have been more realistic if they hooked up and she brought up the relationship after the fact. 

Casey's hair definitely looks weird.  On Chicago PD, Voight's hair color is also different.  It is grayer than usual. I wonder if the whole Chicago franchise has reduced hair/makeup do to Covid.

Edited November 19, 2020 by nittany cougar

[FnkyChkn34]

Gabby hasn't even been on the show for a year and she's still ruining it!!  WTF.  Just let it go.  Let her go.  (I even liked Gabby in the beginning seasons, but by the end... man...)  I was actually rooting for Casey and Brett (didn't think I would) until Brett pulls out the dumbest question ever at the worst possible time.  Seriously, writers?  Who does that?

I agree about letting the clerical civilian staff go and then not rehiring them, but - did Boden actually have a staff?  Haven't they been understaffed since the actress unfortunately passed away in real life?

I forgot all about the door until Severide was seen hauling a dolly up the driveway, and then it hit me right before I actually saw it.  That was a great subplot and I'm glad he remembered!  When he said he needed something out of the truck, at first I thought he was going after the drugs but then thought nah, he doesn't do that anymore.  Then I wondered if he hid an engagement ring in there, but realized that would also be stupid.  So I actually had no idea what he was after.

I wish we all could take Herrmann's advice, but real life doesn't work that way...

EDIT:  Regarding Casey's hair - I actually didn't notice that the color was that bad, just the cut.  It's like he has bangs or something?  No one else has bad covid hair on Fire except him, so I don't get it.  (Dr. Halstead on Med let his grow, but they seem to be the only two among the shows, at least that I could tell, and Will's is kind of cute.  Casey's is just bad.)  

Edited November 19, 2020 by FnkyChkn34

[dovegrey]

2 hours ago, nittany cougar said:

It made no sense that Brett was working the scene after being in that horrible accident.  She should have immediately been sent to the hospital.

I don't like the Casey/Brett story in this episode.  She acted like a teenage girl with her crush on the cute guy.  I hated the apartment makeout scene.  I thought it was out of character for Casey to go to her apartment and go straight to sexy times.  He seems too shy for that, to me.  Also, why would Brett bring up a past relationship at the moment when they are about to have sex? It would have been more realistic if they hooked up and she brought up the relationship after the fact. 

Casey going to the door and immediately making out is exactly how he and Gabby first hooked up in season 2. I actually wondered if that was intentional. Casey was very confident and not shy at all with women until after the divorce. 

[Pzl]

Come on Chicago fire, so Brett is freakin wonder women. She's involved in an accident and not a single scratch on her. 

[SuzieQ]

Am I the only one who doesn't find Casey attractive in the least?

[mxc90]

The way Casey was behaving, he most likely forgot to tell the police he tossed the gun. You know a little kid will find it and PD/Med will have to sort out the mess.

Also, the show pointed out Gianna (and maybe Gallo) never took the time to look at the wall memorial pictures/bio of Shay, Otis, and others.

Edited November 19, 2020 by mxc90

[Crs97]

The nod to Shay was excellent, though I didn’t understand why he was being so secretive (except, of course, for drama’s sake).  The embarrassed look Casey gave Brett as the other guy described the rescue was lovely.  Gabby needs to stay gone.

[FnkyChkn34]

5 hours ago, SuzieQ said:

Am I the only one who doesn't find Casey attractive in the least?

Does this help?  Better hair and a little stubble... 😍

[MsJamieDornan]

5 hours ago, SuzieQ said:

Am I the only one who doesn't find Casey attractive in the least?

He's the only reason I watch.

[Crashcourse]

5 hours ago, SuzieQ said:

Am I the only one who doesn't find Casey attractive in the least?

✋

[NJRadioGuy]

19 hours ago, mxc90 said:

"It's always been you..." sounds like: "Damn! I have dated a lot of guys and now I have to force myself to settle for you! FML".

No, I disagree. She knows damn well exactly what she wants, but she also knows that she won't settle for anything less than twoo wuvv. And I don't blame her in the slightest. And she was right to shut him down when he confessed he didn' t know what he'd do. That question she posed is the fastest cure for the 4-hour-erection side effect warning on little blue pills that there ever was.

Quote

Shouldn't Casey be written up/scolded for jumping out of a moving truck and leaving his gear behind? Of course Gallo can blab to everyone except Boden. 

I'd pity the boss who'd write up a top-notch LT for saving one of their own. Maybe some jobsworth asshat-in-a-white-hat but nobody with any leadership moxy would even consider it. IRL you wouldn't believe what goes down if someone's PASS goes off or there's a MAYDAY call. Nothing short of a wall of flame, live wires, or poison gas would stop every single member worth his or her helmet from risking it all to save a brother/sister, and to hell with their own life. At least I can say that about every one of the firemen I've known over the years. I was never on the Job personally, unfortunately, but my connections run deep to FD and PD.

Quote

A rescue situation for ambulance 61/the drug brother and Squad 3 is no where to be found?

I'd have to rewatch the episode but the squad probably wasn't on the run or was returning to quarters. I watched this at 2am today so I don't remember precisely. What got me is that when the truck was looking for her and calling her on the radio neither medic answered. Even if their vehicle radios or antennas were damaged in the dive off the overpass (possible), their HTs would work, and if they're like every other first responders' radios they have panic buttons. And failing that, hit the manual siren button repeatedly in yelp. 

Quote

Did they leave all the drugs in the ambulance for the curious drug fiends to loot later?

Obviously PD would have secured the scene and arranged the tow but as the camera left there were no police cars around the downed ambo, and I found that irritating. I wasn't sure where they were going with Severide's trip to the pound, but he also tampered with evidence. No way Old 61 was going to be parted out until after the perp was convicted and the vehicle no longer required as evidence. And the asshole impound lot attendant's attitude bothered me a lot, too. This should have been straight up and above-board.

Quote

Why is Stella hounding this girl?

Sometimes you just know when someone's the right fit. Stella's intuition senses this kid's got what it takes. I love what Stella did for the kid. Any excuse to get her around the firehouse as much as possible and get a few bucks thrown her way. Bad writing for sure, but I like where it ended up.

Quote

Boden can help Stella with GOF but not do his clerical work that's been piling up for a year.

CFD sent the full time staff home for Covid a year ago. How are they approving for part-time help and ignore the staff sent home? Once the civilians were sent home, shouldn't someone in the house be assigned to clerical duties? What kind of operation is Boden running!!? How were supplies ordered the past year?

This is the bad writing I referred to above. Surely they could assign it to the low man/woman in the house, or get a member of service from HQ to come in. These tasks would be the perfect job for an injured member or a retiree to come in so they can stay around the Job even if they aren't jumping onto apparatus any more. There could be some awesome stories to come out of this for the show, too. But I'm glad the girl got the gig for the sake of the overall story.

Quote

Severide hasn't put his burglary skills to use in a long time. Came through like a pro. Also, he managed to not damage the door tossing it over the fence. And ladies the door color doesn't match the rest of the paint job, so live with it.

Nothing that a few applications of a cutting pad, wet sanding, polish, and wax can't fix. When the New 61 backed in, I was looking at the door and noticed the old lettering wasn't on the new door, so I applauded the continuity—they only have one vehicle for the show, and I was wondering if they'd have handwaved getting the lettering done for the new rig before it came into service. This was before I realized what Severide was up to, then I figured it out pretty quick.

Quote

Looks like there were more than 10 able people on the platform and no one felt the need hop down and get her off the tracks or call 911. Just yell, hoping a fire truck will pass by. Way to represent the fine people of Chicago.

Nobody wants to get involved, and it's too common an occurrence. They'd rather take a video of someone dying and get famous on Youtube than put their goddamned phones down and try to make the save themselves. Happens here in NYC far too often. But do note that a 4- or 6-car train can stop within about a train length, or less at low speed. Shorter CTA trains probably only need about 200-300 feet from when the motorman throws it into emergency. 

Overall I really loved this episode. I love how they're making Casey work for his happy ending, and work through his feelings for She Who Must Not Be Named. Forge that relationship in the fire of experience and memory and then, if he survives, he gets the girl (after a few more perilous rescues, of course). 

But this leads to a problem, though. Half the house will be hooking up with the other half. Someone's going to have to leave, one way or the other. Not to mention the other problem evident from last week: Stella will be a LT without a rig.

Edited November 19, 2020 by NJRadioGuy

[Sandman]

19 hours ago, dovegrey said:

Herrmann’s advice about never learning something you don’t want to do is 100% on point. It’s the most sensible thing he’s said for a good, full season.

I thought it was kind of passive aggressive, honestly. Learned helplessness is never a great response, even if you own the place. Hermann's advice is often just plain boneheaded, and this didn't seem like a notable exception to me.

[dovegrey]

11 minutes ago, Sandman said:

I thought it was kind of passive aggressive, honestly. Learned helplessness is never a great response, even if you own the place. Hermann's advice is often just plain boneheaded, and this didn't seem like a notable exception to me.

As a woman in the workplace, his advice was absolutely on point, particularly in regards to clerical work. If I don’t know, I can’t help you. YMMV. 

[dovegrey]

2 hours ago, FnkyChkn34 said:

Does this help?  Better hair and a little stubble... 😍

He definitely has a face that needs a certain haircut and stubble for balance. (He’s my favorite, BTW.) I also think someone in the hair department has had it out for him since season 4, haha. 

[mxc90]

3 hours ago, NJRadioGuy said:

I'd pity the boss who'd write up a top-notch LT for saving one of their own. Maybe some jobsworth asshat-in-a-white-hat but nobody with any leadership moxy would even consider it. IRL you wouldn't believe what goes down if someone's PASS goes off or there's a MAYDAY call. Nothing short of a wall of flame, live wires, or poison gas would stop every single member worth his or her helmet from risking it all to save a brother/sister, and to hell with their own life. At least I can say that about every one of the firemen I've known over the years. I was never on the Job personally, unfortunately, but my connections run deep to FD and PD.

I understand with the real life situations. My question was based on the events the show had presented in the past. There would have been a "Gorsch type" higher than Boden who would have cited regulations and would be beyond pleased to write up Casey if he/she read the incident report or heard Gallo.

3 hours ago, NJRadioGuy said:

I'd have to rewatch the episode but the squad probably wasn't on the run or was returning to quarters. I watched this at 2am today so I don't remember precisely. What got me is that when the truck was looking for her and calling her on the radio neither medic answered. Even if their vehicle radios or antennas were damaged in the dive off the overpass (possible), their HTs would work, and if they're like every other first responders' radios they have panic buttons. And failing that, hit the manual siren button repeatedly in yelp. 

Squad was already in the house (as Severide had Stella on his lap).

My question/confusion: how did 81 know there was a crash/trouble that fast?! I don't know what "10-1" means and Gianna never gave the location.  Maybe it was from a 911 call. In the previous episode, earlier Sylvie called a "10-1" to dispatch when the druggie was chasing them on foot and Casey, Severide or over protective Cruz never left the house. If it was a 911 call, then Squad 3 should also have been sent? 

But I have to remember to forget continuity, Casey needs to save his girl.

3 hours ago, NJRadioGuy said:

This is the bad writing I referred to above. Surely they could assign it to the low man/woman in the house, or get a member of service from HQ to come in. These tasks would be the perfect job for an injured member or a retiree to come in so they can stay around the Job even if they aren't jumping onto apparatus any more. There could be some awesome stories to come out of this for the show, too. But I'm glad the girl got the gig for the sake of the overall story.

Yes. Bad writing. They could have had Gloria (Gallo mention her. I don't think we've met her) come in by herself one or two days out of the week for a few hours to work and teach Boden how to use the copier. 

3 hours ago, NJRadioGuy said:

Nothing that a few applications of a cutting pad, wet sanding, polish, and wax can't fix. When the New 61 backed in, I was looking at the door and noticed the old lettering wasn't on the new door, so I applauded the continuity—they only have one vehicle for the show, and I was wondering if they'd have handwaved getting the lettering done for the new rig before it came into service. This was before I realized what Severide was up to, then I figured it out pretty quick.

I wanted to see Severide travelling the streets in his Mustang with that door. It definitely couldn't fit in the trunk. He had door on the roof with one hand on it and the other on the steering wheel looking like a modern day Fred Sanford.

3 hours ago, NJRadioGuy said:

Nobody wants to get involved, and it's too common an occurrence. They'd rather take a video of someone dying and get famous on Youtube than put their goddamned phones down and try to make the save themselves. Happens here in NYC far too often. But do note that a 4- or 6-car train can stop within about a train length, or less at low speed. Shorter CTA trains probably only need about 200-300 feet from when the motorman throws it into emergency. 

(Looking back) On the track level there was an open space that had stairs leading to the platform not far from the lady. Someone could have jumped or taken the stairs down, picked her up and brought her to the open space way before the train arrived. There wouldn't have been a need to toss her up then jump up (if that was their concern).

Edited November 20, 2020 by mxc90

[MssdDrms]

Read some of the comments and agree on a lot...especially the Gabby not been on the show for two years and still messing it up!  Come on!!  I liked her in the beginning too but then she just became so obnoxious I was glad to see her go.  She took over every story line in every show.   Why can’t she just be gone and stop stinking up the place?
 

I do have to say this is the first time I’ve actually seen some heat between Brett and Casey.  Past seasons there’s been no fire. (Pun intended) 🔥

I was glad to see Severide save the ambulance door. I thought about that too, but then saw they seemed to have left a fully loaded ambulance for anyone to plunder.  Why wouldn’t they have shown someone at least getting the meds out of it???  Good grief!  They all just drove off and left it with crap hanging out of it. 

I really like Ritter.  He’s cute as a button...I just want to put him in my pocket! ❤️

i would rather have seen Casey rescue Brett instead of her manhandling the windshield and getting herself free.  Would it have killed the writers to have gotten a little more drama out of that?? Is that too much to ask?  Taking that kind of jolt from the ambo hitting the ground like that...it hard to believe they walked away from that with barely a scratch.  
 

 

[FnkyChkn34]

I had a thought about the part-time clerical assistance.  Boden always emphasized that they had to let the "civilians" go and no "civilians" could work in the bullpen.  Is the girl that Stella knows (I forget her name) not entirely a "civilian" because she's registered in the Girls on Fire program?  She's kind of like CFD-adjacent already?  I mean, it's a big stretch, but a thought that I had.  

[NJRadioGuy]

7 hours ago, mxc90 said:

I understand with the real life situations. My question was based on the events the show had presented in the past. There would have been a "Gorsch type" higher than Boden who would have cited regulations and would be beyond pleased to write up Casey if he/she read the incident report or heard Gallo.

Yeah, in show-canon he'd get a rip for sure. 

Quote

My question/confusion: how did 81 know there was a crash/trouble that fast?! I don't know what "10-1" means and Gianna never gave the location.  Maybe it was from a 911 call. In the previous episode, earlier Sylvie called a "10-1" to dispatch when the druggie was chasing them on foot and Casey, Severide or over protective Cruz never left the house. If it was a 911 call, then Squad 3 should also have been sent? 

But I have to remember to forget continuity, Casey needs to save his girl.

In "Chicago PD" show canon 10-1 means something along the lines of "clear the air for emergency traffic" or "officer/member in distress," etc. I guess it translates to the FD. That's certainly the context in any event. Real-world equivalent in NYC is a 10-13 (Officer needs assistance). That basically gets every RMP in the zone rolling in lights-and-sirens.

And of course he's got to save his girl! 

Quote

(Looking back) On the track level there was an open space that had stairs leading to the platform not far from the lady. Someone could have jumped or taken the stairs down, picked her up and brought her to the open space way before the train arrived. There wouldn't have been a need to toss her up then jump up (if that was their concern).

Train incidents are always over-dramatized. She could have easily been pulled out of harm's way, and from the distance the train saw the person on the roadbed most likely a 2-car or 4-car train could have stopped. Urban transit cars have far better deceleration characteristics than heavy freight trains, and on the el, I'd be surprised if they were doing over 25 or 30 MPH to begin with; likely 20-25. I was on a D train in Brooklyn last year (10 cars/600 feet long) going what felt like normal track speed that tripped on a signal and went B.I.E. (brakes in emergency). It went from about 35 MPH to stopped in about a half a train length.  CTA trains are shorter and lighter.

Oh, and WTF was the company doing up at Wilson Station? That's a long ways away from their quarters and certainly well out of their response area. Yes, yes, I know. It's a TV Show.

Edited November 20, 2020 by NJRadioGuy

[iMonrey]

They really try to hit us over the head with how heroic these characters are. We've got Casey jumping out of a moving fire truck to save Sylvie and then we've got paramedics risking their lives to save the man who just tried to kill them. I would have let the Mofo burn.

Then there's Stella. Now that Saint Gabby is gone, the show is pushing hard to canonize Stella. She rescues everyone in emergencies, she's saving our at-risk youth with her Girls of Fire program, tracking down girls who go missing, giving them jobs, and Boden is singing her praises and urging her to become a Lieutenant. This is getting out of hand.

I don't know what they're doing with Casey and Sylvie. They might just be trying to drag this out as long as possible for dramatic purposes, or they might think they have to test the waters and see how the rabid Casey and Gabby fans react. 

It seemed awfully weird to bring up Shay all of a sudden. Nobody has mentioned her in years.

[NJRadioGuy]

32 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

They really try to hit us over the head with how heroic these characters are. We've got Casey jumping out of a moving fire truck to save Sylvie

Jeez, do you blame him? It's obvious that he's got strong emotional feelings for her, she's in mortal danger and he's able to do something about it. Hell yes he's going to use every single bit of training and instinct to get to her. Frankly who wouldn't in that case? Hell, any good FF would do it for another member of the service to begin with, let alone a potential romantic partner.

Quote

and then we've got paramedics risking their lives to save the man who just tried to kill them. I would have let the Mofo burn.

That's what medics and FFs do, plain and simple. They're not paid executioners, judges, or juries. And this is why I will always despise Cruz, because he did precisely that in Season 1. There'll always be the little voice in the back of your head saying "do it" but if you do, you're a murderer. From a storytelling perspective, you lose the hero status and don't deserve to get the girl. 

Quote

Then there's Stella. Now that Saint Gabby is gone, the show is pushing hard to canonize Stella. She rescues everyone in emergencies, she's saving our at-risk youth with her Girls of Fire program, tracking down girls who go missing, giving them jobs, and Boden is singing her praises and urging her to become a Lieutenant. This is getting out of hand.

I'm seeing warning flags with Stella for sure, but honestly she really is a badass. Good for her making as many saves as she can. I knew a guy about 20 years ago who retired off an Engine company in a Really Bad Part Of Town as it were. He had more grabs than anybody else in his house or platoon, I think. He "just knew" where to be and when. Would that even be an issue if it was Severide or Casey making all the saves?

FOR THE MOMENT, I think they're consistent with writing Kidd as an extremely competent firefighter, a great organizer, and a strong leader with a good future ahead of her, and if this was real-life she'd be a BC in a couple of years or on Squad if she wanted, or moving up to HQ. But as a dramatic character, they're setting her up for a big fall of some kind of another. The showrunners and actors have been teasing a proposal or whatnot in interviews, and I think she'll get that, but my spidey sense is telling me Kidd might end up getting killed off. Either she or her GOF protegée probably won't survive to the end of the season. I hope I'm wrong. Or they could go the other way and turn Kidd into Saint Gabby the Second, which I seriously hope they don't do.

She's not a lead actor on the show so she's expendable in that sense. And as I've posted elsewhere, after she aces her LT exam (which of course she will) she'll have been written into a corner, and I'm trying to see a good dramatic way to move her along past that.

[Sandman]

18 hours ago, dovegrey said:

As a woman in the workplace, his advice was absolutely on point, particularly in regards to clerical work. If I don’t know, I can’t help you. YMMV. 

I can see that, especially where certain tasks are traditionally expected of women in the workplace (clerical work, organizing meetings, social convener...) but in this case, it seemed to me that Hermann's approach had the opposite net result: passing off tasks to his woman co-worker/employee the tasks he found distasteful, beneath him or too trendy (possibly too girly?) or just uninteresting. Maybe it's the boss's prerogative, but I wouldn't mind seeing Kidd adopt that approach and see what happens. 

[dovegrey]

7 hours ago, NJRadioGuy said:

I'm seeing warning flags with Stella for sure, but honestly she really is a badass. Good for her making as many saves as she can. I knew a guy about 20 years ago who retired off an Engine company in a Really Bad Part Of Town as it were. He had more grabs than anybody else in his house or platoon, I think. He "just knew" where to be and when. Would that even be an issue if it was Severide or Casey making all the saves?

FOR THE MOMENT, I think they're consistent with writing Kidd as an extremely competent firefighter, a great organizer, and a strong leader with a good future ahead of her, and if this was real-life she'd be a BC in a couple of years or on Squad if she wanted, or moving up to HQ. But as a dramatic character, they're setting her up for a big fall of some kind of another. The showrunners and actors have been teasing a proposal or whatnot in interviews, and I think she'll get that, but my spidey sense is telling me Kidd might end up getting killed off. Either she or her GOF protegée probably won't survive to the end of the season. I hope I'm wrong. Or they could go the other way and turn Kidd into Saint Gabby the Second, which I seriously hope they don't do.

She's not a lead actor on the show so she's expendable in that sense. And as I've posted elsewhere, after she aces her LT exam (which of course she will) she'll have been written into a corner, and I'm trying to see a good dramatic way to move her along past that.

Herrmann could leave, and she could take Engine (applying in-show rules about FFs jumping from apparatus to apparatus like it's no big deal). Casey could go back to Gabby like Brett oh so fears, and Kidd could take Truck as his natural replacement (which I am kinda worried about...pieces are moving into place). Or, she passes the exam but doesn’t immediately promote up, like Herrmann back in the day; maybe she chooses to forego promotion and stay with the 51 “family,” maybe she messes up on a call and gets dinged, or maybe she pisses off a white shirt who blocks the nod. Or, she doesn’t pass - drama! Point being, I don’t see this storyline boxing her into a clear path, even if it WOULD in the real world. These writers also tend to drop big storylines like hot potatoes, and it could quietly go nowhere until the writers need Lt. Kidd to replace Herrmann or Casey...

...because Fire has an ageing cast, and it’s hard to tell what next season could look like in terms of cast/characters. I start to expect veteran main cast members of most shows to start dropping after 7-9 seasons. Casey, Severide, Boden, Herrmann, Mouch, and Cruz are season 1 originals, and five of them usually don’t have a whole, whole lot going on. This is Brett’s seventh season (!) and Kidd’s fifth season. The majority of the cast are routinely negotiating 1-season or 2-season contracts, which means Jesse Spencer and Taylor Kinney in particular are getting expensive (both are due for a third contract renewal this year). The writers have probably waited too long to start developing characters like Kidd into viable lead-replacements. But it's good that they're doing it now.

In any event, I’d be super okay with an unexpected, non-finale death or disabling injury, like a Lucy Knight from ER or Will Gardner from The Good Wife. This show suffers from its routine formula and 95% of its finale cliffhangers being easily resolved, handwaved duds (like this one with the ambo). Let’s kill off a main character in 9x12! 😄 

Edited November 21, 2020 by dovegrey
clarifying

[NJRadioGuy]

No way Casey goes back to Gabby (i.e. leaves the show, since Gabby ain't coming back--and I refuse to think the unthinkable here). I can see either Mouch or Hermann getting written out, although as a Certified Olde Pharte myself, I like seeing the veterans on the job, not just a bunch of Hollywood Twinkies. I could definitely see Kidd getting knocked down by a white-shirt or some other factor. The whole promotion thing is a big plot obstacle, and frankly I don't see the writers being creative enough to plot their way out cleanly.

[dovegrey]

28 minutes ago, NJRadioGuy said:

No way Casey goes back to Gabby (i.e. leaves the show, since Gabby ain't coming back--and I refuse to think the unthinkable here). I can see either Mouch or Hermann getting written out, although as a Certified Olde Pharte myself, I like seeing the veterans on the job, not just a bunch of Hollywood Twinkies. I could definitely see Kidd getting knocked down by a white-shirt or some other factor. The whole promotion thing is a big plot obstacle, and frankly I don't see the writers being creative enough to plot their way out cleanly.

The skeptic in me says: I don’t see Derek Haas letting Dawsey go (just look at what happened when Gabby came back last season). I can see Casey’s first attempt at a real post-Gabby relationship with someone he really does deeply care about making him realize he doesn’t want to or can’t move on from Gabby. Boom, he’s off to Puerto Rico to use his firefighting and general contractor experience for disaster relief. (And, honestly, this episode is the first one in a while where I thought Jesse Spencer seemed like he actually gave a shit. I do think he’s a flight risk, but, then, I didn’t expect him to renew for seasons 8-9, so what do I know.) 

I would absolutely love to be wrong, and I really hope this episode’s Dawsey derail is about dismantling the last doubts about Brett and Casey’s Dawson baggage, rather than about Casey going to hang out in Gabby’s tent. But, then, both actors have been on the show for a real long time, and what happens if the other leaves? (No, the writers haven’t thought that far ahead.)

I’m with you on wanting the older characters to stay. Mouch is one of my favorites; I think Christian Stolte does a really good job of balancing serious storylines with silly plots, and he’s underused. The show would do well to introduce new characters who aren’t so very clearly their 20s, like Vargas, Hadley, Rafferty, Clarke, Newhouse, and many other bygones no one remembers.

Haha - I have 0% faith in these writers, too. 

[Guildford]

2 hours ago, dovegrey said:

 The show would do well to introduce new characters who aren’t so very clearly their 20s, like Vargas, Hadley, Rafferty, Clarke, Newhouse, and many other bygones no one remembers.

Haha - I have 0% faith in these writers, too. 

I miss Clarke...he's the only character I was actually disappointed to lose (I am ignoring that whole Med/Nat fiasco)

[Dowel Jones]

I concur with others about the accident.  The effect of going off a bridge would be the equivalent of at least a 25-20 mph, and no airbags deployed?  Plus, the shock effect of seat and shoulder belts would be dramatic.  Go to the hospital.  It's not an option.

To be honest, I didn't see the door replacement coming until reading about it here in the comments.  I wasn't paying that much attention.  One thing about the heist - Severide did the cool thing by using the metal to make a ladder on the outside, but I said as soon as I saw that, "Throw another piece over the fence so you can climb back out."  Don't ask me how I know.

Another thing about the door.  Gallo is left behind while Hermann goes to fuel up the engine.  No, just no.  Everyone rides on the vehicle all the time.  What happens if they get a call?  And then Casey demands that he help them with a chore, as yet unidentified.  The show has been pounding us with the division of labor between engine/squad/ladder, but, when Casey needs help, he doesn't go to Truck.  He picks a guy from Engine, and gives him an direct order, no less.  There could have been extenuating circumstances, I will concede that.

On 11/20/2020 at 6:32 PM, NJRadioGuy said:

No way Casey goes back to Gabby (i.e. leaves the show, since Gabby ain't coming back--and I refuse to think the unthinkable here).

Brett and Casey continue to play the 'will they or won't they' game, until Casey finally agrees to start divorce proceedings.  (Cue a scene from LOTR3 when Mordor erupts with flame and lava, and Sauron's evil eye appears, spreading terror throughout Middle Earth).  It's the return of Gabby!  Take a deep breath, folks.  I was only joking.  I hope.

Kudos to the GoF team for using the reminder 'bumps to the pump'.  Although I used something else, and I cannot remember what it was (long time ago), I'll give a short expo for anyone not-FD here.  The hose has two different extrusions, if you will.  One for the male end, one for the female end, based on thread location.  A hose lay always goes (from the pump) female to male, with the male always ending at the nozzle.  So, you follow the male ends, which you memorized by touch at the academy, back toward the pump and safety.  If you follow the female ends, you end up at the nozzle, which no one is ever operating, at least on this show.  That's not a comment on sexuality by the way.  Don't bash me, please.

[NJRadioGuy]

Also known as Little to big, back to the rig!

 

[WinJet0819]

The ending of this episode had me cackling. Gabby is long gone, and she's still anchoring Matt from afar. He can not move on. Sylvie asked him a fair question, and the "I don't know" answer cut their potential relationship off at the knees. Of all things you'd expect to stop their relationship, never expected a brutally honest question to be it. Now, thanks to the writers, you can understand why Sylvie didn't want to believe she was falling for Matt. In the back of her mind, she had a feeling he still was not over Gabby. They should just have Matt be single, and focus on that. Stop trying to pair him up.

I'm still wondering how Sylvie and Gianna walk away from that crash like nothing happened and want to get back to work. Yes, there are people that don't let stuff like this bother them. But I don't see it in these two. They were driven off the road, and had a gun pointed at them, again, and they're not even taken to Med or given counseling. Even though Sylvie and Gianna say they're OK, as paramedics, they should be first to recognize the risks of an internal injury or a concussion from an impact like that. Especially, when none of the airbags deployed. You got to the hospital as a precaution, regardless of you saying you're OK.

And based on the camera when they were leaving the ambo crash scene, it really did seem like nobody actually secured the scene. I saw no cop cars or other emergency vehicles. And there's a lot of drugs on that rig to just leave unattended. Not good camera work by the crew, at all.

I'd also be curious to see how Stella was able to get Kylie cleared to work in the admin office of the station when no civilians have been cleared to work there. Kylie is not only a civilian, but still a minor. So how's it safe for her?

 

[dovegrey]

10 hours ago, Dowel Jones said:

I concur with others about the accident.  The effect of going off a bridge would be the equivalent of at least a 25-20 mph, and no airbags deployed?  Plus, the shock effect of seat and shoulder belts would be dramatic.  Go to the hospital.  It's not an option.

Another thing about the door.  Gallo is left behind while Hermann goes to fuel up the engine.  No, just no.  Everyone rides on the vehicle all the time.  What happens if they get a call?  And then Casey demands that he help them with a chore, as yet unidentified.  The show has been pounding us with the division of labor between engine/squad/ladder, but, when Casey needs help, he doesn't go to Truck.  He picks a guy from Engine, and gives him an direct order, no less.  There could have been extenuating circumstances, I will concede that.

Brett and Casey continue to play the 'will they or won't they' game, until Casey finally agrees to start divorce proceedings.  

Gallo is on Truck. He’s Casey’s recruit. 🙂
 

And I thought Casey already divorced Gabby. He kept calling it a divorce back in season 7. 
 

The only reason I haven’t rolled my eyes out of my head about the ambo accident aftermath is I don’t think they are allowed to cross cast between sets right now. And they were running really close to airdates (episode 3 isn’t even 100% filmed yet) and don’t have time to wait for the Med production to go home so Fire can use the set.  There were definitely ways to respect the nature of the crash beyond how they handwaved it, though. 

[Crs97]

IIRC, when they said they wanted to get back to work Boden replied, “Not gonna happen” so at least they had to take a day.  It would have been easy to add a scene of them walking back in after being checked out if the concern was cross-contamination with the Med set.

[dovegrey]

16 minutes ago, Crs97 said:

IIRC, when they said they wanted to get back to work Boden replied, “Not gonna happen” so at least they had to take a day.  It would have been easy to add a scene of them walking back in after being checked out if the concern was cross-contamination with the Med set.

Oh, no, absolutely. It really seemed like Brett and Mackey both stayed at the firehouse for the entire shift, even though Boden told them to go home. Even a line about them going to Med, and then Cruz checking in with Mackey and Casey checking in with Brett with the same "it's always been you" conversation. The writing is really bad, no doubt, and the writers constantly get all excited about these cliffhangers...that they then do absolutely nothing exciting with. There is very little effort, or very little respect for the intelligence of the audience. 

But I am wondering if some/many of these scenes were filmed in season 8 and are being used now for season 9, which may also be an obstacle to slightly better storytelling. For instance, Casey's hair went from his normal color and cut at Molly's, then the very next scene at 51 it was back to the longer, weird auburn bronde color. It's more than lighting, IMO.