S06.E03: An Even Bigger Surprise

[Guest]

Quote

Lt. Casey gets off on the wrong foot with Sam Mullins, a temporary chief who is filling in for Boden at House 51 for the morning. When Casey later makes a risky move in an attempt to save a distraught man from jumping off a building, Mullins has a surprise that Casey does not expect. In other events, Mouch flies in Cruz's brother as a birthday surprise, but the rest of the squad struggles to keep it a secret; and Brett is caught off guard when she learns new information about Hope.

[NJRadioGuy]

Fluff episode, but I did like the Hope reveal.

I don't get the issue of doubling up in the ambulance. A critical ALS patient and an injured child, no second bus for 10 minutes, that's a no-brainer. Load and go. Just hope the girl on the backboard was properly secured to the bench seat. The $64,000 question was how did those two manage to get the bariatric pt on a stretcher into the ambo in the first place without a lift assist. Would a V-tach patient have sat up and been "normal" 10 seconds after being shocked? Conscious, yes, but able to sit up and talk? And why the hell wasn't he connected to the Lifepak? They obviously would have had to have him connected to detect the V-tach then to shock him, so where were the leads?

Mullins is Chekov's Chief. Bet on it. TV-CFD seriously needs to examine its entire brass' leadership qualifications. But I do agree with Mullins on one thing. Cigar butts are nasty; they stink to high heaven. I have a dedicated ash can on the driveway filled with BBQ and fireplace ashes, and as soon as I'm finished a cigar that's where the butt gets dumped. If I were a boss I'd have been pissed to find those, too.

This was a very short episode. 38 minutes from what I saw, where the average network drama is 41-43.

Edited October 13, 2017 by NJRadioGuy

[Crs97]

Why is Connie telling Britt?  You go straight to Boden and HR with that information, not to the suspect's best friend.  I will not be happy if this turns into Britt having to investigate and/or decide how to proceed or being in trouble/feeling guilty if Hope steals from them, too.

Why was Gabby demanding that Casey fix things?  Write your report, Gabby, and fix it yourself.

[Xantar]

My read is that Mullins was deliberately being an ass in order to test the crew. Even these writers must know that the obstructive bureaucrat with a grudge plotline is played out. So they turned it around.

Speaking of which, they got me with the Cruz surprise. I thought for sure he had it figured out, but I didn't expect him to turn the prank around on Mouch. That was fun. Also fun was Stella's "air traffic is jammed up" routine with Kelly. He deserved it.

[iMonrey]

Dare I say, this one was pretty good? I mean, I spent the first 50 minutes wondering why in the hell everyone in the CFD hierarchy is such an asshole. This crew has saved half of Chicago ten times over but every time some bigwig comes in and throws his weight around he wants to shut the place down. It's so tiresome. So I was pleasantly surprised by the twist at the end, although in hindsight it's not terribly realistic. I doubt lieutenants are "tested" that way before they are promoted. 

I did suspect that Cruz knew about his brother right around the time he started trying to get Otis to come gang-hunting with him, although by the end when they were walking into the bar I figured maybe not. But then when Leon didn't show after Mouch called his name I had this awful sinking feeling for a minute that maybe the gang had gotten to him after all and killed him. So, another nice twist!

Also, minimum Gabby except for that annoying bitch face she gave her husband when he dared to question her paperwork.

Overall, a solid B+.

[SuzieQ]

I knew Hope would turn out to be hiding something.  Such a perky, needy little tramp, lol!  LOVED Severide's face when Boden announced he had hired her.  He was as white as a sheet and so relieved when she told him they would not be an ongoing thing!!

[Waterston Fan]

This was an okay episode. 

I admit, the ambulance part, I'm really not sure if they can load two people in it. At first I kept thinking, Casey, shut up!! 

Hiring someone, how does that work? I would think there would be a background check before getting hired anywhere nowadays and I thought it was strange that Connie went to Sylvie.
That would explain why Hope didn't tell her but I hope Sylvie doesn't get crap her way but I bet that will happen. 

It was nice that Mouch got Cruz's brother to visit and that was cool at the end. 

EDIT: I had to watch this on the NBC website because it somehow didn't record... the ads, I tell you... f'ing pain in the ass!! 

What is the next episode called so I can check the previews on youtube? 

Edited October 13, 2017 by Waterston Fan

[athelyna]

I have to admit, I was sort of hoping when they called Casey and Gabby into Boden's office I thought maybe the temp chief was going to recommend splitting them up after Casey argued with him over the paramedic's paperwork. It still bugs me they made a big deal when they first started dating about how they had to hide the relationship because of fraternization rules, but apparently now it's totally cool for married couples to serve at the same house, on the same shift, when one is in a leadership position (even if technically Gabby no longer reports directly to Casey).  I did laugh at Severide pointing out how he screws up and gets in trouble, Casey screws up or makes waves and gets promoted.  At the same time, I sort of figured after the suicide rescue they weren't going to have the temp chief be completely evil, just because even this show's writers have to realize that the 51 crew doing something unorthodox and the stupid brass who are too dumb to understand the need for improvising and spur of the moment calls makes their lives hell has been done to death.

So, CFD just hires the first random person to walk in off the streets asking for a job without doing a background check or calling their previous employers to make sure they weren't fired for stealing a bunch of money?  Man, I wish real world job hunting was that easy.  I figured Slyvie's friend was in some sort of trouble, and they were dropping enough hints that she planned on sticking around Chicago and the firehouse for longer than a couple weeks.

I definitely figured Cruz knew about his brother when he started going on about talking to the gangs, and agreed to Otis' suggestion they go after his Molly's shift because the gangbangers are really out at 2 in the morning.  I am glad they remembered his existence - I was a little afraid they were going somewhere bad when he popped up in the previously on.

Even with Casey's situation being unrealistic, it was nice to get a mostly happy, lighter episode.

[NYCFree]

Even if they did a background check on her, she has clearly not been arrested or charged for the embezzlement because a)that would have shown up and b) Sylvie would know about it via gossip. Many HR departments are also limited in what they can say about a past employee, other than to confirm they were employed, and for what dates. It seems like Connie knew something from gossip from Fowlerton.

[Pallada]

8 hours ago, Waterston Fan said:

What is the next episode called so I can check the previews on youtube? 

The next eppy is called A Breaking Point. Be warned though- it's Dawson-centric...

[Waterston Fan]

9 hours ago, Pallada said:

The next eppy is called A Breaking Point. Be warned though- it's Dawson-centric...

Okay, thanks. I did check out the preview and you're right. Yikes!! 

Scene where Gabby asked Matt about Hope and Connie her the word 'she'. 

Did Connie actually think that they were talking about her? I guess Gabby and Matt didn't want her to know who they were talking about even if it made sense about a new person. 

How does Connie know people from Fowlerton and Sylvie seems to be in the dark? 

[bounnatalie]

Did anyone notice that Gabby and Sylvie had their blue gloves on while driving the ambulance, getting out, then opening the back door, etc. Is that standard practice? It didn't seem super sanitary.

[dreamcatcher]

Sooo are they trying to make Matt the new Gabby? He was the only one to get a medal in the premiere, and now suddenly he is being promoted to captain because he is sooo impressive? Kelly was right: he always gets in trouble even though he is supposedly amazing (the youngest guy ever to move to squad),and Casey gets the promotion? I do feel like his character is more responsible so it makes sense he would get a promotion over Kelly, but at least space it out a bit. Don't give him two honors in three episodes.

And what the hell was that with having Gabby in that meeting? They weren't supposed to flaunt their relationship and now she's getting called in with him to hear the good news?

[juliet73]

This show is just ridiculous!  The suicide negotiator really sucked at his job!  I didn't understand why Casey was being promoted because of that call.  Obviously, he and the rest of the crew had done saves like that before since they all knew where to go, what to do, etc with only non verbal cues.  Severide has definitely done some heroic saves, but he gets suspended. 

I didn't understand why the whole 2 patients in the ambulance was a problem.  Also, I didn't understand why they strapped the girl down on the board as if her life depended on it even though she was sitting up when they got there and said her wrist hurt.  In the meantime, that dude needed flippin' CPR and the defibrillator!  It looked like they were walking him to the ambulance.  Seriously?  Why didn't they let him drive it to Med while they were at it!

I didn't understand the need for the dick chief to come in since Boden was only gone for a few hours.  Usually when Boden leaves for a short time, he yells at Hermann to be in charge.  Colored me surprised when a-hole chief didn't turn out to be a complete a-hole.  

I knew Cruz found out about his brother when he asked Otis to go gang hunting.  Cruz did something similar in another season.  

Hope can hit the bricks any time now!  No background check, obviously no interview since I would think if there was one, Boden/Connie would have asked Sylvie about her.  I was really hoping the Hope situation would have turned into a Fatal Attraction storyline.  Severide is such a man whore that it's surprising he hasn't had at least one crazy stalker!  The embezzlement plot is weak and stupid!  

Didn't Mouch have a long lost son?  Whatever happened to him?  He was in like two episodes and was talked about again.  

I think this is the first episode that Capp, Tony(?) and Connie all had speaking parts. 

[shksabelle]

I knew thete was something hinky about Hope. 

The first time she came on screen I thought "bunny boiler". 

[Dowel Jones]

The only real problems with a double transport are that, 1) in real life, the cardiac patient would require the gurney, so they would have to unload the (presumably properly secured) patient from that gurney and hand load her into the ambo while on the backboard, and 2) one medic would have to take care of two people while in transport.  Of course, in the magical world of Chicago Fire, one round on the AED stopped the v-tac and the patient was fully recovered, so those problems were automatically mitigated.

An in-station romance at 51?  Color me not surprised.  At all.

No, wearing gloves on the way to the call is not standard practice, unless you yourself are infected with something.  But that would be a whole 'nother issue.  I always put my gloves on after arrival.

On 10/12/2017 at 7:52 PM, NJRadioGuy said:

Mullins is Chekov's Chief. Bet on it

How exactly is a BC promoted to Commissioner in one step?  That line floored me.  Does that mean he will be the boss of that asshole Assistant Chief from last season?  The battle is on the horizon, and Boden's career is on the line again.

I had to laugh at the line about the two cigar butts, because last episode Casey and Severide were the owners of those two cigars on the roof.  Busted!

Is there a captain position open on the truck, or will Casey have to move to another station?  If so, will there be a gusher of tears from Gabby and a demand to Boden to keep him there at 51?  Transfer someone else, she whines.  You can't do this to us!

I loved Hermann's line about "buy one, get one free"  Buy one, get one and pay for it.  He knows about business.  Too bad he got shanked in the end.

[Oldbugger]

It was strange at the end, the way Boden asked Casey if he had anything he wanted to tell the Chief about the jumper rescue -- almost as though he was trying to incite defensive remarks from Casey.  He obviously had Casey's report that he could have read in detail before calling Casey into his office, with Mullin standing there, looking like he was ready to personally execute someone.  Was Boden suggesting that Casey might want to change his story from the report?  We didn't hear all that Casey said in response -- just the last part, where he says he stands by his decisions at the time.

I was cool the way it ended though, with Mullin showing that he does have some smarts and the ability to accurately judge the quality of subordinate officers. 

I've known guys like Mullin in private industry, and this lack of people skills generally hurts their careers.  When they piss off enough people, working their way up through the layers of promotions, eventually their character comes back to bite them on the butt.  People they've hurt on the way up will find ways to sabotage them.  In Viet Nam, officers like this guy were often shot in the field, by their own troops.  People skills are a valuable asset in almost all walks of life.

[NJRadioGuy]

16 hours ago, Dowel Jones said:

The only real problems with a double transport are that, 1) in real life, the cardiac patient would require the gurney, so they would have to unload the (presumably properly secured) patient from that gurney and hand load her into the ambo while on the backboard, and 2) one medic would have to take care of two people while in transport.  Of course, in the magical world of Chicago Fire, one round on the AED stopped the v-tac and the patient was fully recovered, so those problems were automatically mitigated.

How exactly is a BC promoted to Commissioner in one step?  That line floored me.  Does that mean he will be the boss of that asshole Assistant Chief from last season?  The battle is on the horizon, and Boden's career is on the line again.

Is there a captain position open on the truck, or will Casey have to move to another station?  If so, will there be a gusher of tears from Gabby and a demand to Boden to keep him there at 51?  Transfer someone else, she whines.  You can't do this to us!

The Commissioner is appointed by the mayor, so presumably if he has some pull in the mayor's office (or has incriminating pictures of the mayor) he could be named to that position from a BC. You can imagine the shitstorm from the rank-and-file and the press if that were to happen, though.

I'm guessing the promotion to captain will fall through because of a Plot Device To Be Named Later, thus keeping him in the house, since there is no position of captain in E51's quarters. Each rig has its own LT, and the BC (Boden) runs the house in this case. I'm guessing the rank of Captain would become the senior officer in a house that doesn't include a Batallion Chief, maybe? That's a bit unclear to me.

The double transport in that case would make sense. The kid strapped onto the backboard with what appears to be a minor injury, and certainly a BLS transport, isn't going anywhere if that backboard is secured to the bench seat. The cardiac is an ALS transport for sure, and with no other resources available for 10 minutes (hint: real-life they'd have a sea of emergency vehicles for a collision involving a child) he needs to go ASAP. So, with no other ambo available, what else would they do? I suppose they could keep the kid strapped to the backboard on the ground with a couple of EMT-B firefighters or uniform cops to keep her calm until another ambo can get there. I would be quite surprised if, for an MVA, dispatch wouldn't roll 2 or 3 ambulances, since accidents often have more than one pt. Or at least an EMT supervisor who can maybe transport an ambulatory BLS pt in a pinch.

[FnkyChkn34]

I'm wondering if Jesse Spencer wants to leave the show, and at the very last minute TPTB decided to promote Casey rather than kill him off?  He'll just go to a different house and be available for guest appearances?  I don't know...  I'm still flabbergasted at how he "saved a civilian" when there was NO ONE near him in last season's finale, and now he's received a medal and a promotion in less than a month.  It's all too rushed for me.

[dreamcatcher]

On 10/16/2017 at 9:33 AM, Dowel Jones said:

The only real problems with a double transport are that, 1) in real life, the cardiac patient would require the gurney, so they would have to unload the (presumably properly secured) patient from that gurney and hand load her into the ambo while on the backboard, and 2) one medic would have to take care of two people while in transport.  Of course, in the magical world of Chicago Fire, one round on the AED stopped the v-tac and the patient was fully recovered, so those problems were automatically mitigated.

An in-station romance at 51?  Color me not surprised.  At all.

No, wearing gloves on the way to the call is not standard practice, unless you yourself are infected with something.  But that would be a whole 'nother issue.  I always put my gloves on after arrival.

How exactly is a BC promoted to Commissioner in one step?  That line floored me.  Does that mean he will be the boss of that asshole Assistant Chief from last season?  The battle is on the horizon, and Boden's career is on the line again.

I had to laugh at the line about the two cigar butts, because last episode Casey and Severide were the owners of those two cigars on the roof.  Busted!

Is there a captain position open on the truck, or will Casey have to move to another station?  If so, will there be a gusher of tears from Gabby and a demand to Boden to keep him there at 51?  Transfer someone else, she whines.  You can't do this to us!

I loved Hermann's line about "buy one, get one free"  Buy one, get one and pay for it.  He knows about business.  Too bad he got shanked in the end.

I kinda assumed that he would stay at this position, he would just be a captain instead of lieutenant. Wasn't there a captain in season 2 or 3 who temporarily took Kelly's spot and then became chief?

[FnkyChkn34]

So whether or not Captain Casey stays at 51 or goes elsewhere, does that mean that Truck 81 needs a new Lieutenant?  Hello Lt. Herrmann?  I hope so.

[SnarkySheep]

On 10/13/2017 at 0:47 PM, iMonrey said:

This crew has saved half of Chicago ten times over but every time some bigwig comes in and throws his weight around he wants to shut the place down. It's so tiresome.

This was literally my first thought the second that Mullins guy walked in. Our household all said, "Haven't we already gone down this road before?

 

On 10/17/2017 at 3:09 PM, dreamcatcher said:

An in-station romance at 51?  Color me not surprised.  At all.

Anyone remember the very beginning of Season 1? Severide was involved with some girl from the office. Again, recycled plot.

[MakeMeLaugh]

Finally saw this episode. I am throwing the remote at the TV with the stupidness of the plotlines, and on the other hand, Mr. MML is loving every minute of it. Gah.

[belletane]

On 19/10/2017 at 7:27 PM, MakeMeLaugh said:

Finally saw this episode. I am throwing the remote at the TV with the stupidness of the plotlines, and on the other hand, Mr. MML is loving every minute of it. Gah.

The plotlines of this show are mostly just old ones that are being recycled. No idea why. It's just lazy writing and showrunning. It's as if NBC and the show runners have just given up on what used to be an amazing show called Chicago Fire and turned it into The Dawson Show. They don't even aspire to be very realistic any more and the continuity is appalling.  Major events and happenings are just swept under the carpet and conveniently forgotten. Sad. Because it could be so much better. It's having the life strangled out of it.

[belletane]

On 17/10/2017 at 3:04 PM, FnkyChkn34 said:

I'm wondering if Jesse Spencer wants to leave the show, and at the very last minute TPTB decided to promote Casey rather than kill him off?  He'll just go to a different house and be available for guest appearances?  I don't know...  I'm still flabbergasted at how he "saved a civilian" when there was NO ONE near him in last season's finale, and now he's received a medal and a promotion in less than a month.  It's all too rushed for me.

Lots of us have wondered this because the ending of S5 was left open to Casey not returning. And it wouldn't surprise me at all if Jesse Spencer did wish to leave this show and find something else because he is capable to SO MUCH BETTER. He is really wasted in this show now.  They have shoved dawson front and centre at the expense of every other person in the show, and it has become a much poorer show as a result.  Anyway now he is a captain, at least if he wants to leave he can do so without necessarily being killed off, which means if the show lasts beyond season 6, he could do recurring guest appearances. 

[SnarkySheep]

On 1/28/2018 at 5:54 PM, belletane said:

I'm wondering if Jesse Spencer wants to leave the show, and at the very last minute TPTB decided to promote Casey rather than kill him off? 

My private dream? That Casey decides he actually has a medical calling and heads for New Jersey with Hugh Laurie...who you KNOW would not suffer Gabriela Dawson for a single minute!

[belletane]

On 31/01/2018 at 12:04 AM, SnarkySheep said:

My private dream? That Casey decides he actually has a medical calling and heads for New Jersey with Hugh Laurie...who you KNOW would not suffer Gabriela Dawson for a single minute!

And it is our very public dream that Dawson would leave Chicago Fire for good! Never know such a horibble tv character before and we will never ever understand why on earth the show runners think the public actually WANT to see her in this show anyway! She needs to leave Casey alone and disappear so he can have someone who deserves him because SHE.DOES.NOT.