Chicago Fire (TV series)

Chicago Fire is an American television drama series that airs on NBC and was created by Michael Brandt and Derek Haas and produced by Dick Wolf. The series originally premiered on October 10, 2012.[1] the show follows the lives of the firefighters and paramedics working at the Chicago Fire Department at the firehouse of Engine 51, Truck 81, Squad 3, Ambulance 61 and Battalion 25.

The pilot episode had an early release at NBC.com, before the series' premiere on television.[2] On April 26, 2013, NBC renewed Chicago Fire for a second season[3] and moved its time slot to Tuesdays at 10:00 p.m. ET. The season debuted on September 24, 2013 and concluded on May 13, 2014.[4]

On March 19, 2014, NBC renewed the series for a third season.[5] The season premiered on September 23, 2014.[6]

On March 27, 2013, NBC announced plans for a possible spin-off of Chicago Fire.[7] NBC greenlit the police procedural spin-off series, under the title Chicago P.D., which premiered on January 8, 2014, at 10 p.m. ET.[8]

A major crossover between the two Chicago shows occurred near the end of the second season, in addition to a crossover between Law & Order: Special Victims Unitand Chicago P.D.[9] A three-way crossover with Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Chicago P.D. aired on November 11 and 12, 2014.[10]

On February 5, 2015, NBC renewed the series for a fourth season.[11]

Contents
[hide]
 * 1 Plot
 * 2 Cast
 * 2.1 Main
 * 2.2 Recurring
 * 3 Episodes
 * 3.1 Crossovers
 * 4 Production
 * 5 Reception
 * 5.1 Spin-off
 * 6 Awards and nominations
 * 7 References
 * 8 External links

Plot[edit]
The show explores the lives, both professional and personal, of the firefighters and paramedics of the Chicago Fire Department at the quarters of Engine Co. 51, Truck Co. 81, Rescue Squad Co. 3, and Ambulance 61. Following the death of Firefighter Andrew Darden, the loyalties fracture and divide as the Lieutenant, or officer-in-charge of Truck Co. 81, Matthew Casey and the officer-in-charge of Squad Co. 3, Lieutenant Kelly Severide both blame one another for Darden's death. Kelly Severide is consumed with more guilt when he learns Darden's wife also blames him for the tragedy. Despite their differences, the firehouse comes together after the near death of Truck Co. 81 Firefighter Christopher Herrmann.

New to the station is Firefighter Candidate Peter Mills, also assigned to Truck Co. 81, who is following in the footsteps of his late father and trying to find his place, over the objections of his mother. Alongside Paramedics Gabriela Dawson and Leslie Shay, under the leadership of 25th Battalion Chief Wallace Boden, the firehouse faces life or death decisions every day, but look to each other like family, making sure to look out for each other, no matter what happens. Chicago Fire '​s tagline is, "This Family Burns Deep".

Main[edit]
° Received main billing only in the episodes in which they appeared during season 1.

* Passes the Lieutenant's test during season 2, promotion pending.
 * Jesse Spencer as Lieutenant Matthew Casey, Truck 81: As the leader of the truck, he has a no-nonsense attitude and commands respect at the risk of alienating some of his housemates due to his stand-offish demeanor. He is engaged to Dr. Hallie Thomas for a time, but they decide to break it off, at which point he tentatively pursues Gabby Dawson but ends up deciding to stay friends. At the end of the first season in "Ambition" Hallie returns and Casey rekindles his relationship with her but she is murdered in season 1 episode "Leaders Lead". At the end of season 1 and the prelude into season 2 Gabby shows up at his door helping him cope with Hallie's death. In season 2 episode "Rhymes with Shout" he shows up at Gabby's door and kisses her at the end of the episode. At the start of the next episode they are shown waking up in bed together and are in a relationship. Casey is also burdened by his ex-convict mother, who shattered the family 15 years earlier after murdering his father. Casey also takes in the children of Heather and the late Andy Darden after Heather is arrested (for a DUI which kills her friend) for a while then Heather and the children move away. In episode 10 of season 2, "Not Like This" Casey risks his life to save a baby in a burning building and is put in critical condition. When he gets back on the job, he realizes that he has suffered severe memory loss, but keeps this from his co-workers. He then finds himself behaving erratically and bleeding from his ear. His doctor tells him that he has suffered a cracked skull and is in danger of permanent brain damage, but he keeps this to himself for fear of having to retire.


 * Taylor Kinney as Lieutenant Kelly Severide, Rescue Squad 3: Severide is strong yet slightly more charismatic than Casey, which lends itself to his ladies' man persona. At the beginning of season 1, he is plagued with a shoulder injury that puts his career in jeopardy. He hides this from everyone except Shay, from whom he gets painkillers to deal with his injury. When he finally sees a doctor, he is told that his condition is severe and would no longer be able to keep his job. His girlfriend at the time, Renee, tells him of an experimental procedure, which he undergoes to save his shoulder. After the injury a Paramedic Candidate also threatens his career with a false allegation of sexual harassment and is revealed to be a fraud after talking to the other victim. In Season 2 Kelly discovers he has a half-sister, Katie, who is a culinary student. Although she is at first hesitant to let him in because she and her mother had been abandoned by Benny Severide, the two become close. In the episode "Tonight's The Night" of season 2, Katie is kidnapped and Severide tries to find her in the following episodes. After she is found, she leaves for Colorado. When Katie's kidnapper disappears, Severide becomes a suspect. However, Benny Severide is revealed to be responsible. In Season 3, Kelly goes on a weekend trip to Las Vegas, he got married to a woman he met at the craps table. Her name is Brittany Baker and she's a graphic designer.


 * Charlie Barnett as Paramedic in Charge (PIC) Peter Mills, Ambulance 61: Following in the footsteps of his father, Peter hopes to one day join the Rescue Squad. He has a sister and mother who run a family restaurant following his father's death. He begins dating Gabriela Dawson in secret, later breaking up with her because she keeps the knowledge of an affair between his mother and Chief Boden from him. He tells Dawson that he would be willing to start over with her if she can tell him for sure that she does not have feelings for Casey, but she cannot, and the two officially end their relationship. At the end of season 1, he picks up an application for the Chicago Police Department because he does not get promoted to squad. However, Mills later gets rewarded with a promotion to Squad 3. Mills later dates Isabella and their relationship takes various turns: first they meet and she takes him to a formal event with Senator Wheeler and reveals her future ambitions; they feud because he felt used. Later they get over the feud and grow closer, Finally when the firehouse is in severe danger of closing he asks her for help to save 51 and they work together. After badly injuring his leg in the season two finale Mills is put off work for six weeks but returns after four weeks in the season three premiere. After revealing to Lt. Severide that he gets dizzy whenever he isn't up right, Severide tells him to see a doctor. The doctor tells him that he can no longer be a firefighter. This all happens after Dawson is named to be a candidate on Truck 81 so because Mills has EMT training, he applies to replace Dawson as PIC and gets the job and now works with Paramedic Sylvie Brett.


 * Monica Raymund as Paramedic in Charge/Firefighter Candidate Gabriela Dawson, Ambulance 61: Dawson has recently found herself in trouble for leaping before she looks on various calls, which leads to her being written up several times. She also pursues a flirtation with the emotionally unavailable Casey, with whom she shares a very strong friendship. Later, she and Mills bond over their mutual love for cooking and begin a relationship in secret. When their relationship is brought to light, Casey seems to be jealous and pulls rank to keep them apart at work. She later discovers that Boden had had an affair with Mills's mother, and she keeps this knowledge from him. When he finds out that she had known about it and that she still has feelings for Casey, he ends their relationship. In Season 2, Dawson and Casey start a very serious romantic relationship. She later is a Candidate in the Fire Academy. She fails her physical exam by several seconds, after injuring her ankle. In season 3, she has passed the Fire Academy, and is assigned as the Candidate on Truck 81.


 * Lauren German as Paramedic Leslie Elizabeth Shay, Ambulance 61: She and Kelly Severide share an apartment as roommates and are best friends. Shay is openly gay and is entangled in a relationship with an ex-lover who was most recently married to and impregnated by a man. She is fiercely loyal to her friends, particularly to Kelly, for whom she has risked her job for several times. Towards the end of Season 1 and Season 2 she tries to have a baby through artificial insemination with Kelly but the process fails. She is also close with Dawson, but a rift comes between them when Dawson fails to be there for her during her downward spiral of guilt over a man's suicide. She then gets mixed up with a girl she met, Devon, who she really liked, but that all ended when Devon robbed Shay and her roommates, Severide and Otis. Shay disappears and Severide tries to look for her. He asks for Dawson's help and when Dawson finds her they rekindle their friendship and Shay goes back to Firehouse 51. An accident in the cliffhanger season finale of season two leaves Shay critically injured in the explosion of a building and she dies in the third season premiere "Always".


 * Kara Killmer as Paramedic Sylvie Brett, Ambulance 61  (Season 3—present) : Sylvie is the new Paramedic for Ambulance No.61 replacing Leslie Shay following her death. Brett is from Indiana and is a Runaway Bride "traveling up I-65 to Chicago". She is currently in a relationship with Joe Cruz.


 * Eamonn Walker as 25th Battalion Chief Wallace Boden, Battalion 25: He is a scarred veteran of the fire department. Chief Boden has unwavering dedication to the firefighters under him and has earned their loyalty and respect. His career was threatened after a feud with Gail McLeod when she tried to overthrow him and install his former colleague Benny Severide as the chief of Battalion 25. Boden refuses to give up his house and fights for it. Later she tries to "justify" the closing due to an incident at a call where the victim had to be cut out of a trash compactor.


 * David Eigenberg as Senior Firefighter Christopher Herrmann, Truck 81: Herrmann's sharp instincts on the job are in stark contrast to those when he is not at the firehouse, which include taking on several "get rich quick" schemes that have left him financially precarious, but had seemed to have finally made a good investment opening "Molly's Bar" along with Dawson and Otis, after putting out a fire at the location and buying it out. Although the bar opens successfully with a good opening night it, is revealed in the first season finale that it is threatened by a sports bar opening right across the street. In the first season's finale the station responds to a fire at the local prison and in the chaos after the power goes out Herrmann is held hostage by prisoners. However due to quick thinking and a good plan they all make it out alive and unharmed, and Hermann was rushed to the hospital to see his wife and newborn after birth complications. Herrmann and his wife have five children with one having been born on the first season's finale after an emergency C-section was performed on Herrmann's wife. He passed the Lieutenant's test during season 2 episode "Virgin Skin"


 * Yuri Sardarov as Firefighter Brian "Otis" Zvonecek, Truck 81  (Season 2—present; recurring Season 1) : Otis recently finished his candidacy before the arrival of Peter Mills. He is eager to move up the ranks within the firehouse but often feels overlooked and unappreciated by the rest of the fire personnel. This led him to consider transferring to another firehouse, but he ultimately decided to stay with Truck 81. He has his own podcast about life as a firefighter. In Season 2 Otis begins a relationship with Katie, Kelly's half-sister.


 * Joe Minoso as Firefighter/Chauffeur Joe Cruz, Truck 81  (Season 2—present; recurring Season 1) : Cruz is a good firefighter who has a troubled younger brother that he is desperate to keep out of harm's way. He is haunted by a decision that he made on the job related to his brother that later effects his own safety and the safety of his fellow firemen. At the end of Season 1 into a portion of Season 2 Joe begins a relationship with Zoya, Otis's immigrant cousin and decides he wants to marry her to get her to stay but she feels that is not right so she leaves. In season 3, he begins dating the new paramedic, Sylvie Brett.


 * Christian Stolte as Firefighter Randy "Mouch" McHolland, Truck 81  (Season 2—present; recurring Season 1) : He gained his nickname due to the fact that he can almost always be found watching television when not on a call ("half man, half couch"). Mouch serves as union representative for the members of the station when they face disciplinary action. He has a part-time job as a security guard. Instead of "McHolland", he has "Mouch" written on the back of his turnout coat. With the help of Herrmann, he joins the race for fire union president. He was in a long distance relationship with a Japanese woman named Mari. Later Shay sets him up with a "Golden Oldies" dating profile and he acquires a blind date. In a relationship with Sergeant Trudy Platt (Amy Morton) from Chicago P.D..


 * Teri Reeves as Doctor Hallie Thomas  (Season 1) : A resident at Lakeshore Hospital and Casey's former fiancée. In the pilot episode, the two break up, but reconcile soon after. Their relationship becomes strained when Hallie reveals that she does not want to have children and she leaves Casey. When she returns, the two mend their relationship. After reuniting with Matt, the clinic she worked in was set ablaze. Hallie was trapped in the drug lockup but was rescued by Casey. After being pulled from the blaze, she was transported with CPR in progress to Lakeshore Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Recurring[edit]

 * Mo Gallini as Firefighter Jose Vargas: a member of squad 3, Vargas recently transferred from Truck 81. He leaves after he is injured in a warehouse fire and is put on disability and considers suicide by jumping from his apartment building rooftop, but Severide and Casey talk him out of it.
 * Jon Seda as Detective Antonio Dawson of the Chicago Police Department: Gabriela's older brother. He is enlisted by Casey for help when Casey runs into trouble with the seemingly dirty CPD Detective Hank Voight. He is later almost killed in an undercover job gone bad, and joins District's 21's Intelligence Unit run by the newly out of prison Hank Voight.
 * Jason Beghe as Detective Hank Voight: a seemingly dirty cop who clashes with Matt (in the episode "Professional Courtesy") after Voight's son's drunk driving paralyzes a teen. Voight covers for his son and targets Matt when he refuses to back down. He was imprisoned for trying to have Casey murdered but has since been released and promoted to sergeant. He heads up the Intelligence Unit of Chicago P.D. and has since been working with Casey to track down the person or people involved with the death of his ex-fiancée. At the end of Season 1 episode 23 it is shown that Voight is actually working "deep cover" with Internal Affairs and only appearing to be a dirty cop in order to help catch criminals.
 * Sophia Bush as Detective Erin Lindsay: a tough detective with District's 21's Intelligence Unit and Kelly's ex-girlfriend.
 * Jesse Lee Soffer as Detective Jay Halstead: a detective with the Intelligence Unit who once had a relationship with Gabriela Dawson during his undercover assignment.
 * Shiri Appleby as Clarice Carthage: Clarice is introduced as the pregnant ex-girlfriend of Leslie Shay. In season 1, episode 13, Shay and Clarice reconcile their relationship and Clarice moves back in with Shay, only for Clarice to break up with Shay for a second time at the end of season 1, episode 16.
 * Kathleen Quinlan as Nancy Casey: Matthew Casey's mother who is incarcerated for murdering his father 15 years prior to the beginning of the series. Casey is successful in getting Nancy released on parole, but encounters difficulties with her after she is back in the free world, Then Nancy moves in with a friend.
 * Sarah Shahi as Renee Royce:[12] Renee becomes attracted to Kelly after he saves her in a traffic accident, and they begin dating. In the season 1 finale, she announced that she is pregnant with Kelly Severide's child. In Season 2, it is revealed that the baby is not Severide's.
 * Treat Williams as Benny Severide: Kelly's father and former firefighter who served with Wallace Boden.In Season 2 Gail McLeod plots a way to overthrow Chief Boden and recruits Benny to see if he will command 51 he accepts but then he backs out realizing his friendship with Wallace [13]
 * Robyn Coffin as Cindy Herrmann: wife of Christopher Herrmann, and mother of their four children. In the episode "Under the Knife" Herrmann announces that Cindy is pregnant with their fifth child. In "Ambition" she has a medical episode as a result of the pregnancy and passes out and is rushed to the hospital. In "Hell of a Ride" she has a baby boy.
 * William Smillie as Kevin Hadley: a former Member of Squad 3, he was transferred out of Squad 3 to another house due to an inappropriate prank on Peter Mills. In Season 2 he targets 51 and personally targets Severide for revenge with arson attacks and burns himself when pouring gas on himself and standing on top of an accelerant, leaving him badly scarred and in constant pain. He is currently in prison.
 * Pouch the dog:[14] Peter is given a dog by a child from a family who could not take care of it. Hermann, Chief Boden, and Mouch decide against it. Eventually, the three agree after Hermann suggests the three should rethink the dog. She is given a name and adopted by the team. Pouch's name was decided by Hermann, who suggests she should be named after Mouch, which is half man, half couch, to Pouch: half pooch, half couch.
 * Jeff Hephner as Lieutenant Jeff Clarke: After his Firehouse is closed, he is transferred to Firehouse 51, Squad 3. Initially, his poor social skills and private demeanor don't win him fans among the crew and he was initially accused of being the snitch to McLeod. He was also revealed to be a Marine veteran. He transferred out of 51 after being promoted to lieutenant and is now the commander of Truck 25.
 * Michelle Forbes as Gail McLeod: a financial consultant hired by the State to help trim the budget of the CFD which includes closing some firehouses. She doesn't like Chief Boden and begins to target Firehouse 51. She is then run out of town by Senator Wheeler and Isabella the then-girlfriend of Peter Mills.[15]
 * John Hoogenakker as Lt. Spellman: He is assigned to Firehouse 51, along with Clarke, after city budget cuts force downsizing in the department. He is later revealed to be the snitch to Gail McLeod and is "transferred" out of 51.[16]
 * Christine Evangelista as Allison Rafferty, Paramedic in Charge, Ambulance 61: After Dawson starts training at the Academy to become a firefighter Allison Rafferty is introduced as Leslie Shay's new partner. At first Rafferty seems distant from Shay and when Shay later confronts her she tells her that her previous partner at 24 was a lesbian and used to make phone calls to her girlfriend that made Rafferty uncomfortable. In her second episode appearance it is revealed she was a resident doctor at Chicago Med but dropped out when her fiance developed Hodgkin's lymphoma; he died six months later. She is suspended for treating a patient that refused treatment, and Dawson regains her spot on Ambulance 61.
 * Alexandra Metz as Elise Mills: Peter Mills' sister. She helps run the family restaurant with her mom and is torn between being protective of Peter and encouraging him to follow his passion for public service.
 * Brittany Curran as Katie Nolan: Kelly Severide's sister, and Benny Severide's daughter. Kelly and Katie didn't know each other until they meet in the restaurant where Katie works as a chef. Katie Was kidnapped after "the blackout" by Vince Keeler and is badly injured. Katie later moves to Colorado.

Episodes[edit]
Main article: List of Chicago Fire episodes

Each episode lasts approximately 42 minutes.

Crossovers[edit]
Main article: Law & Order (franchise) § Crossovers

See also: Chicago P.D. (TV series) § Crossovers and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit § Crossovers

The characters of Chicago Fire have had interactions with the characters of Chicago P.D. Additionally, the two series have had crossover stories with each other and with Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.
 * "A Dark Day (Fire, 2x20)"/"8:30 PM (PD, 1x12)" — This crossover with Chicago P.D. depicts an explosion that occurs at Chicago Memorial Hospital where Casey and Dawson are volunteering at a charity run, bringing the fire and police departments together to track down the culprits.
 * "Nobody Touches Anything (Fire, 3x07)"/"Chicago Crossover (L&OSVU, 16x07)"/"They'll Have to Go Through Me (PD, 2x07)" — In this crossover with Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Chicago P.D., Firehouse 51 rescue the owner of a burning house and find him clutching a suspicious box that leads Severide to call in the Chicago Intelligence Unit, who work with Special Victims Unit to take down a pedophile ring that goes from Chicago to New York.[20]
 * "Three Bells (Fire, 3x13)"/"A Little Devil Complex (PD, 2x13)" — In this crossover with Chicago P.D., Firehouse 51 teams with Intelligence to track down the arsonist suspected of killing Shay.[21]
 * Another crossover with SVU and PD will depict the pursuit of a Ted Bundy-type character.[22]

Production[edit]
The series pilot, co-written by creators Michael Brandt and Derek Haas, was filmed in Chicago and, according to an NBC representative, the series will continue to be filmed there.[23] Mayor of Chicago Rahm Emanuel made an appearance in the series' pilot episode. Emanuel stated: "It's easier being mayor than playing mayor. I told them I'd do it under one condition: the TV show is making an investment to the Firefighters' Widows and Orphans Fund."[24]

The network placed an order for the series in May 2012.[25] After receiving an additional script order in October, Chicago Fire was picked up for a full season on November 8, 2012.[26][27] On January 29, 2013,Chicago Fire had its episode total increased from 22 to 23.[28] One week later, on February 6, 2013, Chicago Fire received one more episode, giving it a total of 24 episodes for season one.[29]

The building used in the show as the firehouse is the real home of Chicago FD's Engine 18, located at 1360 S. Blue Island Avenue at Maxwell Street, between 13th & Racine. Housed here is ALS Engine 18, 2-2-1 (Deputy District Chief - 1st District), 4-5-7 (Paramedic Field Chief - EMS District 7), 6-4-16 (High-Rise Response Unit), and BLS Ambulance 84. The station house used in Chicago PD is just a few blocks away at 949 W. Maxwell Street at Morgan Street.

Chicago artist and retired firefighter Lee J. Kowalski's oil paintings of fire scenes can be spotted in several episodes.

In November 2012, WGN-TV announced a plane crash at 29th and MLK Drive in their morning news and showed live footage for a few minutes before realizing that it was not a real plane crash, but filming for an episode of Chicago Fire.[30]

Reception[edit]
The first season currently holds a 49 out of 100 on metacritic, which is mixed or average reviews

Spin-off[edit]
Main article: Chicago P.D. (TV series)

On March 27, 2013, NBC announced plans for a proposed spin-off of Chicago Fire, the police procedural drama Chicago P.D. that would involve the Chicago Police Department, the spin-off series being created and produced by Dick Wolf, with Derek Haas, Michael Brandt, and Matt Olmstead serving as executive producers.[7][38] It premiered on January 8, 2014.

The show follows an Intelligence Unit and is filmed entirely in Chicago. The main cast includes Jason Beghe, Jon Seda, Sophia Bush, Jesse Lee Soffer, Patrick Flueger, Elias Koteas, Marina Squerciati, LaRoyce Hawkins, and Archie Kao.

In February 2015, NBC has announced plans into making another spinoff titled Chicago Med. A special backdoor pilot episode of the show will air during Chicago Fire's third season.[39]