As great as it is to have Severide (Taylor Kinney) back on Chicago Fire in Season 12, he does have some relationships to fix after the way he left and the lack of communication about not only where he was but also how long he’d be gone. The premiere showed him and Kidd (Miranda Rae Mayo) beginning to work on that (while still bringing the heat). And now, the promo for the January 24 episode shows there’s someone else with some things to discuss with the lieutenant.
“Cruz, I didn’t order you to get up there. Don’t let it happen again,” Severide tells the other firefighter (Joe Minoso) after a call in the promo. Cruz is the one who filled in for him as lead of Squad while he was gone. And now, there’s some clear tension between the two. “For three months, I covered for him,” Cruz notes, but now that he’s back, he’s “barking orders.”
While we know that promos are meant to be misleading in some ways, we can’t help but worry about how this one ends: with Cruz in Boden’s (Eamonn Walker) office saying, “It’s time for me to leave 51.” (Do we actually think he will? No.) Watch the video above.
We knew this was coming, given that executive producer Andrea Newman teased to TV Insider before the season, “Cruz is really his right-hand man, so there’ll be some lingering issues between Severide and Cruz about that and some stuff to work out there.”
That’s not all going on in this episode, titled “Call Me McHolland.” As suggested by that, Mouch (Christian Stolte), six months out of surviving a shrapnel injury on the job and back at work, sets out to change his legacy and nickname. “Mouch is a changed man after what he experienced, and his all-new approach to firefighting will cause some surprising events in the next few episodes,” Newman previewed.
Also, Ritter (Daniel Kyri) pushes Herrmann (David Eigenberg) to see a doctor, though the latter insisted he was fine after risking himself to save 51 from a bomb left at the firehouse. “Change is the theme of the season, and Herrmann has his own upheaval both mentally and physically coming off that heroic save,” the EP noted, asking, “Can Ritter get him to confront the truth of his struggles, or will Herrmann end up getting himself or someone else hurt by not dealing with it? And how will that dynamic affect the Herrmann/Ritter relationship going forward?”
Adrian S Burrows Sr/NBC
In happier news, Brett (Kara Killmer) will be searching for the perfect wedding venue. The premiere revealed she and Casey (Jesse Spencer) are getting married in a month and a half — and then she’s moving to Oregon.
This is also the episode introducing new firefighter Derek Gibson (Rome Flynn), whom Newman said will have “a big hero moment” and impress Kidd. But how will he fit in at 51?
Chicago Fire, Wednesdays, 9/8c, NBC