The emotional stakes have never been higher for fans of ‘9-1-1’, and with the upcoming episode titled ‘The Last Alarm’, we might be witnessing the series’ most gut-wrenching twist yet. From the shocking promo tease of Bobby’s funeral, to Athena’s unbearable sorrow and Chimney’s downward spiral, this episode promises to pack an emotional punch unlike anything we’ve seen before. Let’s dive into what’s going on — and what it could mean for the future of the show.
The next episode of 9-1-1, airing on Thursday, May 1, may be even tougher to watch than the previous one. Sure, “Lab Rats” featured the absolutely devastating death of Captain Bobby Nash (Peter Krause), but Season 8 Episode 16, titled “The Last Alarm,” is going to show his funeral and how everyone’s grieving (the photos make that clear) — and that means, barring any shocking twists, he’s really dead. The promo, which you can watch above, offers a look at Bobby’s funeral, with Hen (Aisha Hinds), Chimney (Kenneth Choi), Buck (Oliver Stark), Eddie (Ryan Guzman), and Ravi (Anirudh Pisharody) carrying his coffin. “I experienced a devastating loss,” Bobby’s wife Athena (Angela Bassett) says.
Buck finds Chimney sitting up on the edge of the roof, holding a bottle of vodka. “Nobody blames you,” he says, but Chimney tells him, “I blame him. He gave his life so I could live. I’m just not sure what I’m supposed to do with that.” Watch the rest of the promo to see Hen and Karen (Tracie Thoms) comforting each other as well as more from Athena’s grief. The logline from ABC reads, “Following the tragic events at the lab, the 118 must come together to lay their fallen hero to rest. Meanwhile, despite her own grief, Athena re-investigates the death of a child to help a grieving mother.”
The photos from “The Last Alarm,” which you can check out below, offer a look at moments between Athena and her children, Buck and Maddie, Buck and Ravi, Maddie and Chimney, and more. Bobby died after he, like Chimney, was infected by a super-strain of CCHF (Crimean–Congo hemorrhagic fever) when the 118 was called to a fire in a lab. There was only one dose of the anti-viral, and Bobby knew he was already infected when he gave it to Chimney.
So while everyone will be struggling with their grief (no one will be doing well), “I would say at the center of it, though, is Chimney, who is feeling particularly … he’s got the survivor’s guilt big time,” showrunner Tim Minear told TV Insider. “There’s a moment in there, in the episode, where he gets Bobby to promise to look after Maddie [Jennifer Love Hewitt] because he just assumes he’s not making it out of here. And you can see even through that goddamn face mask, that is the moment that Bobby makes the decision that if there’s a choice to be made Chimney’s walking out and he’s not.” Minear continued, “So when he says, ‘I promise I will not let anything bad happen to your family,’ he already knows what’s coming. So you have Chimney having Bobby make that promise, and he can’t really do the same for Bobby because I’m not sure Athena’s going to be open to a lot of comfort from the man who’s alive because — not that she blames Chimney, but that’s going to figure in a lot to the last three episodes.”
Everyone will be “leaning on each other and yet they’re all kind of fractured at the same time. Finding an equilibrium for that grief, it was very important for me that I had a run of episodes after the event so that the audience could try to get their bearings with the characters to grieve with the characters,” Tim Minear explained. “So all the stages of grief will be represented in the last three episodes with all the characters.”
‘The Last Alarm’ isn’t just an episode — it’s a rollercoaster of grief, mystery, and raw emotion. Whether Bobby’s death is real or a clever twist, one thing is certain: it’s going to leave a lasting impact on fans and the characters alike. We don’t know what’s next, but we’re buckled in — ready for the next emotional punch from ‘9-1-1’.
