Jack Damon’s firing from Chicago Fire opened the door for season 13 to replace Blake Gallo with a beloved character. Damon joined the series after Derrick Gibson’s surprise departure and has been causing trouble ever since. He only lasted this long because of Damon’s relationship with Chicago Fire’s Severide, which Stella didn’t want to film him refusing to follow her instructions out of loyalty to her husband. However, after Damon ignored her orders, making the rescue on the speedboat more difficult, Stella couldn’t stay silent any longer.
Even after Stella reported Damon’s misconduct, it was unclear whether he would be fired. With Mouch’s support, Chief Dom Pascal decided to put Damon back in the floating pool — arguably the right decision, given Damon’s record of dishonesty and insubordination. While Damon won’t be joining the cast of Chicago Fire season 13 in the future, another character will be returning who would be a perfect replacement for Gallo instead of constantly causing trouble and unnecessary drama during the rescue.
Chicago Fire’s Pascal did the right thing by removing Damon from Fire Department 51. Damon’s refusal to follow Stella’s orders put the team and the people they were trying to save in danger, as he often took unnecessary risks while ignoring orders. Meanwhile, his constant lies are even more troubling. It also puts Stella in a difficult position, as she has to choose between her loyalty to Severide’s family and the fire department. This is especially true since her husband can’t intervene without being accused of favoritism. Therefore, it’s best for everyone if Damon is removed from the fire department.
While losing Damon from the team may be a relief for Stella, it also creates another source of stress. Without him, Stella will be short on a firefighter. Therefore, she must find Damon’s replacement on Truck 81 as soon as possible to give her team the best chance of extinguishing the fire and rescuing the trapped victims. Luckily, Kylie is waiting to rejoin Firehouse 51, which will solve Stella’s problem after Damon’s departure.
Stella’s mentor has been a recurring character on One Chicago for several seasons. However, a behind-the-scenes photo from Chicago Fire suggests that Kylie will soon be back on Stella’s team. Not only does Stella need a new firefighter, but she also needs someone she knows won’t cause her the same problems that Damon did. Therefore, Stella should reach out to Kylie at this point to see if she’d like to join Firehouse 5, even though she’s previously declined.
Kylie may agree to help Stella temporarily, but that doesn’t rule out the possibility that she’ll change her mind later and join Firehouse 51 permanently.
After passing the firefighter exam in season 11, Kylie chose to work elsewhere because she wanted to prove that she could forge her own career path instead of using Stella to open up job opportunities for her. However, several characters haven’t returned to Chicago Fire in the years since Kylie passed the exam, leaving Stella with vacancies to fill. Damon’s firing means Stella needs someone she can trust right away. Kylie may agree to help Stella temporarily, but that doesn’t rule out the possibility that she’ll change her mind later and join Firehouse 51 permanently.
