Who Is Chief Dom Pascal? Chicago Fire’s Boden Replacement Character Explained
Warning! Spoilers ahead for Chicago Fire’s season 13 premiere. Chicago Fire season 13 introduces a brand-new Firehouse 51 Chief to replace Wallace Boden, and there’s a lot to learn about him. One Chicago ended its forced summer hiatus after a shortened season due to two Hollywood strikes in 2023. Despite only having 13 episodes, a lot happened in Chicago Fire season 12, including a slew of departures — from veterans to newcomers. Losing Blake Gallo, Sylvie Brett, and Derrick Gibson in such a short amount of time was tough, but nothing compares to saying goodbye to Boden.
Prototypicals often feature ensembles, allowing them to go on for long periods of time without feeling repetitive and/or exhausting their main stars. Because of the large cast, the storylines change weekly. However, it also helps the project move forward when it inevitably changes casts. One Chicago has a number of characters who won’t be returning in 2024, including several from Chicago Fire. So while it’s sad to see Boden say goodbye to Firehouse 51, it paves the way for a whole new era of storytelling for the first responder series with the arrival of his replacement, Dom Pascal.
Over the years, Chicago Fire has lost millions of characters for various reasons and in various ways. However, in season 12, Gallo and Brett’s departures were announced in advance, allowing the show to set up their final goodbyes and giving the audience time to prepare for their departures. However, Boden’s departure wasn’t announced until later in the year. There is no clear reason for Eammon Walker’s departure, although the season 12 finale of Chicago Fire was able to provide a plausible reason for his departure.
Unsurprisingly, Boden won the election to become First Deputy Fire Commissioner, which meant he had to leave Firehouse 51. Prior to Walker’s farewell ceremony, Boden left the office before the Chicago Fire Department elections. He was supposed to be an outsider to the political process, but after realizing that it would be better for him to run and potentially win, he did so. Unsurprisingly, Boden won the election to become First Deputy Fire Commissioner, which meant he had to leave Firehouse 51. However, before securing the position, Boden chose Christopher Hermann as his successor, but that did not come to fruition.
Boden’s departure from Chicago Fire and Hermann’s inability to secure the requirements to replace him paved the way for the arrival of Dom Pascal, played by Dermot Mulroney. The first episode of season 13, “Monster in the Field,” focused on establishing him as the new chief of Firehouse 51. Given everything else going on with the other characters, the information revealed about him so far has been limited. That said, it’s clear that he’s not Chief Boden.
It had been months since Boden won the election when the first episode of Chicago Fire season 13 aired. Despite that, “Monster in the Field” barely revealed anything deeper about him. Instead, it focused on establishing a rough outline of him through a few expository scenes. First, he started his career as a firefighter in Chicago but spent several years in Miami before returning to ChiTown. It’s unclear exactly what prompted his move, but based on his tense conversation with his wife, it seems like he was motivated to follow her.
Amidst the packed Chicago Fire season 12 finale, the One Chicago premiere was able to drop a major reveal regarding Kelly Severide’s father.
Chicago Fire has yet to share why Pascal moved from Chicago to Miami in the first place, but his former co-worker’s visit suggests he didn’t have the best farewell when he first left the Windy City. It’s safe to say that this is something that will be revisited as One Chicago delves deeper into Mulroney’s new character. For now, though, there’s still a lot to learn about Pascal, and the fact that he doesn’t seem to be very approachable to the rest of Firehouse 51 doesn’t help matters. While he expressed his respect for Boden, the new Battalion Chief also firmly asserted himself as Kelly Severide and the new leader of the rest. He implemented new rules that divided the rest of Firehouse 51, including no cell phones during lunch breaks so the team could bond. Surprisingly, of all the people, Stella Kidd had the hardest time accepting Pascal as the new leader.
