Chicago Fire, like the rest of One Chicago, has undergone significant cast changes over the past few seasons. The replacement of Eamonn Walker with Dermot Mulroney as Chief Dom Pascal on Chicago Fire had the opportunity to completely shake up the dynamic of the Truck and Engine teams. Unfortunately, the show has not used this new leader effectively. While the new season has only just begun, a troubling pattern has been established for the character, making it difficult to see how he fits into the overall story.
Since his introduction, Chief Pascal has spent some time with his new colleagues. He has interacted briefly with members of Truck and Engine. However, these interactions have been mostly brief and superficial. In the Season 13 premiere, he told the crew reporting to him that he was going to change things up, including conducting one-on-one debriefings after every call. This could have been a real opportunity to set the stage for Pascal’s future in the fire department and a chance to develop personal relationships with his direct reports. However, these interactions were so brief that they were almost meaningless.
Pascal’s most involvement in his new fire department so far was by badgering Stella (Miranda Rae Mayo) and Severide (Taylor Kinney) about the fact that they continue to work together despite being married. This was another missed opportunity to showcase Pascal’s ability to create new conflict in Chicago Fire. Since Pascal’s introduction, this has been brought up once and never brought up again. This particular conflict doesn’t make much sense because Stella and Severide are now key characters in Chicago Fire. Their relationship is now the focus of the series. Since they worked together for so long while still together, it wouldn’t make much sense for them to be separated from each other plot-wise.
Pascal questioned Stella’s leadership abilities while only knowing her for such a short time. This is a big accusation that could have huge implications for Firehouse 51. Pascal’s only “evidence” to back up this claim is that there was a significant change at Truck 81. However, this issue was resolved when Ritter (Daniel Kyri) moved to Truck 81. This story could also be an opportunity to show how confrontational Pascal’s leadership is and how Firehouse 51 will have to unite against him. Additionally, this story could give Stella a chance to prove herself to her new leader and have them start out as enemies but then come to respect each other. Instead, this is another example of Pascal’s storyline simply falling apart.
It’s not enough to say that Pascal’s leadership abilities are completely different from Boden’s. This is stated multiple times in the first episode of Chicago Fire Season 13. However, this has yet to be established beyond the aforementioned instances and the fact that he is noticeably absent from Firehouse 51 calls. Part of what makes Boden so effective as a leader is seeing him constantly on the front lines of whatever rescue team he’s called to. While he certainly doesn’t attend every call, it’s common for him to be wearing protective gear and ready to jump in when his team responds to emergencies. Conversely, Pascal has yet to be shown interacting with the team as a whole in a way that makes it difficult to accurately gauge his place in Chicago Fire as a whole.
