Why Another Chicago Fire Cast Shuffle Could Hurt the Show

The Season 13 finale of Chicago Fire did a decent job of tying up the loose ends of what can only be described as a tumultuous year. The truth behind Chief Pascal’s (Dermot Mulroney) motivations was revealed, exonerating the embattled Firehouse 51 chief both on the show and in the eyes of fans. Herrmann (David Eigenberg), at last, made a definitive decision about his own career, choosing to decline the captain’s test and leaving the lieutenant position to his long-time pal Mouch (Christian Stolte). The heartbreak for Kidd (Miranda Rae Mayo) and Severide (Taylor Kinney) of losing out on adopting a baby in “Cut Me Open” and them having to wait for another opportunity came to an end with the reveal of a Stellaride baby on the way, creating an exciting storyline for the pair going forward. These endings are enough to create anticipation for more, but that is not all Chicago Fire‘s season finale promises.

It also paved the way for what we know will be a different Firehouse 51 in Season 14. Two characters — Jake Lockett‘s Carver and Daniel Kyri‘s Ritter — are leaving the series for sure, with Carver’s exit from the series laid out with his choice to take a job in Denver (hey, NBC — Denver Fire?), and Ritter’s exit still to be revealed. There’s a possibility that they could be joined by others on their journey out, particularly Violet (Hanako Greensmith), who may decide to join Carver in Denver now that they’ve each expressed their love for one another with a snogging for the ages. Plus, the threat of cuts and layoffs in the narrative of the series places doubt on who stays and who goes. All this, coupled with the possibility, however remote, of former cast members returning to fill spots, means another reshuffle on a series that has had more than its share — and it’s never been more obvious that that’s a bad choice.

There’s Still Engaging Loose Ends Heading Into ‘Chicago Fire’ Season 14

There are many issues involved in this situation, most notably, the fact that the two characters we know are leaving, Carver and Ritter, also happen to be in the midst of engaging storylines that now have to end. The long-awaited coupling of Violet and Carver literally just took off in the finale, but with his departure, it has become highly unlikely that the pairing Chicago Fire teased for months is going to come to a satisfying end for the fanbase. Assuming Carver is gone right from the start of the next season, that leaves Violet in a position where she’s simply heartbroken, or one in which she’s torn between staying at Firehouse 51 or following Carver to Denver. The former is just mean, and the latter has already been done with the drawn-out but worthwhile union of Matthew (Jesse Spencer) and Sylvie (Kara Killmer), which Violet and Carver could not top.

Ritter’s intriguing storyline, on the other hand, is brand-new, with Ritter reluctantly inviting Novak (Jocelyn Hudon) to move in with him. There’s a lot of potential that simply won’t be explored, either in a light, Odd Couple-type situation or with Ritter struggling to reconcile with his decision to allow his solitude to be infringed upon, leading to tense moments between the roommates. Considering we don’t even know how Ritter is being written out of the show — either moving elsewhere, like Carver, or in a more tragic way — it’s the loss of what could have been that will prove to be disappointing, no matter how the show proceeds.

It’s Already Hard Enough To Engage With New Characters on ‘Chicago Fire’

The fact that it’s Carver and Ritter being shipped out is a clear example of why it’s a bad choice for Chicago Fire to be reshuffled yet again: it’s out with the new and in with the old. Ritter was introduced in Season 7, while Carver came in Season 11. In the grand scheme of things, the two are comparatively new to the franchise, so they should have plenty of stories left to explore. Yet they’re the ones that are out instead of those who have been around from the start, like Severide or Herrmann. We know the latter characters intimately, having watched their arcs across all 13 seasons, and if any of them were written out, there’d be hell to pay. Look no further than the dismay that came with Chief Boden’s (Eamonn Walker) exit from the show.

But the problem is, by sacrificing the newer characters, Chicago Fire has created a culture where it’s hard for viewers to truly engage with them. There is now the assumption that new characters are not going to be in the series for the long haul. Are we really that upset that Carver is leaving, or are we more anxious that he could be taking Violet with him? The odds are good he’ll end up a name that only the die-hard One Chicago fans will remember, with little legacy left behind to remember him by. It makes the audience wary of getting invested. That also applies to any characters that have left only to come back. If that’s one of the paths the series takes, it would be warmly welcomed, of course, but, again, they left once, so how engaged are we going to really be with a second go-round?

Ultimately, the issue isn’t the reshuffling itself but rather the frequency, when it happens, and to whom it’s happening. Chicago Fire showrunners would do well to look at another series that has had success with reshuffling over the course of its 21 seasons: Grey’s Anatomy. They’ve practically written the book on how to successfully bring new characters in, long enough that we care about what happens to them, and how to keep OG characters around so that they remain engaging… and moving them out from time to time to allow room for the stories to breathe. Reshuffling is always going to be a part of the One Chicago franchise as a whole. That’s a given. But it can be done with better balance and better timing than Chicago Fire has managed, and maybe, that would keep storylines from getting the short end of the stick when reshuffling occurs.