5 reasons why Chicago Fire will miss Gabriela Dawson

1. She fought for everyone

Gabriela Dawson was a true fighter. We saw time and time again throughout her six seasons on Chicago Fire that she fought in the face of everything—when people told her she couldn’t, when Casey disagreed with her, when it seemed impossible, even against medical advice. Dawson has been fierce, and we’ll miss that dedication she brought to Firehouse 51.

When we spoke to Chicago Fire co-creator Derek Haas earlier this season, he compared Gabriela Dawson to Wonder Woman, telling us “We’ve had Wonder Woman on our show for six seasons.” And he’s absolutely right.

Dawson has taken everything that the show had to throw at her and she’s pulled through. Among the very long list of challenges she’s overcome: being stuck in an elevator by a crazy person, going undercover, being trapped in a collapsed parking garage, and thinking her husband could be dead twice in the last two seasons (yay for cliffhangers). But where other people might fold, Dawson’s always just got on with it.

In the Chicago Fire season 6 episode “A Breaking Point” Dawson not only gets herself out of that garage but becomes a leader and helps guide everyone inside to safety (and in fact, she warned the construction crew that it was dangerous in the first place!). She’s treated patients in all kinds of tough circumstances, isn’t afraid to tell someone to step off when they need to hear it, and as we’ve seen with Bria is also willing to go the extra mile when someone needs more than medical help. Her job doesn’t stop when she gets out of Ambulance 61.

With the departure of Gabriela Dawson, Chicago Fire isn’t just losing its female lead. It’s losing one of the One Chicago franchise’s fiercest, most prominent female characters. Whoever comes onto the ambulance next will have a long shadow to work under.

Next: 5 love lessons from Chicago Fire's Dawson and Casey

How much will you miss Gabriela Dawson in Chicago Fire season 7? Tell us the biggest reason you’ll miss Monica Raymund’s character in the comments.

Chicago Fire airs Wednesdays at 9/8c on NBC.