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Chicago Fire’s important death is One Chicago moment of the week

By Brittany Frederick

CHICAGO FIRE -- "All the Proof" Episode 706 -- Pictured: (l-r) Eamonn Walker as Wallace Boden, Taylor Kinney as Kelly Severide -- (Photo by: Elizabeth Morris/NBC)
CHICAGO FIRE -- "All the Proof" Episode 706 -- Pictured: (l-r) Eamonn Walker as Wallace Boden, Taylor Kinney as Kelly Severide -- (Photo by: Elizabeth Morris/NBC) /
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Chicago Fire’s decision to kill off another One Chicago family member is One Chicago Center’s Moment of the Week for Oct. 31, from Chicago Fire season 7.

This week’s One Chicago Moment of the Week honors go to Chicago Fire, for its questionable decision to kill another character—and a literal member of the One Chicago family.

Wednesday’s episode “All The Proof” revealed that Benny Severide (Treat Williams) suffered a stroke and died. Not only did he die, but he passed away just minutes before his son Kelly Severide (Taylor Kinney) got to the hospital.

It’s impossible to think of any other moment as the most impactful from this week in One Chicago, given how much Benny has been part of Chicago Fire history.

Not to mention that it’s worth discussing because it’s fair to question if this was the right choice or another instance of having a plot twist for the dramatic impact.

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It can be seen both ways.

Killing Benny felt like it wasn’t necessary for the story that “All The Proof” was trying to tell. Fans found out that he was able to get Jerry Gorsch (recurring guest star Steven Boyer) out of the firehouse, but he didn’t have to die for that to happen. The death was just adding on.

It also felt like adding on to Severide’s emotional issues, because keep in mind that this is the man whose girlfriend died of cancer near the end of Chicago Fire season 5. So in about a season and a half, he’s lost his girlfriend and his dad.

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At the same time, Benny Severide was kind of a stuck character. Very rarely did the show let us see more than Benny as a man in love with women, drinking, and himself, in no particular order.

When he showed up, he was usually causing some kind of trouble or getting into a disagreement with his son. Chicago Fire wasn’t allowing him to grow, so there was only so much with him that the show could do. Maybe the writers felt they’d run out of ideas with him, and this way at least he gets to go out a hero.

Still, it was heartbreaking to see, especially given that this season has already killed Pat Halstead and shot Bob Ruzek. So this episode just added on to the family trauma that keeps building, and it took away one of the most recognizable recurring characters that Chicago Fire has. Will it be worth it? We’ll have to watch the rest of this season to see how it plays out.

Next. Revisit our Benny Severide retrospective. dark

For the latest Chicago Fire season 7 spoilers and news, plus more on the entire series, follow the Chicago Fire category at One Chicago Center.

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