Chicago Fire season 7 character review: Christopher Herrmann

How was Chicago Fire season 7 for Christopher Herrmann? We’re looking back at how Chicago Fire’s latest season went for David Eigenberg’s character.

As we continue to look back on Chicago Fire season 7, we’re breaking down the season for each of the show’s characters.

Did your favorite character have a good season or a bad season? What were their strong points and were there any weaknesses? Was the character affected by the show’s writing, or vice versa? Where could they go from here?

Check out our detailed character breakdown, and let us know your thoughts on how this season was for each character in the comments.

In this article, we’re profiling Christopher Herrmann (David Eigenberg).

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What happened

Herrmann got a major shock early in Chicago Fire season 7, when Chief Boden (Eamonn Walker) told everyone that he was being promoted to Lieutenant, without informing Herrmann first!

Of course, Boden’s motivation to bump Herrmann up in rank was partly to keep Jerry Gorsch (recurring guest star Steven Boyer) from assigning someone else as the new lieutenant, but there was also no doubt that Herrmann had earned the promotion. It was huge for him, since he’d tried to take the exam a few seasons ago, and spoiled his chances.

So part of this most recent season involved Herrmann getting used to his newfound authority, while another part involved him helping other people in various ways.

While he found something of a protege in new candidate Darren Ritter (recurring guest star Daniel Kyri) and they were part of a group helping another firefighter get help for his depression, he had a rough moment where he exploded at his son. But he eventually calmed down, as Herrmann often does, and the season ended with him and Ritter facing an exploding boiler. Will they make it out of the fire alive?

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What it means

Just about everybody on Chicago Fire is in that burning warehouse, so the law of large numbers dictates that most of them will be fine, or there’d be no show. The two of them in the most danger, by proximity, are Herrmann and Ritter.

But it’s hard to imagine the writers getting rid of David Eigenberg, because he’s carved out such a niche for himself. Herrmann’s rants and monologues have become not only entertainment for the viewers, but oftentimes he says what everyone else is thinking. And the new angle this season of him and Mouch (Christian Stolte) mentoring Ritter was lovely—a different kind of story than we’ve seen with other candidates who’ve come and gone.

If nothing else, this season is a win for Herrmann purely because of his promotion. No matter how he got it, he deserved it, and honestly deserved it a long time ago. It’s good to see him moving up in the world, and how that changed him. Hopefully it lasts and he doesn’t do something to get in trouble!

Our prognosis

Presuming that Herrmann and Ritter survive the cliffhanger, the best storyline to follow would be Ritter’s continued growth and Herrmann continuing as a mentor figure to him. The two of them make a great combination—they’re very different, but they also complement each other in more than one way.

Herrmann’s perspective changed a lot this season, between that and Chicago Fire promoting him so he had to look at things as a lieutenant. One episode showcased how some people didn’t have respect for his new authority, so next season ought to show him having gotten that respect as a lieutenant, and also exploring the new challenges of his supervisory role. So far, a lot of what we saw in that respect was for comic relief (remember the calendar subplot?).

Herrmann is always an interesting character to watch, and Chicago Fire opened up some fresh avenues for him this season; the best move it can make now is not to mess with a good thing.

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.