Chicago Fire season 8 character preview: Mouch

What will Chicago Fire season 8 have in store for Mouch? Look ahead as we preview Chicago Fire’s new season for Christian Stolte’s character.

With Chicago Fire season 8 coming in just a few weeks, it’s time once again to preview the new season for each character and look ahead to fresh episodes.

Where did your favorite character leave off when we saw them last? What are the big facts that fans need to remember before the season premiere? Where should they go next in season 8 for the best outcome? And is that where they’ll actually end up, or what direction is the show likely to take them in based on what we know so far?

Check out our detailed character preview, and let us know your thoughts on where you’d like to see each character go and why in the comments.

In this article, we’re profiling Randall “Mouch” McHolland (Christian Stolte).

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Where we left off

With Mouch being one of the many comedic relief characters on Chicago Fire, it was nice to see him take on a more serious role at the beginning of last season. He became a confidant and eventual mentor to the show’s newest firefighter Darren Ritter (recurring guest star Daniel Kyri) after Ritter faced serious adversity in the first One Chicago crossover. In “Thirty Percent Sleight of Hand”, Mouch went to invite Ritter to the department picnic, and gave him some friendly words of encouragement about his firefighting future.

Past that storyline, though, we only saw Mouch in some scenes throughout the rest of the season. His biggest personal subplot was in “Make This Right” when Mouch’s feelings were hurt by Otis’ (Yuri Sardarov) ageist remarks. Mouch then fired back at Otis, calling him an infant after Otis commented on Mouch’s new TV choice for the common room.

The two eventually mended fences, but it brought back around an interesting theme surrounding Mouch’s age. Chicago Fire has tackled that topic before in the season 5 finale when Mouch contemplated retirement, only to suffer a heart attack during a warehouse fire. He came back from being technically dead (briefly), but was bringing his age up again a hint toward what we can expect for him in Chicago Fire season 8?

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What should happen

Mouch should get his own dramatic plotline in Chicago Fire season 8, because Christian Stolte plays his character’s more serious side very well. But since the aforementioned near-death experience, he’s fallen back into being more of a comic relief and background character. That’s only part of what Stolte can do, so why not let Mouch take the lead in an episode?

His marriage to Trudy Platt (Amy Morton) hasn’t been utilized much either. Even if it’s just for an episode, it would be nice to see the continuation of one of the only stable romances in the One Chicago franchise. What are Mouch and Trudy up to in their (albeit minimal) free time?

Mouch’s story with Ritter is also worth continuing. While Ritter kind of attached himself to newly minted Lieutenant Christopher Hermann (David Eigenberg), it was Mouch who convinced him to come back to Firehouse 51 originally. Assuming Ritter survives the cliffhanger blaze, Mouch has been through a devastating fire or two before, so he would be the perfect sounding board for Ritter if the other man needs someone to lean on again.

What might happen

There hasn’t been a lot of information in regards to Mouch’s Chicago Fire future, so we can’t say much about where he’s probably going. He is one of the characters who could be killed in the season premiere (though, to be fair, so could just about everyone else). Assuming he survives for the sake of this article, then he may or may not be involved in one of this season’s new storylines.

Firehouse 51 will be bringing in another new firefighter this season, and though Mouch’s name was not specifically mentioned in regards to that storyline, it stands to reason he’d come into play there. Every time the show brings in a new firefighter, Mouch is one of the folks who interacts with them, as the writers have often used the angle of the more experienced members of the house helping out the less experienced ones.

It’s possible that Mouch’s age may again become an issue, but there’s only so many times the writers can use that before they have to pull the trigger. Will that be how he ultimately leaves Chicago Fire, whether it’s this season or in the future? Will he be the rare character who gets to retire rather than be killed or forced out? We’ll have to see what happens to him in the premiere first.

For the latest Chicago Fire season 8 spoilers and news, plus more on the entire series, follow the Chicago Fire category at One Chicago Center.