Chicago Fire season 8 finale recap: 51’s Original Bell

What happens next?

The next day, Stella is worried when Kylie is a no-show for Girls on Fire, and Severide confronts an OSHA representative about how fines aren’t enough to make up for Capp’s injury. “Treat it like there’s a human being whose life and career is at risk,” he advises the guy. But all the man does is say he’ll look into it, and Stella warns her boyfriend not to go do the wrong thing. In return, Severide urges Stella to call Kylie.

Gallo continues to get excoriated by Ritter, while Brett gives Foster the cold shoulder, and Boden introduces Capp’s replacement (who looks oddly like he could be Capp’s brother). Everyone is called to a hearse vs. car accident, where the hearse driver is pinned under the coffin that he was carrying. And he’s freaking out, as you would if you were getting smushed under a dead guy.

With a lot of teamwork, our heroes are able to move the casket, at which point Chicago Fire pulls a bit of a “gotcha” by revealing that there is no dead guy. The coffin was empty this whole time. “Well, that’s fortunate,” Mouch quips. Well, they could have mentioned that to the driver!

Severide declares his intention to make another trip back to the scrapyard, and this time he’s done talking. The squad arrives to find a stop work order slapped on the front gate; the place has been shut down. And Brett tells Casey (and us) that Capp went back to the hospital and will be getting more tests done the next day. Casey’s words about feeling someone’s pain like it’s your own hit home with Brett, who gets a contemplative look on her face.

Violet shows up at Firehouse 51 to confront Gallo about his persistent texts, including asking if she was dead. She reminds him that they’re not in a serious relationship. He continues his steady meltdown, capping it off by blurting out that they should get married. Violet understandably calls him crazy and leaves, at which point Gallo tells his eavesdropping coworkers that Cruz told him to say that. Of course he did. Not that he admits it, just standing there with his cereal looking all “Who, me?”

In the final few minutes of this Chicago Fire season, Stella leaves a phone message for Kylie and Capp tries to fake out Casey and Severide by claiming his eyes are ruined before we find out he’ll be fine. The duo bring him to Molly’s, where he’s presented with the restored firehouse bell. We know this is a time to celebrate because Herrmann declares that all the drinks are on the house.

The following day, Foster goes in for her Northwestern interview and decides to open it with a monologue about why she left medical school the first time and how she’s learned from her “last three years” at Firehouse 51. Chicago Fire then cuts to afterward, where she finds Brett waiting for her. Foster will have to wait to find out if she gets back into med school, but she and Brett have clearly made up, as Brett assures her that “They’d be lucky to have you” and they leave arm-in-arm together.

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