After a short break, 911 season 8 resumed with episode 16, “The Last Alarm,” which saw the 118 working through their grief following the death of Bobby.
Surprisingly, the episode begins with a flashback to eight years ago as we see Bobby and the team responding to a house fire. Upon arriving at the scene, a panicked man comes racing up and informs Bobby that his wife and their infant son are in the house. While Bobby and the team are able to get the mother out safely, the crib falls through the ceiling and the child seemingly perishes.
We return to the present day to join Athena, May, and Harry as they’re touring a mausoleum looking for the perfect place to lay Bobby to rest. While two weeks have passed since Bobby’s death, his body has not yet been released to her, and it’s clear Athena is struggling to process his loss. As she decides the mausoleum isn’t the best fit, she gets a call, and we see her racing off.
Turns out that phone call was to inform Athena that Bobby’s body was finally cleared to be released to her, a decision that came after someone at the 118 strong-armed them into finally releasing it. Athena confronts Chimney, who admits he was the one who made the call, and tells everyone that the funeral is officially scheduled as she storms out. On her way out, she bumps into a man who has come to the firehouse looking for Bobby in hopes that he could help his sister, who has recently found herself behind bars. The man’s sister is the woman whose baby died in the fire we saw occur in the opening flashback, and she’s landed behind bars as she’s convinced her baby didn’t actually die that night.
Athena and the man sit down over coffee, and he explains to her that his sister had managed to put her life back together eventually, after the loss, but that all changed recently. We learn that he helped get his sister a job at his catering company for a young boy’s birthday party, a boy who just so happened to share the same birthday as her deceased son. After meeting the boy, his sister became convinced that he was her baby, which eventually led to her arrest. He came to the 118 in hopes of speaking with someone who was there the night of the fire to get answers, and Athena offers her assistance.
After speaking with the man, Athena goes to meet with his sister, Mia, and she tells Athena about meeting the young boy at the party and discovering that he had a birthmark that was identical to the heart-shaped birthmark her son had on the inside of his wrist. She then tells Athena how the boy’s mom happened to go to the same prenatal yoga class as her, and that there were rumors the woman had miscarried when she stopped coming to the classes.
Athena is convinced by the woman’s theories and throws herself into the case as a distraction from facing her grief. As she processes the case with a make-shift investigation board in what was to be her and Bobby’s dream house, Bobby appears to her and challenges the investigation she’s piecing together. Athena tells him to go haunt someone else if he won’t be helpful, to which he asks her why she isn’t busy planning his funeral. Athena claims they don’t need her to plan things, but this woman needs her help. She tells Bobby that she knows he would help the woman to which he reminds her that she knew him, past tense. As she goes to respond, Bobby is gone, leaving her alone in the room.
turns out that there were no remains found in the fire, but the woman’s husband and brother kept the truth from her. When Hen comes to check on Athena, she finally breaks down in a moment that was truly gut-wrenching as Athena processes her anger in Bobby’s decision to leave her. All I can say is Angela Bassett, go get your Emmy because that performance was flawless.
Looking to get answers, Athena runs some DNA tests, and they reveal the boy is not the woman’s son and has the difficult task of telling her that her baby truly did die in the fire all those years ago. Before she leaves, the woman tells Athena about Bobby visiting her in the hospital after the fire. His words stuck with her — how he said he lives each day believing he'd one day see his kids again.
911 bids farewell to Bobby
After closing the case, Athena returns home, where she’s surprised by May and Harry, who have come to check in on their mom. As they sit to enjoy lunch, Athena tells the pair that she’s finally found the perfect final resting place for Bobby.
With that, it’s time to officially say goodbye to Bobby.
As we see a glimpse of Karen consoling Hen, we see Eddie return to join his 118 family in helping to lay Bobby to rest. As Buck, Eddie, and Ravi get ready for the funeral, Buck gets a call from Maddie and goes to find Chimney, who is drinking his way through his grief. Chimney is dealing with survivor’s guilt and blaming Bobby for keeping them in the dark and deciding for everyone how things were going to go. Buck manages to talk him down, but we imagine this is a storyline that will continue in the final episodes of the season.
The episode draws to a close with an emotional funeral fitting for a beloved captain such as Bobby. The well-attended funeral brings together Bobby’s family and friends, as well as many within the community, both in the LAFD and the community, to mourn his death. After the final alarm is rung, we watch Bobby’s casket get loaded on top of a firetruck as Buck then hangs Bobby’s jacket and helmet on the truck.
The funeral proceedings take us through the streets and eventually to the airport, where it is loaded for flight.
Turns out the final resting place Athena found for Bobby was alongside his children in St. Paul, reuniting him with his children.