Cruz and Pascal might have been sidelined in Chicago Fire season 14, episode 11, but the duo are back in action in episode 12, and both take center stage. Going into the episode, we knew there were three key storylines in play: Cruz is stepping in to act as acting lieutenant of Squad 3, someone would be injured on a call, and Chief Pascal would come under fire following the events of the injury. What we did not know was how the call would play out, who would be injured, and why it was Chief Pascal who was under scrutiny.
As episode 12 begins, we get a series of quick updates, most of which are designed to explain why certain characters are out. We learn that Severide is in Cleveland, thus why Cruz is acting acting lieutenant of Squad 3; Kylie is back to help Kidd with some Girls on Fire preparations; and Vasquez has been called away to help at another firehouse last-minute due to the ongoing musical chairs unfolding in the CFD.
Between these quick updates, we see Herrmann’s daughter wake up Herrmann and Cindy in the middle of the night worried she smelled smoke. It seems she’s struggling after the housefire and Herrmann and Cindy are trying to get her to see a therapist to talk through things. As Herrmann and Kidd chat, the alarms with the firehouse heading out to respond to the fire we know will be at the heart of the episode’s biggest moments.
51 arrives on the scene of what appears to be a warehouse fire to find the entry door sealed off. Once they’re able to open the door, a wave of people come facing out and one explains that the building was being used as a textile market and one of the kiosks inside caught fire, trapping everyone inside.
The team quickly races into action, with Cruz leading Squad 3 in via one entrance as Kidd leads Truck 81 into the building via a side entrance she found propped open. Once inside, they work to bring out as many victims as possible, while outside, Chief Pascal awaits the arrival of Engine 27 to provide backup on the call.
Cruz heads back in after Tony and Capp, but before he can reach them the roof collapses and we hear a call come through that a firefighter is down. As we suspected, it was Tony who was injured on the call but thankfully the injury was not too severe.
He was impaled by a piece of shrapnel from the roof collapse and taken to Med, where the doctors note he should make a full recovery. While at the hospital waiting for the update, Cruz got in his head about missing something, and Capp assures him they never heard it coming before the building collapsed. Meanwhile, Pascal is frustrated and points out this never would have happened if an engine had been on the scene from the start. Cruz wants to stay behind at the hospital to be there for Tony, but Pascal tells him he can ride with him back to the firehouse.
As Cruz and Pascal head out, Novak is pulled away by Frost and the pair have a bit of fun in the stairway before he’s called away. Before he leaves, he drops a note about planning something fun for the weekend which seems to give Novak a moment of pause rather than exciting her.
Back at the firehouse, Kidd talks through the fire with Kylie and Macy as she lets them know Tony will be laid up for a few weeks, but should make a full recovery. Herrmann pulls her away to make sure Kidd is okay with Annebelle being dropped off at the firehouse. As Cindy arrivs to drop Annabelle off, she tells Herrmann they need to get her in to see someone so she can get some real help and begin working through her PTSD from the fire.
When Cruz and Pascal arrive back at the firehouse, they find Deputy District Chief Cranston waiting for them. He’s come to do an investigation following Tony’s injury which is protocol, though the speed seems suspect. Chief Pascal comes to Cruz’s defense immediately, and Chef Cranston tells him it’s Pascal they're looking into his actions.
Pascal explains that they were lacking manpower, as Deputy District Chief Cranston says they didn’t evacuate soon enough. Pascal wonders about the building’s structure, but the permits show everything was up to code as Deputy District Chief Cranston questions whether Pascal misread the conditions and asks Cruz to walk him through things from his point of view.
Elsewhere, Violet asks Herrmann about Annabelle, who tried to say speaking with ChatGPT was enough to help her. He asks Violet to help speak with Annabelle and convince her that therapy is the best next move. Violet sits down with Annabelle and explains that talking things out with an actual person would be the best thing to help. As they chat, Violet mentions having a fun night with a guy and having feelings for him, but now she’s worried her best friend might have feelings. She’s not sure whether to tell her best friend and asks Annabelle’s advice. She suggests Violet not tell her if it’s not going to happen again, and Violet agrees.
Kylie and Macey lay out a course on the firehouse floor. Kidd adds in a wire entanglement layer as she reminds them the point of the drills is to challenge the girls as Herrmann listens in. He seems to get an idea in listening to Kidd’s speech, and we have a feeling it’s no coincidence that Annabelle’s struggle coincides with the Girls on Fire storyline. Herrmann later takes Annabelle to the fire academy. He explains that one of the things they must master at the academy is overcoming their fears, which takes a lot of training. If you work hard at stuff, then regular people can go about their lives and know that firefighters will be there to help in their time of need. The visit inspires her to submit an application for Girls on Fire and pursue a career as a firefighter.
Cruz and Pascal head out to the scene of the fire. As they search, Cruz asks Pascal if something happened between him and Cranston back in the day, to which Pascal notes that they had a disagreement about a call back in the day and that it’s nothing. They notice some bolts that appear to have been cut, indicating that someone tampered with the bolts before the fire. Their investigation is cut short as Captain Hargrave with OFI arrives and informs Pascal he needs to leave immediately as he cannot be on the scene when he’s the center of the investigation.
Vasquez texts Violet, and her face lights up. She goes to reply as Novak enters and tells her about Frost telling her to think of what she wants to do this weekend. Novak says this isn’t a relationship, yet he’s already assuming they’re hanging out like they're a committed couple. Violet admits she thought this was the case as they’re called away for a call at a restaurant.
Novak goes to see Frost to see if they’re on the same page. She suggests they’re causal and Frost says they haven’t been acting or talking that way. She wants to keep seeing him, but he notes he’s not in this for casual hookups; he likes her a lot. He suggests that if she doesn’t a future in this, it’s best to end things now before anyone gets hurt. Later, she grabs dinner with Violet and tells her Frost broke things off.
Violet asks if there is someone she likes more who is stopping her from getting serious with Frost, and Violet says there are tons of guys as she points to a random guy in the restaurant. Violet reminds her that she didn’t want to get serious at Firehouse 51, but she ended up sticking around. We’ll see if that advice convinces Novak not to throw in the towel with Frost.
Upon returning to Firehouse 51, Cranston makes it clear that Pascal needs to let OFI handle this. Pascal notes he’s fighting for his life and could use an advocate as Cranston brings up their past and how Pascal cut ties after one Cranston. It seems there is more bad blood between the two than he let on. It seems the call in question was connected to a woman who died in a fire, a death that still haunts Pascal and was the reason he left Chicago to get some space. Before Cranston heads out he asks him to check out the column and the bolts.
Cruz heads to the hospital, and we learn Tony will be discharged; though, he’ll be good to go in a few weeks with some rest. Tony asks about Pascal, and Cruz reveals the hearing is happening today and worries that firing Pascal is the easiest way to get rid of someone not willing to bend the knee. His fear is this call was the reason they needed to push Pascal out.
He meets with Pascal down at HQ for his trial as a union rep makes it clear that Pascal should wait to see how this goes. When it looks like the hearing is about to begin, the group is notified that the hearing has been postponed as Cranston collapsed while working a scene. He had a heart attack and, sadly, he didn’t make it.
As the episode comes to an end, Pascal and Cruz are attending a wake for Cranston when Captain Hargrave arrives. At first, Pascal tries to send her away noting that isn’t the time or place, but that’s when she informs him that Cranston asked her to look into the bolts before his death. They found that the bolts were responsible for the beam collapsing and that Pascal was not to blame, a finding he was planning on telling the review board before his death.
Given how quickly the CFD was ready to come for Pascal, we’re eager to see if they’ll take another shot and what the upcoming episodes will hold. For now, it seems he should be in the clear for this particular incident.
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