Chicago PD is in third place. The One Chicago franchise has continued to thrive in 2025, especially after the release of the three-part crossover, but PD is simply not as popular as Chicago Med and Fire at the moment.
On the surface, it's difficult to see why. The show has dealt with just as many cast changes as the other shows, and has continued to delve further into its gritty stories. Our theory? We think PD is failing to take advantage of the storyline that most fans went into the season anticipating.
Burzek's wedding has become an afterthought
We're of course talking about the upcoming wedding of Adam Ruzek (Patrick John Flueger) and Kim Burgess (Marina Squerciati). These two have been through a lot to get to the point where they feel they are ready to walk down the aisle. It's an exciting time in their lives, but if you watched most of season 12 you wouldn't know it.
We know PD likes to compartmentalize their stories, and shift the focus from character to character on a weekly basis. It's proven to be an effective strategy, in so much as everybody gets to touch the ball out on the court. The problem is, even when the focus of an episode is Ruzek or Burgess, there's barely any mention of their engagement or their wedding plans.
The preparation for the wedding, the selection of the venue, and the details about who will be there, have not played any part in season 12. Granted, the couple have had to deal with other, more pressing matters, like the arrival of Chief Deputy Reid (Shawn Hatosy) or Burgess' promotion, but that's all due to the writers.
Marina Squerciati has promoted the wedding on IG
The episodes haven't been bad, but fans have been tuning in each week expecting an exciting update or a tidbit of information about which One Chicago characters have been invited to the wedding, only to get nothing. Not even a reference. The only solace fans have gotten that the wedding is happening at all is the Instagram of Marina Squerciati.
The actress has asked fans about dresses and modeled different outfits for fans, drumming up the kind of excitement that shows like Chicago Fire and Chicago Med did onscreen. Weddings are huge events in those shows, but PD has made the decision to bury its biggest marriage yet, and its proven to be detrimental to season 12 overall. We really hope there's more emphasis placed on the wedding as we get closer to the finale.