One Chicago pulled off a crossover event for the ages in 2025. The franchise made fans wait over half a decade, but we are happy to say that it delivered on all fronts. The stakes were high, the drama was intense, and most of our favorite characters got a chance to shine.
Naturally, a new One Chicago crossover compels us to look back at the crossovers that came before and draw comparisons. The characters are different, of course, but the intention is the same. And we have to say it; One Chicago has gotten much better at the crossover model.
One Chicago's first Med-involved crossover was in 2018
Let's compare the 2025 three-part event to the first one that took place in 2018. Several years difference, but a lot of the same cast members for the sake of continuity. There's still a lot to like about the 2018 crossover, which marked the first time Chicago Fire, Chicago Med and Chicago PD joined forces to tell a single story over three episodes.
The novelty of seeing characters overlap was thrilling, but the structure was not as collaborative as the term "crossover" would have you think. By and large, the first One Chicago crossover to feature these three shows were basically standalone episodes that passed the case or storyline on to the next franchise in the closing minutes.
It was clear the franchise had yet to figure out how to tell a story that maximized the involvement of all three shows, especially over the course of three separate episodes. The contrast between this more isolated, pass-the-baton approach and the 2025 crossover is night and day.
The franchise has gotten better at integrating stories
The 2025 crossover was totally immersive because characters from all three shows were involved in all three episodes. "In the Trenches" was not a story that passed hands from Fire to Med to PD with a few glorified crossover scenes. It was an instance of all hands being on deck for all three hours, and it made an enormous difference.
Chicago Med star Steven Weber likened the 2025 event to Avengers: Endgame, and it's accurate in the sense that the One Chicago franchise finally figured out how to integrate the different shows into one cohesive whole. It's our pick for best crossover yet because it felt like watching a complete story, and not one broken up to fit distinct 42 minute chunks.
This bodes incredibly well for the future of the franchise. We can't wait to see what future crossovers look like as a result.