Even a Mention of Otis on Chicago Fire Season 14 Episode 19 Doesn’t Fix the Overused Chief Arc

Chicago Fire has an issue with the overuse trope of a new boss coming in and trying to dismantle Firehouse 51.

Over the last few episodes, we’ve seen Chief Hopkins come in and attempt it, and it looks like he may have found a way to succeed.

Annoyingly, even a mention of Otis can’t fix the annoying arc.

Mouch’s Story Seemed to Come Out of Nowhere

There’s usually a C-plot that brings the humor to the hour, and Mouch took the main focus in that as he started writing his memoir.

Honestly, I appreciated the reminder of his fiction writing, but the whole plot of him writing his memoir just seemed to come out of nowhere.

It’s just been so long since his erotic fiction writing days — nine seasons, to be exact — and if Chicago Fire really wanted to bring this back up, then it should have been mentioned now and then.

This is a recurring problem with the series, so I don’t let it overly affect my enjoyment of it, but it’s a legitimate issue for the writers to consider moving forward.

Consistency is king.

At least there was a reasonable backstory for the sudden interest, as Mouch brought up all the files that he looked through when there was the big fight for his job.

Plus, seeing Herrmann try to figure out what was missing from the introduction, Capp complaining of spoilers, and the younger firefighters engrossed in the tale, it was a great reminder of how important Mouch is to the firehouse.

Firehouse 51 Has to Play to Its Strengths

The main focus of the hour was Hopkins going up against Severide, as the Internal Affairs investigation has begun.

Severide knows that Hopkins is coming after him for something Benny did, but now that there’s an active investigation, he can’t continue the search.

It means he needs to lean on other members of Firehouse 51, and, of course, the fire family will have his back.

Kidd thinks of a way to get a hold of the old files to figure out what really went down, but she hits a roadblock.

Only, she doesn’t realize she’s hit a roadblock. It’s Lucy who learns, and she uses her strengths.

As soon as Lucy was introduced on Chicago Fire Season 14, we learned that she’s great at working the system. 

She will play any card she can to get what she needs, as she did when it came to getting the new hose system that multiple other firehouses wanted.

I would have loved to see how she managed to get the files for Kidd, but I’m glad that she is turning out to be one of the good ones.

Even if it means losing the Battalion Chief, which could mean the loss of her job, Lucy knows that this firehouse cannot be disbanded, which is what Hopkins has gotten to the point of threatening.

What I can’t tell is whether Lucy will stick around for Chicago Fire Season 15. 

I would love to see her continue in this role, but part of me feels like the writing is on the wall for her.

As Hopkins finds out what she has done, he’s sure to take her down with him.

Now, sure, the firehouse has always believed in good people getting second chances when they’ve done the wrong thing, but can they protect her from Hopkins when he’s already going after one of their own?

Hopkins Has to See He’s Doing the Wrong Thing

Of course, the main focus of Chicago Fire Season 14 Episode 19 has been Hopkins going up against Severide.

Things aren’t quite working out the way Hopkins wants, though.

While Severide is under investigation, he still manages to get the approval needed to work an OFI case throughout the episode, proving how vital he is to the CFD.

It’s frustrating that Hopkins has found a way to threaten Severide’s job, and it should never have happened.

How did Boden and Pascal, who supported Severide working with OFI on so many occasions, not come up with the top brass before?

It seems like it’s a waste of time investigating, since it really shows just how terrible everyone was at their job — not just Boden and Pascal for not putting the right paperwork in, but also Van Meter and the top brass for not doing their checks as well.

Out of everyone, it’s Hargraves who manages to find a way to help, and again, we get to see how people can play to their strengths when needed.

She never wanted to lead OFI forever, agreeing to serve only as the interim head. 

As she admits that she wants to get back into forensics, it means there’s a way to protect Severide’s job.

She can recommend him as the new head of OFI, and we all know that the rest of the team will support this. 

The One Chicago family knows that Severide is damn good at arson investigations, despite not really wanting to follow in his father’s footsteps.

It does feel a little like running, but at the same time, this is the vision I’ve always had for Severide. I always felt like eventually he would realize that OFI is where he needs to be.

It opens the door for Cruz to step up as lieutenant, which he proved he could when finding a way to help Holt deal with the loss of Macy and seeing another dead body.

The mention of Otis really touched my heart, and I hope we get these reminders that it’s okay not to be okay after a call — and that talking about it helps!

This also allows for some interesting plots with OFI investigations on a more regular basis, and we could get to see Severide and Van Meter working together more, as Van Meter is a consultant.

The question now is whether this is how Chicago Fire will play out over the next two episodes.

As Hopkins had to admit to his daughter that the person who solved the arson investigation during the hour was good at his job, there was a look that told us he knew he was doing the wrong thing.

He’s so focused on revenge that he’s threatening the job of a damn good firefighter, and he has to know that’s not right.

However, the process is already in motion, and the only way to stop the Internal Affairs investigation is for Severide to move to OFI.

Now that Kidd has the documents she and Severide need, the best option is to prove that Hopkins is acting immorally, and I’m ready to see Hopkins taken down.

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