Chicago Fire Review: It Wasn’t About Hockey (Season 7 Episode 14)
Chicago Fire Season 7 Episode 14, “It Wasn’t About Hockey,” changes the formula of the show a bit, and it does so for the better.
The episode is one that allows the women of the series to shine. Brett, Foster, and Kidd plan a road trip for Galentine’s Day — a detail in itself that I appreciate.
We don’t see much in the way of their relaxing together, though. Kidd has to take care of things for the bar, so Brett and Foster drive on ahead separately, quickly finding themselves in a situation where they have to put their skills to the test.
A bus filled with teenage hockey players crashes right in front of their eyes where they stand, and naturally, it’s a dark, deserted road, and no one has a cell phone signal.
We’ve seen this kind of thing on television plenty of times, but that doesn’t make it any less interesting. Brett and Foster have to improvise to help the injured teens, and both of them are able to do so flawlessly.
They take command of the situation immediately, and they make use of what they have — eyelash curlers and all.
The way they work also shows how quickly these two have been able to form a bond and work together as a team. It’s all very positive an enjoyable to watch.
Perhaps the most significant thing about how everything plays out is the way everyone else reacts to the women. Brett and Foster are taking the lead in a group of men and teenage boys, and their skills aren’t questioned for a single second. They’re treated as the professionals that they are by every person involved: the man they stopped to help in the first place, the coach, and all of the teenagers.
This could have been a different story. It could have been one where the teens and their coach refused to cooperate or accept help from our paramedics because of gender — or at least one where they had to prove themselves first.
Removing that element sends an even more important message about gender. Rather than even having a discussion about it, which would be great too (something Gabby Dawson often found herself dealing with), having everyone treat them with respect and allowing them to take the lead immediately normalizes such an attitude.
Kidd eventually shows up and jumps in too, just ahead of the arrival of the ambulances. It’s all a success — everyone gets a happy ending.
The coach even decides to stay with his team rather than taking the other job he had planned on. And the three women get their girl time, which seems to mean more after what they’ve just been through.
This could have easily been a bottle episode focused on just the women. Instead, we do see the men back at the firehouse, but their focus isn’t on saving lives. What we see from them directly contrasts what the women are dealing with rather than competing with it.
They’re having their own competition.
It’s a fun detail to see the chili cook-off. I always like these moments from Chicago Fire because of the comic relief, but also because of the normalcy. It’s more realistic to see that every moment isn’t about risking their lives and running into burning buildings. Sometimes, they get to cook chili and focus on camaraderie.
I do kind of wish Casey and Severide’s chili would have won, but the outcome is still a fun one.
What did you think of this episode of Chicago Fire? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Chicago Fire airs Wednesdays at 9/8c on NBC.
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Ashley Bissette Sumerel
Ashley Bissette Sumerel is a television and film critic living in Wilmington, North Carolina. She is editor-in-chief of Tell-Tale TV as well as Eulalie Magazine. Ashley has also written for outlets such as Rolling Stone, Paste Magazine, and Insider. Ashley has been a member of the Critics Choice Association since 2017 and is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic. In addition to her work as an editor and critic, Ashley teaches Entertainment Journalism, Composition, and Literature at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.