Chicago Fire Season Finale Review: I’m Not Leaving You (Season 7 Episode 22)
If there’s anything Chicago Fire knows how to do well, it’s a cliffhanger.
On Chicago Fire Season 7 Episode 22, “I’m Not Leaving You,” we’re left with one of the most intense season finale cliffhangers of the series, where really, there’s no telling who may or may not make it out alive.
The cliffhanger stands alone in a way that feels a little strange, though. Everything else has some resolve to it, for better or worse. So let’s back up a bit.
Kelly really does have an eye for arson investigations and the like, and thanks to that eye and to his determination, the arsonist Benny had been looking for years ago is finally caught. Ultimately, it’s a pretty satisfying end to that arc.
The good guy wins — Kelly proves once again he’s the hero we know him to be. And solving a case his father had been working on offers him some closure with his dad’s death, which is a nice touch.
He gets a chance to work with Stella in the process. We’ve seen them slowly rebuilding their relationship over the course of the past few episodes, and something in Kelly has clicked to make him say he wants to change.
He tells Stella that when she shows up to the cabin, worried. Even though much of their problems felt contrived from the start, it’s certainly satisfying to see them getting back together now. They make love in the cabin, in a full-on soap opera setting with a fireplace in the background. (I can’t be the only one who worried about that fire for a moment, though.)
Then there’s also this bit with Casey and Brett, which still has me undecided on how I feel. Just as Casey is about to work up the nerve to ask Brett on a date — and he conveniently needs a date thanks to an upcoming event with Boden — her entire trajectory changes. Kyle shows up, tells her he’s moving, and it’s not too hard to see what’s coming next.
It is frustrating that Casey just backs off that fast, assuming the two are back together and going on about how he thinks they’re good together. For some reason, Brett doesn’t correct him. It’s hard to read why — whether it’s because she’s assuming he’s not interested in her or because she’s realizing she’s still in love with Kyle.
Either way, the proposal that comes next feels a bit too abrupt. I expected Kyle to ask Brett to move with him, but this was even bigger. And then for her to say yes… I don’t think she’s so sure about that answer.
All of this has moved to quickly and feels forced. I have said before that I could get on board with a Brett and Casey romance if it happens slowly, and this definitely has the potential to make it all a slow burn. But the pieces feel disconnected.
With closure on the arson case, closure for Stella and Kelly, and a new change for Brett and Kyle, everything feels fairly wrapped up. That is until what is, according to Herrmann, one of the worst possible kinds of fires breaks out.
The firefighters head to a mattress factory fire which is clearly going to end in tragedy. They scramble, and they’re already too late for some. The entire scene is the highlight of the episode.
Let’s be honest, this is the kind of thing that keeps us coming back to the show in the first place. They’re dealing with the chaos and trying to save as many lives as they can, but there are people trapped and the basement is about to explode.
Herrmann resigns himself to a fate of death in a way that’s really powerful. He just shakes his head and tells Ritter to leave while he holds things off for everyone else as long as he can. Herrmann is one of my favorites on the show, and it’s moments like this that show why.
Unfortunately, I don’t feel invested in Ritter. We still haven’t gotten to know him well enough yet.
Meanwhile, Severide is stubborn as most of these firefighters are and refuses to evacuate when Boden tells everyone to get out.
I’m losing count of how often Boden has shouted orders for firefighters to evacuate a building only for them to ignore him entirely. I get it — they’re heroes and they want to save as many lives as they can. But sometimes I wonder what would happen if they just listened?
Not this time, though. And with a room full of people trapped, this does seem like the time to make an exception. And Casey and the others aren’t leaving Severide to deal with it alone, either. They are all a family, after all.
It’s a good cliffhanger and it leaves things wide open, that’s for sure. Even though the season has been hit or miss for me, a cliffhanger like that is enough to keep me coming back.
What did you think of this episode of Chicago Fire? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Chicago Fire returns next fall to 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.