Chicago Fire Review: Fire Cop (Season 10 Episode 13)

Alexa, please cut Blake Gallo some slack.

On Chicago Fire Season 10 Episode 13, “Fire Cop,” Gallo is shaken up from a call where he mistakenly searches for a victim he thinks he hears calling out. But it’s not a victim at all — it’s a smart speaker, offering an oddly creepy moment at the top of the episode.

It’s actually really fitting that the device winds up being so important to the episode. It makes you think about the problems — and the advantages — of having such a device around.

In this case, the device winds up being a little helpful in determining whether or not a fire is an arson case. But more on that later.

Gallo suffers a blow to his confidence because of chasing after an electronic voice, and it leaves him in danger. It seems like it’s a perfectly reasonable mistake, but he’s hard on himself about the misstep.

Of course, he’s also feeling down and out because he’s jealous of Violet’s budding relationship with Hawkins, which he makes perfectly clear — and does so in a way that’s pretty far out of line. You have to feel a little bad for the guy, but honestly, not that much. And there’s just something so captivating about Violet and Hawkins together.

We are keeping this guy around, right? He brings a nice energy to the show, and his presence also means the world of the paramedics is expanded a bit, which is a great thing.

It’s Stella who helps Gallo get his mojo back a bit, showing once again what a strong leader she really is. She asks Pelham to allow Gallo to climb a tree to save a cat (in the most perfect and adorable cliche), and it gives him some of his confidence back.

Plus, he saves the cat, and that’s the kind of joy I like to see on this show every now and again. 

Pelham points out how such a small act shows Stella’s leadership skills, but she remains unmoved. We’re all thinking the same thing, though — she’s supposed to be in Pelham’s role, no matter how likable he is and how well he works in the firehouse.

It should be too late at this point, but it feels like the show is setting it up for her to change her mind and try to end up in that spot, which would only be frustrating considering how much effort was put into her backing away from it. 

Even Kylie is making a strong case for Stella to focus on moving up in her career, though, and her case is pretty compelling. Kylie is even in a position to help with Girls on Fire. We’ll see.

Speaking of frustrating, let’s talk about Severide and Wendy Seager. Do they work well together? Yes.

Does Seager blatantly make it known that she has a crush on Severide? Yes. But the dynamic is off to such a degree that I can’t really tell what we’re supposed to make of it at this point or why we should even care.

Stella is getting jealous, and Severide certainly has been working with Seager a lot. Up until this episode, it felt pretty clear to me that Severide was just being polite with her, but something shifts ever so slightly after they work this last case. 

Seager aside, though, Severide proves once again that he’s probably meant to work for OFI. One look at a rash on someone’s neck and he’s able to start piecing it all together. He does it effortlessly and he seems to enjoy it just as much. 

Other thoughts:

• Pelham’s anxiety over the possibility of a critter in the walls of his new office makes me love him even more. It’s a great little antic, and with a funny result that isn’t too over the top.
• I also love that Boden is left with “no choice” but to bust a bunch of holes in the walls. 
• Just for a moment while watching this episode, I expected to see Matt Casey. It made me sad all over again.

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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