Chicago Fire - Sharp Elbows & When Tortoises Fly - Review

Double review! Jimmy (Steven R.McQueen) is promoted to series regular! Exciting things are happening. I apologize for the delay, Thanksgiving weekend was crazy. But now we can talk about two episodes at once, hooray!

"Sharp Elbows"

Benny Severide is back and I’m not excited about it. I get anxious every time he shows up; you just never know what trouble he’ll cause! Side note, I love that CHI canvas is Casey and Severide’s apartment. I’d like one, please. Anyway, Benny is just itching to get involved in the whole Severide vs. Patterson mess so things can only go downhill.

Patterson, in an effort to connect or something, asks Dawson how she’s doing back on the job. She’s standoffish and snarky, and I can’t blame her. She makes her dislike and distrust for Patterson known, which only escalates the issue. And even though Casey puts Otis in his place regarding his respect for Patterson, Casey later makes his position (firmly with Severide, obviously) with Patterson known.

Later, Benny shows up with dirt on Patterson; dirt Severide can use to get Patterson out of 51. Out of all the characters on this show, not one has come further in terms of character growth and maturity than Kelly Severide. In fact, it’s Dawson, not Severide, who blows up about Patterson in a house meeting (and I was cheering her on the entire time). Patterson threatens to suspend Dawson, which makes Casey raise his voice to Patterson, and it’s Severide who calms things down. Talk about role reversal!

Later, in a move that made me so proud, Severide gives Patterson the folder with the info that could strip him of his position. I am just so happy for Severide! Instead of taking the easy way out, he takes the high road and will fight for his job with the honor and integrity that position deserves.

Meanwhile, Boden is in the hot seat this week as the investigation into Serena’s abuse is in full swing. There’s no way Riddle’s not involved, right? It just wouldn’t make sense for this to be a random act amidst all this nonsense with Riddle. Boden clearly doesn’t trust Patterson anymore, as he only confides in Herrmann, Casey, and Mouch. I love these four; I know the issue surrounding Boden is serious right now, but the relationship these four have is fantastic.


Boden and Donna meet with a lawyer (who happens to be Cindy Herrmann’s BFF) and it’s not looking good. If the case goes forward and Boden is convicted, he could face 30 years in prison. No! Obviously this will all be cleared up…it has to. Boden cannot go down like this!

Later, Riddle drops by to throw his support behind Boden, but then requests he lay low and skip the gala. Perhaps this is an elaborate scheme orchestrated by Riddle, but I think it might be bigger than that. While I think Riddle is behind everything, it would be fun twist if it was someone else, like maybe Patterson. Sorry, I just discovered Veronica Mars, so I’m naturally suspicious of everyone now (also if you haven’t discovered the perfection that is Veronica Mars, do yourself a favor and watch it).

Detective Wheeler (a turd), seems to have blinders for only Boden in the case. Thankfully, Voight is on Boden’s side and intervenes. I don’t know when the big crossover for these shows is planned, but if this case isn’t wrapped up soon, it could involve this issue with Boden.

At the charity gala for burn victims, Boden shows up. He’s a bit upset, and causes a brief scene with Riddle. But once again, in a touching move, Firehouse 51 shows just how deep their loyalty and love for one another goes. The episode closes with the entire house (and Cindy!) surrounding Boden, vowing to stand by him.

Elsewhere…

On the first call of the night, a nasty accident leaves a man impaled on part of a window for a restaurant. This is the first time Jimmy doesn’t live up to his Casey Jr. reputation, but other than that, things are going pretty well for him (and by that, I mean Chili). Jimmy and Chili are so adorable and I am 100% committed to this relationship. Unfortunately, I don’t think Chili is. I just know it won’t be smooth sailing for these two and I think Chili’s issues with marriage/commitment will be the cause. But until that sad day comes, I’ll enjoy every second of this pairing, because it’s magical.

Freddie is back to see Cruz, but things aren’t looking so great for him. His gang knows something’s up and have someone tailing him constantly. Freddie is on edge to say the least, and shows up at the firehouse armed (just for his own protection). Cruz later gives Freddie an ultimatum: stay in the gang and die or get out now. Thankfully, Freddie chooses the latter, but I don’t think it will be easy.

Otis has a thing for Sylvie. NO. JUST NO. He asks her to the gala, and her original response is no (to which I let out a huge sigh of relief). But of course, the writers want to torture us. Sylvie reconsiders and later tells Otis she’d love to go with him. Sylvie, no! I have been patiently (okay, maybe not so patiently) awaiting for the Sylvie/Severide ship to set sail. Apparently I’ll have to wait a bit longer. For the love of all that is good and holy, please let this Otis thing fizzle out in like, an episode.


And now for "When Tortoises Fly"

In the most recent episode, the allegations against Boden take a nasty turn. It all starts when Serena, the liar, shows up to collect the last of her things. Donna confronts her, and I realized in this scene that getting on Donna’s bad side is never a good idea. There’s something fishy going on, and the situation only gets worse when Serena goes missing.

An ASA meets with Boden, and Boden immediately assumes it concerns the battery case. It actually concerns the arson case from earlier this season (real estate mogul Maddox is accused of arson). Boden, as a fire chief, is a valued witness for the prosecution. The battery case against him tarnishes that reputation and renders him useless for the prosecution, which would lead to Maddox winning his case. Now THAT is intriguing. All of the pieces fall together for Boden: Maddox is behind the battery charge, not Riddle.

I don’t like Riddle, obviously. He’s a bully who only cares about his politcal aspirations. But, I’m glad he’s not behind the battery case. Having Maddox as the one behind the battery case not only provides us with a twist in what I thought to be an obvious (and therefore boring) case, but it brings back a case we thought was wrapped up, which connects the first part of the season with this next chapter.

In an effort to find a connection between Maddox and Serena, Severide reaches out to Jamie, his lawyer ex. I’m sad that I’m not happy to see her, if that makes sense. I love Rachel Nichols, but Jamie is awful. She clearly knows Serena’s name, but doesn’t give Severide any information. I don’t think we’ve seen the last of her…

Poor Donna. It’s easy to forget how much the case affects her too, and we get a taste of it in this episode. Because of all the police activity, the neighbors canceled the moms group Donna recently joined. She’s near her breaking point, and I hope that she and Boden can survive this. I would not be able to handle a Donna/Boden split!

Okay, so we know it’s Maddox. Chicago PD’s Antonio steps in to help briefly, and I have a feeling this resolution will result in a mini crossover. Want to know a detective who’s not so helpful? Wheeler. I might like him less than Riddle, only because he clearly takes pleasure in going after Boden. Not only that, but he is completely close-minded to any other suspects not named Wallace Boden. In the end, Wheeler shows up at Molly’s to arrest Boden and might as well have skipped out to the squad care for all the glee he felt.


Elsewhere…

Don’t get me wrong, I love turtles. And tortoises, I suppose, though I honestly can’t tell you the difference between the two. While the tortoise storyline was amusing, it didn’t have much bearing on the show itself. I did love though that what seemed to be a random call for Sylvie and Chili later in the episode ended up connecting with the main call of the night; the John Doe found in a cornfield was the owner of the RV and tortoise.

Sylvie is having great luck with the men as of late. Otis is still interested…cue my annoyed face. I love Otis, I do. But as I’ve made perfectly clear, I’m firmly aboard the Sylvie/Severide ship (but mostly I’m stubborn and I just can’t give that idea up). A competition is brewing! On the first call of the night, Sylvie tends to Austin, who crashes into the RV. He hits on her immediately, and persues her later in the episode. Now while he absolutely belongs on The Bachelorette, he did have the line of the night (why he crashed), “I looked down at the radio to change the station. It was an emergency. They were playing Justin Bieber.”

Something is wrong with Chili. Not only does she show up late to shift, she doesn’t seem to care…about anything. Well, anything but hooking up with Jimmy (and who can blame her?). Boden practically tore her head off and she didn’t seem to care. What is up with this girl?! I’m sure this storyline will continue.

For now, Patterson seems to have converted from Team Riddle to Team 51. He’s helpful and supportive with Boden and the case against him. I can’t tell if he’s really coming around or if he has conniving ulterior motives. Again, I blame my recent obsession with Veronica Mars. Things have calmed down between he and Severide, at least for the moment. Before Boden’s arrest, the two have drinks together and Patterson encourages Severide to talk to Riddle about getting his bugle back, adding that he’d give a good review.



What did you think of the episodes? What’s wrong with Chili? Will Otis continue to persue Sylvie? Can we trust Patterson? When will Boden be free? Share your thoughts below!

About the Author - Meghan Reynolds

A Colorado native, Meghan was born a raised a Denver Broncos fan. Aside from football, she loves storytelling, whether it be movies, television, books, or music. Some of her favorite shows of the past and present include LOST, Friends, The Office, Scandal, Chicago PD, and Chicago Fire. She is excited to be reviewing two of those shows for SpoilerTV, Chicago PD and Chicago Fire.