Chicago Fire - The One Who Matters Most / Put White on Me - Double Review

The One Who Matters Most

This episode of Chicago Fire introduced us to the newest firefighter at 51: Jake Cordova. We first meet him when Stella almost hits him with her car. He’ll be filling in until Otis is cleared to come back. Cordova already knows Dawson from working together previously. But before anything else happens they get a call. Stella is named the new driver until Otis returns. I thought she was funny when she said, “Driving is my specialty.”

The call is to a diner where a man has his arm trapped in a mixer. It’s pretty serious and the guys struggle to figure out how to free him. They finally are able to move the mixer in a circle and remove the man’s arm.

When Dawson and Brett return to the firehouse Dawson tells everyone that Otis is getting tests done, and Lily will let them know if she hears anything. At the hospital it’s obvious that Otis is scared. What if everything isn’t okay? Will Lily leave him? I felt so bad for him during this scene.

Back at the Firehouse Herrmann informs Cordova that the new firefighters cook lunch. Luckily Cordova is saved by the wife and daughter of the man they rescued earlier. They are so grateful that they brought food. While the ladies are fixing lunch Cordova has a chat with Casey. Cordova says that he’s the real deal, and it’s a no-brainer that he belongs with 51. What a jerk. Listen, I know it wasn’t his fault that Otis got hurt, but he’s really not winning anyone over with his attitude. I’m already ready for him to leave.

Brett gets a text from Lily saying that Otis has a hematoma pressing against his spine, and he’s going in for a procedure. Casey says they should be there so they all head to the hospital. Once they get there they see Otis standing. He was able to regain feeling in his legs once the hematoma was removed. This is good news, but Otis still has a long way to go. He can only take a few steps before he almost collapses. Then when he's alone with Lily he gets angry. He’s worried about Cordova and his place at 51 and takes his anger out on her. He asks her to leave.

After those scene we definitely needed some comic relief, and we got it. It turns out the food the ladies cook for the firehouse is absolutely terrible. I laughed when Brett said, “Are you kidding me?” And I loved that Stella pretended to get a call from her landlord just so she and Severide could get out of there. Plus they got some alone time which was a plus.

Since it was pretty obvious the daughter has a crush on Cruz, they tell him he had to fix this. They are not going to eat that food again.

Brett and Cruz show up at the hospital after their shift with pizza and an iPad full of movies to try to cheer up Otis. At first he doesn’t want to spend time with them, but Cruz and Brett pretty much force him to watch the movie. He then perks up and seems interested in the pizza. It was nice to see that Cruz and Brett didn’t leave just because Otis wanted them to. They knew he needed them.

There’s more tension in the house with Cordova when he accidentally drops Otis’s jacket. Herrmann gets upset and tells Cordova to have a little respect. Herrmann ends up punching Cordova after he says there’s no chance Otis will be back. Herrmann gets a drink of water and tries to calm down when he spots Lily waiting. She’s upset and doesn’t understand why Otis dodsn’t want her at the hospital anymore. Herrmann admits that he’s struggling, too, but they all need to be there for Otis.

It was hard to see Herrmann like this. I know that Casey is the captain and the leader, but Herrmann is a leader, too. He’s the emotional center of the show, and I know he was struggling to figure out how to deal with losing one of his guys.

After Herrmann’s talk with Lily the house gets another call. This time it’s to rescue a man who is caught between a mean and scaffolding. Grissom shows up to help, and they debate on what to do. The tower at the site is unstable so Grissom goes to the top with Severide. Severide holds the platform as Grissom pulls the man out. Severide is able to jump onto the ladder and get t o safety just in time before the tower falls over.

After everyone is safe Kelly and Grissom have a chat. Grissom was upset over Severide missing their dinner, and he felt like Deveride didn’t want his help. They shake hands and they seem to mend fences.

Near the of the episode Boden informs everyone that Otis must complete at least two months of rehab before he will be considered for reinstatement. This means that Cordova has been perfectly assigned to 51. Casey tries to smooth things over and give an encouraging speech, but he struggles. Boden steps in and tells everyone that Otis can’t fight this hard fight alone. Then he takes a bite of the food and talk about how terrible it is. The ladies overhear and they leave. Well, that was one way of getting the women to leave. They definitely won’t be cooking any more meals for these guys.

Since Cordova will be around for awhile, Dawson confronts him and says that she has to tell Casey about them. This doesn’t sound good. Apparently they have a history. Cordova asks Dawson to wait a few shifts before telling Casey so he’ll get a fair chance. I don’t like this. We have already had enough drama for a while. Did we have to have this, too?

At the end Herrmann goes to the hospital and is happy to see Lily with Otis. After a minute of observing he goes in to see Otis, I’m glad that Herrmann decided to take his own advice and be there for Otis no matter what.

Other thoughts:

- Is Boden going to leave 51? It seems that he’s thinking about it since Grissom offered him his job. It seems like he thinks Casey is ready to lead. It made me sad when he talked to Donna about the guys not needing him anymore. They need you, Boden. It wouldn’t be the same without him.

- Stella and Severide were cute especially at the end when Stella noticed that he took her advice about Grissom. He commented that her opinion is the one that matters most.


Put White on Me

This episode began on a positive note: Otis's walking is improving. Boden is impressed, and he offers Otis a desk job while he's working on his rehab. Otis isn't sure at first, but he shows up next shift. He's greeted with applause, and it's obvious everyone is glad he's there.

At the beginning of the shift Dawson asks Casey what he thinks of the new guy, and Casey says Cordova has to go. He's not impressed by how willing he's been to take Otis's spot. He's not a good fit.

The firehouse gets called to an indoor pool where the sign has fallen and there's a loose wire. The lifeguard has been electrocuted, and they need to get everyone out of the pool. While they try to drag the two adults who have been electrocuted to safety, Stella and Cordova jump into the pool to rescue one of the kids. Stella and Cordova frantically try to get out the pool before the wire gets in. Casey cuts the power just in time. They realize the kid is at the pool by himself so they bring him back to the firehouse until they can locate his parents.

Back at the firehouse Casey throws out names of firefighters to Stella and Herrmann, and I thought their reactions were great. Stella said one guy was "semi-cute" and the other guy is a definite no from both Herrmann and Stella. Casey said they are trying to get a new floater since Cordova doesn't play well with others. Herrmann tells Casey that while Cordova is a smart ass, he is capable of doing the job. I loved that Stella said Cordova didn't "jump right in" to the pool. She jumped in first, and he jumped in after her. You tell them, Stella. I was also somewhat surprised by Herrmann's reaction.

Cordova stops Dawson and asks if the victims from the pool survived. Brett thinks Cordova still has a thing for Dawson, but Dawson disagrees. She also has decided not to say anything to Casey since she thinks Casey is getting rid of him next shift.

Later at Molly's Cordova shows up and Casey compliments him. But that doesn't last long as one of Cordova's friends asks him why he's at Molly's. He thought Cordova didn't go to Molly's because he used to "bang" one of the owners. Casey walks out and Dawson runs after him trying to explain. He doesn't understand why she didn't tell him, and he doesn't think she gives him enough credit. Casey wouldn't punish Cordova just because he used to have a thing with Dawson. He tells Cordova that it doesn't bother him because it was so long ago.

Dawson complains to Brett about how she's tired of being caught in the 51 drama. I laughed because most of the time she's the one who causes the drama! She's considering giving SAS, the private ambulance company, a chance. She thinks it will be easier. But she changes her mind after she and Brett are called to the scene of a shooting. There are two gunshot victims, and the SAS paramedics show up. They tell Dawson and Brett that they can't take "high risk" victims (patients without insurance). Then shots start being fired. Brett and Dawson panic trying to protect the victims, but 51 shows up to rescue them. I loved Casey's snide comment about the police late to the scene. "Right on time as always."

At the end of the shift Dawson apologizes to Casey. She should have told him. He brings up Bria and the other times that she's kept things from him. She says that it won't happen again. He seems okay, and they hug. I wish I could believe Dawson, and I do hope this is the last time that she keeps something, but I have a hard time. She always does this. It's been six seasons, and she still hides things or doesn't tell Casey the whole truth.

The other big story this week revolved around the boy that Stella rescued from the pool. Otis talks to the boy from the pool, and we learn his name is Zander. Otis is able to figure out who Zander's parents are and where he lives. The dad comes to pick Zander up, and Otis feels pretty good about helping him. That is until Zander's mom shows up, and says that the dad is a lunatic and doesn't have custody. The mom is livid, and she is threatening to go to the news stations unless the CFD writes a check to her. Otis, feeling pretty bad about the situation, goes over to the woman's house and gives a very nice apology. The woman then slams the door in his face. Nice. As he's leaving Otis notices what looks like a recent decal on the woman's car of the entire family. Otis asks the woman about it, and the Zander's dad also comes to the door. Otis snaps a picture of them together. Busted.

I'm glad that Otis was able to figure out that Zander's parents are scam artists before it cost the CFD anything. I feel bad for Zander, though. His parents are terrible. I'm also glad that Otis is going to stick around and help out 51.

Severide's mom made an appearance this episode, and Severide is happy to see her. I thought it was funny that Stella tried so hard for Severide's mom to like her, but she failed miserably. At least at first. Stella ends up winning her over when she asks questions about her church. She goes to see Severide's dad, and while she intends to let him have it, they end up getting back together! Severide's face when he walked into his apartment and saw his dad was priceless. I don't think I see this ending well.

What did you think of these two episodes? Were you as angry at Zander's mom as I was? How did you feel about Cordova? Let me know in the comments section!