Chicago Fire, like the rest of One Chicago, has gone through significant cast shake-ups in the last few seasons. The recent replacement of Eamonn Walker with Dermot Mulroney as Chief Dom Pascal on Chicago Fire has the chance to completely change the dynamics of the Truck and Engine squads. Unfortunately, the series has not effectively used this new leader. While the new season is just beginning, a troubling pattern is already being established for this character, making it hard to see where he fits into the overall story.
Since his introduction, Chief Pascal has spent little time with his new colleagues. He has briefly interacted with members of Truck and Engine. However, these have been short and fairly surface-level interactions for the most part. In the Season 13 premiere, he told the crew reporting to him that he would be changing things, including conducting one-on-one debriefs after every call. This could have been a real chance to set the stage for Pascal’s future in this firehouse and an opportunity to develop individual relationships with his direct reports. However, these interactions are so brief that they are almost meaningless.
Where Does Pascal Fit in With the Team?
The most Pascal has involved himself in his new firehouse so far is by giving Stella (Miranda Rae Mayo) and Severide (Taylor Kinney) a hard time about the fact that they continue to work together even though they are married. This is another missed opportunity to show Pascal’s ability to cause new conflict on Chicago Fire. Since Pascal’s introduction, this has been brought up once, and never again. This particular conflict makes little sense since, for the time being, Stella and Severide are key players on Chicago Fire. Their relationship is central to the series now. Since they have been working together for so long while being together, it would make little narrative sense to separate them.
Pascal has already questioned Stella’s leadership ability while only knowing her for such a short time. This is a major accusation that could have massive implications for Firehouse 51. Pascal’s only “evidence” to back up this claim is that there is significant turnover on Truck 81. However, this is already resolved now that Ritter (Daniel Kyri) has moved to Truck 81. This story could have also been a chance to showcase how adversarial Pascal’s leadership is and how Firehouse 51 would have to band together against him. Alternatively, this story could have provided Stella with a chance to prove herself to her new chief and have them start as adversaries but come to respect one another. Instead, this is another example of a Pascal storyline that simply fizzles out.