Chicago Fire Information

Chicago Fire is an American television drama that airs on NBC on Wednesdays at 10:00 pm Eastern/9:00 pm Central after Law & Order: Special Victims Unit during the 2012"13 television season. Created by Michael Brandt and Derek Haas and produced by Law & Order creator Dick Wolf, the show follows the lives of the firefighters and paramedics working at the Chicago Fire Department at the firehouse of Engine 51, Truck 81, Squad 3, Ambulance 61 and Battalion 25. The firehouse shown is Engine 18's Quarters located at 1360 S. Blue Island Ave. between 13th & Racine. The series premiered on October 10, 2012. The pilot episode had an early release on NBC.com, before the series' premiere on television.

Plot

The show explores the lives of the firefighters, rescue squad and paramedics of Chicago Firehouse 51, both professional and personal. Following the death of Fireman Andrew Darden, the loyalties fracture and divide as the leader of Truck 81, Lt. Matthew Casey and the leader of the elite rescue squad, Lt. Kelly Severide both blame each other. Kelly Severide is consumed with more guilt when he learns Darden's wife also blames him for the tragedy. Despite their differences, the firehouse comes together after the near death of Firefighter Christopher Herrmann.

New to the station is Candidate Peter Mills, who is following in the footsteps of his father and trying to find his place, over the objections of his mother. With paramedics Gabriela Dawson and Leslie Shay and under leadership of Battalion Chief Wallace Boden, the team faces life or death decisions every day, but look to each other like family, making sure to look out for each other, no matter what happens. Chicago Fire's tag line is, 'Life in the heat of it'.

Cast

• Jesse Spencer as Lieutenant Matthew Casey, Truck 81. He has a side job as a contractor. As the leader of the truck, he has a no-nonsense attitude and commands respect at the risk of alienating some of his housemates due to his stand-offish demeanor. He is engaged to Dr. Hallie Thomas for a time, but they decided to break it off, at which point he tentatively pursues Gabby Dawson. Casey is also burdened by his mother, who shattered the family 15 years earlier after murdering his father.
• Taylor Kinney as Lieutenant Kelly Severide, Squad 3. Kelly is strong yet slightly more charismatic than Casey, which lends itself to his ladies' man persona. He is plagued with an injury that has put his career in jeopardy.
• Charlie Barnett as Firefighter Candidate Peter Mills, Truck 81. Following in the footsteps of his father, Peter hopes to one day join the Rescue Squad. He has a sister and mother who run a family restaurant following his father's death. He begins dating Gabby Dawson in secret.
• Monica Raymund as Paramedic in Charge Gabriela Dawson, Ambulance 61. Dawson has recently found herself in trouble for leaping before she looks on various calls, which has led to her being written up several times. She also pursues a flirtation with the emotionally unavailable Casey, and later with Mills.
• Lauren German as Paramedic Leslie Elizabeth Shay, Ambulance 61. She and Kelly Severide share an apartment as roommates and are best friends. Shay is openly gay and is entangled in a relationship with an ex-lover who was most recently married and impregnated by a man. She is fiercely loyal to her friends, particularly Kelly, whom she has risked her job for several times.
• Eamonn Walker as 25th Battalion Chief Wallace Boden, Battalion 25. He is a scarred veteran of the fire department. Chief Boden has unwavering dedication to the firefighters under him and has earned their loyalty and respect.
• David Eigenberg as Firefighter Christopher Herrmann, Truck 81. Herrmann's sharp instincts on the job are in stark contrast to those when he is not at the firehouse, which include taking on several "get rich quick" schemes that have left him financially precarious. Herrmann and his wife have four children with a fifth on the way.
• Teri Reeves as Doctor Hallie Thomas (Episodes 1-7), a resident at Lakeshore Hospital and Matt's former fiancée.

Recurring

• Yuriy Sardarov as Firefighter Brian "Otis" Zvonecek, Truck 81. Otis recently finished his candidacy before the arrival of Peter Mills. He is eager to move up the ranks within the firehouse but often feels overlooked and unappreciated by the rest of the fire personnel. He has his own podcast about life as a firefighter. exploits as firefighters.
• Christian Stolte as Firefighter Randy "Mouch" McHolland, Truck 81. He gained his nickname due to the fact that he can almost always be found watching television when not on a call ("half man, half couch"). Mouch serves as union representative for the members of the station when they face disciplinary action.
• Joe Minoso as Firefighter/Chauffeur Joe Cruz, Truck 81. Cruz is a good firefighter who has a troubled younger brother that he is desperate to keep out of harm's way. He is haunted by a decision that he made on the job related to his brother that later effects his own safety and the safety of his fellow firemen.
• Shiri Appleby as Clarice Carthage. Clarice is introduced as the pregnant ex-girlfriend of Leslie Shay. In episode 13 Shay and Clarice reconcile their relationship and Clarice moves back in with Shay.
• Jon Seda as Detective Antonio Dawson of the Chicago Police Department, Gabriela's brother. He is enlisted by Casey for help when Casey runs into trouble with dirty CPD Detective Hank Voight. He's later almost killed in an undercover job gone bad, and seems to have become addicted to drugs while attempting to infiltrate a prostitution ring.
• Kathleen Quinlan as Nancy Casey, Matthew Casey's mother who is incarcerated for murdering his father 15 years prior at the beginning of the series. Casey is successful in getting Nancy released on parole, but encounters difficulties with her after she is back in the free world.
• Sarah Shahi as Renee Royce. Renee becomes attracted to Kelly after he saves her in a traffic accident, and they begin dating.
• Jason Beghe as Detective Hank Voight, a dirty cop who clashes with Matt (in "Professional Courtesy") after Voight's son's drunk driving paralyzes a teen. Voight covers for his son and targets Matt when he refuses to back down. He is currently imprisoned for attempting to have Casey murdered.
• Mo Gallini as Firefighter Jose Vargas, Squad 3. Vargas recently transferred from Truck 81. He leaves after he is injured in a warehouse fire and is put on disability and attempts suicide by jumping off his apartment building rooftop, but Severide and Casey talk him out of it .
• Treat Williams as Benny Severide, Kelly's father and former firefighter.
• Robyn Coffin as Cindy Herrmann, wife of Christopher Herrmann, and mother of their four children. In "Under the Knife" Herrmann announces that Cindy is pregnant with their fifth child.
• Pouch the dog as herself. Peter is given a dog from a kid from a family who couldn't take care of the dog. Hermann, Chief Boden and Mouch decide against it. Eventually, the three agree after Hermann suggests the three should rethink the dog. Pouch is given a name and adopted by the team. Pouch's name was decided by Hermann, who suggests she should be named after Mouch, which is half man half couch, to Pouch: Half pooch, half couch.

Production

The series pilot, co-written by creators Derek Haas and Michael Brandt, was filmed in Chicago and, according to an National Broadcasting Company (NBC) representative, the series will continue to be filmed there. Mayor of Chicago Rahm Emanuel made an appearance in the series' pilot episode. Emanuel stated: "It's easier being mayor than playing mayor. I told them I'd do it under one condition: the TV show is making an investment to the Firefighters' Widows and Orphans Fund."

The network placed an order for the series in May 2012. After receiving an additional script order in October, Chicago Fire was picked up for a full season on November 8, 2012. On January 29, 2013, Chicago Fire had its episode total increased from 22 to 23. One week later, on February 6, 2013, Chicago Fire received one more episode, giving it a total of 24 episodes for season one.

The firehouse shown is Engine 18's Quarters located at 1360 S. Blue Island Ave. between 13th & Racine. Housed here is ALS Engine 18, 2-2-1 (Deputy District Chief - 1st District), 4-5-7 (Field Chief - EMS District 7), 6-4-16 (High-Rise Response Unit) & BLS Ambulance 84.

Series overview

Season		Episodes	Originally aired		DVD and Blu-ray release date
			Season premiere	Season finale	Region 1	Region 2	Region 4
	1	24		TBA

Episodes

No.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	Production code	U.S. viewers (million)
ProdCode = 101	ShortSummary = A fire claims the life of a team member in the premiere of this drama series following the firefighters, paramedics and rescue squad of Chicago Firehouse 51. Following the tragedy, Lt. Matthew Casey and Lt. Kelly Severide point fingers at one another. Casey also deals with personal dramas surrounding his separation from his fiancee, Hallie.	Viewers = 6.61	LineColor = CC5500 }}	ProdCode = 102	ShortSummary = Severide is still consumed with guilt over Andy Darden's death"?and his remorse is only intensified when he learns that Darden's widow also blames him for the tragedy. Elsewhere, the team must rescue two teens trapped in a car; and Casey and Hallie try to hash out their next steps	Viewers = 5.85	LineColor = CC5500 }}	ProdCode = 103	ShortSummary = Casey faces pressure to cover for a cop's son, who was responsible for a drunken-driving accident that left a teenager paralyzed. Meanwhile, Severide ignores his doctor's warnings that his neck injury may never heal if he doesn't seek treatment; and Mills must choose between working at the fire department full-time or helping his mom with her restaurant.	Viewers = 6.42	LineColor = CC5500 }}	ProdCode = 104	ShortSummary = Chief Boden is plagued by bad press and low morale in the department after being accused of leaving a homeless man to die in a warehouse blaze. Meanwhile, Severide helps an elderly woman; Det. Voight continues to intimidate Casey; Shay runs into her ex-girlfriend during a call; and Hermann gets angry during a Halloween rescue.	Viewers = 5.62	LineColor = CC5500 }}	ProdCode = 105	ShortSummary = Casey fights back against Det. Voight and ends up dealing with the consequences; Dawson's on-the-job behavior results in disciplinary action; Severide's arm fails him during a rescue, so he seeks the help of a pharmaceutical representative who happens to be his ex-lover.	Viewers = 7.03	LineColor = CC5500 }}	ProdCode = 106	ShortSummary = Casey risks his life during an apartment-fire rescue, potentially earning a much-needed break from Det. Voight's ongoing pressure to retract his statement. Meanwhile, Dawson gets help from a girl she saved.	Viewers = 5.77	LineColor = CC5500 }}	ProdCode = 107	ShortSummary = A meth lab, a gang shooting, and a 10-car pileup round out Thanksgiving for the firefighters.	Viewers = 5.55	LineColor = CC5500 }}	ProdCode = 108	ShortSummary = The station gets called to a train accident where a teenager is caught beneath an axle. The teen is more concerned for his missing sister, whom Peter finds mangled to death a few hundreds yards away. The team is able to recover from the discovery, but Mills cannot. He is given the rest of the day off to ponder his future at his family's restaurant. Casey takes Mills to visit a family Casey saved years ago to show him the benefits of the job. Casey got the idea from two visiting Canadian firefighters, with whom Mouch seems to have a problem. Meanwhile, Shay and Dawson must deal with a domestic situation that Dawson appears to make worse.	Viewers = 7.21	LineColor = CC5500 }}	ProdCode = 109	ShortSummary = Ernie, a young boy who hangs around the firehouse, is spotted near a garbage can fire that spread to a nearby store full of oxygen tanks. Fighting that fire, Vargas gets sent to the hospital with burned lungs and develops an infection, while Severide wants to question the boy, believing him to be an arsonist. The boy later admits that his uncle is the felony arsonist. Vargas is diagnosed with COPD, thus ending his career. He ponders jumping off the firehouse roof but Casey and Severide talk him down. Also, Severide saves a woman from a car accident and she asks him out on a date.	Viewers = 4.87	LineColor = CC5500 }}	ProdCode = 110	ShortSummary = The crew arrives at the Vaughns' upscale home to put out a kitchen fire and the owner's expensive necklace goes missing. The CFD internal affairs bureau investigate those that were there to put out the fire. Casey stands by his men, and Otis investigates the Vaughns. He discovers they were in financial trouble"?the fire and theft could have been an insurance fraud. Casey dupes Mrs. Vaughn into believing the cameras on their helmets recorded something and he is prepared to inform the police. His team later gets news that the necklace has been found. The crew is also called to an apartment fire and Cruz believes his brother Leon may be inside. He finds gang leader Flaco alive and leaves him to perish in the fire, announcing an "all clear". Shay discovers Severide has been stealing pills from the ambulance and decides to stay with Dawson. As she and Dawson restock the ambulance, it is hit by a tow truck.	Viewers = 6.75	LineColor = CC5500 }}	ProdCode = 111	ShortSummary = The ambulance crash sends Shay to the hospital with a traumatic brain injury. She regains consciousness, but Severide is distraught over how things have recently been between them. Shay at first insists staying with Dawson is the best thing for her, but changes her mind when he admits his shoulder injury. Leon discovers that Cruz let gang leader Flaco die in the fire, but both agree to keep the news a secret. Casey visits his imprisoned mother, who is up for parole. She asks him to speak kindly at the parole meeting. He asks his sister to do the same, but she refuses, not forgiving her mother for killing their father. Finally, Dawson had cooked Shay a homecoming dinner, but invites Mills over after Shay's recent decision. Friendly chatter turns romantic and they make out on the floor.	Viewers = 8.54	LineColor = CC5500 }}	ShortSummary = Severide finally addresses Chief Boden about his injury and makes some important personal decisions about his future. Meanwhile, Casey struggles with family matters and Dawson takes matters into her own hands when she discovers a young girl who is the sole survivor at the scene of a rescue call. Herrmann decides to end his limousine company and the limousine becomes a training vehicle for the Chicago Fire Department Academy. Herrmann later announces to the team that his wife is pregnant with their fifth child.	ProdCode = 112	Viewers = 8.04	LineColor = CC5500 }}	ShortSummary = After Ray burns nephew Ernie alive for confessing to the police about their recent arsons, Chief Boden, feeling guilty, attacks him. Boden gets suspended indefinitely. With Dawson by his side, Casey speaks to the parole board, on behalf of his mother, about forgiveness and second chances. She is granted parole on the condition that she moves in with her son. Renee introduces Severide to a doctor who could perform an experimental spinal procedure with a very short recovery time. The drawback: possible partial paralysis. He gets upset with her suggestion, but his father (Treat Williams) talks him into it and decides not to move with her to Spain. Clarice leaves her husband and plans to move in with Shay.	ProdCode = 113	Viewers = 7.31	LineColor = CC5500 }}	ShortSummary = Severide and new lieutenant Eric Whaley (Shane McRae) have someone in common"?Whaley's sister Renée, who had cheated on Severide. Eric has blamed Severide for his sister's drinking and ending up in a three-month coma. After the coma, his sister has not come around the family. Shay sticks up for Severide, saying that he is not the cause of her current troubles. Severide later tries to call Renée, but her number has been disconnected. Meanwhile, Dawson, Otis and Herrmann become co-owners of the bar, and Dawson's love triangle with Mills and Casey gets interesting as both men become aware of the other. Also, several of the firehouse calls have a link to Antonio's laced-heroin case, which leads him to get shot.	ProdCode = 114	Viewers = 6.60	LineColor = CC5500 }}	ShortSummary = As Antonio recovers from the shooting, Dawson visits Voight in prison to ask about the gang activity. She is told to look for someone named "T.T." but is now obligated to help Voight. She finds T.T. who threatens her with a gun to never return. Casey learns Dawson visited Voight and is upset with her. Later, T.T. sends a girl to visit to Dawson. She wants to testify against the ones who shot Antonio. Casey's mother finally confesses to him that she killed his father for something he said about Casey. Whaley insists Severide contact his sister Renée. Severide tracks down his ex-fiance, who is now working as a stripper and doesn't want anything to do with him. Whaley later finds out that Renée overdosed and was rushed to the hospital. He calls Severide to tell him the news.	ProdCode = 115	Viewers = 6.65	LineColor = CC5500 }}	ShortSummary = Cruz puts himself and his fellow firefighters in jeopardy as a building's roof collapses after he was told not to enter to save a trapped dog. Casey wants Cruz's badge. When Mouch finally gets the truth out of Cruz, he vouches for him and Casey allows Cruz to keep his job. Severide finally gets through to his ex-fiancée Renée after she is released from a psychiatric ward. Casey and his sister Christie's constant bickering forces their mother move out. A lawyer tells Shay and Clarice that they need their own place to gain custody of the baby. Shay finds a place, but Clarice tells her that she has made a deal with her ex-husband about split-custody. The catch: Clarice must move to New York with them and they must leave that night.	ProdCode = 116	Viewers = 6.50	LineColor = CC5500 }}	ShortSummary = Old emotional wounds are opened when Lieutenant Severide's father Bennie comes to town and clashes with Chief Boden over the death of their former colleague. Mills helps a distraught driver who caused an accident and Shay makes a decision about her future with Clarice. Meanwhile, Herrmann, Otis and Dawson get to the bottom of a mystery about their bar.	ProdCode = 117	Viewers = 6.62	LineColor = CC5500 }} </ref>	DirectedBy =	WrittenBy =	OriginalAirDate =	ShortSummary = Severide's father continues to unearth the past while Peter Mills investigates the truth behind his father's death.	ProdCode = 118	Viewers =	LineColor = CC5500 }} </ref>	DirectedBy =	WrittenBy =	OriginalAirDate =	ShortSummary =	ProdCode = 119	Viewers =	LineColor = CC5500 }} </ref>	DirectedBy =	WrittenBy =	OriginalAirDate =	ShortSummary =	ProdCode = 120	Viewers =	LineColor = CC5500 }}

International broadcasts

The series has been picked up in Canada by Global. The series will air in both Ireland and the United Kingdom on Sky Living from October 24, 2012. In South Africa, the series airs on Mnet. In Latin America, the series airs on Universal Channel. The series will air in Hungary on TV2 (Hungary) from 26 November 2012. The series will air in Australia starting January 10, 2013 on FOX8. This series will also premiere in the Philippines through Jack City in the year 2013.

Reception

The first season currently holds a 49 out of 100 on metacretic, which is mixed or average reviews

Season	Timeslot (ET)	# E	Premiered		Ended		TV Season	Rank	Viewers (in millions)
			Date	Premiere Viewers (in millions)	Date	Finale Viewers (in millions)
1	Wednesday 10:00 PM	24	October 10, 2012	6.61	TBA	TBD	2012"13	TBD	TBD