‘9‑1‑1’ Season 8 Finale “Seismic Shifts” Explained: Closure, Sacrifice — And a New Beginning

I suppose I should put quotation marks around this one, since Chimney didn’t officially “become” the 118’s new captain, but it’s a foregone conclusion after that powerful speech he gave about the importance of carrying on Bobby’s mission by staying together and saving people as a team.

“Bobby died so that I could live, and it has screwed me up in ways I cannot fully express,” he told the 118 upon returning from the finale’s explosive crisis. (Zero casualties! Go team!) “But the truth is, he would have done that for any one of us. He knew that just coming in to work every day, there was a chance that one or more of us would not make it home. His job above everything else was to make sure that we did, and we are all standing here right now because of him. This team, we are his legacy. So we can miss him, and we can mourn him, and we can even curse his name, but we are not going to disrespect him by throwing away what he built right here.”

It was an electric moment. You could feel Chimney stepping into his power with each sentence. Hen clearly also felt it, instinctively responding with a “copy that, cap… I mean, Chim.”

And this was after Athena commended Chimney for saving Graham’s life in the collapse. “[Bobby] always said you never gave yourself enough credit,” she told him. “But he knew that you were a smart, talented, capable paramedic, and a great leader. He’d be so proud of you. So proud.”

In short, Chimney now has both Hen and Athena’s seal of approval, not to mention the support of Bobby from beyond the grave. In what universe does he not become captain in Season 9?!

Hey, at least we can be certain (and grateful) that Gerrard is leaving the 118 to return to Hot Shots. Whichever fake in-universe executive decided to renew that show, we thank you.

Eddie was dead set on returning to El Paso at the top of the hour, no matter how many puppy dog glances Buck shot his way, but he changed his plans when he saw a news report about the building collapse. Throwing on his turn-outs, which he received earlier in the episode as a “retirement” gift, he returned to action and helped save multiple victims. Still, it wasn’t until hearing Chimney’s post-emergency speech, which included the line “nobody’s staying in Texas,” that he knew he couldn’t go. (I’m telling you, it was a heck of a speech.)

The closing montage included a sweet scene of Eddie and Christopher getting resettled in their old apartment. And Eddie clearly doesn’t need to worry about Christopher readjusting to life in Los Angeles; he’s already ditching him to go to a friend’s party!

Of course, there was one downside to Eddie coming back — now Buck has to find a new place to live!

Buck, who almost transferred to a different firehouse before Chimney put his foot down, was seen looking for a new apartment at the end of the hour. When his realtor asked what he enjoyed about his old place (aka Eddie’s), he said he liked “that it didn’t feel so new. It had character.”

It had “character,” you say? I’ll take any #Buddie crumbs I can get at this point, so trust me, I’ll be savoring that line all summer long.

I originally thought that this subletting storyline was an inventive way to get Buck and Eddie under the same roof full-time, but as Ryan Guzman reminded TVLine on the Disney Upfront carpet, it’s not the most spacious apartment.

“I own the house, but he has claimed the room, so now I’m doing the couch situation,” he told us. “I don’t know how long that’s going to last.”

Alas, just a few days after we spoke to Guzman, his prophecy has already come to pass. (But did it have to? At the very least, this show missed an opportunity to put Buck and Eddie in bunk beds.)

There was nothing bittersweet about the way things ended for Hen in Season 8. She passed on the promotion to captain because she wanted to spend more time with her family, and that promise is already bearing fruit. During the finale montage, surrounded by Karen and their children, a judge made it official: “I hereby declare you to be the Wilson family,” thus finalizing Mara’s adoption.

(Not to take away from this beautiful moment, but did anyone else just realize that her name is now Mara Wilson? Like the actress from Matilda and Mrs. Doubtfire? I had a good laugh about that one. It’s good to laugh.)

Despite initially telling Harry and May that she had no plans to sell her house, Athena experienced a change of heart in the finale, which ended with her putting it on the market. After taking one last stroll around the home that she and Bobby rebuilt from the ground up, she snagged the framed photo Karen gave her last week and took off — to where, however, is anyone’s guess.

The finale also helped Athena gain a sense of closure via her cart-cop buddy Graham, who nearly died sacrificing himself to save Donnie in the building collapse, just as Bobby did for Chimney in the lab. Hearing Graham explain that it was the right thing to do, echoing the sentiment Bobby shared with Athena before he died, gave her a deeper sense of understanding. And Chimney pulling out all the stops to prevent Graham from suffering Bobby’s fate also helped to repair their shattered friendship.

Like I said, this episode was healing.