In Chicago Fire season 13, episode 14, titled "Bar Time," Firehouse 51 faces an emotional rollercoaster as multiple storylines unfold. With Chief Dom Pascal away on another assignment, Captain Christopher Herrmann steps in to lead the team, but not without challenges. Meanwhile, Sam Carver continues to battle his personal demons, facing a heartbreaking setback after his friend-turned-stalker attacks Violet Mikami. And Joe Cruz can’t seem to escape the station, as duty calls him back again and again.
But here’s the real shocker—Molly’s finally answers a question that has been on fans’ minds for years. After all the chaos and tension, Chicago Fire slyly delivers the definitive answer to this long-standing mystery, and honestly, it makes perfect sense!
Chicago Fire Season 13, Episode 14 Finally Shows Other Workers At Molly's
Molly's Continues To Operate Without Herrmann Or Kidd
When Chicago Fire debuted in 2012, it immediately separated itself from other Dick Wolf procedural by putting its characters at the forefront of its storytelling. While the Law & Order franchise puts a significance on its weekly cases, the pioneering One Chicago series has people like Severide, Matt Casey, and Wallace Boden's personal arcs incorporated into its storytelling. One way to emphasize this was by establishing a regular hang-out spot, which ended up being Molly's. What makes the bar more special is that it is owned and operated by some of the people in Firehouse 51.
Every time that Molly's has been featured in Chicago Fire, its bar has always been manned by Herrmann and Kidd (previously, Gabby Dawson), prompting me to wonder how it operates when they are on shift. That query is answered in "Bar Time," as we see Ambo 61 respond to an incident at the establishment and see other workers keeping it open. Admittedly, it's quite bizarre seeing other people in what's distinctly a Firehouse 51 hangout place, but it makes sense that business operates even as Herrmann and Kidd are doing their day-job.
When Violet Mikami and Lyla Novak find their way to Molly's, however, there's one familiar face waiting for them — Jack Damon, Benny Severide's secret son and Kelly Severide's brother. After getting fired from Firehouse 51 by Chief Pascal, he found his way back to the Chicago Fire Department, albeit in a different firehouse, where he is making his mark. As it turns ou, it was Damon who called 911 after a woman at the bar suddenly collapsed. Briefly, I worried that the incident may have something to do with how the drinks were being served, but thankfully, that isn't the case.
Why Molly's Is Such An Integral Part Of Chicago Fire
It's The Backdrop To Many Personal Connections For Firehouse 51
Hangout places are normal, especially for network shows. However, most of them are typically in sitcoms, such as the Central Perk for Friends, the bar for Cheers, and MacLaren's Pub for How I Met Your Mother. While my favorite fictional detectives take time to unwind in the same spot, those establishments aren't given as much importance as Molly's. As Firehouse 51's favorite pub, scenes set in the bar allow Chicago Fire to shine a light on its characters outside their day job. Since its ensemble is its backbone, this is a very important aspect of its storytelling.
Beyond that, Molly's also offers Herrmann a retirement gig, once he finally decides to walk away from firefighting. At the end of Chief Boden's tenure at Firehouse 51 in the Chicago Fire season 12 finale, he chose the veteran firefighter to be his replacement. However, the process of ascending to the proper rank would take time. It doesn't help that Herrmann started the process late. Now that he is already a captain, I fear that he may not be even that interested in the job. As seen in Chicago Fire season 13, episode 14, he struggles taking over for Chief Pascal.
If Herrmann decides to suddenly retire, however, which appears to be something he has been contemplating a lot lately, Molly's will allow him to continue spending time with his old team.
Molly's Needs To Be More Frequently Used Again In The Whole Of One Chicago
Firehouse 51, Gaffney, & Intelligence People Need To Socialize More
This year, NBC and Wolf Entertainment brought together their Wednesday block for an epic 2025 One Chicago Crossover. While I thought that there was some areas that could have used a little more work, overall, it was a great way to assemble the franchise for an intense case — a tradition that we haven't seen since the global pandemic made filming trickier for all productions. It was also a reminder of how much we're missing out on by not having people from Intelligence, Gaffney Medical, and Firehouse 51 interact more often.
Firehouse 51 may have dominated its patrons in the last several years, but during the earliest years of the franchise, we would see people from Chicago PD and Chicago Med mingle in the same pub.
Luckily, we don't have to wait for another crossover event for NBC and Wolf Entertainment to start doing this. While overlapping case is perhaps the easiest way to achieve this, Molly's is the perfect hangout spots for all these characters after work. Firehouse 51 may have dominated its patrons in the last several years, but during the earliest years of the franchise, we would see people from Chicago PD and Chicago Med mingle in the same pub. This allowed for some relationships between shows.
I know it can't happen every week, but occasionally, it would be great to see characters catching up with people outside their teams. This can be particularly helpful for newer characters who are still establishing their identity in One Chicago. As for Chicago Fire, Molly's will remain Firehouse 51's drinking pub no matter what happens. So if people from Gaffney and Intelligence drop by, chances are that they will run into someone they're familiar with.
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