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“Chicago Fire ” recap (1.14): “Detail-oriented.”

Last time on Chicago Fire, Severide kissed Renee goodbye, Casey sprung mama from prison with his sad eyes and forgiveness for that time she murdered his dad, and Shay let Clarice know that nothing says “I love you” quite like bringing your wearable dead animal collection, pregnant belly, and a shit ton of baggage to stay. The episode opens with one for the bi-corns among us, or, frankly ladies with eyes, because Severide has his shirt off and is flexing and bending his arms and shit as the doctor tells him exactly what to do. He’s got a neato scar on the back of his neck that girls are just going to love. What’s better than a bad boy with a heart of gold, who is an actual firefighter, and has a scar from that time he broke his neck? Look, he’s not exactly my bag of chips, darling, but I can see how it all works for him. Anyway, the doctors huddle in the hallway to chat about the shirtless wonder. It’s totally believable for enough doctors to field a soccer team is huddling to talk about Severide. Because doctors barely have time to eat but totally have time to chit chat about one guy. Right, unless that one dude is also conjoined to his twin and everyone is getting a free trip to Oprah out of the bargain, this doesn’t happen.

At Chez “Three and a baby on the way isn’t too crowded,” Shay’s pouring orange juice for Clarice (Mazel Tov on passing the sugar test, Clarice) and they are engaging in cute, morning behavior when Severide walks in from his appointment. He gives them the good news, he can come back to full duty for his next shift. He hugs Shay, kisses Clarice on the top of her head and grabs a cup of coffee. He looks cockier than we’ve seen him in a while and he proves it by rubbing Clarice’s belly like she’s one of those bronze statues you rub for luck on the way to the exam you totally didn’t study for because you were busy making out with your girlfriend. Dude, hands off the belly.

Because she’s a solid friend Shay warns Severide that Eric Whaley is at the firehouse. Severide says it shouldn’t be a problem, but this genius also thought working as a firefighter with a broken neck and a serious drug problem was no biggie either.

Dawson is intent on doing her laundry and the more Shay talks about Clarice and the baby the more she concentrates on pouring laundry soap like she’s trying to dismantle a bomb or something. Shay notices but is in that second honeymoon that happens when you get back together with your now-pregnant by her husband ex who broke your heart and ruined your life. She’s working on some elaborate role playing scenario where she’s Idgie and Clarice is Ruth and she’s just rescued Clarice from Frank Bennett and they’re going to open a cafe and raise little Buddy Jr. together. Shay’s all I’m going to be step-mom of the year, what could possibly go wrong? Shay asks Dawson to try to be supportive and Dawson blurts out that she’s sleeping with Mills. Shay shouts “I knew it” and hops up on the washer for some girl talk. She wants to know if Casey knows and if she’s going to tell him. Dawson says no, and would it be weird to tell him. She doesn’t answer whether she’s over him, merely brushes aside the question with a “the timing didn’t work” type answer. Hmmm.

Shay immediately asks how the sex is, as you do when you kind of wish you were the one having the sex with Dawson. Dawson tells her that it’s not just about the sex with Mills but that the boy is “detail oriented.” Shay is intrigued by Peter Mills and you can just see the gears turning as she ponders what details he orients when he’s, you know, detailing Dawson’s, oh you get it. She challenges Mills, via Dawson to a swagger off, with a husky “how detail oriented?” Shay we get it, you’re bananas in the sack, and we’re sorry Dawson doesn’t go for the whole pint-sized blonde thing you’ve got going on. There girl talk is interrupted by a call out, per usual. It’s a car accident and the passenger’s name is Ambrosia. This of course has me picturing jello and marshmallows and the Minnesota accents of my summer vacations, dontcha know. But anyway. Ambrosia has been selling her marshmallows to all the fine gents of Chicago and seems a little out of it. Detective Shay finds track marks on her arm an instant before Ambrosia passes out. Turns out she’s the fifth person to overdose in a week. Casey and his mom’s Pen Pal are standing in the rain. Rick has flowers for the soon to be paroled mom and they look like two high school guys who aren’t really friends waiting around for their prom dates. When Mama Casey appears they rush over. Rick gives her the flowers and then mercifully slithers away. Casey hugs her mom and they head back to his house.

Severide is back at the firehouse and there are hugs all around. The Chief introduces Severide to Eric Whaley but lo and behold they know each other. Turns out Renee number one was Eric’s sister and he’s apparently still pissed at Severide about their wedding that didn’t happen. Before we can delve deeper into that little reunion Antonio, Dawson’s older brother, shows up to talk to the house about the tainted drugs out on the street and how they are knocking people off every day because they don’t respond to the usual treatment protocol. There’s another call out but Antonio makes a point to tell Dawson not to “go Gaby on it” and go looking for the source of the drugs. She does what every little sister does and says, “Yeah, yeah, whatever big brother.” The call is to a bar that is on fire. While Casey is telling everyone what to do Cruz charges in and starts breaking windows and yelling about a person being in there somewhere. Severide finds the guy, they pull him out and it turns out to be the owner of the bar. He offers to sell the place and Herrmann can’t pass up a business opportunity. As they are packing up a team of mobsters show up. These are apparently the guys who show up after a fire to board up windows for a fee, the kind that kicks in each month and has a still non-payment penalty. Severide tries to apologize to Whaley for “what went down” with his sister but Whaley’s not having any of it and stomps off to tell his frat brothers about it.

The Chief asks Severide if his neck is okay and Severide laughs and says he wouldn’t be there if it wasn’t. The Chief isn’t stupid. He laughs and walks away and says, that’s right because you didn’t work for the first half of the season with a broken neck and drug problem. Bitch, please, come back when you want to tell me the truth. The Chief calls Casey and Otis into his office to tell Otis that his transfer paperwork came through and to try to talk him out of transferring. Casey gives him some nonsense about they only give him a hard time because they love him and Otis is like “dude, save your breath, they let me drive the truck. Come back when you have something real to offer me.”

Shawson is doing what they do, inventory in the rig, when Antonio shows up. This guy is paler than a Cullen and twitchier than a Liar. He wants Dawson to cover for him and say they were at a movie the night before because he’s up to his eyes in lies. Dawson, says “what the fuck are you talking about I know there is more going on” and he’s like “there, there kitten, don’t worry your pretty little head about it. Just remember we saw Twilight, you had the Charleston Chew, and I borrowed Riley’s vampire girlfriend to suck my arm, you know for authenticity and giggles. How else could I possibly look this terrible?” Herrmann wants to buy a bar to save it from being bought by “hipster douchebags” and his plan is as poorly constructed as the one Ted and Barney put together to buy McLaren’s. Well, worse because Barney’s rich. Shay gives an epic eye roll and everyone else is like “move away from the television, we’re watching sharks eat stuff.”

Whaley demands Severide tell him about the new Renee. Severide refuses because he’s moved on to the phase of disbelief that all idiots who dump Carmen/Renee feel and how dare douchey McFrat ask about Renee the sequel? Whaley goes off about how could Severide dump his sister two days before the wedding and what about everything that happened afterward?” He calls Severide a coward and Severide gets his face as close as he can to Whaley, which is like when Daisy tries to get her face near Albert’s in the basement of Downton Abbey but ends up closer to his belly button.

Before the guys can take a swing at each other, which surely would just devolve into Whaley putting his hand on Severide’s forehead and Severide swinging his arms wildly at Whaley’s just out of reach body, Casey’s mom shows up with a plate of cookies.

Casey sees her and is mortified. He tries to recover by showing her around the garage until Mills comes out and gives her a big hug and takes a cookie. Dawson sees this awkward scene unfolding and tries to bolt before being spotted. Too late, Casey calls her over and his mom gushes about her being at the hearing. Mills looks hurt and Dawson trips all over this awkward moment by saying prison, big house, the clink, the slammer, and six other answers to Jeopardy clues in the category “Names For Prison.” Mama Casey then takes it to a new level of weird when she pronounces that Dawson is the kind of girl he always pictured Casey with, not that good for nothing Hallie. Dawson and Mills are in the bathroom and he’s hurt because she won’t commit to dinner with his mom but she went to the parole hearing for Casey’s mom. She tells him that she doesn’t like Casey that way and that she’s just been busy, not avoiding him, or the question of his mom. She tells Mills she only wants to see him and of course we know she means except for Shay because the plumbings different so that doesn’t count.

Shay wants to know why Severide doesn’t just tell Whaley what really happened with his sister. Severide doesn’t want to get into it but Shay thinks that maybe Whaley needs to know.

Mouch tries to talk to Casey about Cruz. Mouch has tried to talk to Cruz about whatever’s bugging him but since he won’t open up about it he doesn’t know. Casey tells’ Mouch to leave it alone. Methinks the truth will come out people. You can out, out that damn spot all you like but Emily Fields will tell you that when you kill a guy it changes you.

They are saved by the bell once again and we get a funny Shawson scene as they drive the rig. Shay wonders why Dawson would hide Mills if she really likes him. She claims that she could never hide it if she liked someone that much and had to work beside her every day. Riiight, we totally buy that. I know, you say you aren’t in love with Dawson but then you ask for a few too many details about Mills’ sex skills, and you linger with your looks and your touches. She doesn’t need quite so much help getting in the rig, man. Dawson mentions the Chief yelling and Mills and also she wanted to see what being in the closet felt like, you know for research, for a friend who once thought, briefly, before thinking better of it that she might fancy a woman. Shay tells her to stop being such a baby and take a risk. Dawson is feeling super brave so she sends Mills a text. That’s some superhero bravery right there, man. Amid all of this we learn that Clarice is due in two weeks, so it’s almost baby time and Shay looks a little nervous. The call is to a hotel room where a guy who looks a touch like Mozzie is tied to the bed and there’s one dead prostitute in the bathroom and another nearly dead one on the floor. Dawson saves her by jabbing a needles up through her chin. When they take her to the hospital Shay spots creepy lurker, Antonio, who hasn’t slept in a decade and the drugs appear to be doing a number on him. He berates the poor woman who was nearly dead before sort of giving Dawson a half-assed story about some very bad guys who are mad at him and taking it out on the prostitutes who keep getting killed with bad drugs. He looks like he’s been sampling the drugs too.

Casey’s house is being searched by your friendly neighborhood parole officer. His mom gets a little snippy about having her stuff searched and the parole officer rolls her eyes. Lady, after 15 years in the slammer I would think you would relish the chance to have your room searched in a place that didn’t have bars on the windows or metal toilets. The parole officer reminds mom that she has to be in the house from 9 PM to 9 AM and Mom slumps her shoulders and stomps around like the petulant teenager she’s pretending to be. After the officer leaves mom gets a phone call from her date. Apparently, she was very popular in the “write to a murderer” club and she’s got another suitor. Casey’s all, wait, you’re the player of the family?

Otis is sitting in the locker room and Severide stops by to say toodles. Otis tells him to save his speech because he’s super psyched to be transferring. Severide looks confused and say he doesn’t have a speech but that he made 100 bucks off of Otis leaving. Seems they had a bet about how long Otis would stay and with Otis bailing it’s time for Severide to collect. Otis yells something about reverse psychology but Severide is the kind of master that even when you know what he’s doing you’re powerless to stop it. It’s ok, Otis, I feel the same way about Shay’s hypnotic baby blues, I know they’re my weakness and I just can’t help falling for them every time.

Casey stops Dawson by the ambulance wearing his confused face and asks her about the text she sent him. Apparently she texted him, “so glad you’re detail oriented. Last night was great. Love to meet you mom” instead of Mills. Damn that dark ambulance! He’s confused because details have never been his strong point. She tries to cover but she ends up spilling the Mills beans. Herrmann is making a presentation to everyone about the bar. He wants a bunch of people to join him in his business venture. This is a terrible idea, this guy has more failed money making schemes than there are failed Hollywood marriages. Otis is the first to say he’s in and that he’s not switching houses. Way to double your fun with two stupid decisions (I like Otis and didn’t want him to go but the character would be better off at the other house where they don’t treat him like shit). Dawson also says she’s in. Shay spins in her chair like Doctor freaking Evil and is like, “Girl, has Mills destroyed your brain. You don’t go into business with Herrmann, not even to sell Girl Scout cookies.” Herrmann can’t believe he found two suckers to join him in the bar business but before he can get too excited we hear Severide and Whaley getting into it. Whaley is still pissed at Severide about leaving his sister before the wedding. He asks Severide where the hell he was later when the original Renee got drunk and wrapped her car around a telephone pole. Severide won’t say anything so Shay does it for him. She tells Whaley to fuck off because Severide caught Whaley’s charming sister hooking up with another guy before the wedding, but was too nice to say anything about it. After Shay’s done dropping that bomb, the Chief tells her that Clarice’s water has broken. A gayby! We’re going to have a gayby! What could possibly go wrong?

The Chief calls Whaley and Severide into his office and tells them to knock that shit out. He gives them is usual stern faced Chief bit and they look appropriately chastened. Whalely declines the option to leave the house early. After the meeting he tells Severide that since everything happened before the wedding he barely knows where his sister is anymore. It’s always easier to hate Severide instead of hating your own sister.

The brain trust is meeting with the bar owner to finalize the deal to buy the place. What bank wouldn’t give Herrmann a loan that quickly, it’s not like he just had his house foreclosed on or anything. The guy tells them there is just one more silent partner who they can pay whatever they want (yeah right). It’s none other than one fo the mobsters who helped board the place up after the fire. Whoops. This deal just got Herrmanned. As consolation please enjoy Dawson in a blazer. Back at Casey’s house of role reversal he’s yelling at his mom about being home for curfew, telling her that her skirt is too short, and to get into the bathroom to wipe some of the hussy makeup off. She’s all, dude if I knew you were going to be such a buzzkill I totally would have stayed in prison. Right. So mom, since you have all kinds of options so maybe shut it? Casey how do you feel about having kids now, not quite as fun as you thought it would be when they talk back?

Severide is sitting in the waiting room, looking like some kind of Don Draper carryover from a bygone era when dads waited the birth out in the lounge. But not really since baby’s got two moms. He dials Renee The First’s number but the call can’t go through because the number is no good.

Shay bounces out looking like the proudest papa on the block. “It’s a boy! And he’s perfect and smart and will probably play for Da Bears if you know, there’s still such a thing as football when this kid grows up.” Severide follows her back to the room. On the way, Shay says, “Sorry for back at the firehouse” and Severide, ever the bro says, “No you’re not” and that’s everything you need to know about their friendship. In the room, Clarice is holding the new baby and looking not very much like a lady who just gave birth. Just as we’re wondering where Daniel, the dad, is he peeks in the doorway. He walks in, holds the baby for a second and then leaves. Severide calls him the father of the year but oh daddy’s not done. In walks the process server. He hands a nice package to Shay and one to Clarice and looks like Daniel is suing for full custody. Charming dude. Shay’s instantly in tears, probably because she knows she’s got zero standing in this case. My first instinct was to fly off the handle about this potential storyline because it’s tired, and cliche. But before I got all crazy Spencer on it, I am going to give the show a chance to drive this in a new direction. But if it turns into the five billionth story about how being a lesbian makes you an unfit parent I’m going to be really disappointed because so far we’ve been relatively trope-free in Shay’s world.

In the middle of this crisis, welcome to the world kiddo get ready for a custody battle, Dawson calls to say she’s in the parking lot and on her way up. She runs into zombie Antonio who rants about his informant dying of an overdose and now the other hooker has fled the scene because she likes being alive and damn-it don’t they know how hard he’s been working? She tries to calm him down but he pushes past her to his car. She’s worried but starts back toward the lesbian baby drama when an SUV pulls into the background and the windows roll down and we hear shots fired. Dawson runs to Antonio who is covered in blood. She cries in a way that suggests they aren’t in the parking lot outside the entrance to the ER and god why isn’t there any help nearby. And that is how the episode ends. Next week looks chock full of drama with Dawson possibly asking creepy Det. Voight for help. Yikes.

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