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911 Season 8 Episode 15 Just Changed Everything as We Enter a New Era
Well, 9-1-1 finally did it.
After many close calls over the years, including multiple characters coding right before our eyes, 9-1-1 Season 8 Episode 15 gave us our first main character death. And I’ll be honest; I don’t know how to feel about it.
There’s no point in beating around the bush here and acting like this devastating hour needs a thorough breakdown when you’re probably still wiping your tears and coming to terms with what it all means. But I’m still going to do my best.
Coming out of 9-1-1 Season 8 Episode 14, the stakes WERE high considering the virus in the laboratory, the lack of an antiviral, and how quickly Chimney was decompensating.
However, as previously stated, the series has a long history of bringing characters to the precipice of death and then yanking them back to full health.
Then they pretend it never happened just to put a little cherry on top.
Of course, that’s not what went down here, and they essentially shut down all of us who’ve been bemoaning the lack of stakes. I’ll never make that mistake again, 9-1-1 gods.
The hour played like a B-movie thriller in many ways, with Athena and Buck teaming up to track down Moira (and evade the FBI and military) while the threat of Chimney’s demise loomed in the background.
But as much as the show wanted us to believe Chimney was at death’s door (and he was), there was a more significant threat in the background that you couldn’t see unless you looked for it.
The outside the lab stuff was more intriguing than the inside stuff, if only because you could feel this was all headed toward that cure getting into the lab one way or the other.
Buck and Athena weren’t running amok and avoiding the law all episode just to come back there empty-handed and see Chimney die.
9-1-1 doesn’t operate that way, and it would have been a deeply unsatisfying conclusion to what turned out to be a rather intense and emotional two-parter, which I admittedly wasn’t prepared for.
Buck and Athena are the perfect duo because they do not care about following rules or thinking beyond their gut instincts. They don’t talk one another down or tell each other to think more levelheadedly.
They go about their business in whatever fashion will get them the desired result, and just as we all could have predicted, they found Moira before anyone else.
Moira was one of the most interesting villains this show has ever produced, which is wild considering she was only around for a whopping two episodes.
In the end, she was looking for a payday so she could be like her scientific heroes, as opposed to someone who was really looking to do good in the world, which was a very interesting contrast to who she presented herself to be at first during 9-1-1 Season 8 Episode 14.
Once Buck and Athena got Moira, though, things got hairy because of how quickly the FBI descended upon them. And it’s good that Buck knows a man with a helicopter who can take it whenever he pleases with no repercussions, I guess!
I have lamented the lack of stakes before (and the 9-1-1 gods are still laughing in my face), but the way people steal helicopters, evade police, and do whatever else and barely even get a slap on the wrist is something else!
The helicopter part was a nice touch because I kept wondering why we weren’t seeing Moira and Athena at all, especially when the aircraft was bouncing and bopping all over the place.
If there is one thing I know about Athena Grant-Nash, it is that she would not sit in the back of the chopper and keep her thoughts about that erratic flight to herself!
But the reveal that she likely waited out the feds leaving that building to link up with Karen and get over to the lab with the cure was a nice and unexpected touch that was a perfect ending to the outside lab chase.
Now, while Buck and Athena played Cagney & Lacey, things were dire inside that lab, and my goodness, how many times must we watch Chimney tinker at death’s door?
The best parts of the lab situation were seeing this version of the 118 work together under the absolute worst of circumstances to ensure that they protected and helped each other in all the ways they could. This was an especially potent lesson for Ravi, who’d been thinking about quitting that same day.
The 118 working together to save Chimney was such a powerful moment, especially because it took everyone in that room, along with Maddie on the phone, to stabilize him enough to even live to get the antidote.
Another reason I knew Chimney would be fine is that we never got the big sweeping moment between him and Maddie.
The minute they set it up for us, Chimney started bleeding heavily out of his nose, and there was no way they would kill someone on this show without letting them have their goodbye moment.
God, I wish I was wrong about that.
There was a little clue about Bobby’s situation earlier in the episode when he seemed to do a double take while looking at his air supply line, and it lingered in the back of my mind for a while, but I pushed it down deep.
It really didn’t hit until Bobby stayed behind, and then everything from that point on felt like a horrible dream sequence you are desperate to wake up from.
Bobby and Athena are not just the stars of the show, but they’ve always been its center. Losing one of them at this stage in the show’s trajectory feels like this massive missile you could never possibly prepare for.
Bobby was living his second chance, giving back, making amends, and trying to do things better, and just like that, it was all over.
How are we, as viewers, meant to process this?
It seems more or less like a choice made to switch things up on a show that is closer to the end than the beginning, but who knows if that’s true? For all we know, the show could go on for ten more seasons.
But it will do so without Bobby Nash, and that feels cruel.
Bobby got two main goodbyes, and it sucked that we didn’t get to see more because his life touched so many, and it will be an unfathomable loss for everyone.
His goodbye to Buck was bathed in that fatherly touch he so often had with the younger man, who came to the 118 as one man and has continued to grow into himself with each passing year and Bobby’s steady encouragement and warmth.
His goodbye to Athena was that of a broken yet complete man, one who was devastated to be leaving the woman he loved so desperately—the woman who gave him a new lease on life and helped shape his second act into something so beautiful.
Their love was unexpected, but it healed so much inside them. Two people who met at the perfect time in life, learned to love again, and more importantly, completed one another.
How does Athena move on from this? My heart aches, thinking about the first time she’ll wake up without Bobby by her side in that new house.
Cut my heart out, why don’t you, 9-1-1. It would hurt so much less than seeing Athena walking through this world without Bobby Nash beside her.
But, hey. That’s the sign of a good television show.
Only that could make you feel like you just lost a personal friend—one you’ve seen week in and week out for the past eight seasons.
RIP, Bobby Nash.
9-1-1 Loose Ends
- Not to beat a dead horse, but you could feel Eddie’s absence in an episode like this. One where something so big happens, and he’s not a part of it. It feels weird.
- I will be livid if they put Gerrard back in as captain at the 118.
- I should have known where this was going when Chimney mentioned Bobby’s kids. I’ve watched enough TV to know what that means!
- Karen and Ravi’s embrace was oddly emotional. I love it when the extended family and the 118 connect because it reminds you of the depth of the whole family.
Guys, I don’t know how I managed to get all of this out through my tears.
But if you made it to the end, thank you! I would love for you to leave a comment so we can talk. It helps a small site like ours and hopefully enables you to process this one as well!
And if you missed the trailer for what comes next, you can check it out below!
You can watch 9-1-1 on ABC at 8/7c on Thursdays.
Watch 9-1-1 Online
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