The three shows of One Chicago would normally be nearly halfway through their seasons by this point in the fall, but Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med haven’t aired any new episodes since back in the spring. Now, in the wake of the WGA writers strike and SAG-AFTRA actors strike ending, NBC has announced a One Chicago Wednesday premiere date, and it’s soon enough that I’m ready to start thinking back on the spring finale cliffhangers and how I’d like to see them resolved in the 2024 TV schedule.
All three shows aired their most recent finales on May 24, 2023, with Med saying a goodbye, Fire raising the stakes, and P.D. leaving one very important question unanswered. So, going in order of when each premiere will air in January, let’s look at what happened in the last finale to build up to the winter return. Whether you haven’t seen any of these twists since May or have rewatched them with a Peacock Premium subscription, it’s not too early to start thinking ahead!
Chicago Med Season 9
When Season 9 Premieres: Wednesday, January 17 at 8 p.m. ET on NBC
Where Med Left Off: Chicago Med didn’t actually end on a terribly intense cliffhanger, with no characters’ lives in immediate danger and no relationships on the line to leave fans worrying over the long hiatus. There was a huge development, however, as Nick Gehlfuss made his unannounced but heavily foreshadowed departure as Dr. Will Halstead. He didn’t leave with bad blood with any of his friends and former coworkers, but he also didn’t leave Goodwin with much of an option to rehire him if he changed his mind.
Where Med Should Pick Up: If you ask me, Med should pick up with an immediate time jump ahead to close to present day and Gaffney Med back to business as usual… as much as possible after losing Will in the spring, anyway. If that’s the case, then I hope that the new character with a tie to Dr. Charles’ past has already been hired and part of the ED team when the Season 9 premiere begins. After all, if there’s been a time jump of more than a month, then it’d be hard to believe that the ED functioned that long with a doctor vacancy, especially not too long after Ethan left.
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. alum Luke Mitchell has been cast to play the newcomer, currently known as Dr. Mitch Ripley. The new doctor has some similarities to Will already, but sounds like he’ll bring some fresh changes to the ED. TVLine also reports that Jessy Schram, who plays Dr. Hannah Asher and was one third of the bizarre but compelling triangle with Dean Archer and his son, shared that “a bit of time” has gone by when the Season 9 premiere picks up. Whether I get my wish that it’s a time jump of months rather than days or weeks remains to be seen!
Chicago Fire Season 12
When Season 12 Premieres: Wednesday, January 17 at 9 p.m. ET
Where Fire Left Off: Of the three Windy City-based shows on NBC, Chicago Fire is the one that ended with the biggest cliffhangers. In fact, there were three unresolved cliffhangers, although some seemed destined for disaster more than others. After Severide’s long and mysterious absence to accommodate Taylor Kinney’s leave of absence, Stella decided to go after her husband and bring him home. Casey proposed to Brett before returning to Portland. Mouch was gravely injured on a call, and seemed to be fine until he started bleeding out in the hospital while talking to Herrmann. The Engine lieutenant yelled for a doctor, but the Season 11 finale ended without revealing Mouch’s fate.
Where Fire Should Pick Up: While Chicago Med can and hopefully will get away with a hefty time jump right off the bat, that shouldn’t be the case for Chicago Fire. I’m sure picking up right where Season 11 left off would be tricky after such a long hiatus, but we need to see what happens to at least Mouch in real time. Stella’s cliffhanger is really the only one that I think Fire could get away with resolving off-screen with Taylor Kinney’s return, and Brett’s response to Casey could theoretically be covered in a quick scene or flashback. But Mouch’s fate – for better or worse – should unfold on screen.
For me, that means hopefully one full episode prior to a big time jump, especially in light of the news that Kara Killmer and Alberto Rosende will both leaving the long-running series in Season 12, with Deadline reporting that Rosende’s last appearance as Gallo will be in the premiere. A lot is going to have to happen early in Season 12; the resolution of Mouch’s cliffhanger deserves its due, for better or worse. And there are more questions than answers about Gallo, but my fingers are crossed that he walks out of Firehouse 51 alive and well.
I’m also hoping that Jesse Spencer will be back as a guest star in the premiere to finish the proposal scene and reunite Casey with Severide, although it’s possible that Spencer and Killmer filmed the second half of the proposal cliffhanger already when they shot the first half in the spring. I could see Brett getting the news about Mouch before she can answer Casey, for the sake of the drama! On the whole, my #1 wish is for a full episode without Fire jumping from May to January. The Casey, Brett, and Gallo hopes are really secondary to not skipping over Mouch’s immediate fate after he began bleeding out.
Chicago P.D.
When Season 11 Premieres: Wednesday, January 17 at 10 p.m. ET
Where Chicago P.D. Left Off: Like Chicago Fire, P.D. ended the 2022-2023 TV season with a main character’s life in jeopardy and fate unknown. For the Intelligence Unit, that character was Officer Adam Ruzek, played by Patrick John Flueger. Ruzek had been working on an undercover case throughout the second half of Season 10, and it was taking more and more of a toll on his personal life. Tragically, he was shot by the young boy he was trying to help. The finale ended without revealing if he lived or died or anything beyond that he was in surgery. It was a frustrating cliffhanger, but Flueger crushed his performance.
Where Chicago P.D. Should Pick Up: Personally, I’m hoping that P.D. does what it did with the Season 9 premiere back in 2021. The ninth season premiere picked up where the Season 8 finale had left off, in the wake of Burgess being shot, Voight and Upton covering up a kill, and Upton proposing to Halstead in some seriously unromantic circumstances. The major peril of the cliffhangers was resolved relatively early, and the show saved the time jump until after the end of the premiere with the big Upstead engagement and Burgess waking up.
The jump came a bit later, allowing Burgess to do most of her physical healing off screen and move on to begin dealing with her emotional trauma. Perhaps this is just me being hopeful that Ruzek will be able to bounce back from his gunshot wound, but I think it would work well if P.D. spent at least the first part of the premiere dealing with his fate. The case of the Season 10 finale was actually fairly wrapped up by the end of that episode, so it wouldn’t need too much further resolution. Ruzek’s fate is the big question, and I’m hoping that P.D. spends more than just a few minutes resolving it on screen instead of 100% over a time jump.
Of course, all of my hopes for One Chicago may be in vain given that their new seasons are only expected to run for 13 episodes, so the pace may be a lot faster than in my dream scenarios. Still, at least one pieces of great news is confirmed: Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D., and Chicago Med will return in early 2024.
While there’s still just over a month and a half to wait before One Chicago takes over NBC Wednesdays again in the new year, you can always revisit the spring finales and even earlier episodes streaming with a Peacock Premium subscription. Fire, P.D., and Med will be back in their usual time slots on January 17, in a big week for the Wolf Entertainment TV shows on NBC. Law & Order, Law & Order: SVU, and Law & Order: Organized Crime all return on January 18.