9-1-1 Season 7 ended with several cliffhangers, the largest being Bobby’s (Peter Krause) decision to leave his duties at the firehouse. Entertainment Weekly reveals that this decision might be more permanent than originally thought. The upcoming 8th season finds the entire team dealing with personal crises while Bobby moves on and gets a new job. Following his desire to retire, Bobby takes on the role of a technical advisor on a TV show called Hotshots. Having spent most of his life as a firefighter, no one is more qualified. It is unclear if the show is about firefighters, but it wouldn’t be surprising if it were. His home life is not great after the fire that turned his and Athena’s (Angela Bassett) house to ashes, so they’re actively looking for a new house.
Meanwhile, the leadership vacuum that developed after Bobby left was filled by Vincent Gerrard (Brian Thompson). From the flashbacks of the firehouse before Bobby took over, it was revealed that Gerrard was not a good person, let alone a captain. The firehouse is in danger of returning to the dark times under his leadership. Bobby led a chosen family, and his absence is felt. No one feels it more than Buck (Oliver Stark), who Bobby has taken a father figure role in his life. Buck can’t stand the new captain. It is unclear why, but there are several reasons, including who Gerrard is and how he got the post despite better prospects in the house.
‘9-1-1’ Characters Deal with More Crises in Season 8
A threat, called Councilwoman Ortiz (Verónica Falcón), came after the Wilson family. Their foster daughter, Mara, had just begun to warm up to the family before she was snatched from them on Ortiz’s account. Season 8 finds the Wilsons fighting for Mara with the support of their close friends, Maddie (Jennifer Love Hewitt) and Chimney (Kenneth Choi). Meanwhile, Councilwoman Ortiz will seek to increase her influence by running for mayor. Whether that is good or bad for her remains to be seen. Following Christopher’s (Gavin McHugh) decision to move to Texas with his grandparents, Eddie (Ryan Guzman) is trying to cope with being alone. Set images tease a new look for the character.
Despite their lives giving lemons faster than they can make lemonade, duty calls. A bee-nado descends on Los Angeles, and the 118 are on the front line to ensure that it doesn’t turn into a tragedy. Potentially inspired by the 1978 film The Swarm, the three-part opening emergency is meant “to generate some buzz,” according to showrunner Tim Minear.
9-1-1 Season 8 premieres on Thursday, September 26, on ABC. Catch up with past seasons on Hulu.
