For many fans of 9-1-1, the series is one where the interpersonal drama between characters happens between the jaw-dropping disasters that make for excellent set pieces week-to-week. With season 6 continuing the premiere trend of having the team fight a truly over-the-top disaster with what looks like a blimp crashing into a soccer stadium, it’s another shocking addition to the disaster catalog of the show.
While the season premieres tend to live up to the adage “go big or go home”, the rest of the season is full of similarly shocking day-to-day disasters. Though admittedly, these are at a more personal level, however, they still make some seriously jaw-dropping moments for fans of the series. The show has often featured unbelievable emergencies, most of which are based on real emergencies, as over-the-top as they are.
Ice Skating Rink (Season 3, Episode 8)
While ice-skating should be seen as graceful or family-friendly entertainment, this skate to the chest (and multiple finger amputation) proves otherwise. Apparently, it all got this bad because of one loose sequin.
This emergency seemed a little far-fetched, but plausible, given how sharp the skates are. It ticked all the boxes for over-the-top, bloody, gory, dramatic, and downright gross. Buck especially was caught off guard by the severity of injuries caused by what seemed like a simple sport, as were most of the viewers.
Spider Webs (Season 5, Episode 13)
In an episode based on fears, it seems almost expected that the crew would be called out to something spider related. Although the extremes of this exact spider emergency left fans feeling a little jittery.
While most of the crew react to try and cut the victim out of the spider webbing he had been trapped in by tarantulas, it’s revealed that Captain Bobby has a fear of spiders. Everyone with a fear of spiders will know the spine-tingling sensation too well, the fear that a spider might actually kill someone, as over the top as that sounds. This played into viewers’ fears of spiders, and although it was definitely unbelievable, it was over the top and gross.
News Helicopter Crash (Season 2, Episode 6)
Helicopter crashes are a staple for dramatic procedural shows. Almost every one will have a variation of this seemingly uncommon occurrence, and 9-1-1 was no different.
This time, it featured a news helicopter falling out of the sky. The team are then tailed by the news crew for the rest of the day as they respond to emergencies, something that seems a little unlikely given the logistics of it all. The whole scenario, from start to finish, was over the top. A helicopter falling out of the sky is rare, but the cherry on the top was the following of the 126 of the news crew, with many fans left shaking their heads at the theatrics of it.
Zoo Escape (Season 5, Episode 2)
Zoo escapes are almost unlikely. They rarely happen, and when they do they’re likely to make headline news, and usually only feature one or two animals escaping.
However, 9-1-1 opened season 5 with a jaw dropping scene that saw the entirety of LA zoo escape with the animals loose all over the city after a ransomware attack. The crew must save the people trapped in a shop by vicious escaped alpacas, which leaves Bobby and Hen with a new fear of the animals. While most zoos don’t employ electronic locks, the sight of the animals all over an LA mall is definitely a memorable one.
The Landslide (Season 4, Episode 2)
9-1-1- specializes in natural disasters it seems. In every season so far, the show has either started with or ended with some kind of natural disaster, which in itself seems unlikely that these all hit LA within years of each other. Season 4 was no different, but this time they chose to focus on a realistic landslide.
While there are several smaller emergencies triggered by this landslide, the most over-the-top one has to leave Athena trapped in a buried house with an agoraphobic victim. Both Athena and the victim are stuck in this house that’s unsteady and about to tip over, yet seemingly Athena is able to get herself and the victim out. It was thrilling to watch, although the odds of both Athena and her victim making it out were slim, but, once again, Athena is able to pull off the impossible.
Firetruck Bombing (Season 2, Episode 18)
While the entire plot of the serial mail bomber was over the top, the grand finale of this season took the cake. Both Athena and other first responders are threatened through the mail packages, but it’s Buck who ends up suffering the worst.
