SPOILER ALERT: The following contains spoilers for Chicago Fire Season 15, Episode 4.
Chicago Fire Season 15, Episode 4 feels like the writing staff looked at the calendar, saw what they had to work with, and built an episode around that. Not only is this as close as the NBC show will get to a Halloween hour this year, but it’s also the episode right before the 300th episode. Put those two things together and viewers get a standalone, somewhat creepy hour that also probably managed to save some money, too.
“A Perfect Arson” is a smart way to deal with the schedule limitations, because it goes back to the show’s two most popular characters (Kelly Severide and Stella Kidd) and one of its most proven subplots (Severide as an arson investigator). If the creative team has to hyperfocus, they’re doing it with what absolutely works. Then they make it suitably spooky enough that it has the vibes of a Halloween episode, even if it isn’t explicitly meant to be one. Plus, since Stella and Severide are the only two main characters in the episode, that’s efficient for the budget because everybody else has the week off. One Chicago viewers know by now that all three shows tend to rotate cast members as a way of managing costs—so if this episode is an easy way to give most of the Fire ensemble an out, then hopefully that means the show will have more cast flexibility in the later, more important hours later in Season 15.
But for now, Episode 4 rests mostly on the shoulders of Severide and Stella, with another welcome return appearance by Van Meter. The FBI literally shows up at Stellaride’s door to recruit him to investigate an arson at the home of a judge, and it takes very little time to connect it back to a 16-year-old case that both Van Meter and Severide’s ATF acquaintance Agent Calloway both worked. (Because that’s what happens in procedurals; the past always comes back to haunt people—particularly fitting for an episode airing just days before Halloween.) Chicago Fire does a great job of making this story as ominous as possible, with Severide and company going through a seemingly abandoned body shop, and then a definitely abandoned motel. There are plenty of dark corners and hallways, as well as night scenes and one Melrose Place-style explosion at said hotel. And then there’s a cliffhanger ending for the audience to worry about. It’s close-ended enough to serve as a standalone, but that “not quite” ending is right out of the horror genre.
Character-wise, Chicago Fire uses this as an opportunity to re-examine Severide’s career dilemma from Season 14. It’s very welcome that this time, Stella is a part of his investigation and he’s not going it alone or just with the OFI folks. It’s fun to see her being the one working with Van Meter, because that’s something new. But in their conversation, the writers add some interesting color: Severide was planning to leave Firehouse 51. That makes the end of Season 14 hit different. Severide’s had his chances to leave before and always come back, so to hear from Stella that he had his transfer paperwork complete before Joe Cruz’s accident is a genuine shock. Obviously it’s not hugely relevant, since fans knew Chicago Fire needed Severide to stay at the firehouse, or it’d be hard to keep actor Taylor Kinney on the show. But in explaining the why, the show gives the audience something to chew on emotionally.
“A Perfect Arson” does exactly what the series needs it to do, in the best way possible. It’s a standalone episode that creates some space between all the changes that started Chicago Fire Season 15, and the important 300th episode (which it wouldn’t be surprising if that was also Cruz’s last episode, though nothing has been confirmed). It’s spooky enough to feel right for Halloween season, and has enough action to keep the audience entertained. Plus, it’s a great adventure for Stellaride fans, who already know that the real arsonist is going to strike again before the conclusion of the season. This is a solid detour before the 300th episode main event.
Chicago Fire airs Wednesdays at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on NBC. Photo Credit: Courtesy of NBC.
Article content is (c)2020-2026 Brittany Frederick and may not be excerpted or reproduced without express written permission by the author. Follow me on Twitter at @BFTVTwtr and on Instagram at @BFTVGram. For story pitches, contact me at tvbrittanyf@yahoo.com.
