Chicago Fire picks up where the premiere left off with “Post Mortem.” The dramatic episode ended with Jack Damon (Michael Bradway) suffering a severe lung injury in the line of duty and being told he may never be able to fight fires again. “Permanent Damage” explores Damon’s paranoia and fear about his condition.
Kelly Severide (Taylor Kinney) visits her half-brother and urges him to be optimistic about his recovery. Damon’s future depends on whether he can pass certain tests, and 51 Vereran tells him he’s seen several firefighters recover without any trouble. Severide will be fighting alone in this episode, as Stella Kidd (Miranda Rae Mayo) is in Maryland for a training camp.
Kidd may be absent, but her absence proves to have a ripple effect throughout the rest of the episode. Severide notices a girl named Natalie hanging around the fire station, and recalls that she was part of a family that lost their home in a fire a decade ago. Natalie wants to talk to Kidd (who was on the original call), but upon learning that Kidd is gone, she tells Severide that she has more information about the fire. “I think my sister started it on purpose,” Natalie accuses. This prompts Severide to reopen the case.
Violet reconnects with Carver after his rehab stint
We also learn that Mouch (Christian Stolte) wants to attend the training, but Kidd gets the necessary referral from Chief Dom Pascal (Dermot Mulroney). It doesn’t take much to deduce that this is partly due to the cold relationship between Mouch and Pascal in the past few episodes.
Mouch not only calls to ask about Pascal’s leadership abilities, but also turns down a promotion at another fire station. Pascal thinks the firefighter wants to advance his career and has arranged a great job with a friend of his, but Mouch doesn’t want to be involved. He wants to stay at 51, and Pascal later feels bad for saying a good word.
Severide’s investigation runs parallel to that of Violet Mikami (Hanako Greensmith). She’s on a mission to find out why a doctor would abandon a patient and nearly kill them, and a returning Sam Carver (Jake Lockett) agrees to go with her. This is a good thing, too, because Violet and Carver are met with a shotgun when they go around asking questions.
Violet goes into full detective mode (with Carver’s help), and eventually determines that the doctor who nearly killed their patient is named “Danny.” Unfortunately, the consequences for the police aren’t as serious as she initially thought, and the patient refuses to press any charges. A frustrated Violet eventually confronts “Danny” and urges him to retire early. With Carver by her side, Violet says that she will take action and be arrested if “Danny” decides to endanger any more patients.
Novak cements her relationship with Ritter and Damon
Carver and Violet still have feelings for each other, and that love is evident in “Permanent Damage.” The former tells Violet that he’s never met anyone as “fierce” as her, and he also notes that 51 would never be the same without her. These comments are certainly jarring, as is the hug they share earlier in the episode, as we know Carver will be leaving the show soon.
Meanwhile, Mouch decides to work harder at the fire station as a way to show Chief Pascal that he’s serious. The decision paid off, as Pascal was impressed and decided to put his name to the conference. However, in a somewhat unexpected turn of events, Mouch badmouthed Pascal behind the Chief’s back and urged Herrmann (David Eigenberg) to take his place. Nothing was resolved here, and it was clear that the show was setting up a showdown between the three men as the season drew to a close. We’re here to see it, even if it doesn’t put Mouch in the best light.
We’re more than happy to report that we got a scene between Damon and Lizzie Novak (Jocelyn Hudon). The two had a brief fling, then called things off, and then Damon suffered a potentially career-ending injury. The two shared some flirting when Novak visited him in the hospital, and she was present when the doctor informed Damon that he was expected to “make a full recovery.”
Damon has been released from the hospital, and Novak happily invites him over to her house for dinner. This is a huge relief for fans of the couple, and it also provides the first glimpse into the relationship between Novak and her new roommate: Darren Ritter (Daniel Kyri)! We know Ritter won’t be back next season, but we can’t deny that it’s
