Chicago Fire is still going strong. The firefighting drama was just renewed for its 12th season, and based on the ratings, we’ll be getting several more in the future. There’s truly no end to the thrills and the drama that play out between the 51 team members.
These are the reasons why a ranking of all ten seasons is so difficult. Each season has its high and low points, its unpopular character arcs and its tragic deaths, but the difficulty of breaking it down is also part of the fun.
Now that season 11 has wrapped, we decided to go through each year of show and update our thoughts on them. Here is every season of Chicago Fire, ranked from worst to best!
11. Season 9
Season 9 had a lot of offscreen drama to deal with. It was the first season to be released after the show was given a multi-season renewal by NBC, and production took place during the COVID-19 pandemic. This led to a shortened season and lots of storyline changes to accomodate for the safety protocols that were being implemented for the very first time.
The storylines veered a bit more towards melodrama, and the audience responded appropriately, giving season 9 the worst IMDb score of the entire series. It’s not unwatchable or anything, but it easily takes the bottom spot on our ranking.
10. Season 11
Yeah, we know it’s low. Season 11 had some all-time moments scattered throughout, especially the proposal that Casey (Jesse Spencer) makes to Brett (Kara Killmer), and the mid-season finale where Kidd (Miranda Rae Mayo) nearly died in an explosion. The problem lies mainly with the back end of the season, which was handicapped by the departure of Severide (Taylor Kinney).
The fact that the character left so suddenly, coupled with the fact that started to lie to his wife about his whereabouts, feel forced, and the show had a difficult time of getting its rhythm back without him. We’re hoping that season 12 is able to strike a better balance.
9. Season 10
Lots of highlights here, including the wedding between Severide (Taylor Kinney) and Kidd (Miranda Rae Mayo), but the departure of Casey (Jesse Spencer) really takes the wind out of season 10’s sail halfway through.
The departure is handled well, but it takes the show a while to get its footing in the aftermath, and by the time it does we’re at the finale; where Casey comes back and reminds us all how much we missed his presence.
The fact that Jason Pelham (Brett Dalton), a well-liked addition, was little more than a placeholder for Kidd to take the lieutenant spot is also something that plays worse on repeat viewings.
8. Season 3
Season 3 kicked off in spectacular, heartbreaking fashion with the loss of Shay (Lauren German). It was one of the best episodes in the series up to that point, and it might also be why the rest of the season feels a bit underwhelming. Season 3 suffers from having to juggle lots of different subplots that doesn’t necessarily come together.
The stuff with Severide mourning Shay’s death is strong, even if his sudden decision to marry a woman in Vegas came out of left field. We’d say that season 3 works best as individual episodes, rather than a satisfying whole.
7. Season 6
Not a bad season, per say. Season 6 toned down the action of the season prior in favor of personal dynamics, and while that’s not inherently a bad thing, it does make things slower on rewatch.
It feels like the show really takes its time to get Severide and Kidd together, and the storylines between Casey and Dawson (Monica Raymund) take on a similarly ponderous speed. There’s not much about season 6 that’s in a hurry, and the best Fire seasons are the ones that balance the personal drama with the death-defying rescues. Hence the placement here.
6. Season 8
It’s the filler! Season 8 has some all-time filler episodes and storylines, like the one where Kidd and Chief Boden (Eamonn Walker) go on a diet or Casey taking his ex-wife to charity event. It’s a shame too, because the highs of season 8 are among the most memorable episodes that show has to offer.
There’s the death of Otis (Yuri Sardarov) is one of the most heartbreaking episodes in all of Chicago Fire. It’s masterfully written and acted, and no matter how many times you watch it, it tugs at the heartstrings. This season premiere, and the episodes that explore the fallout of Otis’ death, are peak Chicago Fire.
5. Season 1
The one that started it all. Season 1 holds up surprisingly well in comparison to the first season of other long-running dramas, and it’s mostly because the show knows to focus on the chemistry of its actors from the start. Everybody brings it, and now, over a decade has passed, and there’s a joy in seeing characters like Severide and Casey so much younger.
Season 1 has some clunky moments, and does more hand-holding than its predecessors, but it makes sense since we’re all still getting to know the characters. This is the season we were most pleasantly surprised by on rewatch!
4. Season 7
Season 7 came out swinging and never really let up over the course of its airing. There was a new boss that entered the picture, and the tension between him and the established characters added a liveliness that had been lacking in season 6. There was also a renewed sense of unity, in that all of the secondary stories coalesced nicely into the overall arc of the season.
The death of Severide’s father was handled well, as was Casey’s bout with PTSD. It all came back to the support that the 51 members had for each other, and while simple, it remains incredibly effective.
3. Season 4
An underrated season! Casey gets a lot of the spotlight here, from dealing with the news that Dawson is pregnant to fighting for his life after being kidnapped. The decision proved a smart one, and helped to solidify Casey as one of the show’s core draws.
There isn’t a ton of action or brushes with death in season 4 (the kidnapping notwithstanding), but the show managed to tell engaging emotional arcs without getting mawkish or overly reliant on melodrama. Quality character stuff always gets the job done, and there’s plenty of that here.
2. Season 2
Elite television right here. Season 2 had one of the show’s very best storylines, which involved an arsonist who turned out to be a former firefighter. The writers did an excellent job of taking what worked in the first season and amplifying it, whether it be the interactions between characters or the types of calls the 51 would get.
Nothing in season 2 feels overwrought, which is an issue that some of the later seasons ran into. Every note hits the right level of seriousness, and the screen time dedicated to each character lets us into their world in a satisfying and entertaining manner.
1. Season 5
It’s fitting that our favorite Chicago Fire season comes at the halfway point of the show’s first decade. Season 5 is the appeal of the show in a nutshell: thrilling action, heartwarming scenes between likable characters, and humor that manages to break up the enormous tension that comes with risking your life on the job.
Everything is perfectly calibrated in season 5, and the set pieces that pop up, whether it be a hostage situation, a warehouse fire, or an arson case that’s later revealed to be a murder, are still wildly entertaining to watch. This is the show’s gold standard as far as we’re concerned.