‘9-1-1’ Season 9 Moves on Without Another Main Character

ABC has released fresh images from this week’s episode of the hit procedural 9-1-1, and it seems that the show is ready to move on without another station member after Bobby’s (Peter Krause) death. The images preview the hour’s arcs as the team deals with the aftermath of Chimney’s (Kenneth Choi) action against Henrietta (Aisha Hinds), while AI finds its way into the first-responder world. These images tease a possible outcome for the 118 if Hen’s firing is permanent. Life moves on, and the remaining members can be seen executing their duties in Hen’s absence. But given how close these people are, could the obvious void she leaves prove lethal to their morale? The logline for 9-1-1 Season 9, Episode 8, “War,” reads:

Following Hen’s firing, Chimney grapples with his decision and how it has affected the team. Meanwhile, a new AI call center assistant, meant to help, has begun to create more complications, and the 118 must intervene.

The images below preview an emergency that brings the firehouse and law enforcement together, even though its nature remains unclear. However, it could be riskier than usual, given that Buck (Oliver Stark) and Chim are wearing bulletproof attire. There appears to be no medical emergency, but that could change at a moment’s notice. That’s when Hen’s absence would be most noticeable, as she’s the team’s most capable medic. Some clashes between the characters are also expected, since they have relationships outside work, and it will be interesting to see how everyone reacts to the news of Hen’s firing. Elsewhere, someone comes bearing gifts for the call center in the form of an AI assistant. The technology is becoming more common nowadays, but what could the downsides be in a life-and-death situation?

‘9-1-1’ Boss Offers a Disappointing Buddie Update

The images also tease a Buddie moment, but recent comments (via The Washington Post) from showrunner Tim Minear should change the lens with which many fans see the relationship. While a sizeable portion of the fandom thinks there is something romantic between the duo — Minear among them — the showrunner doesn’t think it’ll necessarily evolve into what viewers want. He explained the reason by comparing 9-1-1 to the new Canadian phenomenon, Heated Rivalry, saying,

“It’s different than Heated Rivalry, where that is the show — the show is about those two guys getting together. That’s not what this show is. This will probably piss off people, but whatever, this is what I think. I think the possibility of [Buddie] is what’s exciting.”

New episodes of 9-1-1 Season 9 air on ABC on Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.