Stella’s reaction to Severide’s ghosting her for the ATF investigation infuriated many fans who claim she did the exact same thing before; well, they’re wrong. She didn’t.
As real people, we respect Taylor Kinney’s personal problems and his decision to temporarily leave Chicago Fire halfway through Season 11. As the audience, however, we can’t help but feel that the way his character’s respective leave was mishandled in the series, and it could have been done much better and easier.
This specifically involves the way Stella and Severide “communicated” after his return. Most Chicago Fire fans hated how Kidd lashed at her husband and claimed she had no right to react like this since she did just the same thing for her Girls on Fire gig. This isn’t necessarily true, though: Stella didn’t behave the way Kelly did.
Stella Didn’t Just Ghost Severide
Speaking of the “exact same thing,” we need to address the most obvious difference right off the bat. When Kidd realized her gig would take up more time, she told Kelly that her leave was extended and she was going to another city. While she kind of ghosted him later, she at least kept Severide posted on her timing and location.
Kelly, on the other hand, didn’t even attempt to communicate the changes to his wife. Stella had to learn from Cruz, of all people, that her husband had left Alabama — without telling her — and was essentially missing since no one knew his location. Severide simply ditched her and disappeared without a trace, and that’s the worst part about his “leave.”
Stella’s Mistake Doesn’t Make Severide Right
Considering the obvious difference between Stella and Kelly’s disappearances, it’s safe to say that Kidd had more than enough reasons to be upset with her husband. But even if she were to do the exact same thing in the past, how would this have implied that she’d have no right to be frustrated with Severide’s actions later?
While some may call that hypocrisy, it’s merely feelings. One’s past mistakes don’t render that person’s emotions illegitimate all of a sudden; if you hit someone back in the day, you’d still be upset if someone hit you now. But in this case, this shouldn’t even be discussed, because what Severide did was much more severe than Stella’s little trip.
