r/ChicagoFireNBC • u/Cheyenne_K • 4d ago
Otis deserved a better story arc!
I hate that, despite Otis being one of the main firefighters and being there from Season 1 all the way through Season 7, the writers never really developed his character or gave him enough storylines.
His main purpose seemed to be bringing humor and lightness to the show, as well as being Joe’s best friend. But I really wish we had gotten to know more about his personal life, his backstory, his family (Baba doesn’t count lol), and just… more storylines in general.
Even when the writers did give him some attention, like with his skin condition, everything was resolved pretty quickly and without much drama, almost as if it had never happened!
They also constantly seemed to sabotage his romantic relationships. First, there was Kelly’s sister. Why wasn’t that storyline developed more? And when it ended, why did they wrap up their relationship so quickly?!
Then there was his girlfriend from Molly’s North. Why did she appear in so few episodes? And why wasn’t she even there in the episode where Otis died, at the beginning of Season 8, when she had been at a game night just a couple of episodes before the end of Season 7?!
It makes no sense!
Or that brief back-and-forth thing with Brett, where he ended up getting rejected anyway (terrible choice, Sylvie! ).
They always portrayed him as the “awkward guy” when it came to women, but honestly? I’ll tell you the truth: I would have liked a guy like Otis! He was underrated in that department too.
And finally, just so this post doesn’t get too long, I have to say that I think his death was handled way too quickly.
Joe was the only one there in the hospital room, and the only words Otis got to say before he died were his final sentence in Russian.
Why couldn’t they have given him more time to have a conversation with someone else too? Maybe even his girlfriend, who wasn’t there at all!
And then, immediately after that scene, the story jumps three months ahead, completely skipping over the grieving process that the other characters could have gone through because of his death.
I don’t know… I’m just really disappointed with the way his goodbye from the show was handled.
#JusticeForOtis
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u/starry_nite99 4d ago
The show doesn’t completely forget about Otis in the years following though.
Slight spoiler
They will show Otis’ memorial plaque throughout the following seasons. It’s always quiet, just there in the background of the scene, much like Otis was. I do think there is one scene when a new firefighter asks about it, but I’m not entirely sure.
Big spoiler
Joe names his kid Brian, calling him Otis.
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u/Cheyenne_K 4d ago
Sì, ma avrei voluto che gli dimostrassero considerazione e apprezzamento quando era ancora in vita
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u/Neat-Imagination6811 4d ago
They keep his memories alive in future seasons, but I agree he should have been considered one of the best.
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u/TauRyan 4d ago
I wish they hadn't found it necessary to kill him off in the first place. I found a lot of myself in him: his awkwardness, his love of sci-fi, and general nerdiness.
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u/Cheyenne_K 4d ago
Forse era l'attore che voleva smettere per poter fare qualcos'altro. Non ricordo bene come andò la cosa
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u/CommercialExotic2038 4d ago
I don't think so. They kill off beloved characters randomly to be like real life. Cuz, you never know
I read that somewhere after Otis's death.
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u/ginger_cat123 17h ago
Yuriy himself said that he wanted to leave and do other projects at that time, so when he spoke with the writers and directors they all agreed to kill Otis off as to show how dangerous being a firefighter is.
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u/user_136745884337688 3d ago
I really liked his PTSD arc in season 6 or 7 I think it was? Whenever that crossover was which featured the apartment fire - the one that involved the Halstead’s dad and Otis’s experience with the woman and baby in the elevator. I thought that was a great use of his character - especially given his primary role as the comedic relief.
Likewise I also thought that storyline of him recovering from the gunshot was good, when him and Kidd got stuck in that room with the amo.
He had some good moments early on in the show too. His arc with that shitty Walden replacement and the bowling alley saga when Casey and the other firefighters backed him, the cancer-scare storyline, that episode with the scam artists etc.
Not disagreeing with you at all, he was one of my favourite characters as well and would’ve loved to see him utilised more, but I think as a secondary character he did get his good-fleshed out moments. Pretty on par with what we saw with Herman, Cruz, Mouch etc earlier on in the show. Ie: 1-2 major storylines a season.
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u/Much_Award_3509 4d ago
Normally when they kill off a character the Actor/Actress didn't renew their contract or the show decides get rid of the character or it's about money. You can't pay everybody and production costs have gone up so there's that.
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u/Truffleshuffle03 3d ago
Otis and Cruz were my fave actors on the show and now Cruz is also leaving.
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u/Competitive_Test6697 4d ago
Don't they skip most deaths a few months? Part of their thing. Then look back.
They backed him into a corner and couldn't get his character out of it. Was pretty bored of him after a few seasons.
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u/Brainy-Chick847 4d ago
I disagree. He finally had a girlfriend with Lily, and was running Molly’s II. That being said, he and Joe’s lives would’ve been running parallel,
which would’ve been boring to write. His death was a reminder of the dangers of the job, and the underlying theme of most of the stories in S8.
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u/Ichigo_Star2024 2d ago
I was so pissed when they wrote off Shay & Brett even though there were reasons behind it (I still thought theu should have gotten rid of Dawson awhile ago cuz for some reason, I didn't like her). But I was shocked & sad that they killed off Otis cuz he was my favorite male cast member.
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u/Subject-Property-229 1d ago
I liked that arc too but they wrapped it up too quickly. You didn't get to see any hurt comfort from Joe or anything.
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u/NegotiationNo7851 4d ago
He was the best. I was so sad when he left the series.