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Herrmann gives up the path to chief and returns to regular firefighter duties so Mouch can become lieutenant on Engine. Chicago Fire showrunner Andrea Newman says the choice reflects a conflict Herrmann had not fully faced: Boden’s expectation that he would take over, Mouch’s renewed drive to lead, and the question of whether Herrmann wanted the job at all.
What Herrmann decides in the finale
In “It Had to End This Way,” Herrmann tells Mouch he will not pursue chief. Instead, he steps down to regular firefighter duties, clearing the way for Mouch to become lieutenant on Engine. The decision is Herrmann’s, not simply a lost promotion.
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Chicago Fire: Season Twelve | $28.45 | Buy on Amazon |
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Chicago Fire: Season Eleven [DVD] | $13.37 | Buy on Amazon |
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Chicago Fire: Season Ten [DVD] | $13.37 | Buy on Amazon |
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Chicago Fire: Season Nine [DVD] | $9.99 | Buy on Amazon |
NBC lists the episode as season 13, episode 22, dated May 21, 2025, on its Chicago Fire episode page.
Why Herrmann felt pressure to take the job
In a TV Insider interview published the day the finale aired, showrunner Andrea Newman said Boden’s confidence had become a powerful expectation for Herrmann. Herrmann revered Boden, so the prospect of taking his place carried emotional weight beyond a career step. Newman described the pressure this way: “From the very start, we knew that he had this incredible pressure on him because Boden had said in the finale last year, you’re the one to take the throne essentially.”
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That expectation gathered momentum before Herrmann had seriously considered whether the role suited him. Newman said: “And the one thing he never asks himself as the snowball starts rolling down the hill is like, do I want this?” The question is central to the finale: Herrmann can respect Boden’s faith in him without treating that faith as an obligation to become chief.
How Mouch and Pascal shape the decision
Mouch wants another chance to lead
Mouch returns from injury with renewed ambition and a determination not to be “the couch guy anymore,” as Newman describes it. His desire to lead puts Herrmann’s own place in the succession into sharper focus. By stepping aside, Herrmann makes room for Mouch to take the Engine lieutenant role.
Pascal makes Herrmann confront the demands of leadership
Newman says Pascal recognizes uncertainty in Herrmann and tests him through leadership situations. In the crossover, Pascal tells Herrmann that a leader cannot always be boots on the ground and must sometimes stand back. Herrmann answers that he could never forgive himself for not being there. That exchange exposes a tension between the command role’s distance from frontline work and Herrmann’s instinct to be present with his crew.
Pascal’s intentions remain deliberately difficult to read for much of the season, Newman says: viewers can wonder whether he is acting for himself or trying to help Herrmann. His tests nevertheless make the question of fit harder for Herrmann to avoid.
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What the finale decision means
Herrmann’s choice is not a rejection of Boden or a claim that he could not lead. Newman’s explanation points instead to the difference between being expected to take a role and personally wanting it. The season’s pressures—Boden’s endorsement, Mouch’s return to ambition, and Pascal’s challenges—force that distinction into the open. Herrmann chooses the work and position he wants, while Mouch gets the leadership opportunity he has been seeking.
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Rank #4
Sources
- TV Insider: Meredith Jacobs’s interview with showrunner Andrea Newman, published May 21, 2025
- NBC: Chicago Fire episode listing
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