Is Cruz Leaving ‘Chicago Fire’? 3 Ways to Fix Tension With Severide

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[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for Chicago Fire Season 12 Episode 2 “Call Me McHolland.”]

Chicago Fire Season 12 is the season of change, and Firehouse 51 has already said goodbye to one firefighter (and will be doing so to a paramedic soon), but the stage is now set for another to leave.

When Severide (Taylor Kinney) left for an arson investigation program (then to work with ATF) last season, it was Cruz (Joe Minoso) who led Squad in his absence. But with his return, Severide clearly expected everything to just go back to how it was, something that Cruz is finding difficult. After all, he’s been the one making calls, and Severide telling him not to “freelance” after he took somewhat of a risk to get a drone didn’t sit well with the other firefighter.

That led to Cruz going to Boden (Eamonn Walker) about taking the lieutenant test because “it’s time for me to leave 51 and run my own unit.” Talk to Kidd (Miranda Rae Mayo), Boden suggested after giving him the study materials he needed, since she just went through it. Cruz said he would tell Severide “soon,” before talking to anyone else. “You have put in the work. I have no doubts that you are ready. If this is what you want, you will make a great leader, as much as it will hurt to see you go,” Boden told him. But, using the chief’s own words, Cruz reminded him, “Change is inevitable. Nothing stays the same forever.”

Things were still unresolved between Severide and Cruz at the end of the episode. As Cruz pointed out to Kidd, he’s tired of feeling disrespected and Severide hasn’t even apologized to him for leaving him in the dark like he did. And Severide still didn’t, even when he acknowledged the way Cruz stepped up for him in their last conversation of “Call Me McHolland.” Instead, it ended with the lieutenant saying, “I’m back now, and if taking orders from me is going to be a problem, fi you’ve had your taste of leadership and you can’t shake it, I’m not going to stand in your way if you need to move on.”

NBC

But could Cruz really leave 51? Below, we take a look at three ways Chicago Fire could resolve this tension on Squad.

Cruz Really Does Leave 51

Listen, it is a season of change, and it’s very possible that Cruz — and Minoso — could leave behind the 51 family. With Severide back, it’s hard to imagine him leaving again or stepping back and not leading Squad. What if this is part of an exit storyline we don’t know is happening? And, if Cruz does take a position at another house, that would leave the door open for Minoso to return in the future (again, if this is leading to his exit).

Cruz Realizes He Doesn’t Want to Lead

Just because Cruz wants to take on a leadership role doesn’t necessarily mean this arc will end with him deciding that’s what his future holds. After all, he did talk about what stepping in for Severide meant for him those months, including with his family, and he could perhaps end up taking that into account when figuring out his future. Maybe there is a change to come for Cruz — but something that will have him staying at 51 and on Squad with Severide in charge while also taking on some other responsibility.

Related

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Cruz and Severide Split Squad

This seems very unlikely, but maybe there’s a solution that will allow both Severide and Cruz to lead Squad without the latter having to go anywhere (and keeping both actors full-time cast members). A point of tension between Severide and Kidd is his work with OFI, which he doesn’t want to give up. Maybe there’s a way for him to continue to do that (working it out with his wife, of course) that allows Cruz to lead at 51 while he’s looking into arson cases.

Chicago Fire, Wednesdays, 9/8c, NBC