9-1-1 showrunner Kristen Reidel has spoken about the winter finale of Season 6, touching on key moments from the episode, including Buck becoming a biological father and that tragic death. The executive producer also spoke about what viewers can expect from the second half of the season, set to air in spring.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, 9-1-1 showrunner Reidel spoke about the death in the winter finale and its impact on Bobby’s recovery. “Bobby is in recovery and Bobby will always be in recovery. It's a huge part of his life and who he is as a person. It's not the only thing, but it is a big chunk of it,” Reidel said, talking about Fire Captain Bobby Nash’s (Peter Krause) addiction to alcohol and drug abuse. The showrunner explained that his AA sponsor’s (Wendall, played by Maurice Irvin) death impacted him deeply. “And [Wendall's death] felt like an interesting way to talk about that without Bobby falling off the wagon. Wendall was a very important part of the person that Bobby is now, and the life that he has now.” She went on to further explain that the repercussions of Wendall’s death also filtered through to the Nash family, and would impact the storyline going forward. “In a lot of ways, Wendall didn't just impact Bobby's life, he impacted the family's life — because Bobby had Wendall to turn to instead of turning to drugs or alcohol, and that made their life better.”
Reidel has revealed that Wendall’s death will form a strong focus point for the second half of the season, which will see Bobby “searching for the truths about what really happened” to his sponsor. The second-half will also reveal how the two characters first met. “...We’ll get a sense of that relationship with Wendall meant to Bobby, and also to Athena [Angela Bassett]. We'll see Bobby and Athena — and a little bit of May [Corinne Massiah] — try and figure out what happened to Wendall, but also what's going on at this facility that should be helping people but it seems like is maybe abusing them.”
In the same interview, Reidel also spoke about the importance of Evan ‘Buck’ Buckley (Oliver Stark) becoming a biological father and the lasting impact of his decision to help a couple have children. “When Buck made this decision to be a sperm donor, it came from a sort of selfless place. He saw two people who needed help, and he had the ability to help and he thought, ‘Of course I should help these people,’” Reidel said of Buck’s original intent. The showrunner explained Buck did not quite think things through, and that moving forward, the true impact of his decision will be made clearer to him, with him questioning his choice. “I think he never really considered what he did or didn't want to get out of it. And now it's not a theoretical kid. He'll have a lot to figure out as this baby gets closer, because with sperm donors, the relationship can vary: some are never known, others are involved in the life of the child.”
The winter season final of 9-1-1 also saw other members of the long-running drama’s 118 team go through some significant developments, with more drama promised in the second-half. The episode saw Maddie (Jennifer Love Hewitt) and Chimney (Kenneth Choi) find their dream “murder house,” which Reidel says will become “a fresh start and a new beginning” for the couple and their daughter. “It's a new level of commitment for them. And it's also it's a really nice house — a little scary when you first look at it, but it's going to fix up great,” she said. Meanwhile, Hen (Aisha Hinds) and Karen’s (Tracie Thoms) son, Denny (Declan Pratt) warred with himself over the decision to locate his biological father (Nathaniel, played by Troy Winbush). “It's so complicated, because clearly Denny has questions and he wants to know about where he came from and who those people are that gave him life,” Reidel explained. “But on the other hand, he really loves his mothers and doesn't want to hurt them so he's trying to figure out. He's trying to get answers to the questions without involving his moms — which is an understandable decision, but probably not the best one.”
Created by Brad Falchuk, Tim Minear, and Ryan Murphy, the series focusing on the high-stakes pressure faced by first responders will see more drama and “craziness” to come in the second half of Season 6. “When we come back, we're going to be dealing with an unusual weather issue, which is basically thunder and lightning without rain — lightning that strikes out of nowhere and creates some emergencies,” Reidel hinted, before promising “episodes like you would expect” as well as “some different things that [they’ve] never really done before.”
9-1-1 is currently streaming on FOX NOW and Hulu. Check out the Season 6 Episode 10 promo below: