9-1-1 on the Rocks: 1x03 — “Next of Kin” Recap: Chimney Meets the Narrative

Content note: This episode includes discussion of suicide and attempted suicide.

In 1x03 “Next of Kin,” 9-1-1 takes its first big swing at found family and uses a piece of rebar through Chimney’s skull to get there. Meanwhile, Athena and Michael face the terrifying aftermath of May’s suicide attempt, Abby is forced to confront what caring for her mother can realistically look like, and a bouncy castle finally proves that children’s birthday parties are inherently hostile environments.

This episode, we’re talking:

🎈 A bouncy castle on the edge of a cliff, the Santa Ana winds, and several adults making choices their insurance company would not approve of

🔥 Athena reminding May that she is “special and bright and filled with holy fire” while the Grant family tries to survive an unimaginable crisis

🧠 Chimney lying about dinner, proposing to a woman who does not appear to like him, fighting with Bobby, and immediately meeting the narrative at highway speed

🏠 Abby’s complicated mix of love, duty, guilt, and martyrdom as her family considers memory care for her mother

This episode is emotionally ambitious, structurally uneven, and trying very hard to be load-bearing. But somewhere between Bobby declaring that Chimney’s family is “right here” after knowing these people for approximately three episodes and Buck offering the world’s least reassuring bedside pep talk, the 118 begins transforming into the deeply codependent little trauma family we came here to love.

xoxo,
Fandom on the Rocks