9-1-1 Season 9 & 9-1-1: Nashville Premiere Recap & Spoilers

Okay, so *9-1-1* is back, and this season they’re really shaking things up – we’ve got action in both space *and* Nashville! I have to say, the Season 9 premiere is a really strong start. It’s great to see most of the characters we love returning, and they’re honoring Bobby Nash by officially dedicating the 118 firehouse in his memory. As for Athena, she’s dealing with her grief in a way that feels very *her* – throwing herself headfirst into undercover work and basically trying to escape her life. Then Hen presents her with an incredible opportunity after a particularly tough case, and Athena is forced to step way outside her comfort zone… like, *off-planet* comfort zone!

Before I get into a review of the first episode of *9-1-1: Nashville*, I want to say I might be more critical than some other reviewers. I grew up near Nashville and still live close by, so I know the city well. I’ve watched it change over the years, spent way too much time in its traffic, and even developed a tolerance for spicy chicken! Because I care about how the show portrays Nashville and its unique character, I might be a little tough in my assessment. I apologize in advance if my review seems overly critical.

The 9-1-1 Season 9 Premiere Takes Big Leaps

Let’s start with the season nine premiere of *9-1-1*. This episode was highly anticipated, marking the first without Peter Krause as Bobby Nash. Six months have passed since Bobby’s shocking death in season eight, and while the 118 and the Grant family are still grieving, the first responders must continue their work. Chimney has stepped up to fill Bobby’s role, but he’s hesitant to officially take over, feeling he doesn’t measure up. He’s still struggling with survivor’s guilt, as Bobby died saving him, and is determined to honor Bobby’s memory while coping with the immense loss.

The other first responders are gradually recovering. With Chimney temporarily leading the team, Eddie and Hen are now working together as paramedics. Buck, however, is noticeably envious of the close bond Eddie and Hen share – it feels like an exclusive club for paramedics. This might be controversial, but even though I love Buck’s character development over the past nine seasons – I think it’s been the best on the show – his jealousy is a frustrating flaw. He gets really irritating when things don’t go his way, especially when it involves sharing Eddie’s attention. It’s not endearing, and it’s become a recurring issue that’s lasted for many seasons. The show needs to decide if it wants compelling character struggles or a focus on dramatic, large-scale events – it can’t effectively do both.

How Does 9-1-1 Get to Space?

Now, let’s jump into the part of the episode everyone’s been waiting for. While the space storyline will continue over several episodes, this one sets up the potential emergency the astronauts will face. The episode begins with astronauts on the International Space Station being struck by mysterious objects, and ends with Athena and Hen heading into orbit. But how did things escalate to this point? We need to rewind a bit, about two weeks, to when the 118 rescued billionaire Tripp Houser from a whale. He repaid them in a surprisingly big way, but, of course, there was a condition. It always seems billionaires have to complicate things – why can’t they just be generous?

To revive his public image, Tripp offers the firehouse millions – money that could be used for essential equipment and new engines – with one condition: Hen must participate in an upcoming space launch. It’s a publicity stunt designed to portray an everyday hero in space, but Hen is thrilled with the opportunity. She initially suggests her friend Karen, who has always dreamed of going to space, but Karen declines. As a dedicated scientist, she’s currently embroiled in legal battles with Tripp regarding her work. I agree with Karen’s decision. Tripp’s launch clearly mirrors the Blue Origin flight earlier this year, which sent celebrities like Katy Perry and Gayle King to space. That event was entirely funded by tech billionaire Jeff Bezos and felt incredibly disconnected from the realities of everyday life. With so much wealth inequality already, watching billionaires spend billions on an eleven-minute space trip and framing it as a win for feminism feels particularly tone-deaf.

Returning to the 9-1-1 call, Hen is now without a companion for the flight. The rest of the team at the 118 is eager to get going, and who better to join them than Hen’s friend who’s been struggling? Since Bobby passed away, Athena has been withdrawing from her family and friends, throwing herself into undercover work as a way to cope. When the FBI unexpectedly reveals her cover and takes over her case, she’s back to responding to emergency calls. One call especially affects her: an elderly woman with severe depression is found nearly lifeless at home. We see flashbacks of the woman’s happy life before losing her baby and her husband leaving. Athena fears this could be her future, but Hen reassures her that she’ll always have the support of her 118 family and her children, even if Athena tries to distance herself. Athena realizes she needs to reconnect with the world to avoid a life of loneliness, and this call is a first step.

9-1-1 Nashville Kicks Off With a Lot of Twists

The new show *9-1-1* is already facing criticism, and the problems seem to be piling up, especially with its portrayal of Nashville. Even the trailer worried me – it looked like a dramatic, over-the-top show about firefighters with a serious lack of diversity. Out of a large cast, only two characters aren’t white, which is a major issue. The first episode throws a lot at the audience – so many plot twists and emergencies happen so quickly that it feels like the show doesn’t expect viewers to stay tuned. It was a dizzying experience, and I found myself constantly shaking my head at how unbelievable the story was.

The show centers around Captain Don Hart, played by Chris O’Donnell, a firefighter in Nashville. He works alongside his son, Ryan (Michael Provost), and is married to Jessica Capshaw’s character, Blythe. The family seems to live in a large house, likely in the Belle Meade area. Don also has another son, Blue (Hunter McVey), from a previous relationship with Dixie Bennings (LeAnn Rimes). The series quickly introduces a lot of family complications, which we’ll explore further. We’ll also be following Taylor (Hailey Kilgore), a singing firefighter, and Roxie (Juani Feliz), a former trauma surgeon who now works as a paramedic.

Family Drama Takes the Stage in 9-1-1: Nashville

The first major incident involves a pedal tavern, full of people celebrating a bachelorette party, colliding with a car in downtown Nashville – and surprisingly, this isn’t an isolated event. With a busy city, questionable driving, and a moving vehicle powered by drinking partiers, a crash was inevitable. While emergency services (unit 113) respond, Blue arrives on the scene first. He manages to stop the bride-to-be from suffering serious blood loss, despite the fact that he’s not a trained medical professional – he’s a stripper who’s dressed as a firefighter. Ryan jokingly suggests Blue consider a different career path, completely unaware that they are actually brothers.

A while back, Don and Blythe were briefly estranged, and the details are messy. Both have different accounts of what happened: Blythe claims Dixie prevented Don from seeing their son, while Dixie insists Don wasn’t interested in being a father. Blythe says they avoided a legal battle to protect their son, which seems a bit suspicious. Meanwhile, Dixie is allegedly using their son to get money for a major surgery. Honestly, everyone involved seems a little questionable, so I’m not picking sides. Ryan is understandably upset about all of this, especially when Don offers their son a job at the 113. To make matters worse, Don is letting their son skip essential firefighter training and learn on the job, justifying it because of their family connection. This whole situation is a perfect example of nepotism.

We don’t see much of Cammie, played by Kimberly Williams-Paisley, in this episode, though she’s our emergency dispatcher. She usually helps Taylor with her music, but really steps up when things go wrong at a birthday party in Centennial Park. She helps everyone save a little girl who gets carried away by a kite! I actually laughed out loud when the girl took off – it was a scary situation, but the special effects were so bad it was funny.

Nashville Gets Turned Upside Down in the 9-1-1 Series Premiere

The premiere wasn’t the only instance of questionable CGI. The scene featured a tornado, triggered by strong winds collapsing a stage at a Kane Brown concert. However, the situation felt unrealistic. While tornadoes *can* appear suddenly, even without warnings, it’s highly unlikely a concert would continue with no tornado watch issued on attendees’ phones. Typically, authorities would shut down the event long before a tornado actually formed.

The rescue team, designated 113, arrived to help manage the emergency. Working with people from the crowd, they lifted a heavy section of the stage off several injured attendees and brought them to safety inside the venue. It was Blue’s first day on the job, and he distributed water to the frightened concertgoers who had come to enjoy the Kane Brown show. As the tornado approached, Cammie urged the 113 to get everyone inside, but they discovered one person was still trapped on top of the stage. The tornado showed no signs of weakening.

Katie’s 9-1-1 and 9-1-1: Nashville Observations: What’s Your Emergency?

Did Eddie have that alien costume lying around? Did he buy it off of Amazon just for the special occasion of scaring the life out of Hen and begging her to take him to space?
No sighting of Chris! I was shocked since everyone else appeared, including May and Harry.
Some people brought this up in the last season, but I have to ask: how in the world did Bobby and Athena afford such a lavish house on a firefighter and police sergeant’s salary? I know their last house burned down, but surely their insurance isn’t that great to replace their house and then some.
I didn’t realize Harry was in high school, or supposed to be at least. Athena finding out Harry works at knockoff Starbucks and dropped out of school has the same energy as Chris finding out Eddie works for Uber.
My initial thoughts of 9-1-1: Nashville: It’s definitely got the type of emergencies right, and they’re just as silly as I expected from the 9-1-1 universe. However, none of the characters have hooked me yet. It’s disappointing that the only characters of color are sidelined already, so that the wealthy white family’s drama is front and center.
It’s astounding that Nashville is wasting Kimberly Williams-Paisley by secluding her to a FaceTime call and a desk for all the episode without a hint of a personal storyline. I hope her character has more to do in the future.

New episodes of 9-1-1 and 9-1-1: Nashville premiere every Thursday on ABC.

2025-10-10 20:39