Why The Chicago Fire Fandom Is The Worst In The Chicago Franchise
If you've seen even one episode of "Law & Order" or any of its spinoffs like "Law & Order: SVU" or "Law & Order: Criminal Intent," then you've likely seen words "Executive Producer Dick Wolf" flash on your screen as the credits roll. Wolf is responsible not only for the entire "Law & Order" cinematic universe, which is anchored in New York City, but one in Chicago as well.
Known as the "One Chicago" franchise, Wolf first created "Chicago Fire" and then "Chicago P.D." and "Chicago Med." Wolf had the idea for a television show that followed firefighters, so he contacted his longtime partners at NBC (via The Hollywood Reporter). The "One Chicago" franchise exists in the same world, with characters guest-starring and crossing paths in each of the series. It's a world also shared by "Law & Order: SVU": In perhaps the most notable example of this, "Chicago P.D." character Ben Stone spent about a season as the Assistant District Attorney on "Law & Order: SVU" (via ScreenRant).
Much like the various "Law & Order" shows, Wolf's "One Chicago" franchise also has somewhat of a rotating cast, with actors coming and going for various reasons. Actor Charlie Barnett, for example, was written off "Chicago Fire" because producers thought they'd taken Barnett's character as far as they possibly could (via Fansided).
"I hadn't heard anything about it and then they pulled me into a room, sat me down, and apologized," Barnett recalled.
The wrath of the Chicago Fire stans
While choosing who lives or who dies on a television show is at the writers and producers' discretion, often fans are not pleased when something bad happens to their favs — even though it's, of course, all made up.
Having an extremely passionate fanbase can be a double-edged sword: While they're reliable to tune into your show, they can also turn on the show's writers or even actors just as quickly. Per one reddit user, "Chicago Fire" has one such fan base — and they believe it is the most toxic out of the "One Chicago" universe.
"I'm talking about the fandom in general, not every single individual but the negativity is off the charts. Other fandoms don't take their shows too seriously. They know it's just a show; they know that overused tropes are going to be thrown in and there's going to be repetition. Small errors are laughed about or not spoken about at all. They have fun with their show," the redditor wrote. "Not so with 'Fire.' People are sending death threats to an actress for doing her job. 'Fans' nitpick the smallest errors and act like it's a personal attack on them from the writers."
While it can be frustrating when a show lets you down, the best solution, as some might say, is to start your own show. For all anyone knows, the next Dick Wolf very well could be a burned "Chicago Fire" fan.