After Chicago Fire's Major Loss, The Timing Couldn't Be Better For Eamonn Walker To Return As Boden

Spoilers ahead for Episode 15 of Chicago Fire Season 23 on NBC, called "Too Close" and available streaming now with a Peacock subscription.

NBC was hyping a big death in the March 5 episode of Chicago Fire, and the founding One Chicago drama delivered in the 2025 TV schedule. While one of the heroes of Firehouse 51 didn't perish, Chief Pascal suffered a major loss with the untimely death of his wife Monica in a car crash... on their anniversary, of all days. The preview for what comes next doesn't look great for Pascal, making the timing just right for the news that Eamonn Walker is reprising his role as none other than Wallace Boden.

Let's start with the good news!

Eamonn Walker's Return

News broke just hours before "Too Close" aired that Eamonn Walker would soon be back on Chicago Fire, so perhaps fans should have predicted that something would go wrong with Firehouse 51's current chief. NBC Insider revealed that the longtime series regular will reprise his role for the first time since the Season 12 finale back in the spring in an episode that airs on Wednesday, April 16. The installment will be the 18th of Season 13 and called "Post-Mortem."

And while the very next episode seems to feature Pascal unraveling, as per the promo, that evidently won't be what brings Boden back. After an order from Commissioner Griffin, the CFD's Deputy Fire Commissioner returns to analyze a burned-out house after it went down with a firefighter still inside. Showrunner Andrea Newman previewed what to expect, saying:

Clearly Eamonn Walker isn't just coming back for a quick cameo! And even if the episode sounded less interesting, his return will pay off on the promise during spring 2024 that the door was open for the actor to recur as a guest star. We'll get at least one appearance out of him before the end of Season 13! My fingers are crossed that we get to see a conversation between Mouch, Herrmann, and Boden, with Herrmann getting closer to achieving Boden's goal for him and Mouch making lieutenant.

The episode has also already begun filming, thanks to a cute pic from the One Chicago X (formerly known as Twitter) account:

Now that we've covered the good news about Chicago Fire in the not-too-distant future, let's take a look at the heart-wrenching death that occurred in "Too Close," with Pascal losing his wife on the same night that he was excited to give her a present over dinner to celebrate their anniversary.

Why Pascal Needs An Intervention

Pascal was understandably distraught by the end of Episode 15, as he learned that Monica had been in a car crash. He arrived at Med just in time to learn from Dr. Archer (played by Chicago Med series regular Steven Weber) that she'd already died. He didn't even get one last goodbye. Even though Monica wasn't exactly the biggest character of Chicago Fire Season 13, Dermot Mulroney's performance as Pascal got the horrible news was such that the tragedy packs a major punch.

With One Chicago taking a break of a few weeks before returning on March 26, it's likely a safe bet that there will be at least a slight time jump to get Pascal back on the job following his wife's death. Based on the preview, though, it might have been best for him to stay out of the CFD and mourn his wife for longer. Take a look:

Chicago Fire 13x16 Promo (HD) - YouTube

Watch On

Pascal crying in his office, very publicly confronting the person (possibly) to blame for his wife's accident, and dangling one-handed from some heavy machinery high up in the air? Yes, I'd say he could have used more time off after the death of his wife, and it's clear from just that quick promo that the rest of 51 is going to be at a loss on how to deal with their chief in this state.

And there are certainly some interesting possibilities from the idea of Pascal stepping away from the job, willingly or not after the events of the next episode. Herrmann is still claiming to want Pascal's job, while Mouch is suspicious after Pascal suggested that he was too close to his best friend to see the whole truth.

The one thing that we know for sure is that Eamonn Walker's big episode to bring back Boden won't be the first dealing with the fallout of Monica's death, so we won't get to see Boden's reaction to the unraveling Pascal. Still, there's plenty to look forward to. Tune in to NBC on Wednesday, March 26 for the next new episode of Chicago Fire at 9 p.m. ET, between Chicago Med at 8 p.m. ET and Chicago P.D. at 10 p.m. ET now. All three shows' current seasons so far are also available streaming on Peacock.