9-1-1killing off Bobby Nash marked a turning point for the long-running procedural, but Peter Krause would have liked the fire captain’s demise to come even sooner. Prior toBobby Nash’s untimely death in9-1-1season 8, he led LAFD Station 118— including Henrietta “Hen” Wilson (Aisha Hinds), Howard “Chimney” Han (Kenneth Choi), Evan “Buck” Buckley (Oliver Stark), Eddie Diaz (Ryan Guzman), and Ravi Panikkar (Anirudh Pisharody)— through quirky and intense disasters. Over the years, Bobby and his team responded to9-1-1’s most over-the-top emergencies, always balancing its serious plots with an air of lightheartedness and levity.
That’s not to say the first-responder drama was without any stakes, however. There have been manyhorrible near-death experiences in9-1-1that left lasting impressions on the characters and the audience alike, adding suspense to each season and leaving viewers to wonder who would be next. Still, there was a sense of security in knowing that they were only near-death experiences, and the found family of the 118 would always find its way back to each other. Tragically, this staple of9-1-1would be abandoned in season 8, episode 15, “Lab Rats.”
Why Bobby’s Death In 9-1-1 Season 8 Is So Divisive
The Fire Captain Suddenly Sacrificed Himself In “Lab Rats”
9-1-1season 8, episodes 14 and 15 composed a two-part thriller event known as9-1-1: Contagion, wherein the 118 (sans Buck, who escaped just in time to dodge an explosion) were left quarantined in a research lab that housed a deadly pathogen that caused CCHF (Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever).9-1-1originally teased Chimney’s death, but it was a mere bait-and-switch, as Athena (Angela Bassett) delivered the antidote in time to save him, unaware that her husband was suffering from the same disease.Bobby hid his symptoms until the 118 evacuated, only saying goodbye to Buck and Athena before suddenly dying.
Backlash immediately poured in following the episode, with critiques ranging from the plot feeling rushed to the death feeling unnecessary. Plenty of discourse persisted long after the episode’s initial airing, with each passing day seemingly adding more fuel to the fire.There are many genuinely upsetting aspects to Bobby’s death, including how it reduced the central character to a simple twist ending. Furthermore,Bobby’s suicidal past in9-1-1was seemingly ignored entirely, despite it adding a distressing layer of depth to his martyrdom. Bobby’s death was so poorly executed, many believed it was fake until the season 8 finale.
Everything was falling into place for Bobby and Athena to live out the rest of their lives together in domestic bliss, only for that idyllic dream to be cruelly ripped away without any forewarning.
Additionally, the twist felt disrespectful toBobby and Athena’s relationship in9-1-1, which had been at the heart of the series since they began dating in the season 1 finale. Everything was falling into place for Bobby and Athena to live out the rest of their lives together in domestic bliss, only for that idyllic dream to be cruelly ripped away without any forewarning. Many attempts have been made to justify Bobby’s death, but9-1-1only succeeded in alienating a large portion of its audienceand needlessly forcing Athena to tragically lose somebody for the third time in her life.
Peter Krause Wanted Bobby To Die A Year Earlier In 9-1-1
While Bobby’s death was frustratingly out-of-the-blue in season 8, the opening emergency of9-1-1season 7 laid a detailed foundation for a potential death— or, as Peter Krause envisioned, two potential deaths. In one of9-1-1’s most intense disasters, Bobby and Athena begin season 7 on the cruise ship from hell. What’s meant to be a late honeymoon is tainted by criminals overtaking the ship, the vessel capsizing, and a hurricane threatening to engulf the surrounding area. In9-1-1season 7, episode 2,Bobby and Athena lock themselves in a room that’s rapidly filling with water, a seemingly hopeless situation.
“As an audience member, you almost hope they die together. I was filming it and thinking, ‘Let’s just Romeo and Juliet this thing right now.’ I know the show’s gotta go on, but we’re never going to be able to top this.”
True to form for9-1-1pre-season 8, Bobby and Athena miraculously find their way out of the death trap, though it’s a decision that Peter Krause lamented. After the episode aired in early 2024,Krause explained how Bobby and Athena not escaping would have been a fitting endto the saga, likening the thought of them dying together to“Romeo and Juliet”(viaThe Wrap), arguably the most iconic tragedy of all time. Krause correctly noted that there would never be a better chance to kill off9-1-1’s best couple, but the unofficial no-kill rule was still firmly in place.
Although many comparisons were made toTitanic(1997), the cruise ship arc in9-1-1season 7 was inspired byThe Poseidon Adventure(1972).
Nevertheless,the three-episode cruise ship arc could have easily ended with at least one major character’s death— in fact, if the storyline were playing out on any other show, it likely would have. At the time,9-1-1stood out from its many procedural peers for that precise reason: the 118 encountered dangerous situations, both absurd and unimaginably traumatic, but they always survived and healed together as the family they were. Its optimistic undercurrent was a major selling point for9-1-1, but upping the ante with a death in the main cast could still have worked with a more deliberate plot.
Which 9-1-1 Crisis Would Have Been A Better Death For Bobby
Both Are Devastating Scenarios, And There Were Pros & Cons To Each
While Bobby and Athena dying together on the cruise ship would have been equal parts poetic and heartbreaking, it would have caused a disastrous ripple effect. Killing off its two main characters in the opening emergency would have set9-1-1season 7 up for failure, as the tragedy would have haunted the narrative and kept the cast trapped in their grief for the remaining episodes. There would be no room for any actual storylines or character development, as the fallout fromBobby and Athena dying would have left the procedural with nowhere to go in9-1-1season 7.
All episodes of9-1-1are streaming on Hulu.
By killing Bobby at the tail end of9-1-1season 8, the first-responder drama sidesteps this issue by dedicating the final three episodes of the season to the aftermath of Captain Nash’s death, from his funeral to his widow selling what was supposed to be their forever home. Still,Bobby’s actual death in “Lab Rats” came across as downright careless, with the bulk of season 8 feeling pointless as a result.9-1-1set up fruitless storylines that would never be resolved, going through the trouble of creating a convoluted plot to reinstate Bobby as captain and re-introduce his estranged mother.
Yet, there’s a secret third contender that would have been a crushing but comprehensible death plot. The9-1-1season 7 finaleoffered another opportunity for Krause’s Shakespearean ending when Bobby pulled Athena out of their burning house and immediately collapsed due to a cardiac event. With some slight tweaks,Bobby dying after saving Athena from a fire could have been a harrowing full-circle moment, bringing the character’s journey to a natural end without sacrificing his personal development. Admittedly, Bobby dying would have always felt too soon, but9-1-1may forever regret prioritizing shock value over a proper send-off.
