<\/p>\n
Just as “Fire Country”\u00a0says goodbye to one battalion chief, Station 42 is already saying hello to another \u2014 albeit, begrudgingly.<\/p>\n
In the Season 4 premiere of the CBS drama, the team grapples with losing Vince to the Zabel Ridge fire, and things aren’t going well. Bode contemplates relapsing, while Sharon is practically catatonic, consumed by anger and guilt. Meanwhile, the entire station is left scrambling to find a battalion chief replacement.<\/p>\n
But refilling Vince’s position is a delicate matter \u2014 the man just died! When Jake mentions possibly stepping into the role during the funeral, Bode blows up, telling him he can suck up until the cows come home. Even if Jake lands a spot at Vince’s desk, Bode promises that won’t be the end of it.<\/p>\n
“When you’re sitting in my dad’s chair, just remember, you’re renting it,” he says. “It’s my birthright, and I’m coming for it.”<\/p>\n
In the wake of all that tension, Sharon ends up suspending Station 42 from active duty, saying the team is broken. After eight weeks of sitting on the sidelines, the team jumps back into action \u2014 without a battalion chief \u2014 to respond to a lumber mill fire. The rescue ends up being Gabriella’s last time suiting up with 42 as she moves on to become a firefighter recruiter. (But she doesn’t leave without giving #Bodiella fans something to chew on: She tells\u00a0Bode she still loves him, but he says love isn’t enough.)<\/p>\n
By\u00a0the end of the episode, a battalion chief finally emerges: Shawn Hatosy’s Brett Richards, Vince and Sharon’s supposed arch nemesis, is now lording over Station 42.<\/p>\n
Read on to get the scoop on all the premiere’s biggest moments, from Vince’s death to the new chief, in our Q&A with showrunner\u00a0Tia Napolitano.<\/p>\n