Sumith Prasad
Kenneth Choi’s Howard “Howie”/”Chimney” Han is one of the beloved characters of FOX’s action series ‘9-1-1.’ His appealing and heartwarming nature has succeeded in winning the hearts of viewers ever since the first season of the show. As the sixth season of the procedural drama progresses toward its conclusion, Chimney remains a fan favorite. Due to the same reason, it isn’t a surprise that the viewers are worried about the beloved character’s fate in the series. Considering Chimney’s commitment as a firefighter, the ardent admirers of the character can’t be blamed as well. Does that mean Chimney is expected to die? Let us share our thoughts regarding the same! SPOILERS AHEAD.
Chimney Survives Against All Odds
Since the first season of the procedural drama, Chimney is known as a multi-faceted first responder. He has been an integral part of several emergency interventions both as a firefighter and paramedic. His commitment to his profession has always prepared him to put his life on the line to give his best to save lives. In addition, he gets into a car accident in the first season, only for a pole to go through his forehead. His life gets threatened again by the time he makes immense progress in his miraculous recovery. In the second husband of the series, he gets stabbed several times by his current partner Maddie Buckley’s ex-husband Doug.
Regardless of the severity of these life-threatening incidents, Chimney finds a way to stay alive. As he makes progress in a new chapter of his life with Maddie and their daughter Jee-Yun, we can expect him to remain the same. Considering the recent episodes of the series, it is safe to say that Chimney’s life is not hanging by a thread at the moment. He is not dealing with any life-threatening predicaments at the moment to die. Therefore, the viewers may not need to worry about Chimney’s life for the time being, especially considering that his storyline focuses on his potential marriage with Maddie.
According to showrunner Kirsten Reidel, Chimney’s storyline is expected to progress in another direction rather than him dealing him severely life-threatening incidents. “They [Chimney and Maddie] are on the path [to get engaged]. But it’s not necessarily a direct line. There might be a few twists and turns to come,” Reidel told EW. “After everything they’ve been through, we knew that this season we wanted to get Maddie and Chimney back together and let them have some fun and rebuild that relationship,” the showrunner said in the same interview. From Reidel’s words, it is clear that Chimney’s death isn’t a part of the current plans of the show.
In addition,’9-1-1’ isn’t a show known for the deaths of the main cast members’ respective characters. Including the characters of Rockmond Dunbar and Connie Britton, all the prominent characters of the show are alive. The chances of the same changing with the death of Chimney are extremely low. Usually, the performers’ wish to leave a series can pave the way for the death of their characters. Since Kenneth Choi hasn’t expressed any desire to part ways from the procedural series, we can remain optimistic about Chimney’s fate.
In the upcoming episodes of the series, we may see Chimney proposing to Maddie. Although they have suffered a lot together and individually after getting into their relationship, Maddie is expected to reply yes. As the show progresses, we may see Chimney marrying the love of his life with Captain Robert “Bobby” Nash and Evan “Buck” Buckley on his two sides. His best friend Hen may help him deal with any concerns as someone experienced in leading a family.
Read More: How Did Shannon Díaz Die? Why Did Devin Kelley Leave 9-1-1?
