Station 19: How I Became a Fan

 

In May 2017, ABC announced it was considering another spinoff of its hit series, Grey's Anatomy. That spinoff would become Station 19, a series that follows a group of firefighters in Seattle. The show would last only seven seasons on television and pretty much made a cult following of fans. So why am I writing about a show that ended a few months ago? To talk about that, I must start at the beginning. Here's my take on Station 19.

Around 2017, I was a bit one-sided regarding television shows. Think of it as criticizing shows that I've never seen before, talking trash about them or, in this case, acting like a sports fan. So, at that time, the only firefighter shows on television were NBC's Chicago Fire and Fox(now ABC)'s 911, which were a massive hit with their networks. When I read that ABC was coming up with their own series that would be another spinoff to Grey's Anatomy, I thought, "Oh great, it's Grey's for firefighters." 

As you can tell, I'm a #chihards (fan of the One Chicago franchise), so reacting wasn't so lovely. Even when ABC announced that it would air Station 19 as a two-part premiere on the same night, Chicago Fire would air a two-hour episode, too. I understand why they paired it with Grey's; it's part of their universe, and I get it. As I said before, I was very competitive about TV shows. 

After Fire moved to Wednesdays to be teamed up as the super powerhouse that is One Chicago Wednesdays, it never really hit me that I would watch Station 19. That is, until 2020, when I was looking for something and Station 19 came up. So one late evening, I binge-watched the entire first season of Station 19, and well, I wrote a review about it and mainly said, "While it may not live up to Rescue Me or Chicago Fire, Station 19 is right there as the series shows the heart and soul in its characters."

After that came Season Two and Season Three, and I was hooked. Granted, during 2020, I didn't catch up week to week or after the season was done, but I finally caught up to the series just before the final season began. 

After binge-watching seasons four through six and watching the final season, this series focuses so well on the development of their characters and representations and gives recognition to the professionalism in the health care service that I even feel overly joyful. Krista Vernoff shaped this series well after taking over from creator Stacy McKee. Is the show predictable? Yes, I can see how some of their emergency calls would go. 

But I enjoy that they can take a character who seems nasty and a wrong fit for the Station 19 family, like Sean Beckett, and flesh out the character to make it human, which we later would care for. You can see other characters like Andy Herrera grow into the captain she was set out to be by the end of the series run or the couple of the series #marina, Maya Bishop and Dr. Carina DeLuca, who has really reeled me in with their drama of ups and downs. 

I could mention everyone on the show who served a purpose in the series, but I want to say one of my favorite characters stood out from beginning to end of the show's run; that's the heart and soul of this series, Vic Hughes, who has been through a lot (like other Station 19 characters) but fought tooth and nail near the end to keep Dean Winter's Crisis One alive and expanded. It is so powerfully done, and Barrett Doss did a fantastic job. At the end of the series, Vic is the MVP. 

The series finale was a lovely ending, too; it wrapped up the current storylines and even gave us a glimpse into the future of what's to come, even a surprise graduation of a future firefighter that comes to mind. But this series shouldn't have ended, as I could see this series lasting 10+ years. The thing is, would the fans and audience react well to casting changes? 

So, I guess this is how I became a fan of Station 19. It's hard to believe I don't think myself from 2017 would ever have thought I would become one. I guess it's like that old saying, "Never judge a book by its cover." Or, in this case, we should never judge a TV show for what it's supposed to become.