10 Things About 9-1-1 That Make No Sense

9-1-1 is a very unique type of procedural, mostly because it offers fans a range of exciting but ludicrous storylines. The show has a lot of heart but doesn’t try to entice the audience with complex plots and backstories. If anything, 9-1-1 has made primetime TV fun again.

However, this show also has a tendency to take things too far. Whether it’s inaccurate medical practices or unusual character quirks, these aspects can easily take audiences out of the show. Thus, although 9-1-1 is adored by fans, it doesn’t always make perfect sense.

Athena Can Pretty Much Do Anything

Season 8, Episode 3, “Final Approach”

Athena Grant is one of the 118’s biggest assets, not just as a sergeant but as a woman in general. Many of her peers admire her strength and how she manages to juggle being a mom with also being a front-line worker. Overall, Athena is a fan-favorite character and is an impeccable resource in any type of emergency.

However, it could be argued that the show has placed her character on an incredibly high pedestal. In “Final Approach,” Athena lands a faulty plane just inches away from her husband’s face. Although Grant has a ton of experience in her field, a lot of fans find it hard to believe that she learned how to fly a plane in a matter of hours.

The Crew Stop CPR Too Quickly

Season 2, Episode 8, “Stuck”

Alongside being skilled firefighters, the 118 crew are also trained EMTs. Thus, they are more than capable of administering medical treatment in the face of an emergency. However, it appears that the team has yet to master the art of CPR.

In “Stuck”, the crew is forced to save people who are trapped in compromising situations. Although the first responders try to save someone trapped in an escalator, they swiftly give up after administering CPR for less than a minute. Admittedly, it would be boring to watch the crew use CPR for 20 minutes straight, but a little more effort would be appreciated.

Maddie Seems to Be the Only Call Handler

Season 2, Episode 11, “New Beginnings”

Aside from being Evan Buckley’s sister and Chimney’s wife, Maddie Han also works as a 911 call dispatcher. Since she arrived in Season 2, she has been caught up in a range of distressing situations but still manages to handle every call with confidence. Although fans spot a few of her colleagues every once in a while, she seems to be the only active worker in the whole department.

In “New Beginnings”, Maddie believed that a teenage boy had been kidnapped and had encouraged the first responders to track his location. However, she received very little support or guidance from the other call handlers. Thus, like Abby Clark, Maddie seems to be stuck in that office by herself while the rest of the 118 crew enjoy all the fun.

Every Firefighter Is in Impeccable Shape

Season 1, Episode 10, “A Whole New You”

When it comes to saving lives and fighting fires, it makes perfect sense that the 118 crew would want to be the figures of health. However, the main cast is so impeccably well-built that it’s almost obscure. Even slightly older characters like Bobby Nash are fitted with a chiseled jawline and washboard abs.

What’s even stranger is that the cast doesn’t seem to notice how fit they really are. In “A Whole New You,” Nash feels so insecure about entering the dating scene again that he’s verging on an identity crisis. Yet, any sane viewer would agree that a strong man like Bobby would never struggle to find a date.

Every Person Has a Crazy Backstory

Season 2, Episode 12, “Chimney Begins”

9-1-1 has created a selection of Begins episodes, all of which detail how key characters got their start in the team. While many would assume that these characters joined the profession after a lot of consideration, it seems that a lot of them just fell into the job. So, if these episodes prove anything, 9-1-1 is anything but boring.

“Chimney Begins” is a prime example of how this show offers its characters intense backstories. After saving countless people in a bar fire, Howard Han was inspired to become a firefighter. This suggests that after a major catastrophe, Howard Han thought it would be a good idea to make these events his full-time profession. As such, this show also suggests that this job is pretty easy to get, no matter what stage of life a person is in.

The 118 Team Seems to Only Have a Handful of Staff

Season 8, Episode 1, “Buzzkill”

Fans adore seeing the 118 crew work together because every firefighter is blessed with a different set of strengths. But, with only six main characters, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that the crew is looking a little thin. Thus, at times, it feels like the entire team is only made up of a few people.

Even in major disasters like the bee swarm in “Buzzkill,” only a few members of staff arrive at the scene. Obviously, it would be ridiculous for a TV show to write a horde of characters, but 9-1-1 only appears to focus on a small group of first responders. Thus, fans will just have to hope that, in a real emergency, the LAFD has a few more people to hand.

The Team Never Runs Out of Resources

Season 3, Episode 4, “Triggers”

Obviously, it wouldn’t be much help if the 118 crew kept on running out of water every time they arrived at an emergency. However, the team always seems to have everything they need, no matter how obscure. Not only does this make the show seem a tad unrealistic, but it also removes a lot of tension from some of the storylines.

A prime example of this is in “Triggers,” when a woman gets a wedding ring stuck on her finger. Usually, an EMT would tell someone to stick their finger in a tub of butter or head to their local hardware store to try and find a hacksaw. Yet, as if by magic, Hen and Chimney had the exact tool the woman needed to help her get out of this compromising situation.

There’s No Paperwork

Season 1, Episode 7, “Full Moon (Creepy AF)”

Being a firefighter is no easy feat, and these heroes are likely to see action every day. However, the 118 crew seems to move from one case to another without completing any paperwork. While fans don’t necessarily want to see Hen scribbling on various documents, it would help to make the show a bit more grounded.

Even in an episode like “Full Moon (Creepy AF),” where unbelievable incidents just bombard the crew, they weren’t asked to track any information. On the one hand, it’s assumed that Maddie handles all the notes, but the firefighters don’t even jot down a name. Thus, it seems that bureaucracy just doesn’t exist in the 9-1-1 universe.

Despite Being Firefighters, They Rarely Tackle Fires

Season 1, Episode 5, “Point of Origin”

Firefighter shows are very popular because they effectively tap into the audience’s biggest fears. Not to mention, a lot of these shows work hard to reinvent their storylines so that they do not become stale or boring. However, 9-1-1 frequently thinks outside the box and offers fans stories outside the realm of fires.

In contrast, it could be argued that the show has taken things a step too far and focuses on everything but fires. Take, for example, “Point of Origin,” where a car wash employee has to call out the emergency services because he gets stuck in the brushes. So, episodes like this one work to make the whole show a tad ironic.

Hen Has Countless Pairs of Glasses

Season 5, Episode 1, “Panic”/ Season 7, Episode 2, “Rock the Boat”

Although this sounds like a redundant observation, it’s hard to ignore once fans spot it. Throughout the last eight seasons of 9-1-1, Hen has worn multiple different pairs of glasses. In “Panic,” she sports a chic black pair, but in “Rock the Boat,” she wears a pair of half-rim glasses.

She sometimes goes through various pairs of glasses in one episode without any explanation. Not only is it hard to keep track of, but a lot of audiences wonder how she can afford so many pairs on a firefighter’s salary. Regardless, Hen’s collection of glasses just helps to solidify her position as a style icon.