After burning a Ren Faire to the ground in the last episode, Fire Country takes it relatively easy this week. Eve (Jules Latimer) and Gabs (Stephanie Arcila) lead a family reunification day at the station, bussing in the children of Three Rock inmates to visit the fire station, make some crafts, and get to see the work their fathers have been doing. There are some hiccups along the way, but they make room for one Three Rock inmate to rebuild a bond with his estranged son.
Audrey (Levin Rambin), meanwhile, is only trying to get some laundry done but ends up having her own bonding day with Walter (Jeff Fahey). She gets a good history lesson about the Leone family, which only makes her more drawn to Bode (Max Thieriot). It turns out Walter isn’t that feisty when he has someone who actually listens to him around. However, it’s Bode and Jake (Jordan Calloway) who have the roughest day. They set out for Trinity National Forest and are forced into rescue mode to save a camper buried under a rock slide. The camper immediately endears himself to the two rescuers and makes a lasting impression on both men.
Family Stuff Gets Complicated in ‘Fire Country’ Season 3 Episode 12
The guys at Three Rock have needed a break for a while. Eve feels great after the fire education program, and now she pilots having the kids of Three Rock inmates come to Station 42 to not only see their dads, but get to experience what station life is like. It’s an especially good day for Cole (Tye White), who has all of his daughters and his teenage son come to visit. While the girls were happy to hang with their dad, Cole’s teenage son Logan isn’t stoked to see his dad in lockup. After inflating a rescue boat in the storage room and trying to drive off in one of the trucks, Eve confronts Logan about his crap attitude. There’s a kid on the trip who traveled all that way and didn’t get to see his dad, so Logan is being selfish by ruining the day for everyone else.
It turns out that Logan’s misbehavior stems from anxiety about telling his dad that he is gay. Eve helps him through the tough conversation, and Cole responds with a beautiful, accepting speech. Cole even put Logan “onto some game,” teaching him how to flirt by showing an avid interest in his crush’s hockey passion. So, there were some hiccups during the event, but it’s overall a success. It has the potential to become a regular program, and it was another sign that Eve has really grown into her position as captain of Three Rock. Sharon (Diane Farr), for one, is a fan, and we could see it return in the future.
Audrey Has a Surprise Date With Walter in ‘Fire Country’ Season 3 Episode 12
Audrey originally plans to skip the family day at the station to catch up on laundry, but when her apartment machine breaks down, and the station’s machines are taken up by uniforms that need to be washed, Sharon sends the probie over to her house to use the washing machine and hang out with Walter. Audrey’s arrival gives Vince (Billy Burke) a break from trying to reason with his old man. Things get immediately tense when Walter mistakes Audrey for Vince’s dead daughter, Riley (let’s also take a moment to acknowledge Vince’s gutwrenching look as he overhears Walter embracing Audrey). The firefighter is a pro, though, and doesn’t correct Walter, and he eventually figures out that he’s made a mistake.
In exchange for her kindness, Walter takes Audrey down Leone Memory Lane and walks her through each of the memories encapsulated by the photos on their dining room showcase. Vince is able to grapple with how sick his dad truly is, while Audrey gets a firsthand education about Bode’s entire family. When Sharon comes home from her shift, Audrey and Walter are playing poker and acting like old friends. The whole family ends up at Smokey’s, with Audrey serenading the bar with that beautiful voice of hers. It was a good day for most of the Leones — with Bode being the exception, of course.
Jake and Bode Face Death in ‘Fire Country’ Season 3 Episode 12
It was supposed to be a chill, surrogate-brother bonding trip to Trinity National Forest to tag fire-risk trees to be deforested. It definitely starts out that way, with Jake interrogating Bode about his relationship status with Audrey. Bode pushes back by asking Jake when he plans to get back out on the dating scene. Our poor boy still isn’t ready. The duo manage to tag a total of three trees before they spot an unattended campfire not far off. The flames are put out, but then the boys hear a rockslide in the distance and go investigate for any people who are in need of rescue. That’s where they encounter Rafael, a pediatrician from Argentina who has been solo camping to process the recent death of a patient. Trapped under the rubble and unable to move, Rafael asks Jake and Bode about their thoughts on the afterlife as they shift rocks.
A second rock slide bruises up Bode’s leg, which leaves Jake to make the eight-mile roundtrip trek to get help for Rafael. Bode tries his best to keep Rafael’s spirits and hopes up, but the pediatrician is aware of the extensive damage his body had taken during the rockslide. His dying wish is for Bode to watch the stars with him and admire the beauty of the universe. He dies shortly before Jake can make it back with the rescue team. It’s been a hot minute since Fire Country has had a death on the scene, and this was one of the more crushing ones. Bode and Jake help carry Rafael’s body out of the woods, and then Jake is tasked with calling Rafael’s fiancé to tell her he’s dead and deliver Rafael’s last wishes to her. Bode, meanwhile, nurses a beer at Smokey’s as his parents wonder whether they should coerce him into talking about it.
I’m not trying to discredit how painful losing Rafael was for Bode. He was there with him the longest and had to sit there when the man actually passed away. Bode makes it obvious at Smokey’s that Rafael’s death reminded him a lot of his sister Riley, and that was a painful set of memories to dig up. No one says anything about how difficult this case is for Jake, though. He lost his own fiancée not that long ago when he wasn’t able to get a rescue crew to her in time. Rafael’s death hit very close for him as well, and if he was contemplating getting back out in the field at the beginning of the episode, it’s hard to say how Rafael’s death may have impacted those prospects. If Jake was truly part of the Leone family, then Vince and Sharon needed to acknowledge that both of their sons had a really rough shift. We’ll see how they bounce back from it.