Well, that wraps up 2024, folks. As usual, the show leaves us with a lot of suspense.
Fire Nation Season 3 Episode 8 review analyzes the events and aftermath of the show, as well as what we might expect when the show returns in 2025.
Like most Bruckheimer productions, Fire Nation Season 3 Episode 8 is packed with action, heartbreaking horror, disobedience and personal angst to help us get through the holidays.
Several of our favorite firefighters also faced life-threatening injuries. Could we see the demise and exit of the Fire Nation cast? We haven’t heard from anyone leaving the show.
Three seasons later, we still have the same core characters, save for some minor roles in the supporting cast like Kara, Freddy, and Rebecca.
The show has been preparing for these events from the beginning, taking each character through life dilemmas that ultimately shape how each of them reacts in the Fire Nation Season 3 fall finale.
As a finale, this season was as good as any I’ve watched in 2024, and it’s certainly much better than the delayed season start and shortened ten-episode second season.
However, while the show does a good job of setting up its interseason breaks to keep fans in a state of curiosity and torment, the episode itself had a lot of “ughs” and “oh my gosh”s. Really, all season long.
Start with the typical drama surrounding Gabriella. Fans, go ahead and weigh in quickly on the first exchange between Gabriella and Jake. This reviewer had a hard time deciding which one was right.
While Jack felt they should tell Bode about their drunken hookup, Gabriella thought it was none of his business since they weren’t together.
But like Jack said, Bode was his best friend and Gabrella was his former crush. However, as Garbus said, she was with Jack before Bode. So should they tell Bode or let it remain an inconsequential drunken incident?
While this reviewer’s twisted mind is entirely visible, with a lapse in judgment leading to Gabriella and Jack’s unplanned pregnancy, he is still reeling from the loss of Kara and Kara’s daughter’s recent decision to move in with her real father instead of Jack Tormented by being together.
At first, Gabriella seemed to be doing better in this episode, less bent on beating herself to death or doing dangerous things. Like father, like daughter.
We then see her mental state deteriorate, causing her to disobey direct orders from her superiors, break the law, and be completely disobedient. How many times did she yell at her boss (this time it was Jack instead of Sharon) before facing disciplinary action?
I stood by her to help a desperate mother and child who ran out of gas while trying to evacuate. Their car was their only remaining home and it didn’t seem fair that they’d lose everything again.
To be honest, this viewer would probably do the same thing, siphoning gasoline from a car parked in front of a fire hydrant. Criminal charges be damned.
But I don’t condone her other behavior.
She seems to have a major problem keeping her past separate from her work, often letting her personal experiences affect her performance. She often scolded Bode and her father for their actions.
It was amazing to see Jake put Gabriella in her place. Her hissing reactions are typical of her self-indulgent pity party, where she wants everyone to feel sorry for her situation, despite the fact that her circumstances in life are all of her own making.
Then, as usual, she got dramatic and took off her firefighting gear and walked away when the fire call came in. Only as she wandered aimlessly down the road, she eventually encountered a wall of fire.
She said she was done, but what was done? Her actions were as clear as any resignation letter. Will we say goodbye to Gabriella Perez when the show returns?
Or, the Fire Nation Season 3 finale could be the end of the life of inmate firefighter Manny Perez. Since season one, we’ve seen Manny go through 360 degrees of his life.
He was once the captain of the Three Rock POW camp and mentored Bode so that he could succeed after his release, but the positions were flipped in Fire Nation Season 3.
Bode is a free man and is now an official member of Cal Fire since Captain Camden Casey passed him during fire training in Fire Nation Season 3 Episode 7, while Manny is now are firefighter inmates at Sanyan Prison, with Eve serving as captain.
It’s hard to see Manny so far removed from his original redemption, but it’s a great way to explore his character more. Unfortunately, returning to prison seems to have diminished Manny’s sense of justice.
Throughout Fire Nation Season 3, he was shown to be out of character multiple times, almost as if he was giving up on his future because of his frustrations.
Manny went from my favorite character to an annoyance this season as he tried to mend his relationship with Gabriella while expressing his self-anger to those around him.
In this episode, he’s torn between being a supportive first-time firefighter and a sullen prisoner who’s angry about serving his sentence. It was great to see him speak to Cole when he almost spoke to Eve’s cousin.
Unfortunately, it’s unlikely Manny will be willing to take Cole’s advice and not go out alone to find Gabriella.
The show ends with a cliffhanger of him and Sanyan at the Edwards Ranch, miles away from where Gabriella disappeared. Being grumpy, she walked right into the fire zone.
Manny just requested a parole hearing. Being AWOL during a fire call, even because his daughter was in danger, doesn’t look good. Will the second half of Fire Nation season 3 see Manny spend more time in jail for his “escape attempt,” or will Perez become the show’s first regular cast member to exit?
What was it like for everyone visiting Edwards Ranch for the first time? Man, there’s tension between patriarch Edwards and everyone around him.
When we find out that Eve hasn’t spoken to her family in six years, Elroy Edwards behaves as we’d expect. After meeting them, I understood why there was discord.
It was great to see her stand up for her crew against her father’s bigotry. He is a stubborn old man who believes that Eve chose the fire service and the Leones over her family, past and present.
If you read the spoilers for Fire Nation Season 3 Episode 8, I’m going to marvel at how cool it would be to see Eve on horseback putting out fires. We saw her on horseback, so my wish was half fulfilled.
I’ll get around to it, though, because it’s so cool that she gave birth to a foal and spent some time with her sire.
But when she plays rancher, she neglects her firefighting duties. Vince had to come out to check things out, which ruined her progress. Elroy had multiple beefs with Vince and CFD.
The two debated backburning on the ranch to prevent the fire from spreading to Edgewater. Vince believed he had the right to do this, even on private property. Elroy felt he had the right to say no because it was his land.
Eve ends up caught between her blood family and her fire family. She chose this job over her own relatives, much to Ellroy’s dismay.
We have to wonder if the fire she set was symbolic of burning the last bridge between her and her family. It should protect the pasture.
But the changing winds blew the embers across the fire line and into the barn, where ranch hands had just put all the horses, including Eve’s newborn foal.
Eve wasn’t the only one whose plan to protect something backfired. Bode and Audrey put out an emergency call, thinking they would only take precautions. It’s up to their luck to run into a giant zombie fire.
ah? This is a way to add a unique twist to the typical zombie outbreak.
Show of hands: Who has heard of zombie fires or legacy fires before this episode? Not being this TV fanatic, I’m pretty sure I’ve watched every fire movie or series available.
It’s very rough, but also pretty awesome.
How crazy would it be to be faced with a fire that has been burning underground for months or even years? It sounds like the intro to Tommy Lee Jones’s 90’s “Volcano” or “La Brea” or something.
Bode is a badass ex-con, so it’s always a pleasure to see his softer side, from the teddy bear in his locker to the family photo on his helmet to when he listens to a local’s tragic story. Almost shed tears.
Bode promises to save his house, and things seem to be going well until James calls bullshit and brings doom to it. Never test the universe by celebrating prematurely, especially when it comes to firefighting.
Sharon continued to issue orders to Leon and James to abandon the location and attend to other fires. But the couple ignored her calls, leaving the mama bear terrified.
Bode should be severely reprimanded for ignoring direct orders. He’s desperate to keep his promise and allegedly keep Old Bode around, putting himself and Audrey in a very dangerous situation.
Does anyone else find it annoying that after Bode screws up and puts them both in danger, he hatches a plan and tries to talk about how to save them like it’s not his fault they’re trapped?
James grabs Bode as the fire engulfs everything around them and they dive underwater to escape the flames. Then the end credits rolled.
Could Bode and Audrey’s first kiss be the mermaid’s breath of life as they shared the air? Will Audrey forgive Bode for putting her in the horrific situation of being burned alive or drowning because he can’t swim?
If they had left earlier, as she wished and commanded, they wouldn’t have been trapped by a wall of fire on all sides.
My favorite part of the day was when Eve asked how to reason with a stubborn old man and both Sharon and Bird gave Vince “that” look. priceless! Is this a hint at Vince’s own father’s issues? Or do they call him a stubborn old man?
What’s up with this episode and people ignoring their radio calls? Has anyone else noticed a theme where all the different scenes and characters tend to converge on one narrative?
In Fire Nation Season 3 Episode 7, subordinates lashed out at their superiors, something that in real life would have resulted in many firefighters being fired.
So, fanatics, what did you think of the Fire Nation Season 3 fall finale? Are you excited for the show to return? Where do you want the story to go from here?
What did you like about this episode? hatred? Is it better than previous episodes?
Join the conversation in our comments!
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