**Spoilers Ahead**

The ice storm is over, the 126 is back together, and the team from 9-1-1: Lone Star is back in action. The winter storm gave us a lot of insanity, questionable choices and a foundation for a fascinating rest of the show’s third season.

The episode started out with firefighters fighting an actual fire which is an achievement in itself. In a franchise that has been experimenting with increasingly large stakes, it’s almost a nice change of pace to see the team return to their roots of being, well, firefighters. Even so, an arson combined with a kidnapping, there was plenty of drama to go around.

Judd (Jim Parrack) and Grace (Sierra Aylina McClain) are in the brunt of the drama this episode, with the bombshell revelation that Judd is in fact already a father and didn’t know it. The only question we’re left with is…why can’t the show let these two be happy? Seriously, the trauma of almost dying, coupled with Grace having to give birth to their daughter in the middle of the storm of the century should mean they get to at least be left alone. They deserve to happy. It’s all we’ll accept from them. If there was a single benefit to this storyline, it was seeing Tommy (Gina Torres) in action as the friend we all need at our time of need.

Seeing Carlos actually copping is more proof that this show needs infinitely more Rafael L. Silva. Having him solve the mystery of kidnapped child and the creepy nanny-cam shows that 9-1-1: Lone Star actually can in fact give Carlos something to do. The sweet moments of him and T.K. (Ronen Rubinstein) sharing the couch and staying up late into the night to work through the case are absolutely the strongest of the episode. To have him write the detective’s exam would be a great way to advance his character and hopefully give him more stable footing in show that shies away from letting him show his full potential as a character.

The most baffling and bold assumption in this episode is that anyone at all cares even a tiny bit about Owen’s (Rob Lowe) dating life. If it was meant to be a tribute to Lowe’s work on The West Wing having him go on a date with a political staffer, it was the wrong way to go about it. The fact that they bond over liking The Wolf of Wall Street is nauseating and yet a perfect distillation of every reason why this is a terrible idea for so many reasons. That being said, her hate of Matthew McConaughey is on point. Owen’s idolization of the man is pretty much everything that’s wrong with this character.

The ending is so incredibly predictable and cookie cutter, which is disappointing for a show that has progressively been trying to improve. Everyone got their nicely wrapped up happy ending, and we hopefully never have to see more behind-the-scenes looks at what a date with Owen Strand is really like.

9-1-1: Lone Star has struggled with its storytelling. Despite having compelling characters, there’s an inconsistency that the show struggles with. When it’s good, it’s really good. When it’s uninspired with the exception of one shining character that needs far more screen time, it’s this exact episode.

9-1-1: Lone Star airs Mondays 8/7c on Fox.