The premise of “Chicago Fire” isn’t particularly complicated. The folks

stationed at the Chicago Fire Department’s Firehouse 51 go about their

routine duties putting out fires, saving lives, and making the community

a better place, risking life and limb to do so. It has propelled the program for 11 seasons and has earned it a sizeable fanbase, but some members of it sense a change in the program. According to them, it’s now less of a firehouse drama and more of a soap opera, and the show is worse off for it.

“This is just a soap opera now And it’s so sad. This used to be the best of the Chicago shows and now I’m soooo bored with it,” wrote u/Dani-mach in a Reddit thread about the changes in “Chicago Fire.” In their eyes, the program has become all about the personal drama of the characters and their romantic turmoil than anything else, undercutting the action and suspense the series is built on. Numerous “Chicago Fire” fans agreed in the comment section, calling out specific elements of the show that have made it so unbearable to watch as of late.

Though these complaints were varied, many agree that “Chicago Fire” has been made worse by the shift in focus to one of its most prominent romantic pairings.

Kidd and Severide’s relationship has taken up too much airtime for some fans

Since the tail end of “Chicago Fire” Season 4, Kelly Severide (Taylor Kinney) and Stella Kidd (Miranda Rae Mayo) have been in a romantic relationship. In Season 9 they get engaged, leading to a big happy wedding in Season 10 before Kinney elected to step away from the series early in Season 11. Given how long their relationship factored into the story of “Chicago Fire,” it should come as no surprise that Kidd and Severide’s romance became an increasingly prevalent element. To many fans, this was to the overall detriment of the show.