Kelly Severide is here to stay in Chicago Fire season 13, which is great news,

but the series is already doing a disservice to his story after one major cliffhanger

from the season 12 finale. Taylor Kinney has played Severide, the lieutenant in charge of Squad 3,

since season 1. He is one of the few remaining original cast members left following Eamonn Walker’s exit ahead of Chicago Fire season 13, and, hopefully, Kinney will be around for many seasons to come. However, while celebrating Kinney’s staying after speculation he was leaving, one can also criticize how the premiere handled Severide’s season 13 arc.

New episodes of Chicago Fire season 13 air on Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET on NBC in between new episodes of Chicago Med season 10 at 8 p.m. ET and Chicago PD season 12 at 10 p.m. ET.Many believed the end was in sight for Kinney throughout the procedural drama’s last two seasons. The actor took a leave of absence towards season 11’s end, and it was unclear if Severide would ever return to Firehouse 51. Thankfully, he did in season 12. Still, theories that Kinney would be the next to leave Chicago Fire persisted. Perhaps now those rumors can fade as Severide is back for season 13. The premiere set up a major story arc concerning him and his long-lost half-brother, Jack Damon, but the episode also failed to satisfyingly pay off season 12’s cliffhanger.