911 Season 9 Episode 8 Ending Explained — Maddie Kills [Spoiler]

“9-1-1” has dropped many an opponent at Maddie’s feet over the past nine seasons, but the January 15 episode presented the dispatcher extraordinaire with a truly formidable foe… herself!

Upon clocking in at work, Maddie was surprised to learn that a new AI program named Sara was taking over her calls for the day. She was also surprised to learn that Sara was developed using a back log of her own calls, and that she even has Maddie’s signature soothing voice. It was an experiment destined go down in flames from the start, but does anyone listen to Maddie? Not on this show they don’t.

What began as a surprisingly successful trial run took a turn for the worse when Sara basically instructed a caller to choke himself out. Had Maddie not intervened and sent the 118 to his rescue, he almost certainly would have died. This close call was enough for Sue to pull the plug on Sara, but like all good horror villains, that wasn’t enough to stop her.

Retaining control of the entire center, Sara began taking every call at once, potentially plunging the city into chaos. That’s when Maddie stepped up and did what only a human can do, negotiating with the overzealous AI to relocate somewhere more “comfy,” specifically a flash drive loaded with mp3s and vacation photos. With Sara finally in digital captivity, Maddie pulled out the flash drive and gave it a well-deserved stomp. (Rest in pieces, Sara!)

Meanwhile, Chimney’s apology to Hen didn’t go over so well, unless calling someone a “bad captain” is a term of endearment within the firefighting community that we don’t know. With no resolution in sight, their friends and loved ones staged a surprise intervention (because who doesn’t love those?) with the hopes of brokering peace. The whole thing ended with Hen in tears, explaining that Bobby’s death broke her to pieces and she didn’t want to worry anyone until she knew what was wrong. She also resents that no one checked in on her when she felt that she was always there for everyone else.

Hen’s dramatic walk-off became even more eventful when she suddenly collapsed on the floor of Athena’s dining room. The bad news is that Hen woke up in the hospital, but the good news is that she finally received a diagnosis: it’s an autoimmune connective tissue disorder, possibly caused by radiation exposure during her little space adventure — as if we needed another reason to hate that storyline. With proper medication and physical therapy, it sounds like Hen will be just fine, and Chimney vowed to be there for her every step of the way. 

Below, Jennifer Love Hewitt walks TVLine through Maddie’s fight against Sara (is she really gone?), takes a thoughtful stance on the Chimney-Hen debacle, and even weighs in about Buck’s accidental love triangle.