8 Couples We’ll Be Keeping an Eye on Next Season
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As much as we enjoy the twists and turns of our favorite shows — bracing ourselves when characters’ lives are left hanging in the balance, especially between seasons — we love the love onscreen. And the 2022-2023 season ended with quite a few of our favorite couples left in some interesting positions to have us talking all summer (especially with the writers and actors strikes meaning the wait for new episodes will be longer than usual).
Some took steps that were a long time coming, like a wedding on 9-1-1: Lone Star and a vacation on 9-1-1. Chicago Fire and P.D. left the futures of two fan-favorite couples (including exes!) up in the air. Fire Country has us worried about the Leones, whose solid relationship has been a highlight since the beginning of the series last fall. And we just want the joy to continue on NCIS: Hawai’i.
Scroll down as we take a look at the couples we’ll be watching closely when our favorite shows return for the 2023-2024 season.
Athena & Bobby, 9-1-1
The police sergeant and fire captain finally took a cruise at the end of the Season 6 finale. And knowing Athena (Angela Bassett) and Bobby (Peter Krause), it’s hard to imagine them not finding some sort of mystery to solve or someone to save (and Krause agrees), so we’re definitely going to be paying close attention to what is said or shown from that vacation when Season 7 premieres on ABC.
Maddie & Chimney, 9-1-1
It hasn’t been an easy journey for Maddie (Jennifer Love Hewitt) and Chimney (Kenneth Choi) to get here, but after traumas and a breakup, they are engaged. They ended last season planning their wedding, and unfortunately, we have a feeling that won’t go off without a hitch (just because we know this show). Maybe the best we can hope for is it doesn’t end with one of our beloved first responders making a trip to the hospital?
T.K. & Carlos, 9-1-1: Lone Star
We’ll get to see T.K. (Ronen Rubinstein) and Carlos (Rafael Silva) as newlyweds in Season 5! Tarlos got married in the Season 4 finale, but the two-hour event also featured each groom losing a member of his family (for Carlos, his father and T.K., his uncle). How will the couple navigate that grief together moving forward, especially with Carlos determined to find his dad’s murderer? And what about the happier things, like what we’ll see from them as a couple and figuring out married life?
Brett & Casey, Chicago Fire
Technically, Brett (Kara Killmer) and Casey (Jesse Spencer) are still broken up and living in different states, but after she found out she’ll (eventually) be able to adopt the baby with whom she connected on a call, he proposed! The Season 11 finale ended before she gave her answer, so we’ll be eagerly awaiting that yes or no.
Burgess & Ruzek, Chicago P.D.
One of the most “it’s complicated” couples on TV, every time it seems that Burgess (Marina Squerciati) and Ruzek (Patrick John Flueger) are finally going to work it out and actually have the chance to be together and happy, something gets in their way. Their latest obstacle: Season 10 ended with Ruzek’s status unclear after he was rushed to surgery for a gunshot wound. If he lives, might they take a major step after reuniting just a few episodes before the finale?
Sharon & Vince, Fire Country
The firefighting spouses were left in a rocky place at the end of the drama’s first season, at odds over their son’s situation: Sharon (Diane Farr) had given up on him, while Vince (Billy Burke) wanted to do everything possible to help, even as Bode (Max Thieriot) went back to prison after lying about doing drugs. “Every scene we have to earn it, the way you see new couples earning it,” Farr told TV Insider. “We try to put that in every scene to make sure we choose each other. The end of the season is ‘I’m not choosing this version of you.’ They have to figure out if they will or they won’t.”
Palmer & Knight, NCIS
Now that the two have said “I love you” — Palmer (Brian Dietzen) first, accidentally on the way out of the office, then Knight (Katrina Law) later in front of the team — we can’t help but wonder if Season 21 might feature them taking another major step in their relationship, such as moving in together. The series hasn’t ignored the fact that Palmer has a daughter and lost his wife, which would likely come up if so.
Kate & Lucy, NCIS: Hawai'i
In Season 1, things were rocky (to put it mildly) for Lucy (Yasmine Al-Bustami) and Kate (Tori Anderson). But in Season 2, they were happy (and moved in together!), and we can’t wait to see more of that. We doubt it will be all smooth sailing — it rarely can be on TV — but we have a feeling there are more good times than bad ahead for Kacy.
