Wallace Boden Jr. is the First Deputy Fire Commissioner of the Chicago Fire Department and was one of the main characters of Chicago Fire. He is portrayed by English actor Eamonn Walker.
Biography
Wallace Boden was the the Battalion Chief of Firehouse 51 And Deputy District Chief of District 4. He has served in the fire department for over 30 years, working alongside Benny Severide and the late Henry Mills, fathers of Kelly Severide and Peter Mills respectively.
As stated in Haunted House, he was a Firefighter/EMT Candidate at Firehouse 22, but it is unknown if he rose to Captain at that Firehouse or got transferred to another station then back again for his promotion as Captain. As he mentions in A Closer Eye, that before he became Battalion Chief of Firehouse 51 and the 25th Battalion, he was a Captain at Firehouse 22.
At some point in his life, he married a woman named Shonda and he served as a father figure to her son Jimmy who he loved like his own son and never referred to him as a stepson. After the marriage fell through, Wallace maintained contact with Jimmy.
He went on to marry another woman but that marriage fell through as well.
Personality
Boden is extremely loyal to the firehouse and the 51 family. At times when Firehouse 51 has come under scrutiny, Boden has fought to protect its integrity. He takes great pride in the firehouse and pushes his men to be their best with a firm but fair attitude. While Boden can come across as severe, he is shown to be open to both give and take advice from his men, especially his two lieutenants, Matt Casey and Kelly Severide, who view him as a mentor and fatherly figure.
History
Season 1
Boden got close to Ernie, a teenager he saw several times on garbage fire interventions. Thinking the boy may be responsible of those fires, he invited him to the firehouse to investigate with Herrmann's help. It turned up that Ernie was under his uncle Ray's influence and finally died in a fire set by Ray. His death devastated Boden, so much that he beat up Ernie's uncle before the cops stop him. Afterwards, he is reprimanded for his actions by his superiors but stops them mid-way and tells them he's going on furlough. To ease his nerves, he decides to visit his former stepson, Jimmy. After a tense talk with his ex-wife, he tells her that he raised her son since he was three and love him as if he was his own and he needs to see him. Soon Jimmy comes down the stairs in spots Wallace before they share a hug. (Under the Knife, Warm and Dead)
Season 2
In A Power Move, when facing a health scare, he visits Gail McLeod and hands his official resignation to a surprised McLeod, having accepted her offer because he loves the house and will do anything to save it.
In Tonight's the Night, the house brings in several people whose homes lost power because of a blackout caused by a drunk driver. Boden accidentally catches Otis with Katie Nolan and walks out uncomfortable. When Otis goes to apologize, he finds Boden kissing Donna, who came to Firehouse 51 to help out and becomes disturbed out by it.
After a date out with her friends, Boden ended things as he believes he is damaged goods.
A few weeks later, he visits her at her school, but she cannot talk as she has a meeting to attend. Later that day, she comes to Firehouse 51 and reveals to Wallace that she is pregnant with his child. Wallace then proposes to Donna, stating that marriage would support her and the baby financially.
Season 3
Wallace and Donna have their wedding ceremony in front of Firehouse 51, with Herrmann as the best man and Mills as the clergyman.
In Santa Bites, he and Donna butt heads on how they will name their baby. Donna wishes to hyphenate their last names, but Wallace refuses, citing tradition. Their argument is interrupted when Donna proceeds to go into labor in the middle of the firehouse and Wallace yells for help, only to discover that Ambulance 61 is out on a call. Newhouse and Boden assist Donna to the Squad 3 truck and they rush to the hospital, lights and sirens blaring, until they hit traffic. Stopped in their tracks, Donna gives birth to their son, Terrance Boden, in the back of the truck. Boden excitedly tells his wife of they are now a family. They eventually arrive at the hospital and as they are going inside, Donna tells Boden they will not hyphenate the name before doctors notice that the baby is turning blue and rush him into the hospital. Terrance in placed on ECMO to help his lungs function as Donna screams after him.
During Let Him Die, Boden calls his father after the birth of Terrance Boden. Wallace Sr. inquires if Boden and his family will make it on the trip, once Terrance was okay to travel but Boden is not sure. After some days, Boden is elated to hear his son is alright and happily holds him before bringing him to Donna. Boden is then surprised when his father arrives at the hospital, where he finds the family bonding. Boden excitedly lets him join the moment, as his son is shocked to see him after so long.
During Three Bells, Wallace Sr. comes to stay at his son's house, where he shows his son how to take care of Terrance while very excited to finally hold him. Wallace Sr. also refuses to tell his son of how long he is in town. At the end, he reveals he has Stage 4 cancer and is dying.
In Call It Paradise, Boden struggles to make peace with his father when Wallace Sr. expresses a waning desire to fight his cancer, despite Boden's offer to provide information on an experimental drug. Wallace Sr. turns him down - he would rather live than die. So, with Herrmann's help, he resurrects the semi-annual Winter Luau at Molly's. The party's a huge success, and afterwards Boden and his dad enjoy a drink in private, happy to share each other's company. But later, after Boden puts Terrance to bed, he returns to the living room and discovers his father in the chair, unresponsive - deceased with a family photo album in his hands.
Season 4
Boden invited Capt. Dallas Patterson to command Squad 3 after Kelly Severide was demoted from lieutenant to firefighter. Boden and Patterson were later seen playing poker with Sgt. Whitaker of Chicago P.D.
Boden faced legal troubles after a neighbor, Serena Holmes, accused him of home invasion and assault. Holmes had moved into the apartment next to Boden and Donna as a temporary Airbnb tenant and requested Boden's help after locking herself out of the apartment and claiming that she had left the stove on. Boden forced entry into the apartment at her request, only to find the stove off and Holmes acting seductively. She offered him a glass of wine, which he declined before leaving.
Later, a detective with Chicago P.D. confronts Boden at home and says that Holmes claimed that Boden broke into her apartment and assaulted her with a wine bottle. The detective produces photographs that show an obviously battered Holmes. Knowing that he did not commit the crime, Boden enlists the help of Firehouse 51 to uncover the truth.
Boden first suspects that Deputy District Chief Ray Riddle, who had been attempting to remove Boden from his post, may have put Holmes up to the job of sullying Boden's reputation. But with the help of Kelly Severide's ex-girlfriend, attorney Jamie Killian, it is revealed that arsonist Roger Maddox - who was set to go to trial for his crimes, and who was being represented by Killian - had hired Holmes to accuse Boden to discredit him. It is also revealed that Maddox set out to discredit members of the department's Office of Fire Investigation (OFI), including captains Greg Duffy and Suzie Wilder, as well as Dawson who were to testify against Maddox at the trial. After the scheme is uncovered, Maddox is charged for his crimes and is arrested.
Season 5
During I Held Her Hand he watches Herrmann keep watch over the house before he sees Donna bring Terrance to the fire house so that he could say good night to his father. Wallace thanks her for this and tells her he will see them at home. When he comes home, Donna tells Wallace someone has been sitting outside their house in a car all day. Wallace angrily marches towards the car to find that it is his stepson, James, whom he introduces to his wife.
In That Day, he and James have breakfast with one of his friends and the latter tells Wallace it might be time to move up.
Boden reconnects with James who later expresses interest in moving in with Donna and Wallace. Wallace tries to figure out why and learns that someone hit his son so he went to beat up James' mother's boyfriend at his work place. It results in him being suspended for a shift. At the end, Shaunda visits to tell him that she had no idea about the abuse and James goes to live with her at his grandmother's house. (Lift Each Other)
Season 6
Season 7
Season 8
Season 9
During Don't Hang Up, Wallace's wife teaches an online class and he helps her get accommodated. Boden is surprised when Donna uses the standing desk Kylie brought in, something he disliked. He is later brought to speed on a girl being held hostage by gangsters and how she called Stella for help. After Stella gets a hint on the identity of the girl, Boden and Severide stop by the address of the girl and it is confirmed that the girl is real when her mother voices how she and her son were taken because of the brother's activities. She reveals the gang who took them might be near in an abandoned house somewhere on the block. Soon Boden and Kelly start canvassing the nearby houses to locate the Ward siblings before Stella calls and instructs them to turn on the sirens so that way, she could tell whether they were close because Aliyah left the phone on. After a while, the sirens are heard and Stella tells them that they just passed the house. Turning around and reaching the house, Boden tells the gangsters that there is a gas leak that will cause the house to explode but he is seemingly not believed. With no alternative, the two wonder on what to do now before the gangsters come outside paranoid that this may be true. Seeing their fear, Boden instructs them to run and begins counting down how long they have until the explosion. Not wanting to take chances, the gang run off and the Ward siblings come out and are rescued. Driving far from the house, Kelly calls Stella and reveals this news, to her relief.
In No Survivors, Boden considers the post of Deputy District Chief. This is a topic / promotion that happened at the end of Season 6. But, this time it might just happen. This potential promotion would leave the position of Battalion Chief of the 25th Battalion open.
Season 10
In Mayday, Wallace Boden has been promoted to Deputy District Chief of District 4. In Two Hundred, the District office has now been moved to Firehouse 51. Previously, it was Firehouse 82 before it closed, causing Firehouse 90 taking its place. However, that firehouse ended up being closed as well. However, Kylie noticed Firehouse 51 was now in the new center of the district map. With this new discovery, she researches the department regulations and guidelines and finds out that the district office has to be the centermost firehouse in the district, in order for the District Chief to get around to each firehouse efficiently. She concludes that geographically, Firehouse 51 is the centermost firehouse in the district. Boden happily returns to Firehouse 51 by the end of the episode.
Season 11
Season 12
In The Little Things, Boden's former stepson reaches out to him asking for his help to get his mother out of jail. In All the Dark Chief Boden looks into Paramedic Chief Robinson after Severide and Violet both receive complaints from the new paramedic. In Never Say Goodbye Boden makes a decision that impacts the race for 1st Deputy Fire Commissioner.
Relationships
Romantic
He mentions he was married twice before Donna. One of his ex-wives is named Shonda, with whom he had a stepson, James, who appeared in season 1 and later in season 5 who he doesn't see much. Shaunda owns a pancake and waffle restaurant on the south side of Chicago that Wallace and his crew often visit.
Donna Robbins
In season 2, while intervening on a fire in a building he met one of the residents, Donna Robbins, an elementary school teacher. Being attracted to each other, they started dating until Boden broke off, being afraid of screwing up the relationship like he always does. After a while, he met Donna again and learned that she's pregnant with his child. Soon after, he proposed to Donna, arguing that it would be better for the child since he would be able to support them financially. She turned him down, not convinced by his non-romantic point of view. Confused, Boden goes to Mills for some explanation. He understood that he didn't speak about his feelings clearly. Deciding to redeem himself and, in full uniform, he proposed to Donna (at her job) again, successfully this time. He married her soon after, the same day as her parents years ago. Herrmann was his best man and organized the wedding ceremony in front of firehouse 51 with Mills as clergyman. Donna is having some difficulties with her pregnancy, having a risk of fatal blood loss. At first, she refused to know the baby's gender unlike Boden who'd have liked to know. She revealed to him later that they are expecting a boy. Donna later gave birth to a boy named Terrance Boden.
Ingrid Mills
He had an affair with Ingrid Mills, Peter Mills' mother, when she and her husband were separated. As soon as he realized they had still feelings for each other, he stepped back. Mills was very upset when he learned about the affair and remained angry at Boden for a long time.
Friends
Benny Severide
He and Benny were good friends but they reached a conflict, due to their opposite views on the heroic death of Henry Mills. Benny Severide argued that Mills' death was due to his attempt to impress Boden who was having an affair with his wife.
However, Benny still cared for Boden and they were able to reconcile. When Benny died, Boden paid respects at his funeral. So even with their conflict Boden still paid respects.
Family
Wallace Boden, Sr.
Boden's father.
Boden was named after his father and they appear to have a good relationship, despite not always seeing eye to eye.
When his father died, Boden was very upset but took comfort that he died happy.
Terrance Boden
Boden's son.
When he learned he was going to be a father, Boden was shocked but immediately wanted to be apart of the child's life. He married Donna so that their child would have a family.
After Terrance was born, Boden lovingly held him. And subsequent seasons he is showing holding Terrence lovingly spending as much time as he can with his son.
Jimmy
Jimmy is Boden's former stepson from his previous marriage to Shaunda.
Boden raised him from when he was three and never addressed him as stepson, while seeing him as his own son. Even after the divorce from Shaunda and fathering his own child, he continues to love James who in turn sees him as his father figure.
In Season 5, Wallace tries reaching out to James by calling and soon texts. James later surprise visits Wallace at his home, by sitting in a car all day. He later expresses interest in moving in with Donna, Wallace, and Terrence. Wallace tries to figure out why and learns that someone hit his son so he went to beat up James' mother's boyfriend at his work place. It results in him being suspended for a shift. At the end, Wallace is sad when James decides to leave but respects his decision to look out for his mother. (Lift Each Other)
Abilities
- Skilled Fighter: As a former Navy SEAL, Boden is a skilled fighter. He maintains his skills through boxing and other training. He was able to easily take down Ernie’s uncle single-handedly. He even managed to put a beatdown on Shonda's ex-boyfriend, Todd, after learning of the abuse he was giving James.
Memorable Quotes
- "Leaders lead from the front."
- (About Jimmy) ”I raised him from the time he was three. Never use the word “stepson” not once.
- (To Mills): "A crow wanted to be a peacock. So he put on colored feathers, went over to the peacock yard. But the peacocks, they plucked them all away. So the crow, he tried to get back with the crows. They wanted nothing to do with him."
- (To McLeod and other department officials): "There isn't a single man I've served with who hasn't been brought to his knees by what he's seen on the job."
- “I’d rather die standing than live on my knees.” Season 4, Episode 6
- (Often to the members of Firehouse 51)): “Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go!”
- (To Anderson in Trading in Scuttlebutt): "How are you going to like it when I describe in detail, and on record, how firefighters nearly died...due to your negligence?"
Notes and Trivia
- Former Navy SEAL - "SEAL Trident" appears on his wall in a few episodes.
- He appeared in the firefighter calendar as "September 1990".
- He went to New York the day after 9/11 to help.
- As a child, his father often made him go to concerts to see a blues singer.
- He, Herrmann and Mouch are the three veterans at Firehouse 51.
- He, Hermann, Cruz and Casey are the only ones to have children.
- He likes oxtail.
- Despite his promotion to Deputy District Chief, Boden continues to drive himself in the Deputy District Chief 2-2-6 car, which would be against CFD protocol in real life.
Gallery
Appearances
| Season 12 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barely Gone | Call Me McHolland | Trapped | The Little Things | On the Hook |
| Port in the Storm | Red Flag | All the Dark | Something About Her | The Wrong Guy |
| Inside Man | Under Pressure | Never Say Goodbye | ||
Crossover Appearances
Chicago Med
- S2E14 Cold Front
- S4E7 The Poison Inside Us
- S4E15 We Hold These Truths
- S5E4 Infection, Part II
Chicago PD
- S1E12 8:30 PM
- S2E13 A Little Devil Complex
- S2E20 The Number of Rats
- S3E6 You Never Know Who's Who
- S3E7 A Dead Kid, a Notebook, and a Lot of Maybes
- S3E14 The Song of Gregory Williams Yates
- S3E16 The Cases That Need to be Solved
- S4E8 A Shot Heard Round The World
- S4E16 Emotional Proximity
- S5E16 Profiles
- S6E2 Endings
- S6E15 Good Men
- S7E4 Infection, Part III
- S7E15 Burden of Truth
Chicago Justice
- S1E13 Tycoon
References
- ↑ 20 years prior to Pilot, he was a Captain at Firehouse 22
- ↑ https://chicagofire.fandom.com/wiki/DDC_2-2-6