the 9-1-1 season 8 finale does end on a hopeful note, which neatly sets up the future of the show by pointing towards a new leader of the 118, there's still the question of how Bobby's absence will linger and impact those he left behind.

It's a very clear-cut aftermath because of how 9-1-1 tidily defined Bobby's core relationships. Athena (Angela Bassett) is his great love, and the only serious romantic interest the show presented. Buck (Oliver Stark) is like a son to him, and the last member of the 118 he speaks to before his death. However, a decision from very early on in the procedural's run, involving Abby (Connie Britton), would have entirely shifted one of the most moving relationships in the entire series. Athena and Bobby could have recovered, ultimately, but Buck and Bobby might not have.

Bobby Was Originally Going To Be Paired With Abby In 9-1-1

There Was Going To Be A Love Triangle

In a recent video interview with TV Insider, Stark recalled how the pivotal first season of 9-1-1 could have gone very differently. Along with his co-star Aisha Hinds, who plays Henrietta Wilson, Stark shared that the first-responder drama could have included a love triangle between Bobby, Abby, and Buck. As the actor tells it, in the quote below, the love triangle would have started when Abby and Bobby were both visiting Buck in the hospital and kicked off from there.

Alright, this is going to be a big throwback. Do you in season 1 of the show, I was in a hospital bed because 9-1-1? Abby was at my bedside. And, R.I.P., Bobby Nash walks in. And the original plan was that there was going to be a little love triangle there. My strong feelings for that were, I being at the time like, “No, what do you mean? No, that’s Buck and Abby. You can’t.” I was really, like it was my own relationship, against it. So, I’m glad it didn’t work out. I’m glad we never went down that road. Throw that one in the fire.

Stark is candid as he recalls his objections to the storyline, reflecting to Hinds that he felt protective over the Buck and Abby relationship. That brief courtship was undoubtedly crucial, helping to define Buck in a lot of ways that are still evident seven seasons later, as far as his impulsiveness goes and his tendency to rush in. Even though Stark doesn't talk about why the 9-1-1 love triangle was scrapped, it might have something to do with how it would have altered some of the show's most foundational relationships.

Bobby & Buck Both Pining Over Abby Would Have Made Their Father-Son Relationship Less Likely

It Would Have Felt Different

That first season of 9-1-1 is almost unrecognizable when compared to what the show has become now. The emergencies were more ostentatiously outlandish, and the central relationships, like the one shared between Hen and Karen (Tracie Thoms), was on far less solid ground. That applies to Bobby and Buck, as well. There is an episode in season 1, "A Whole New You", in which Hen and Howard (Kenneth Choi) catch Bobby setting up an online dating profile. They all tease him a bit, good-naturedly, but Buck takes it to the point of mocking.

9-1-1 is created by Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, and Tim Minear.

The young firefighter doesn't mean any real harm by it, albeit his harsh commentary is bad enough that Howard steps in to shift the focus away from Bobby's romantic woes prior to meeting Athena. It's easy to see how variations of this scene might have been replicated over and over again if the two men were pitted against each other in a love triangle: Bobby would have mocked Buck for being brash and dumb. Buck would have countered that his boss was old and out of touch.

Even if 9-1-1 decided to go in a less comedic route than what's depicted in "A Whole New You", it's tough to see how the Buck and Bobby relationship would have evolved into the bond of mutual respect and love that blossomed. It depends on whether the love triangle would have been a one-off plot, lasting a single episode, or a longer arc. The scene that Stark references occurs in the season's sixth episode, "Heartbreaker", with four episodes to go until Abby's exit, and it could have gone either way.

The more bruising the fight would have been, in any case, the less likely that Bobby and Buck would have developed the father-son bond that the series became known for.

The more bruising the fight would have been, in any case, the less likely that Bobby and Buck would have developed the father-son bond that the series became known for. It would have been colored, at least somewhat, by the reality that there were once romantic rivals. It's not an insurmountable fix for the procedural and its writers. At best, though, it would have been a weird detour for an otherwise pitch-perfect relationship.

Buck & Bobby's Relationship In 9-1-1 Is Arguably The Show's Best Dynamic

It's Up There, At Least

Part of the reason that 9-1-1 works as well as it does is because the chemistry between the cast does a lot to lift episodes that might not otherwise land on their own. There is a reason, after all, that the relationship between Buck and Eddie (Ryan Guzman) is as beloved as it is, even though the pair seems to be locked in a question of 'will they/won't they' that intensifies and fades but never clarifies.

What a lot of the best 9-1-1 pairs have is the established relationship aspect or some built-in history that gives the bond some of its emotional heft, as is the case with Eddie and his son Christopher (Gavin McHugh). What is special about Buck and Bobby is that viewers had the chance to witness, from one installment to the next, how the protective relationship between the 118 leader and the former rookie solidified.

Bobby would often push back against Buck, in ways that he would vehemently disagree with, because he knew what was best for the young man. Buck, in turn, would reveal in quieter ways that Bobby was someone he looked to for guidance and was absolutely terrified of losing. It works because the show never feels the need to linger on it or call it out too explicitly. Viewers understand that it's there, appreciating fully what it means for both sides of the relationship. It's a bond that's strengthened by everything that's left unsaid.

It works because the show never feels the need to linger on it or call it out too explicitly. Viewers understand that it's there, appreciating fully what it means for both sides of the relationship. It's a bond that's strengthened by everything that's left unsaid.

It's what makes Bobby's last scene with Buck so devastating. There isn't time for Bobby to say everything he wishes he could. Bobby, for his part, is probably too stunned to come up with anything too eloquent. But in a sense, there's not all that much that they need to say. Because the relationship had been built up so well, with a throughline running from their very first to their last goodbye, it lands exactly as it should for fans that have been watching 9-1-1 since the very beginning.