The first major casualty in Fire Country turns out to be a blessing in disguise for TV's number 1 show during the 2023-2024 season. CBS' firefighting procedural premiered in 2022 and quickly became a hit for the network. Being Max Thieriot's TV comeback after departing SEAL, there is much fanfare on the show, despite criticisms about how accurate Fire Country is. Beyond its main premise, which is seeing the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection aka Cal Fire respond to various fire threats in their area, the main draw of the show lies in its characters.
Admittedly, Fire Country isn't exactly a critical darling despite its viewership success. It ranks 19th in ratings, raking in more than 7.3 million viewers per week on average. This makes it more popular than small-screen institutions like both Law & Order season 23 and Law & Order: SVU season 25, as well as Grey's Anatomy season 21. Despite issues with its storytelling, death is part of its narrative, considering its premise. With that, Fire Country seasons 1 and 2 have had some big losses, but the firefighter procedural's first major casualty happened towards the end of its debut year.
Fiona Rene's Rebecca Is The First Major Death In Fire Country
Rebecca Dies While The Team Rescues Eve
Due to the nature of their job, Cal Fire participants risk their lives every day in the name of service. So, deaths are to be expected in Fire Country. That said, the CBS police procedural has been able to get away with just a couple of major casualties in the show thus far — something that can change as the stakes of its storytelling get higher moving forward. Fire Country's first big death is Fiona Rene's Rebecca Lee, Bode Leone's fellow inmate firefighter who also served as a member of Three Rock.
The character's prominence in the North California-set Fire Country was ramped up towards her death. During a joint mission with Black Creek, she is accidentally hit by a fallen tree in the abdomen during the team's efforts to rescue the injured Eve Edwards. While Bode and the rest are able to still rush her to the hospital, she eventually dies after her spleen ruptures.
Rebecca's Fire Country Death Allows Her To Move To Tracker
Tracker Cast Rene As Reenie Greene
Rebecca's death in Fire Country is tragic, but off-screen, it is a blessing in disguise for Rene. Because of this, the actor is able to become a part of Tracker's cast. Justin Hartley's newest TV series ranks the number 1 most-watched show during the 2023-2024 season, averaging almost 11 million viewers every week. In Tracker, Rene plays Reenie Greene, the lawyer ally of Hartley's "rewardist," Colter Shaw. The actor has appeared in multiple episodes during its debut year, but she is expected to be more involved in the upcoming season.
While being part of a very successful show like Fire Country is not shabby, Fiona's role as Rebecca was rather small compared to the one she now plays in Tracker. Aside from being Colter's go-to for anything related to legal matters, there's also a possibility that they eventually develop a romance down the road, which would only expand her involvement in CBS' latest procedural. Overall, both shows benefit from Rebecca's death. The incident re-established the stakes of Fire Country. Meanwhile, it leads to Tracker eventually casting Rene as Reenie.
