ABC Is Breaking An 8-Year 9-1-1 Trend That Everyone Hates

Published Sep 14, 2026, 6:45 PM EDT

Shealyn Scott is a Senior Writer at Screen Rant. She has been writing for the site since 2024, focused on network, reality, streaming, and classic television.
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For the first time in its eight-year run, 9-1-1 will officially be making history with a highly-anticipated pairing. Though the first responder drama initially began as a Fox original series, the quirky procedural has quickly become an annual staple of ABC's fall schedule beginning with the monumental season 7. While the last few installments of 9-1-1 have been incredibly divisive— from confirming Evan "Buck" Buckley's (Oliver Stark) bisexuality to infamously killing off beloved fire captain Bobby Nash (Peter Krause)— longtime viewers are still tuning in, knowing full well that a single episode could change everything, for better and for worse.

As such, 9-1-1 season 10 will obviously be a milestone for the series, but it may mark a turning point for the beloved cast of characters as well. The season 9 finale left Athena Grant (Angela Bassett) as a newly minted LAPD detective, while Buck is fostering his biological son and Maddie Han (Jennifer Love Hewitt) is transitioning away from being the call center's manager. Consequently, the paths forward may be clear for the biggest upcoming arcs, like the volcanic opening emergency and aftermath of Eddie Diaz's (Ryan Guzman) stab wound, but one confirmed scene already has fans eagerly theorizing.

Despite being introduced in the same episode (9-1-1 season 2, episode 1), Maddie and Eddie have never had a one-on-one moment. There were a few close calls— notably when Buck misunderstood Maddie's attraction to Howard "Chimney" Han (Kenneth Choi) and assumed she was pining for his new best friend— but the two have always stayed on opposite sides of the narrative, to the chagrin of most fans.

For years, viewers have pointed out parallels between Maddie and Eddie's characters, from their nuanced struggles with mental health to their remarkably similar experiences feeling estranged from their infant children. Plus, considering they are the two most important people in Buck's life, it feels like they should naturally be close as well. Sadly, the characters have been passing ships to this point. Even when Eddie took a sabbatical to work at dispatch, Maddie coincidentally was across the country.

Thankfully, Maddie and Eddie's first scene is coming in 9-1-1 season 10. Jennifer Love Hewitt confirmed the filming on her social media, but some viewers are still hesitant to celebrate. Throughout the show's history, there have been many seemingly important scenes that never made the final cut, either implied by still images released by ABC or mentioned in passing by cast members during press junkets. Nevertheless, the news is still a major change for 9-1-1, and Maddie and Eddie teaming up is a step in the right direction.

What Maddie & Eddie's First 9-1-1 Scene Might Be

ABC

Arguably the biggest issue fans have had with the modern era of 9-1-1 is how the characters— once an impossibly close found family— have felt devastatingly disconnected. There was an entire plot in season 8 centered around how everyone forgot Henrietta "Hen" Wilson's (Aisha Hinds) birthday, Buck was ready to leave the 118 entirely after Bobby's death, and group scenes lacked the familiarity and tenderness that viewers had come to expect. 9-1-1 season 9 got the ensemble chemistry back on track, but allowing Maddie and Eddie to finally become friends would be the cherry on top of a much-needed restructuring.

That said, it remains to be seen what exactly will bring Maddie and Eddie together in their historic first scene. Of course, there's the obvious connection of Buck, and between his sobriety journey and newfound role as a father, there's plenty they could discuss as his main support systems. Furthermore, 9-1-1's potential Buck and Eddie romance is still a fandom favorite, and a "Meddie" scene could be the follow-up to season 8's "Are you [in love with Eddie]?" conversation that viewers have been clamoring for.

Whether Maddie is the spark that finally lights the way for "Buddie" to become canon or Eddie simply needs a glass of her famous vodka lemonade, 9-1-1 season 10 pairing up a fan-favorite duo is a wildly exciting development that proves the ABC drama will never stop breaking new ground.

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  Angela Bassett

  Athena Grant

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  Peter Krause

  Robert 'Bobby' Nash