'9-1-1: Lone Star': Carlos and Iris Twist Rewrite History in the Best Way

What are Carlos and Iris?

Editor's Note: The following contains spoilers for Season 4 Episode 1 of 9-1-1: Lone Star.

Fox's 9-1-1: Lone Star, a spin-off of the hit series 9-1-1, follows Owen (Rob Lowe) and TK Strand (Ronan Rubinstein) Packing up stories about life in New York City with new beginnings in Austin, Texas. After a call with nearly all 126 firefighters killed - except for Judd (Jim Parrack), who is haunted by his own lone survivor at the start of the series - Owen is called in, using his rich He is eager to build a new, great team based on his experience, which he is eager to do after TK relapses and nearly kills himself from an overdose. In subsequent episodes, the Strands join forces with Judd and his wife and dispatcher, Grace (Sierra McClain), Marion (Natacha Karam), at 126. ), Paul (Brian Michael Smith), Tommy (Gina Torres), Nancy (Brianna Baker), Mateo (Julian Works) and TK's boyfriend and resident police officer Carlos (Rafael Silva) .

As any longtime fan knows, the writers responsible for the 9-1-1 universe love a good twist. In the premiere of the series' fourth season, that's exactly what they've thrown at us again. But, this time, it rewrites history by changing the setting of the first season, somehow creating a Even more beautiful stories than the writers already had. With Carlos and TK planning to be happily married in the upcoming new season, Carlos is finally forced to confront his past and why he's been hesitant to make concrete plans for his wedding. As it turned out, Carlos was married. He's been around for years, but he's never mentioned it. When he breaks this information to TK, he reveals that he is married to Iris Black (Lyndsy Fonseca), who was his best friend for many years before disappearing. It's Carlos' attempt to please his parents, himself and a world that doesn't accept him as gay. In many ways, this is shocking information indeed.

Who Is Iris Blake on ‘9-1-1: Lone Star’?

As you may recall, Iris is the older sister of Michelle Blake (Liv Tyler), who co-starred on the series in season one as 126's EMS captain. When we meet Michelle, she is desperate to find out what happened to her sister Iris, who has been missing for years. Michelle is convinced Iris' boyfriend Dustin (Jon Foster) killed her, so she keeps harassing him, accusing him because she Plead for answers. In the end, Michelle discovers that Iris has been living on the streets since the night she went missing due to untreated schizophrenia, and that Iris had been showing signs of the disease for a long time before that. Michelle takes her sister home and tries to get her help and healing, but she's afraid of pushing too hard because Iris might run away again, leaving Michelle in trouble. Then, after the first season, Taylor chose not to return because of the epidemic, so Torres' Tommy Vega came on board, and until now we haven't heard much about the Blake sisters.

How This New Information Changes the Past

Learning that Carlos and Iris are best friends - even married - changes the emotional connection to the events of the first season and Carlos' role in the Blakes story. Carlos is Michelle's best friend and always stands by her when she grieves for her sister. He was her shoulder to cry on, someone to comfort her in her mother's absence, as their mother refused to listen to Michele's thoughts about what might have happened to Iris. Carlos has arrested Michelle multiple times, yes, but only to make sure she doesn't More trouble if another officer were to try. Their relationship was already so deep and touching in the first season. This new information adds more history to the relationship, while also making it all the more heartwarming and heartbreaking.

Carlos and Michelle had been in each other's lives for years because of Iris, and during her disappearance they came together and became closer. Carlos isn't just Michele's friend when he's looking for answers about Iris, because he also has a personal interest in the story, since she's his best friend (and wife, in theory). All the while, Carlos has been dealing with his feelings about the situation, even though he's been more focused on Michelle than Iris is. He had to mourn his best friend, who he thought died too. But, in true Carlos fashion, he stayed strong and did exactly what Iris wanted him to do: take care of Michelle. He constantly puts his feelings aside to help Michelle, to comfort her, to try to move on with her life. He did his best to honor her memory by paying extra attention to the people she left behind.

Watching the first season with this new information will show Carlos and Michelle in a whole new light. That said, the signs are there, ultimately adding a lot to an already excellent series. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Silva said that before they began filming the show in 2019, show co-creator Tim Minear told him about Carlos and Ariel's relationship. History of Iris. While we're only learning about it, it's been happening all along on the minds of those behind the scenes. Maybe we would have found out about this sooner if Michelle had stayed on the show, but maybe it's better now, in such a fun, informative way, with a character we've known over the years to fully unmask us.

Also , this twist somehow makes Carlos a more likable and thoughtful person than he was before. Aside from knowing about their marriage and years of friendship, the reason Carlos and Iris have not yet divorced is because Carlos has excellent health insurance that helps Iris get the treatment she needs to get her back on her feet and manage her schizophrenia. This is also part of That's why Carlos put off meeting Iris and telling TK for so long, because he didn't want her to lose that vital help. However, when he visits Iris at the center where Iris seeks help, he finds out that Iris now works there, and she assures him that she now has her own health insurance. All in all, it's a successful twist that adds a lot to the characters and story. Could Iris be a recurring character in Carlos' life so we can actually see their friendship?

9-1-1: Lone Star continues on Fox Tuesday. Every episode is now streaming on Hulu.