I love the show, and I love the characters. In my opinion this is the best written show out of all of the Dick Wolf oeuvre. It does not dwell on the negative. It is not obnoxiously woke. The characters are uniformly interesting and sympathetic. The situations usually remain just this side of the plausibility scale.
However, if they make Carter and Stella a thing, and the relationship between her and Kelly fails, I will be very unhappy. I could understand them ruining the love life of Casey - twice- he was so damned noble that no woman could tempt him from a higher obligation. But Severide and Stella took a long, tough road from damaged childhoods to find each other and be together that it would just be lazy of the writers to take this too far, just for the sake of dramatic intrigue. Let Carter crush away, but keep Kelly and Stella strong and together. It is an insult to both of their characters' storyline and personalities to let someone come between them after everything they've worked through. If Kinney wants out, kill him off and let Stella grieve and find new love. Don't cheapen their story.
However, if they make Carter and Stella a thing, and the relationship between her and Kelly fails, I will be very unhappy. I could understand them ruining the love life of Casey - twice- he was so damned noble that no woman could tempt him from a higher obligation. But Severide and Stella took a long, tough road from damaged childhoods to find each other and be together that it would just be lazy of the writers to take this too far, just for the sake of dramatic intrigue. Let Carter crush away, but keep Kelly and Stella strong and together. It is an insult to both of their characters' storyline and personalities to let someone come between them after everything they've worked through. If Kinney wants out, kill him off and let Stella grieve and find new love. Don't cheapen their story.