Every Couple On Fire Country, Ranked

"Fire Country" is ostensibly about second chances and redemption. However, over the past three seasons, it's also been about love: This firehouse has seen a surprisingly high number of romances spark up. While "Fire Country" might not be based on a true story, it definitely stirs up real emotions for its fans. In three seasons alone, we've had a tragic love story, a destined-to-be couple, and a long-established romance. There's a lot going on for viewers who like their drama spiced with some romance, but which couple is the best? It's about time to rank these couples in order of how enjoyable they are to watch and how compatible they are romantically.

For this list, we're covering all the couples that have shared romantic screen time together across more than one episode. This means that, as of this writing, Bode Leone (Max Thieriot) and Audrey James (Leven Rambin) don't have the bona fides to earn a berth. You also won't see anything about Gabriela Perez's (Stephanie Arcila) parents, Eve Edwards' (Jules Latimer) reunion with her ex-girlfriend, or anything involving Bode's late sister Riley Leone (Jade Pettyjohn) — Riley's romance with Jake Crawford (Jordan Calloway) only takes place in three brief Season 1 flashbacks, so there's just not enough to judge them on.

So, without further delay, here are all of the couples in "Fire Country," ranked from worst to best.

Poor Diego Moreno (Rafael de la Fuente). He genuinely comes across as a nice guy during Season 2 and Season 3, when he finds himself faced with the unenviable task of squiring Gabriela after her break-up with Jake and her explosive attraction to Bode flames out thanks to Bode's rejection. The end result is a coupling that's sweet but staid. What can he do when their interrupted wedding turns into a literal disaster, followed directly by the revelation that Bode and Gabriela still care for each other and even kissed just before Gabriela walked down the aisle? To be frank, Gabriela's lucky she only has to pay for the ruined wedding and not psychological damages to her ex.

Yet, while they're together, one can see why Gabriela picked Diego and agreed to marry him. He's not as dashing or rakish as Bode, but he's kind, he's hardworking, and he's caring. However, while these are all solid traits, Gabriela is the kind of person who needs adventure in her life. Maybe in some other lifetime they would've worked out, but not in this one.

We know what you're thinking, but trust us, Gabriela and Bode deserve to be ranked this low. The show may insist that they are made for each other — that they help each other be better people, that their chemistry is undeniable — but the toxic push and pull between them has started to really annoy audiences. There's a reason why fans think they're an insufferable couple that must stay dead. Is there passion? Of course. Chemistry? Definitely. But even though they care about each other, they keep pushing each other away, leading them both to spiral into ugly and negative behavior.

In Bode's case, it's always been about his belief that Gabriela deserves better than him, which is why he rejects her in Season 1 after she leaves Jake to wait for Bode's release. Gabriela gets together with Diego in Season 2, only to give up the promise of a nice life with him to be with Bode at the start of Season 3. But they barely manage to do more than finally consummate their passion before Bode decides he wants more than to just hook up with Gabriela, a notion she roundly rejects. 

We know exactly what the writers and producers of "Fire Country" are trying to do — set them up as star-crossed lovers on the long road to true love. But the more they interact with other people, the clearer it becomes that Gabriela and Bode are not likely to make it work in the long run. Perhaps "Fire Country" will prove us wrong, but until then, we can't rank these two any higher on the list.

Jake and Gabriela have one thing that Bode and Gabriela don't — the ability to be honest with one another, and to help each other out when things go sideways. That wasn't enough to ensure that their relationship would last for more than a season, but it was good while it lasted, with Jake being a much more reasonable alternative to Bode's dramatics. Unfortunately for Jake, he's always been in Bode's shadow, and after what happened with Riley, he's always been in Bode's personal doghouse.

Dating Gabriela — whom Bode develops a thing for throughout Season 1 — spells trouble for Jake's friendship with Bode. The two men rival one another over Gabriela, who ultimately chooses Bode. It's a choice that doesn't really pan out for her (and which leads to Jake and Gabriela hooking up in the back of Jake's car during a drunken evening when they're both licking their wounds under a torrent of personal problems). Maybe this is a sign that "Fire Country" Season 3 is fumbling the show's biggest storylines, with the writers pretty much doing everything we didn't want them to. Or, it might be a sign Jake and Gabriela should give each other one more chance.

Cookie (Katrina Reynolds) and Freddy Mills (W. Tré Davis) have a rock-solid relationship that makes them a standout among their "Fire Country" associates. Freddy's case seemed hopeless when he was stuck in Three Rock (a conservation camp for prisoners instated in the Cal Fire program), but he didn't let his time there embitter him. Cookie had to cope with having a baby while Freddy was in Three Rock, and they could do nothing but meet up on visitation days and talk longingly on the phone. The viewer feels the impact of this sadness the way they don't with many other romances portrayed on this show.

Freddy became a true hero in Three Rock's firefighting program, but he got little to no credit for his hard work. That is, until Bode showed up to lend him a helping hand. They became fast friends, and Freddy helped out Bode numerous times in the field. Bode saw Freddy's deep love for his wife and hoped to help Freddy get out of Three Rock on parole. It's Bode who helps deliver Freddy and Cookie's son, and Bode whose testimony gets Freddy out. But, all the while, Cookie and Freddy's love and devotion perfumes the entire affair in a perfectly sweet way. Their arc may have lasted just a couple of episodes, but it was one of the show's warmest and most inviting love stories. While Season 3 of "Fire Country" has sidelined Freddy, preferring to leave him in California with Cookie and his son, that's a well-earned ending for him and his growing young family.

Cara Maisonette (Sabina Gadecki) and Jake's bittersweet romance provided Jake with what is undoubtedly his best pairing yet. While the coupling up of the nurse and firefighter may have carried a note of pair-the-spares to it, they managed to carve out their own romantic legacy in the "Fire Country" universe, coming together to form a relationship that still haunts Jake to this day.

They started out in an awkward place, since Cara and Bode dated while they were younger and Jake's relationship with Gabi had blown up only a few episodes before they met. But Cara and Jake end up living a real love story over the course of Season 2, making the audience root for them as they face danger from disasters both personal and professional. Sadly, Cara meets an untimely end during a fire tornado when a pole goes straight through her chest, impaling her. Cara dies telling Jake that she loves him. The ending to this memorably tragic romance explains why Jake has never really gotten over Cara.

Yes, it might be somewhat predictable, but we had to give the crown to this established romance, which has stood the tests of their impossible children, a cancer battle, and even a huge job switch. Sharon (Diane Farr) and Vince Leone (Billy Burke) have been through so much together and they're still standing tall. And, not only that, they're still  as affectionate with one another as they were when they got together. That's more than can be said for many couples on this show. There's a reason why fans can't get over Sharon and Vince's magnetic chemistry.

Sharon and Vince are one of the best married couples in prime time, period, making them the easy top pick for this list. Actually caring about and listening to one another as they cope with difficult lives, they're easy to root for and easy to like. Sure, Sharon can be nosy, and Vince can be stubborn. And they both make way too many excuses for Bode. But when they're in a scene together, you can feel the love and history, whether they're dealing with Sharon's cancer or their daughter's death. Sharon has supported Vince's musical desires, while he's supported her in the field. As a team, they're unbeatable. They are truly the cream of the crop when it comes to "Fire Country" couples.