Fans of Dick Wolf's NBC shows were delighted to see "Chicago Pd" return Wednesday night and "Chicago Fire" return Thursday night. Viewers know "Chicago Justice" was canceled after only one season. What they might not know is the reason "Chicago Med" hasn't returned. The show's absence has not gone unnoticed.

Where is 'Chicago Med'?

The medical drama will not return until midseason or later. NBC decided to delay the return of Season 3. The network has a good reason for the delay. It is currently airing Wolf's "Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders." After that series ends, "Chicago Med" will probably return in that time slot, but there is no guarantee that will happen.

When "Chicago Med" premiered in Season 1, it came on board in November. So, it could return in November or early next year. Fans are hoping it will be in November rather than having to wait until next year to find out what happened to Dr. Daniel Charles who was shot in the finale.

While the medical drama is still on hiatus, its characters are being used on the other two shows when there is a role for them. For instance, in the premiere of "Chicago PD," Nick Gehlfuss was featured as Dr. Will Halstead. There will be other characters who might appear on the two dramas that have returned.

Problems with the delay

One problem that might come up is that there can't be scenes on "Chicago PD" or "Chicago Fire" that involves the hospital until "Chicago Med" returns.

Another challenge for the writers might be the time element. It has been a long time since viewers saw Dr. Charles, a psychiatrist being shot outside the hospital. Therefore, the writers will have to bring viewers up to date about what has happened since then. One suggestion is there might be a lot of flashbacks to show what has happened at the hospital in the meantime.

Dick Wolf series on another network

Dick Wolf is very creative. He will know how to handle "Chicago Med" so viewers won't lose interest. In the meantime, he has an FBI series set to air with 13 episodes on CBS during the 2018-19 season. The series is about the careers and personal lives of the men and women who work at the New York office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

NBC has been Wolf's network of choice for the last 15 years with his "Chicago" and "Law & Order" franchises. However, in 2003, the 70-year-old television producer did take his "Dragnet" reboot over to ABC. All that means is when the CBS's "FBI" series airs, Wolf will have had shows on all three of the major networks. Not many others can say that.
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