In the process of creating a purely cinematic comedy Chaplin embarked on and completed in his months with Mutual, The Fireman in some ways represents a step backward before his giant leap forward. By no means lacking gags or exhilarating twists, The Fireman is notable for its vibrant satire, but is devoid of any social criticism. In that respect it has often been compared to the Essanay comedies of the era: “It’s a masterpiece of the genre”, wrote Jean Mitry, “a perfect burlesque dance, and though it generates nothing new in the range of human values – humor, irony – it stays within its limits and horizons, achieving an equilibrium, and is the perfect fulfillment of the first stage of Chaplin’s work, with his antics, his farce, his caricature and gestures, but somehow they are darker and more obscure than those found in the Essanay masterpieces”. Also, The Fireman reveals a certain desire to indulge and please the audience. Exactly fifty years following the release of the film, in a long interview he gave to Richard Meryman, Chaplin recalled a letter from an admirer hailing from the Midwest blaming him for becoming a slave to his fans, topping it off by saying, “The public, Mr Chaplin, likes to be slaves”. Chaplin confessed that this letter made a huge impression on him and he kept it in very much in mind in the years to come.