Danny Reagan was at the center of two stories in this week’s Blue Bloods episode, including one that any parent watching could relate to. While he had his own difficult case to investigate with Det. Maria Baez, he also became frustrated with Jamie Reagan and Eddie Janko after they let his son Sean Reagan on a ride-along with Eddie and her partner Officer Rachel Witten. The ride-along turned dangerous when Sean was attacked and rushed to the hospital.
In “Protective Custody,” the whole mess started when Sean (Andrew Terraciano) asked Jamie (Will Estes) if he could join Eddie (Vanessa Ray) and Witten (Lauren Patten) on a ride-along so he could understand their experiences as female police officers for a college project. Jamie knew that idea wouldn’t fly with Danny (Donnie Wahlberg), but Sean claimed Danny approved of the idea.
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The ride-along started smoothly enough, with Witten and Eddie making jokes while Sean sat in the back of their cruiser. When they were called to respond to a crime though, they asked Sean to stay in the car. Of course, he didn’t sit long. He spotted a man who matched the description of a robber he heard about on the police radio, so he left to follow the man. Sean texted Eddie about this, but after he looked up, the man punched him in the face.
After the commercial break, Danny came storming into the hospital, furious with Eddie and Jamie. He confirmed that Sean never told him about the ride-along plans, and Danny was angry that Jamie believed his son without checking in with him. “He’s an 18-year-old male with the last name Reagan, which means he’s an idiot,” Danny told Jamie. Sean suffered a black eye and a concussion. Later, Sean told Jamie that Danny would never have let him go on this ride-along. “He listens. He can be single-minded about it,” Jamie said of his older brother. Thankfully, Sean’s text helped and they did arrest the man.
The situation led to a very tense family dinner. Danny was still angry with Jamie and Eddie for putting his son at risk and was not happy that Sean did this without his permission. “Did he need it?” Frank (Tom Selleck) asked. “He’s my son!” Danny said. “He’s 18,” Frank noted. Still, Danny insisted this was a matter of respect. Danny and Jamie continued their back-and-forth until Sean told Danny it was his idea to do the ride-along and his decision to lie to Jamie. He insisted it was his own decision. “I did what I thought you would do,” Danny told Sean.
Erin (Bridget Moynahan) later tried to calm Danny down outside the house. “You have had this scorched-earth policy that has done well for you,” she reminded him, noting that he will never let anyone in his way. “There are a lot of reasons why I do things the way I do,” Danny said. Erin understood but told him to leave that outside their father’s door.
Later, Jamie offered Danny to help him with Sean since they both have something in common. They both look up to Danny. After Joe Reagan died and Jamie decided to be a police officer, he always compared himself to Danny and felt that he came up short. Jamie suggested that Danny try to “bend” towards Sean so he doesn’t feel that same way. Danny decided to bring Sean to a restaurant for steaks and beers.
Danny’s case had parallels with his personal story, as he and Baez (Marisa Ramirez) investigated the murder of a father whose wife Maya (Vaishnavi Sharma) wanted to take the fall for their son Zahid (Neimah Djourabchi). Maya and Zahid both felt frustrated with the father after they moved to the U.S. Danny quickly figured out Zahid was the real murderer and convinced him that the best way to protect his mother wasn’t by letting her stay in jail. At one point, Danny told Zahid he was more like his father than he may have realized. Blue Bloods airs on CBS Fridays at 10 p.m. ET.ย
