Dinner, family style — that’s the preference for the Reagan family, which has been inviting viewers to pull up a chair during each episode of the hit crime drama “Blue Bloods.” Despite hesitancy around the show’s first dinner scene, these moments have become hallmarks of the series that follows Frank Reagan (Tom Selleck) and his children Erin (Bridget Moynahan), Jamie (Will Estes), and Danny (Donnie Wahlberg) as each work different jobs in law enforcement in New York City. No matter how big the case gets, they always make it home for that all-important Sunday meal, and there is one dinner scene that stands out from the rest in Season 7.
Season 7, Episode 9, “Confessions” finds Jamie in county lockup following a wedding brawl. Meanwhile, Danny and his partner Maria Baez (Marisa Ramirez) are trying to solve the murder of a socialite. This, as Frank works a case that puts his faith into question. By Sunday, the Reagans are trading prison stories around the table. The conversation starts with Nicky (Sami Gayle), who believes that she is the only Reagan who has spent time behind bars up to this point. Danny corrects her and confesses to spending three hours in jail after Frank caught him skipping school and showed him some tough love. But that’s not the only secret being spilled at the table, and it’s this secret-swapping that also sheds new light on these characters.
How does this dinner scene add more dimensions to the Reagans?
Family meals are a time to learn about each other, which is why this story-sharing moment during “Blue Bloods,” Season 7, Episode 9, “Confessions” makes such an impact. As Will Estes explained to KCAL News, “It’s where so many interpersonal relationships sort of play out. A lot of times, it’s the only scene in the whole episode where we are interacting with all the other actors, especially all at once,” he said.
That interpersonal connection is on full display as each character offers up their own jail story, ultimately sharing pieces of their younger years. For Henry Reagan (Len Cariou), he did time for an attempt to help friends who were picketing to unionize. For the by-the-book Erin, her jail time came after a wild night in Asbury Park. Frank also forcibly admits to his own run-in with the law following a bar fight during his Marine days. All in all, it’s a moment filled with laughs and heart.
The scene touches on what happened earlier in the episode, but Tom Selleck pointed out that these dinner scenes are not meant to completely rehash storylines. He told CBS This Morning, “They’re not a recap of what the show has transpired in, because it’s usually in the third act, but … it provides the audience with a secret. They know what Will’s done and what Bridget’s [Moynahan] done during the show, or I’ve done and what we’ve been going through,” he said, noting that it gives the audience an idea of what they can expect to transpire at the dinner table.
The family dinner scenes on “Blue Bloods” are important to the show. These moments allow the Reagan family to escape the chaos associated with their law enforcement duties to laugh, argue, and engage in riveting debates. Conversations about their professional lives come up from time to time as well, but the interpersonal dynamics of the family environment provide a range of opinions and perspectives that they just don’t get at work.
Season 13 has some memorable dinner scenes, but Episode 16, “The Naked Truth,” contains the standout of the bunch. The routine dinner night sees Frank (Tom Selleck) discuss a problem he’s facing in the office; basically, a heroic police officer has a side gig selling risqué photos online, and he doesn’t know whether he should fire her. However, his family reminds him that times have changed, and most people are fine with nudity in modern times.
The conversation gives Frank some food for thought, which he takes on board during his decision-making process. The scene centers around an interesting discussion about the topic at hand, and it provides some much-needed respite in a “Blue Bloods” episode that contains plenty of serious drama.
Grandpa tells his naked truth
Frank’s predicament troubles him throughout “The Naked Truth” as he doesn’t want to lose an exceptional officer, but he’s also protective of the force’s reputation. After all, the institution has a squeaky clean image to upkeep, and he fears that this situation will attract negative press. However, Frank’s family tells him that people have been fine with nudity since the dawn of the internet, and searching for it has become so common that no one cares.
During the conversation, the family patriarch, Henry (Len Cariou), tells Frank that he used to visit nude beaches with his late wife and he doesn’t regret a single moment of it. The revelation that Henry has dabbled in hedonism makes his family laugh, but it seems to go a long way in changing Frank’s mind about firing his employee.
