“What am I going to watch now?” devastated fans asked when CBS announced the 14th season of Blue Bloods would be its last. The saga of the beloved Reagan cop clan ends with a two-part season: the first part now and, after producers fought for additional episodes, more next fall.
Longtime showrunner Kevin Wade promises the final season will not disappoint, bringing viewers the show’s trademark character-driven stories. “The jeopardy has never been ‘will the kidnapper get caught before he kills the victims’ but whether two or more Reagans get into a conflict they can’t walk back,” Wade says. “That’s what resonates.”
Jeopardy opens the season when Sgt. Jamie Reagan (Will Estes) goes undercover in a human trafficking ring. “We played with a lot of looks and ended up with something very not cop and not Jamie,” says Estes, who was told by Wade “to put down my razor. I showed up with—I wouldn’t call it a beard,” he continues, laughing, “but there was hair on my face.”
Blue’s anchor, police commissioner Frank Reagan, is against his youngest son’s dangerous mission. But, Tom Selleck says, “he realizes he’s meddling where he shouldn’t. Frank always wrestles responsibility as a commissioner with his responsibility as a parent.”
In the two-parter on February 23, the disguised Jamie encounters his nephew, gung-ho detective Joe Hill (Will Hochman), on his own secret assignment involving the traffickers. “Jamie loves Joe, but he does business a bit different than Jamie does, and they butt heads,” Estes says.
Meanwhile, Frank has a surprising tête-à-tête with perennial antagonist Mayor Peter Chase (Dylan Walsh). Though he and the more liberal politician still differ on policy—this time migrants’ right to shelter in New York—“they also realize they are both examples of ‘It’s lonely at the top,’” Wade reveals. “It’s an interesting epiphany.” The mayor’s mention of retirement sends Frank on an interior journey, considering whether the job is all that defines him.
Detective Danny Reagan (Donnie Wahlberg) works a tough case involving ex-partner Darryl Reid (Malik Yoba), a loyal friend. After Reid’s daughter is arrested for the murder of her abusive husband, Darryl confesses to the killing. The usually über-confident detective isn’t sure that’s true, and he faces a moral dilemma.
A number of familiar faces pop up too. Nicky (Sami Gayle) is in from San Francisco to see her mom, ADA Bureau Chief Erin Reagan (Bridget Moynahan), and Jackie Curatola (Jennifer Esposito), another of Danny’s old partners, now a small-town police chief, is back to help him track down elusive killer psychologist Leonard Walker (Mather Zickel). In a particularly touching segment, Frank mourns the passing of his dear friend and long-ago partner Lenny Ross (Treat Williams), who disclosed his terminal cancer in last season’s emotional “Irish Secrets” episode. Tragically, Williams died in a motorcycle crash last June.
There’s already speculation from fans and media, of course, on what might happen. Will Erin officially run for DA? Will she remarry her former husband and sometime lover Jack Boyle (Peter Hermann)? Will widower Danny find another love? And will Jamie and his wife, fellow cop Eddie (Vanessa Ray), have baby news? “We’re leaving everything open to what would be pleasantly surprising,” Wade says coyly. After checking out the classic finales—Seinfeld, The Sopranos, M*A*S*H, The Mary Tyler Moore Show—he and fellow writer-producer Siobhan Byrne-O’Connor hope to have their storyline by early April.
Will it satisfy? Estes is optimistic. “There have been times we tried to honor what the fans most want. Ring the bell loud enough, and there’s a good chance they’ll get what they want. We all want to go out with a bang.”