PILOT REVIEW: Blue Bloods

BLUE BLOODS

Starring: Donnie Wahlberg, Bridget Moynahan, Will Estes, Len Cariou, and Tom Selleck
Created by Robin Green and Mitchell Burgess
Written by Robin Green and Mitchell Burgess
Directed by Michael Cuesta

TV veteran Tom Selleck returns to the small screen in the family cop drama Blue Bloods about a family that has NYPD blood running through their veins. Frank Reagan (Selleck) is the police commissioner, his father Henry (Len Cariou) is a retired cop. Son Danny (Donnie Wahlberg) is a detective with PTSD from Iraq and he has a penchant for taking matters into his own hands (he's accused of police brutality in the pilot). Daughter Erin (Bridget Moynahan) is a District Attorney who clashes with Donny, has a teenage daughter, and is going through a divorce. Finally youngest son Jamie (Will Estes) is a newly graduated member of the Police Academy and is approached about cooperating with special agents who are looking into a secret society within the NYPD. It is revealed in the pilot that there was another brother who was killed while on duty and was cooperating with the Agents who approached Jamie.

Blue Bloods is one of the most intriguing, classiest shows of the new fall season. The hybrid between family drama and cop procedural is woven together very well. The case, so to speak, is solved halfway through the episode but family dynamics play out for the rest of it. The cast is first-rate - Selleck is a commanding presence as the police commissioner and Wahlberg was the star of the pilot as the tough cop who takes matters into his own hands. Moynahan, Estes, and Cariou also were promising and most importantly, they act like a family - it's a believable group. The Sunday Dinner scene was a highlight in the episode. It seems like there are many dynamics they can explore even as they have a basic case to solve each week.

Blue Bloods had a good debut in its sleepy Friday timeslot and CBS would be wise to nurture this show. Not everything was perfect - only three people in the world having the doll they found at the crime scene was a bit convenient. But still, the procedural aspect of this show is secondary to the family storylines. It will be interesting to learn more about the family's history and current relationship with each other. This is one worth coming back to.