The Reagan family is central to Blue Bloods, which helps explain the series’ popularity as it gets ready to wrap up its fourteenth and final season. Although the Tom Selleck-led series is primarily a police procedural, it sets itself apart by focusing on this family of cops, who support one another during difficult times. The most iconic part of the series is the Blue Bloods family dinner, which is part of every episode and cements the series’ legacy of focusing on family values.
The Reagan family consists of four generations, most of whom are cops, with one character serving as an Assistant District Attorney while another abandoned a law career to join the Police Academy. The family has gone through many ups and downs over the years and lost some members, but it is remarkably stable. Blue Bloods’ final eight episodes will likely center around the intersection of family and work issues, as always, and having a solid understanding of the Reagan family will help make the series finale more impactful and memorable.
Henry Reagan Is The Patriarch Of The Family
Henry Is A Beloved Father And Grandfather Who Was Once The Police Commissioner
As the oldest member of the Reagan family, Henry deserves and receives the respect of the younger three generations. He doesn’t always have a major storyline; in many episodes, he gives advice and support to younger Reagans and always has a wisecrack or two during the family dinner. Blue Bloods season 14 has wasted Henry’s potential by limiting him mostly to this role, but that could change by the series finale.
Although Blue Bloods doesn’t delve deeply into Henry’s life, it’s known that he was once the Commissioner, the role that Frank holds today. His wife, Betty, died years before the beginning of the season; they had a happy marriage, and Henry talks about her often, but never considered remarrying after her death. Henry and Betty went on adventures that often surprised the rest of the family. In one episode, Henry shocked everyone at dinner by divulging that he and his wife once spent time at a nude beach.
Frank Reagan Is The Current Police Commissioner
He Must Constantly Balance Family And Work Obligations, Especially When His Sons Don’t Follow Police Department Poilcies
Frank plays a central role in every episode. He is an extremely non-political person in a role that demands political considerations constantly. As Police Commissioner, he must deal with the mayor’s office all the time, and is usually in strong disagreement with the mayor’s policies because they don’t take the needs of the police department into account. Thus, his team is often trying to smooth things over with the current mayor because Frank calls it as he sees it and doesn’t care how it comes across.
Frank’s religious faith has gotten him through some tough times, most notably the death of his second son, Joe, who was killed by a corrupt cop. Frank has also survived the death of his wife, Mary. Not much is known about her, but Erin did mention in one season 14 episode that when she was a teenager, she’d pass messages to Frank through her mother.
Frank’s Oldest Son, Danny, Is Often A Thorn In His Side
Danny Has Mellowed In Recent Years, But His Temper Often Gets Him In Trouble
Danny is the least likely of Frank’s sons to follow in his footsteps and replace Frank as Blue Bloods’ Police Commissioner because of his temper. Particularly in the earliest seasons, Danny was impulsive and hotheaded, often getting physical with suspects and landing himself in hot water. Danny tended to fire his weapon far too often, sometimes making it hard to believe he was still a cop, and often butted heads with his superiors. Prior to season 5, he reported to Sid Gormley, who was transferred into Frank’s office, partially because Frank knew Gormley didn’t get along with Danny.
Linda Reagan Is Danny’s Late Wife
She Was Very Important While She Was Alive And Danny Has Never Gotten Past Her Death
Amy Carlson’s Linda Reagan passed away between seasons 7 and 8 of Blue Bloods, but she was central to the show for the first seven seasons. Linda was calmer and quieter than Danny and could often rein him in when he was going too far, but she was no pushover and didn’t have any problem standing up to people when she needed to. She was an ER nurse, so she’d seen a lot of horrific things and understood how difficult Danny’s job was sometimes.
Linda was the victim of violence herself on at least two occasions. In an earlier episode, she was kidnapped, but was fortunately recovered unharmed, and her young sons thought she was at the spa the whole time. She was mugged at knifepoint during an ER shift once, and another time, she was shot during a hostage situation in the hospital. Despite these scary experiences, she did not appreciate Danny’s overprotectiveness, nor was she scared to go back to work.
Jack Reagan Is Danny’s Oldest Son
He Left For School Several Years Ago, But Returns For Occasional Visits
When Blue Bloods began, Danny and Linda’s two sons were small children who didn’t know much about what their parents did. However, Jack’s innocence was shattered early on when he witnessed a shooting. This upset him so badly that he left school early, and Danny helped him by teaching him about gun safety.
After high school, Jack planned to follow in the family’s footsteps by joining the Marines. However, he had expressed other career interests in the past. By this point, Linda was no longer alive to guide him; however, Danny encouraged Jack to go to college and take his time deciding what he wanted to be. This coincided with actor Tony Terraciano’s decision to leave Blue Bloods to attend school.
Danny’s Younger Son, Sean, Still Lives At Home
Sean Is A Fiercely Independent College Student Similar To His Dad
One of the things that has to happen before Blue Bloods ends is for Sean to choose a career path. When the series began, he was very young; he’s now a college student who lives at home and is on the cusp of deciding what to do with his life. While there was widespread speculation that Sean would follow in his father’s footsteps and become a cop, this seems unlikely, as he recently helped with a sting operation to catch the person who had mugged him on campus and concluded that police work was not for him.
Frank’s Only Daughter Is An Assistant District Attorney
Erin And Frank Are Equally Stubborn And Committed To Their Offices
Frank’s daughter is a highly opinionated woman, as well as an assistant district attorney. She has inherited Frank’s integrity and refusal to compromise his values, which serves her well as an ADA but can also make her come across as judgmental. She also dislikes it intensely when her brothers ask her for favors, especially when they demand the impossible, such as ensuring a suspect is prosecuted right away when there’s little evidence of their guilt.
Erin butts heads not just with Frank but with the district attorneys she works under, especially Kimberly Crawford, who sees Erin as a privileged white woman who knows nothing about racial issues in the justice system. She considered running for DA herself during season 13. However, she decided that the focus on optics over authenticity was not for her and dropped her bid.
Erin’s Daughter Disagrees With Her Family Politically
Nicky Reagan-Boyle Often Argued With Everyone, But Was A Beloved Family Member Anyway
During the first ten seasons, Nicky was the sole voice in the family opposing Frank and Erin’s political beliefs. She was a teenager and young woman who believed strongly in liberal causes. However, she wanted to be the first female cop in the family, despite her beliefs about the criminal justice system and cops in general.
Nicky’s inclusion demonstrated that family ties transcended politics. Her family disagreed strongly with her ideas but embraced her as one of their own, and there was never any question that she was loved. Every Reagan was excited for her when she got a job with a liberal think tank at the end of season 10, though they were sad she’d be on the opposite coast.
Joe Reagan’s Death Looms Large Throughout The Series
He Died Before Blue Bloods Began But Will Never Be Forgotten
Joe Reagan was Frank’s second-oldest son. He died in the line of duty before the series began, and his younger brother, Jamie, stepped back from his planned career as an attorney to become a cop in honor of his loss. Jamie’s investigation revealed that Joe had been killed by a dirty cop because he was too close to discovering an unauthorized association of corrupt cops who were watching each other’s backs. The entire family has been affected by Joe’s death and speaks about him often.
Joe Hill Is A Late Addition To The Family
His Mother Kept His Existence Secret From The Reagan Family Until He Was An Adult
Joe Hill is the son of the late Joe Reagan, but the Reagans didn’t know he existed until the end of season 11. Joe’s mother didn’t tell his father that she was pregnant and didn’t want her son to grow up in the Reagans’ shadow. She chose to keep his father’s name secret, and it would have stayed that way his whole life if Sean hadn’t found out about his existence while doing a genealogy project that involved DNA testing. Sadly, Joe has never quite felt comfortable with the Reagans and often butts heads with them, especially Jamie.
Frank’s Youngest Son Is A Different Type of Cop
Jamie Is Level-Headed, Sensitive, And Expected To Be The Next Commissioner
Jamie abandoned his law career to become a cop, much to the disappointment of his then-fiancee. He was happy being a beat cop, and his sensitivity was an asset when dealing with suspects who had mental health conditions. Jamie was able to reason with such people and get them to cooperate with police orders, and he once got in trouble for stopping his sergeant from shooting such a suspect instead of deferring to his commanding officer’s authority.
His management style and ability to remain cool-headed have led to widespread speculation that he will become the new commissioner during the series finale
Jamie bitterly resisted Frank’s desire for him to take the sergeant’s exam, but eventually gave in. His management style and ability to remain cool-headed have led to widespread speculation that he will become the new commissioner during the series finale. However, his antagonism with Joe Hill nearly derailed his career when they got into a fistfight.
Jamie’s Wife Is The Newest Family Member
The Couple Worked Together For Years Before Becoming Romantic
Blue Bloods Eddie and Jamie took a long time to get together. They were initially work partners who often butted heads, as Eddie rarely agreed with how Jamie handled cases they worked together. However, they got engaged at the end of season 8 and married at the end of season 9, and they have been happily together ever since, though they rarely share screen time anymore. Jamie and Eddie are one of Blue Bloods‘ most popular couples because they have always been able to work through differences and demonstrate their love for one another.
