Blue Bloods Review: Selling NYPD
How do you recruit for the NYPD? Frank Reagan struggles with that question as "The Uniform" looks at who chooses to wear one and why.
Why does someone want to be an NYPD Officer? It is obviously a dangerous job. Add to it that New York City is expensive, the winters are cold and the summers can be sweltering. So when the mayor's public relations firm wants to start a new campaign marketing 9/11 to gain recruits, Frank is furious. It seems an insult to those who died to use that tragic day to sell the job.
In the mayor's defense, many people signed up for the military and NYPD because of 9/11 but to blatantly use that tragedy is ethically questionable and simply feels in poor taste.
In the midst of this debate, we have Mike, an Auxiliary Officer who shot a man to save his uncle. Unfortunately, Mike didn't realize his uncle's a gun runner and more than willing to throw his loving nephew under the bus to stay out of jail. Ah, there's nothing like family.
I love how Danny related to this guy. If the Reagans didn't have such a history with the NYPD, Danny could have looked a lot like Mike, only angrier.
That Danny became a cop is no surprise. It's Jamie's career choice that Frank questions. Did he drop out of Harvard Law and follow in the family business simply because Joe was killed?
Jamie says no. He's a cop because he watches his family go to work loving what they do no matter how much or little they make doing it. Unfortunately now he's painting fences on his days off to try and pay his exorbitant student loans he took out. Now that's got to hurt.
A few other tidbits:
- The shooting takes place at 6 a.m. Where is the morning breakfast crowd? What diner is closed for breakfast?
- Garrett once again dances with the mayor's office while both having Frank's back and reminding him of reality. And his quips and one liners always make me laugh.
- Danny and Linda's boys are great as they ask their Dad if he's sweating the guy in the box. Linda immediately pegs it as a video game reference and even knows which of their friend's lax parents are to blame.
In the end, Frank manages to convince the mayor's office that it's the personal stories that will attract the best people to NYPD. But I have to agree with the PR guy. Who wouldn't want Tom Selleck in their commercial?
C. Orlando is a TV Fanatic Staff Writer. Follow her on Twitter.
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Rank: Regular Character
January 21st, 2012 10:49 PM
The two auxiliaries were funny. I felt bad for Mike.
Rank: Guest Star
January 20th, 2012 10:26 PM
I don't know what they're doing on this show. I quite like it, but now NKOTB guy is getting to be more and more of a jerk off. No matter what anyone says, he is derisive. It's irritating. He's unlikeable.
Also, they just throw any kind of procedure away. They call in SWAT for a big take down. SWAT comes up the stairs BEHIND two regular cops. What the hell is the point of SWAT then? It's idiotic.
January 17th, 2012 1:07 PM
"The Uniform" diner scenes looked like they were filmed at The Airline Diner, aka "Jackson Hole". It is located in Queens, just alongside the Grand Central Parkway. It was Bill Clinton's favorite diner when President and before his by-pass surgery; he'd make the Secret Service stop on his way from LaGuardia Airport...loved their cheesburgers.
Rank: Guest Star
January 15th, 2012 5:39 PM
My first reaction at using 9/11 to recruit police was the same as the Chief's. But look at it a different way. Let's say the city decided to increase salaries in order to acquire more recruits. Would you want people choosing to become cops because they can make more money or because they want to protect the public and stop tragedies like 9/11 from happening (and I know that the two don't have to be mutually exclusive)?
January 14th, 2012 7:06 PM
What actor played Mike the Auxilliary cop on True Bloods (The Uniform) 2012?
January 14th, 2012 4:35 PM
I found the portrayal of the Auxiliaries somewhat irksome. Danny - and other characters - treat them with remarkable disrespect, and the Auxiliaries themselves don't exactly distinguish themselves in a positive manner, either. Mike is played in a wildly uneven fashion, too. I find it hard to believe these characters are from the same episode as a recruiting campaign as the B storyline!
I don't know any NYPD Auxiliary officers, but the members of the Volunteer Corps at my local police department are not "wannabe cops," nor obsessed with law enforcement, nor are they rude towards officers. The Volunteers are there to *support* the officers, not stand in for them or try to do the same job. This episode did a very poor job of making this distinction.
I love "Blue Bloods," but this episode's A story just annoyed me. The B plot was much more enjoyable and should have been paired with a far superior primary case than the one with which it was stuck this week.
January 14th, 2012 10:21 AM
Marie,
Yes, they film here in NYC. They were filming in a restaurant called Spolini's in Kew Gardens, Queens, a couple of weeks ago.
January 14th, 2012 10:02 AM
Love two or three story lines going on at the same time? Question. Do they film in NYC. Or l.a. Like. Castle? Great family dinner chats. So relaxed and homey. Great story line! So glad I can watch it in Canada
January 14th, 2012 9:57 AM
Again, great writing, terrific acting all add up to a #1 show. Keep it going; look forward to it every Friday and constantly remind my family and friends to watch it. An hour very well spent.
January 14th, 2012 9:45 AM
I continue to love this show. It is not only the exciting, dramatic backdrop of NYC. It is the characters, the relationships that keep me coming back. Crime/police procedurals are a dime a dozen. But I care about this family, these people. I relate to them. I smile and nod my head when Danny and Linda demonstrate the nuances of married life and parenthood. I laugh with them when the siblings get one over on each other. And of course, let's not forget that an hour of Walburg and Selleck does not hurt either--