Blue Bloods Season 9 Episode 11 Review: Disrupted
Jack Ori
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Frank Reagan has always been rigid.
He's taken it to extremes for most of Blue Bloods Season 9.
But on Blue Bloods Season 9 Episode 11, Frank dealt with a protest group that believed in disruption and spreading lies to get their point across, and he didn't overreact.
To be fair, it's harder to be mad at Frank when he seemed to be almost completely in the right.
I'm not sure what the protesters were upset about, other than they thought Frank was out of touch because ... they did.
Whatever their grievance was, they weren't airing it effectively, and making up false stories about Frank's driver running people over and not bothering to stop didn't help their case.
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And when Frank tried to resolve the issue with Corey one-on-one, she did nothing but deny responsibility for the protesters' tactics while accusing Frank of picking and choosing what he will allow anyone to hold him accountable!
Frank made his share of mistakes in their encounter, but Corey seemed to be the one who was out of touch with reality. She never asked Frank to do anything in particular except take responsibility for whatever it was she was unhappy about.
This is not your ivory tower. This is police headquarters, and if you attack it you'd better have the facts and the truth on your side.
Frank
Usually, these kinds of protesters end up being people Nicky knows. It was refreshing for her not to have a big part in this one and instead get some advice from Frank based on his experience with Corey.
Frank labeled Corey as an ivory tower professor who had no idea how the real world worked and was protesting for no reason. If Corey had been written as a more nuanced character and the issue she was protesting was true, that might have been an unfair characterization.
But as it was, this time Frank was right even if some of what he said didn't sit well with her.
That seemed to be the point. As Frank said, disruptive protests just drown out everybody's point. I'm glad he made that clear in his speech to Corey because otherwise, it might have reinforced her belief that he was just against people whose political beliefs don't align with his.
Related: Days of Our Lives: Why Social Messaging Matters
It was an important message for viewers to hear, too.
Everything is very polarized in the United States' current political climate, and some people deal with being unheard by shouting louder. Most of the time, TV shows that address the polarization do so from a liberal perspective, so it was a welcome change to hear it from a more conservatively-oriented show.
Jamie's storyline was interesting yet somewhat predictable. As soon as he gave that cab driver a break, it was apparent SOMETHING was going to happen.
Eddie: Jamie, you are a rookie sergeant.
Jamie: And a veteran cop.
Jamie and Eddie's argument about how Jamie's doing his job is getting old. I know the couple has to have some conflict, but at this point, it feels like it's the same conflict over and over. Eddie never agrees with how Jamie does his job, and he never wants her advice.
Not being partners is a significant change, but it's been a while since Jamie took the sergeant job.
I hope they figure out how to make this work or stop working in the same precinct. That would be more realistic anyway, given all the concerns surrounding a supervising officer being in a romantic relationship with one of the officers under him.
Jamie's struggle with independence made this storyline worth it despite the problems. I especially loved his conversation with Henry even though Jamie had made the wrong call and it was bound to end in disaster.
And Jamie giving the guy a break was more in keeping with his character than trying to be a tough-guy sergeant.
It made sense that he would give him a second chance on something like forgetting to have his taxi license with him, though he should have been concerned about the guy trying to pull a gun on his customer in the first place.
Then again, that didn't occur to me either until the shooting. I was sure that the suspect knowing Frank was going to lead to Jamie getting accused of giving an old friend of his father's preferential treatment.
Jamie: Try not to grip the steering wheel like you're gonna break it in two.
Cop: Sorry, Sergeant.
Jamie: Don't worry. Soon this'll be second nature to you and you'll be able to focus on what's important.
Cop: What's that?
Jamie: Where to go to lunch.
Jamie was at his best out in the field training a rookie cop. He was building rapport and being the kindhearted cop he used to be before he became the boss. I hope there's more of that to come!
Related: 13 Most Memorable "Jamko" Moments on Blue Bloods
Danny's story was not as predictable.
I thought that Ron was going to turn out to be an abusive father, especially after the way he dragged Jennifer out of the house. If Jennifer keeps dating Sean, I wonder if that will happen later on.
His suggestion that he talk to Ron to straighten out Sean and Jennifer's problem was ridiculous. Even if Ron hadn't been staunchly anti-Danny, what sixteen-year-old kid wants his dad trying to solve his problems with other kids that way?
Ron was so negative about Danny and Sean that when he showed up, I thought he'd staged the attack for some nefarious reason. The whole Texas vs. New York bit was overplayed, but I was glad he came around by the end.
Someone wants to stop me from seeing my daughter, I'm gonna do whatever the hell it takes.
Anthony
Of all the subplots, Anthony's was the best.
I've shipped Anthony/Erin for a long time. But after the way he protected his family and how clear it was that Vivian was frustrated instead wanting to call it quits, I was glad they were taking steps towards reconciliation.
Anthony always fights with cops and is always getting into it with Danny, but it's rarely this personal and I enjoyed this glimpse into his life outside of the Manhattan DA's office.
Your turn, Blue Bloods Fanatics!
What was your favorite storyline? Did you see Jamie's mistake coming? And is there hope that Frank will be something other than a curmudgeon after all?
Weigh in below, and don't forget you can always watch Blue Bloods online here on TV Fanatic if you missed anything!
Jack Ori is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. His debut young adult novel, Reinventing Hannah, is available on Amazon. Follow him on X.
