Blue Bloods season 8 episode 7 review: Danny & the question of moving on

Blue Bloods season 8 episode 7 was a story full of personal connections in one way or another.

Let’s begin here with Jamie and Eddie, mostly because they don’t get nearly enough love most of the time. In the early going, these two delivered a baby! They did their duty, but then as the episode progressed they ended up doing so much more. They helped out these new young immigrant parents beyond just delivering the child — they helped to get them jobs and an apartment.

This eventually led to one of the few legitimately-funny moments on Blue Bloods over the years when it was revealed that these parents chose to name their child after the man who helped them — Eddie. Yep, they assumed that Jamie was Eddie and Eddie was Jamie.

At that point, there was nothing that the two could do other than to go along with it. What else could you do?

Danny’s history with Linda comes back in a surprising way

Danny’s storyline tonight was an emotional story of trying to help a woman in need — and because this woman just so happened to be a nurse named Faith with an abusive ex-boyfriend, he became almost immediately more attached than he should have. He checked up on her repeatedly, and at one point even made a house call and had a drink with her … before realizing how close her own story mirrored his own (her late husband was a cop). It was at that point both of them seemed to realize that forming a bond was a bad move since it was mostly all about the two trying to emotionally replace someone who was gone.

After this moment Danny did still do everything that he could to help her, including go to the hospital when her ex arrived there was a gun. He protected her, saved her life, and then checked in on her to ensure that she was okay.

At the end of the case, Faith approached Danny to see if he was interested in getting a drink or going to a movie. He liked her and was fond of her, but the primary issue at hand was this: He just wasn’t ready. He made that clear to her in the nicest way possible, but did get one good bit of advice from her: Try to move forward. He did that by spending more time with his kids and building a basketball goal that he’d promised them.

Frank faces off with Shelly

Shelly was a acquaintance of Frank’s from the community-outreach meetings he’d been attending, and after she came to him with some information regarding a death in prison, he was interrogated by Garrett and the rest of his office as to his undue trust in her. Was he buying into her story too much because he knew her? This was complicated more so when he learned that she had used him in order to further a narrative in the press — or so he thought.

This storyline, while a bit muddled, was all about this: There’s a difference between being there and being there. While Shelly and Frank knew each other, he wasn’t accessible to her when she needed it and that caused her to speak out to other sources — including the media. She explained her side and her misunderstanding, and they were able to work through their differences and resolve at least the PR side of this crisis.

She also encouraged Frank in the closing minutes to speak out at the community meeting rather than just attend. Who doesn’t love a great Frank speech at the end of the episode? Also, who doesn’t get teary-eyed when Frank mentions Joe?

CarterMatt Verdict

Blue Bloods season 8 episode 7 was a moving episode that took on some tough questions — including when is the right time to move on after tragedy? Luckily, the Jamie / Eddie story was there to lighten things up a little. We do wish that the Frank story had somewhat-clearer intentions in the early going, but the Tom Selleck speech at the end helped to make it memorable.

What did you think about Blue Bloods season 8 episode 7?

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(Photo: CBS.)