Blue Bloods season 8: Revisiting Linda Reagan’s death, four months later
When it comes to losing Linda and the mysterious circumstances around it, everyone here at CarterMatt is still bummed that it happened. Regardless of the reasoning or anything else, we have no idea why it had to happen in the way that it did. There was no real opportunity to say goodbye to the character — at the time that season 7 ended in the spring of 2017, there was virtually zero reason to worry about the character’s future. Linda was still alive, and while Danny had lost his home with her in a fire (the past twelve months haven’t been great for TV characters and fires), the two seemed to be rebuilding towards something.
Then, she was gone.
At the time in which the decision was made to write out Amy Carlson’s character, all parties involved clearly decided that the best way to do it was for it to remain a mystery. We’d become so used to the routine and the familiarity of Blue Bloods that when the episode first aired in September, we didn’t even notice the subtle changes to the opening theme. It wasn’t until around 15 or so minutes into the episode that something felt off.
We’ll give Blue Bloods and CBS credit for executing what they intended to be one of the biggest, most-dramatic surprises in recent memory. After all, Carlson’s name was still listed as a part of the cast in the press release going into the premiere! We wish that there was a way to make losing Linda a little less painful, but that is largely in the rear-view mirror now. We will say that the sadness over losing his co-star did lead to arguably the finest performance of Donnie Wahlberg’s career in that episode.
What can Blue Bloods still do to honor her?
The #1 thing is to simply not forget about her and continue to focus on Danny’s struggles as a single dad. He has to reconcile every day now putting his life on the line and the fact that if something happens to him, his kids don’t have a parent anymore. There is still more that can be mined there as Danny helps them through school and helps them figure out what careers are right for them.
We’d also still like to see more of the other members of the Reagan family react in their own way. Even though everyone is long removed from the passing at this point, Linda was close to some other people, as well. It wasn’t just about Danny.
What do you think the greater impact of Linda Reagan’s death is on Blue Bloods season 8? Be sure to share some of your thoughts on that subject in the comments!
(Photo: CBS.)