Parents' Guide to Blue Bloods

TV CBS Drama 2010
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Common Sense Media Review

By Will Wade , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 14+

Interesting family cop drama has mature storylines.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 14+?

Any Positive Content?

Parent and Kid Reviews

age 14+

Based on 25 parent reviews

age 13+

Based on 22 kid reviews

Kids say this show can be suitable for ages 12 and older, highlighting its strong family themes despite containing some mild violence, language, and brief adult situations. Many viewers appreciate the depth of the storylines and character development, praising it as a compelling cop drama that promotes positive morals while mostly avoiding glorification of crime.

  • age recommendation
  • family values
  • mild violence
  • positive messages
  • strong characters
Summarized with AI

What's the Story?

BLUE BLOODS stars Tom Selleck as Frank Reagan, a New York City police commissioner following in the footsteps of his father (Leonard Cariou). Also continuing the family tradition are sons Danny (Donnie Wahlberg), a hot-headed NYPD detective, rookie Jamie (Will Estes), and his late son Joe, who died in the line of duty. Lone daughter Erin (Bridget Moynahan), an assistant district attorney, helps prosecute the folks they arrest. For this family, police blue is everything, whether on streets alongside officers like Jackie Curatola (Jennifer Esposito) and Anthony Renzulli (Nicholas Tuturro), or at home during weekly family dinners.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say ( 25 ):
Kids say ( 22 ):

The series successfully combines police/legal procedure with family drama in a way that allows viewers to watch the Reagan family dynasty solve cases on the job and at home. Throughout it all, Frank holds the family together with a quiet and principled authority, offering advice when his adult children are struggling in their professional and personal lives.

Blue Bloods offers the typical tales of robbery, murder, office politics, and police corruption, but it also addresses morally and ethically complex issues, like ignoring procedure for the sake of justice, and racial profiling. While some of these themes are decidedly mature, the overall show is positive, insightful, and entertaining.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the violence portrayed in Blue Bloods. How does watching violence on TV make you feel? Do you think it changes how you act in real life?

  • How does violence play out in the real world? Do you think a cop should beat a suspect to extract potentially life-saving information? Does the end justify the means? Or do the rights of the accused trump the rights of possibly innocent victims?

  • Talk about how families are portrayed on television. Can you relate to any of the family issues in this show? Do their problems seem realistic?

TV Details

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