Blue Bloods S05E18 Recap: Bad Company

Why Is Sorry Not Enough This Week?

Story by David Clark

This week on Blue Bloods guest star Amelia Rose Blaire, best known for her time on True Blood, should win an award from the show producers for best moment of the season. When Frank Reagan was a younger cop he was lead detective on a case in which a family was brutally murdered. The only survivor of the murders was a young girl. When the murderer was finally found Frank put a bullet in him but did not kill him. Fast forward to present day and the young orphaned girl is now a fully grown woman named Sarah Grant.

Sentenced to life in prison the man who murdered Sarah’s family contacts her by letter a few short days before Sarah is supposed to be married. Having viewed Frank as a father figure growing up because he saved her life, Sarah turns to him when the killer asks to meet.

Interestingly the process depicted on this episode whereby an imprisoned offender can request to meet with a victim is a real thing in some states. In the justice system this practice is part of a theory called Restorative Justice. The basic concept is intended as an avenue whereby a victim can confront the person that wronged them in a controlled and safe environment. In some cases it can also be a step in the rehabilitation of the offender. Understandably this is a controversial theory in the criminal justice world because it can be a very traumatic experience bringing a victim face-to-face with their assailant.

Blue Bloods depicted the internal struggle Restorative Justice practices can have on victims with an honest intensity. It was actually hard to watch Sarah struggle with her decision to meet the killer. Against Frank’s wishes but with his support Sarah decided that she would meet her family's murderer for the first time since she was asked to identify him in court at the age of 7.

Tension in the room was palpable when the shackled inmate entered to meet with Sarah. Depicted with a believable anger by Blaire, her character Sarah looked like a ticking time bomb. When she finally opened her mouth the fire she spit out was so ferociously delivered that it is amazing the killer did not die from pure guilt. By this time it was hard to believe that anyone watching the show would not be boiling with contempt towards the man that killed Sarah’s family. However, in the moral high ground that is Blue Bloods way, the murderer gets a moment to talk about his repentance, guilt, and regret for his actions. It appeared as though the producers of the show were trying to make a political statement and humanize the terrible criminals of the world. They even went so far as to show the failed suicide scars, earned because of his guilt in an attempt to create a sympathetic villain.

The show looked like it was headed for a predictable conclusion whereby the murderer and victim come to an understanding and move on to live better lives. In that moment right before the suspense dissipates, Sarah stands up, leans over the table with a quivering snarl on her lips, and with a look of pure unfettered hatred she tells the man to kill himself. She then says that if he is truly repentant for his actions that this time he will get it right.

It was such a perfect moment portrayed with a heart wrenching conviction by Blaire. It was a slap in the face to all things that fans of the show expect from Blue Bloods. There was no follow up scene with Frank preaching a message about how bad suicide is or how important forgiveness is to the soul. It concludes with Sarah happily getting married knowing her last words and wishes towards her family's murderer was death.

Meanwhile on the other side of town, Eddie Janko, Jamie’s partner, volunteers for an undercover sting operation to catch a Serbian human trafficking ring. Nervous but brave Janko finds herself all alone facing the prospect of being sexually assaulted by one of the people she is investigating. Managing to stay calm Janko ends up kicking the guys ass and successfully completing the sting operation to end the human trafficking ring.

Underwhelming as Blue Bloods has been at times in its 5th season, this episode was truly entertaining in a hard to watch kind of way. It adds credibility to a show like Blue Bloods when a real but little known aspect of the criminal justice system is portrayed in all of its glory and evil. It would be nice to see more procedural shows depict the criminal justice system in an accurate manner. Instead they try to play up the justice system inaccurately to make it more entertaining. Ask anyone in the criminal justice field, storylines found in the law enforcement world can be twice the drama of anything a screenwriter can think up.