In a very interesting episode, both Danny (Donny Wahlberg) and Frank (Tom Selleck) have to deal with cases and people from their past. As the show opens, Danny receives a call in the middle of the night from a girl named Anna (Gwynneth Bensen), who he previously helped when she was a high-priced escort. By daytime, Jamie (Will Estes) and Sgt. Renzulli (Nick Turturro) find her body floating in the river. In a very riveting storyline, Frank learns his former partner, Bill Carter (James McCaffrey), has located the bones of a small body that may be connected to a missing persons case they worked together many years ago.

A young boy, Leo Gates, went missing 25 years ago and it appears the bones may be his. When the autopsy comes in, identifying the remains as Leo’s, Frank’s feelings are confirmed. He seems to be very moved by this case – of course, a lot of police officers get very close to the victims who they can’t find and oftentimes, these cases haunt them for years. I feel so sorry for Laura Gates (Kristen Griffith), the boy’s mother, when she recounts the events of that fateful day. I love how empathetic Frank is when she questions herself about the reason for not being with Leo that day.

Laura: “It was raining that day. You know I keep asking myself – is that the reason why I didn’t go and get him? Because it was raining?”

Frank: “Laura, there are some things none of us can ever completely control. And one of them is protecting our kids every moment of the day.”

Frank is always so strong, and it’s nice when he shows a softer, more compassionate side. Of course, having children would account for that. Det. Melissa Baker (Abigail Hawk) drops in at Frank’s house with the autopsy and a box containing all the evidence from back in the day. She is very concerned about Frank’s behavior so Henry (Len Cariou) explains, in a very heartfelt conversation with her, why Frank is so close to the case. I can’t even imagine having to deal with the case of a missing boy who is the same age as my own children. It must have hit very close to home for him.

I found the conversation between Jamie and Sgt. Renzulli about Sonny Malevsky (Michael T. Weiss) very interesting. While appearing to be just curious about the guy, I think Jamie is really fishing for information about him relative to the Blue Templar. Of course, Jamie is driven to find out who really killed his brother Joe – what brother wouldn’t be? I wish the writers would give us more than a smidgen of information about the Blue Templar in each episode. It’s an interesting storyline and I think the writers are making a mistake by drawing it out like this.

After the alibi of one of Anna’s johns checks out, Danny and Det. Curatola (Jennifer Esposito) have no choice but to go after Anna’s former boss, Johnny Vega (Donnie Keshawarz), who was quite enamored of her. Naturally, his alibi also checks out as he tells them he spent the night with Jolene (Christine Evangelista), one of his “girls,” and she confirms. The case takes an interesting turn, however, when Curatola finds out that Jolene and Anna were best friends and spoke on the phone the night Anna died. What really happened is, unbeknownst to Vega, Jolene witnessed him strangling Anna in her apartment and then taking the body with him. The next day when the body appeared, Vega told her “that’s what happens when people talk to cops.” I hate men who threaten women and think they can control them the way Vega does in this episode. It’s a fear tactic and I feel bad for those people who don’t have enough self-esteem to stand up to people like this.

At this point the case takes a twist that I didn’t see coming, but I’m not going to tell you what is involved. I prefer to let you figure it out if you haven’t seen the show. I will tell you though, the FBI shows up, a judge is involved, and Danny has a very fun time solving the case.

As to the Leo Gates’ case, Carter finally tracks down Theodore Wessel (Sean Weil), the superintendent of the building where Leo’s remains were found. From the way Frank questions him, using his photographic memory, it’s easy to see what an excellent cop Frank must have been and why he is such a good Commissioner now.

Sunday dinner has its usual family discussion, this time about Danny’s case. The funniest part is a conversation involving Danny’s sons, Sean (Andrew Terraciano) and Jack (Tony Terraciano).

Sean: “What’s a call girl”

Jack: “I don’t know.”

Linda (Amy Carlson): “Uh, that is a girl who talks on her cell…all the time.”

Jack: “So, kinda like Aunt Erin (Bridget Moynahan)?”

The laughter that ensues around the table has me laughing out loud as well.

All in all, another solid episode of Blue Bloods. I love the family element that is always front and center. It’s what sets this show apart from all other cop dramas. I’m very happy to report that Blue Bloods’ move to Wednesday hasn’t affected the show at all. As a matter of fact, according to a news article on this site, here, ratings were up after “Little Fish” aired.