Sonequa Martin-Green had fans in a tizzy when her Boston Blue character, Lena Silver, was shot while on duty in the final two episodes of the show’s freshman season. And while it was shocking, the incident plays a big role in the evolution of Lena, who fans will continue to see grow in the upcoming second season.

Coming off major roles in AMC’s The Walking Dead and CBS All Access/Paramount+’s Star Trek: Discovery, Martin-Green was cast opposite series lead Donnie Wahlberg in the Blue Bloods spinoff set in his native Boston. Silver and Reagan have a special relationship, which is that of a brother and not a lover. The partners often confer with each other about what’s going on in their lives, share dating advice, and break bread together during the traditional family dinner.

“That’s something that we are really focused on and are really passionate about, building this sibling dynamic. I love that you’re picking up on that. It’s also what it means to be a sort of battle buddy, right?” shared Martin-Green during a recent chat with Deadline.

“I’ve learned a lot from the cops that we’ve had the pleasure of working with, talking to, and being consulted by on the show; your partner on the force is very much a battle buddy. It’s a different relationship. It’s different than a friendship. It’s its own sort of thing, where you’ve got each other’s back, and you’ll die for the other. You look out for each other. You can be honest with each other, but at the same time, there isn’t a romantic element or sexual tension. I love the purity of that. I love that we get to show that kind of dynamic is possible between a man and a woman,” she added.

Working on Boston Blue is a family affair. Martin-Green’s husband, Kenric Green, is also an actor, who counts among his roles playing Charlie, Lena’s mom, Mae’s (Gloria Reuben) chief-of-staff. The circle also expands to include Wahlberg’s real-life wife, Jenny McCarthy, and her co-stars Ernie Hudson, Maggie Lawson, Marcus Scribner, and Mika Amonsen.

“Yes, found family. That’s what we have all become behind the scenes, and that’s what Lena and Danny have become,” she shared. “You know, we were fast friends. Donnie and I, when we first met, it felt like we had known each other our whole lives. They started calling us the Wonder Twins. [Laughs] I love Jenny, and he loves Kenric, and the four of us are building a really strong bond as well. And so even off-screen, there have been some beautiful connections.”

Speaking of family, a major storyline of the second half of Boston Blue was around the identity of Lena’s birth father, whom she had never met. Her questions about him have lingered since Lena was a child and continued to be of curiosity until now, as a full-grown adult, who isn’t taking no for an answer.

Lena finally learns who her father is, and in the finale, they meet face-to-face for the first time. There was never going to be a perfect moment for that, per se, but it happened when she needed it the most. After she was shot and was recovering in the hospital, her mother walked into her room alongside her father, Chris, played by Dexter star Erik King.

“I think things will change in a way that she’s not expecting,” Martin-Green said about the impact that meeting her father will have on Lena’s life. “I think you have an idea of how it’ll change you. You have an idea of how you’ve been shaped based on a person’s absence. You have no idea how it’s going to change you. And I love that Danny is there the whole way through in the second half of the season, and it goes both ways. We just saw it recently with Danny and his wife, and finally getting at the people who were responsible for her passing. Lena was right there with him.”

She later added, “I felt that Lena’s near-death experience was profoundly suited for the moment. There was so much discontent, resentment, and bitterness concerning Mae and Lena’s biological father. Almost losing her life gave her the push she needed to forgive and move forward, to start anew. As Lena, it purified my sight.”

All in all, the season wrapped, leaving viewers and the actors wanting more.

“This is one of the things I love the most about Boston Blue: we’ve really established ourselves and uncovered the things that you need to see to tap into these characters, all these dynamics that are at play. I think they help us forge our own identity in the Blue Bloods legacy of it all,” Martin-Green said.