The Blacklist Review: The World Is Watching

The Blacklist has got a lot of interesting story to draw from yet. There are all sorts of interesting things happening to these characters making them compelling.  This episode, while not the most brilliant episode I have ever seen, did a lot of important character work and set up some interesting mysteries for the remainder of the season to explore. I wasn’t particularly excited or riveted by this episode, but I found it compelling nonetheless.

This week on The Blacklist: Liz is notified when Tom is rushed to the hospital. Tom, once awakened, is questioned about the robbery. The task force searches for a murdering performance artist named “Drexel”, who kills in his “live art” pieces. The task force uncovers a leaked NSA software that taps into anyone’s computer webcam. Liz makes an important decision on her baby’s future.

This episode had a lot to like. I do feel like the character development they’ve done of the other characters on this show (i.e. not Liz, Reddington or Tom) has stuck, but it’s fallen on the back-burner since they’ve more or less returned to the status quo. But there’s still obvious tension between Samar and Ressler, and Amar has had an extra spring in his step since Liz returned to work. I sure wish they’d develop it more, but there’s only so much they can do in an hour each week.

“I’m not your Tom problem, Lizzy. Tom’s your Tom problem.” This show definitely has a Tom problem. When he was working with the task force toward a common goal, he was very much apart of the compelling story as it unfolded. Now, not so much. Don’t get me wrong here, because I really like Ryan Eggold. He’s doing fantastic work and some of the best on the show, but the show is losing sight of what to do with Tom. I don’t think it’s the worst thing to put Liz back in love with him and have them raise a child, but it’s certainly not the most exciting. If Eggold didn’t have so much presence on screen, I would be much more disinterested in Tom’s stories. Reddington saving him was a nice touch, though.

How about tonight’s subject matter? Not to get political, but I am very much against government surveillance. That made tonight’s episode downright terrifying. This is the second week in a row now that they’ve explored a subject that could easily be real, and therefore is mortifying to watch. It’s a little difficult to sit down at my computer and write this because of the built in webcam staring back at me. I really appreciate that about The Blacklist. It really makes you think.

Now, what really excites me about what I saw tonight was the painting at the end. A painting of Liz staring down at Reddington’s grave? And Reddington asking where “Restova” was? There’s a lot that intrigues me about what’s to come. Does Liz have a living parent? Who would paint that? Why would they paint it? That final scene alone was gripping enough to keep me coming back for more.

Ultimately, this wasn’t my favorite episode of The Blacklist, but it still told a great story.

What did you guys think? Did you enjoy this episode? Let us know in the comments!!

The Blacklist airs Thursdays at 9/8c on NBC