Blindspot Review: “Of Whose Uneasy Route”

Lately, it’s seemed as if Blindspot has been picking up more and more steam as it moves toward the upcoming season finale, so let’s see if that train continued moving forward in this week’s new episode, “Of Whose Uneasy Route.”

The episode opens with Mayfair reeling from the events of last week’s episode before heading into work and discovering that she is being (temporarily) removed from her position pending an investigation into the death. She isn’t the only dealing with a form of pain, though, as Weller (and his sister), Jane, and Patterson all reflect on the recent happenings in their lives (during this time, we get a fun training session between Jane and Patterson that really makes me want to see a ton more of an exploration of their growing friendship). With everyone in the middle of other things, the building comes under lockdown. While initially assumed to be a drill, Patterson quickly realizes that it’s all a smokescreen while the FBI is hacked.

Patterson and Jane, thanks to some quick thinking, manage to get out of their room through the ventilation, and they team up with Weller and Borden to figure out exactly what’s happening. Together, the four go through the motions of solving the mystery of the hacking, and the adventure actually proves to be incredibly entertaining. In a lot of ways, Blindspot often feels like it tackles slightly different sub-genres in each episode, and the “trapped in your own base” concept of this week’s story continues the writers’ attempt at keeping things interesting. It was also a fantastic example of a bottle episode that doesn’t feel like a bottle episode, and that’s the exact way that these types of stories should be told.

The final act of the episode brings Aaron Abrams’ Weitz back into the fold in a huge way, and his big scene is an incredibly well-written interrogation scene with Mayfair. The purpose of Jane’s secret side-missions also becomes clear to the amnesiac woman during this interrogation, and events are set in motion that will have huge ramifications for the remainder of the season and for seasons to come.

One of the best things about “Of Whose Uneasy Route” was the session that Kurt had with Dr. Borden at the beginning of the episode. Weller is clearly going through a rough time with what’s happening both with his father and between him and Jane, and I think it’s a great thing that the writers are showing us this internal conflict in a way that plays to his character. This conflict is something that we absolutely need to see as viewers, but it wouldn’t make sense for him to just have a heart-to-heart with a random character. Luckily, a psychiatrist is part of the main cast on Blindspot, so we get a very story-appropriate excuse to see some exposition.

Two other strong points in this week’s episode were the elevator scene featuring Reade and Sarah Weller and the hallway conversation between Mayfair and Zapata. In a lot of ways, “Of Whose Uneasy Route” was an episode about exposition, but it was done in a way that sort of gives us a calm before the storm that we know is coming in the final two episodes of the season. Storylines need to begin wrapping (even if some things need to be left open for next season), and character arcs should start feeling complete as we reach the end of Blindspot‘s first run. All four of these characters (including Sarah, recurring or not) needed the moments that they got in tonight’s episode, and it fleshes things out in a necessary way.

“Of Whose Uneasy Route” was a fantastic bottle episode of Blindspot that mixed in some necessary exposition while still delivering a solid adventure. The final two episodes of the season are shaping up to be huge, and I can’t wait to see what happens.

What did you think of this week’s new episode of Blindspot? What are your theories on how the season will end? Let us know your thoughts in the comments down below!

[Photo Credit: NBC]