The Blacklist returned to all our TV’s with a bang last week, and even more of a bang tonight (too soon?). This week’s fast paced episode was strong, action packed, and featured a lot of interesting emotional beats. Trust was betrayed and trust was built, and all elements were combined for another strong episode.
This week on The Blacklist: Liz crashes Kirk’s plane, but then saves his life and is taken to his “summer castle”. Reddington, Dembe, Tom, and Mr. Kaplan work with the FBI to track down Liz and Agnes. Reddington and Mr. Kaplan deal with the broken trust in their relationship. Liz is tracked down, but Agnes is still missing.
I knew they wouldn’t be able to draw out the “find Liz” story forever. But, “find Agnes” is another matter. Still, I doubt that’s something they’ll maintain in the long term. But, the seeds of mistrust in the relationships between Liz and the task force will be prevalent going forward, as will general mistrust of Reddington. There will also be a larger mystery of who Alexander Kirk really is, and the connections between him, Liz, and Reddington. This episode planted a lot of the seeds of what will happen down the road, and all of it is compelling stuff.
Alright, major spoilers in 3…2…1…Reddington shot Mr. Kaplan at the end of the episode. What does that mean? First of all, if you saw what I saw, Mr. Kaplan may only be mostly dead. The whole episode really was centered on Reddington’s recklessness. He obviously cares for Liz so much that his usual level headed approach to things has flown completely out the window. Though I’ve always appreciated Reddington for the exact character that he is, the new direction has the potential to be especially compelling.
One of the things I most appreciated about “Mato” was the actual, physical hunting him down. One thing this show is seriously lacking is Dembe and Tom chasing down bad guys together. Tawfiq and Eggold were at the top of their physical game and it was a really fun scene to watch. Also, I’d probably watch a whole show with just Dembe/Tom chasing guys down, and followed by Tom torturing said bad guys.
I’m compelled by reckless Red, and even more so by the mysteries that come with Alexander Kirk and the Liz triangle, but perhaps the most potentially compelling story for the what’s to come is the relationships on the task force and how they will shift going forward. This episode had some serious differences from previous seasons. For instance, Cooper yelling at Samar to do her job. Aram’s reticence to get his hopes up. The glance exchanged between Liz and Ressler when the FBI first arrived, before they later hugged. All of the relationships this show is founded on have been shaken up, which makes for extremely compelling television.
“Mato” was an exercise in fractured trust and relationships, and also extraordinarily compelling. The action and relationship drama meshed perfectly to an exciting episode with a shocking build and conclusion. Though I will be a little upset if Mr. Kaplan isn’t really dead. They’ve kind of exhausted the fake death thing. But if it’s for a good reason that’s essential to the show…I can get behind it.
What did you guys think? Did you enjoy the episode? Let us know in the comments!
The Blacklist airs Thursdays at 10/9c on NBC
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