I’ve been a fan of the series THE BLACKLIST since the first
season. Having watched lead actor James Spader develop over the years and been
amazed at his performance in the series BOSTON LEGAL I was interested to see
what he would do here. He hasn’t disappointed in his portrayal of criminal
mastermind Raymond Reddington. Matching him every step of the way has been
Megan Boone as FBI agent Elizabeth Keen.
If you’re unfamiliar with the series Reddington was the most
wanted criminal on the FBI’s most wanted list. He suddenly turns himself in to
a task force assigned to find him with the condition that he talk only to
rookie profiler agent Keen. When she shows he tells her he will in return for
immunity he will provide the FBI with a list of the most dangerous criminals
the FBI has been seeking as well as information that will lead to their arrest
and convictions, his blacklist. With the potential to take down tons of
criminals in return for allowing one to remain free they take the deal.
Over the years we’ve since learned that there is a personal
connection between Reddington and Keen that she has no idea of but that he is
well aware of. The main question has always been that connection and at the end
of season four we found out the Reddington is indeed her long lost father. Now
Elizabeth finds herself drawn to her darker more criminally minded side, one
that runs next to that of her father. Using everything she can at her disposal
she tries to find the man that killed her husband Tom so she can seek revenge.
That tale of revenge runs right alongside the story of
Raymond trying to rebuild his criminal empire. In season four his helper Mr.
Kaplan laid waste to his empire leaving him with next to nothing. Now as he continues
to help the FBI with his list he’s also committing more crimes of his own in an
attempt to fund his criminal enterprises and the lifestyle he has become
accustomed to. The potential for Elizabeth to come on board remains as the
season moves forward and that decision to continue working with the FBI which
reinstates her this season and that of Reddington weigh heavy on her mind. Does
she continue to seek justice or does she become that which she feared, a part
of the family business?
But the series isn’t just about Raymond and Elizabeth. The
members of the team also have problems to be dealt with. Task force head Harold
Cooper (Harry Lennix) must face the possibility of death from disease or taking
a possible but illegal cure. Agent Donald Ressler (Diego Klattenhoff) has
problems with the cleaner who took care of the Washington insider he
accidentally killed leaving him in debt to the man. And agents Aram Mojtobai
(Amir Arison) and Samar Navabi (Mozhan Marno) who became romantically involved
last season face the potential of becoming too close or not. When Navabi is
nearly killed the chances of that never happening become all too real.
Thought it all the task force continues to pursue criminals
on Reddington’s list each week with his aid. Art thieves, potentially killer
police officers, international terrorists, human smuggling and a murder for
hire group are all cases the team works on together while trying to deal with
their personal issues.
And what of the mysterious duffel bag that was center focus
for much of season four? What is in the bag and why does Reddington want it so
much? Why do those who’ve taken it find it of any value? What secret could it
possess that could change the dynamics of the working relationship between
Raymond and Elizabeth? Could it be that he actually is not her father after
all? Unfortunately the answers to most of these questions will not be found out
until season 6. But this will prepare those who missed all or part of season 5
to get caught up.
While season 4 seemed to drag and become repetitive at times
season 5 moves along at a much brisker pace. Rather than release clues that
seemed to stretch out several episodes this season provided the clues and the
answers much faster. The potential of Elizabeth becoming the next Raymond
Reddington is one of the most intriguing aspects of the series now and it
becomes difficult to decide as viewers would that be a good or a bad thing?
Would a criminal with access to information working with the FBI to take down
criminals doing far worse things be good or bad?
The production value of the show remains one of the highest
on TV. And while Spader does an outstanding job in the role of Reddington all
the members of the cast deserve equal attention. This is an ensemble cast that
works so well together and that viewers have developed feelings for in a short
time span. That shows how good a job they’ve been doing.
For myself I’m glad the series is being released on disc. I
know it provides me the chance to mull over select episodes or to go back
through them all in search of clues to the endgame that is sure to come. Until
then I can watch these and wait for the new season to start. Let’s just hope
that the show carries on until they provide the answers to all questions. Until
then we’ll just have to wait and enjoy the disc releases.
No comments:
Post a Comment