The Blacklist broke its three week streak of increasing ratings with last Thursday night's episode, 'The Major'. The hour gave The Blacklist its lowest 'live' ratings of the series with 7.49 million viewers. It was not The Blacklist's best episode, by far, although it was, as they say in the comic book world, a great jumping on point.
The reason 'The Major' is 'a great jumping on point' is because of the way the episode is crafted. A new fan could easily learn quite a bit about the mythology of the show and start watching this week without having seen any other hour of The Blacklist (except for last week's episode). However, they would miss out on some amazing scenes and story arcs crucial to the shows story.
The episode felt more like a part one of two. I was waiting for 'To be continued' to flash on the screen when it felt like the episode ended abruptly. This week's episode should continue the investigation into the Harbormaster's death with Judge Denner learning virtually everything there is to know about the task force and everyone involved. I am a little concerned about the judge and the questions he has been asking, which appear to be out of the scope of his investigation. It is a story line that, although borders on the mundane, I am interested to find out how it will all play out. It was the first time I thought the blacklister of the week took back-stage to a 'B' story in the series. However, this week's episode should restore balance as we couldn't ask for a better blacklister to date with 'Tom Keen'.
- "Of course not. Inviting him for a chat with one of your most wanted criminals would be ludicrous. You'll have to abduct him..."
Red to the FBI about abducting Minister Krishnan
- "I find cock-fighting to be abominable. However, truth be told, I do love fried-chicken."
Red
Music from the Episode
- "The Heist" - X Ambassadors
Past blacklisters flashbacks
- "Jungle" - X Ambassadors & Jamie N Commons
Flashbacks
- "Dancing in the Moonlight" - King Harvest
Arms dealer driving in his car (singing along) before Tom shoots him
- "Von dr Alb ra" (feat. Moggi) - Rock und Rollinger
Beginning of episode when Tom is in the bar in Germany.
- I like to think of last Thursday's episode as part one of two; this week's episode is part two with Tom being the blacklister of the week. One thing I noticed was two episodes ago (T. Earl King VI) we see a montage of Tom preparing for his new undercover assignment along with the song, 'Major Tom' performed by Peter Schilling. I thought it was interesting that it became his theme music and the following two episodes after that are 'The Major' and 'Tom Keen'.
- Did you notice...I'm not sure if we have seen this before or have been told about it, but during one of the flashbacks, Tom's fake brother, Craig, is the one who marries them and presides over the wedding. Does that mean that the whole wedding was void? Or possibly the fact that Tom was married prior to marrying Liz makes his marriage to her invalid. Not to mention his real name is not even Tom Keen.
- As usual, the music selection in the episode was exceptional. The songs were well placed and perfect for the ample flashback scenes. any fan that loves a clip show would love this episode of The Blacklist.
- So now that we know that Red hired Tom to get close to Liz there are more questions that pop up. For instance:
"WHY did Red hire Tom for this purpose?" - Was it to protect her? This is my theory as I don't think Red would have nefarious reasons to do so towards someone he cares so deeply for such as Liz.
"Why did Berlin steal Tom from Red?" - Did Berlin know something more or was it just to get back at Red?
"Did Red and Tom know each other personally, or did The Major just tell Tom he had an assignment for him without telling him who he would be working for?" - This would explain Red and Tom's conversation outside the hospital the day Sam died a little better.
Here is my theory involving all this: Tom was hired by Red to "protect" Liz. He did that. Then Berlin comes around and finds out that Red thinks Liz is important enough to need protection and hires Tom. Red realizes that Liz is again in danger because now she is living with an enemy spy - Tom. This is what I think is the catalyst for the entire series. The moment Red finds out that Tom jumped ship is when Red decides to do what he did in Season 1 Episode 1 which is be a CI for the FBI. This would explain why he wanted Berlin dead in S2E8 - not just because Berlin killed Fitch, but because he stole Tom and put Liz in danger as a result of that. It would also explain why Red had Ranko Zamani stab Tom in S1E1, remember that? So, ultimately I think the events that started the blacklist Red has been giving to the FBI is when he realized that the person he had protecting Liz, Tom, started working for someone else. I don't think Tom really loves Liz. I think being captured at a young age has destroyed all emotional synapses in his brain. He was protecting Liz, however, but when he got hired by Berlin it was less about protecting and more about gathering intel on her and Red for his new boss, Berlin. I would love to know what all of you think about this and also read all of your theories.
Thank you for checking out my review! Please comment below so we can discuss the episode and the series some more. Have a great week everyone! Also, don't forget we are conducting a "Live Discussion" this, and every, Thursday night during The Blacklist. If you would like to participate, just check SpoilerTV's Homepage and click on the "Live Discussion" link for The Blacklist that will be posted a few minutes before the episode begins to air.
