Opposite to last week where we had a drear case of the week, but some inventive and exhilirating action, 'Condone Untidiest Thefts' had a stronger story, brought down by average and only mildly exciting shoot em up action sequences.
The theme of the week was the strong bond of family, and how loyal one should be to their family when ideals begin to clash. Patrick O'Malley, like Jane, is a former criminal on the path of redemption who finds his loyalties tested. The scene that saw Jane persuade Patrick to help them take down his cousin and head of the mob, Senator O'Malley, was very effective in getting that message across.
I like how the show continues to weave in the case of the week with Jane's predicament and without getting too overly preachy. This season has done a far better job at conveying these interweaving themes than last season.
The episode also continued to show Reade's downward spiral, reaching quite the shocking and dramatic conclusion. I'm liking that they are giving Reade his own storyline, but at the same time how will his character change after the events of this episode and how will that affect the show overall? The best aspect of Reade was the levity he brought and a more serious Reade could drown Blindspot in too much melodrama. It will be interesting to see how they handle his storyline and his character as the season progresses.
It seems Naz and Weller are starting to get a bit playful with each other from having a laugh while drinking tequila together last week to Naz teasing Kurt as they look over his graduation photos this week. I don't think the writers would be stupid enough to make Naz a love interest, on top of Jane and Allie, so hopefully this playfulness is just out of friendship and it doesn't go any deeper than this.
Speaking of which, Naz has definetly fit in well within the show. She is an effective leader and can more than handle herself in the field, which is important for an action heavy show like Blindspot. That moment when she created the grenade to cover her and Weller was pretty darn cool.
Another new character, or at least a character getting more spotlight is the pregnant-with-Weller's-child Allie, who has been causing quite the divide among fans. Though she is a tolerable character, and I mean only just, she is quite unnecessary and this pregnancy storyline takes air time away from characters that matter more. If there will be a death this season it should and probably will be her, but hopefully after she gets a miscarriage.
On top of the development with Reade's storyline, the episode also revealed the contents behind the black swirl. Executive producer Martin Gero said in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that many shows tend to struggle with making the past matter, especially with characters that are written off and that "people get removed from the equation, and then maybe a few episodes later they are almost forgotten." The mind behind Blindspot does make a good point and it's good to see Mayfair, as annoying as she was, continue to play into the storyline this season, since there is still so much about her we don't know, especially with regards to the big picture of things.
Overall, 'Condone Untidiest Thefts' gave us probably the strongest story of this young season, packed with exciting, but not entirely inventive, action sequences. Despite being a case of the week, Jane's predicament with her family continues to be explored in a subtle, but resonant manner, while Reade's ordeal added quite the dramatic heft to an episode that ended with some shocking developments.
8.5/10
Thank you for reading! Please discuss what you thought of 'Condone Untidiest Thefts' in the comments below and vote what your favourite moments were!
