The much awaited return of The Blacklist is finally here! In this episode we meet a mysterious woman from Reddington’s past, Madeline Pratt. There seems to be a lot of chemistry between Red and the woman of mystery. There will also need to be some mention of the fact that Red killed Diane Fowler on the last episode.
We start with this week’s blacklisted person, Madeline Pratt in Istanbul. She playing the role of a grieving widow accessing her dead husband’s safety deposit box. She has identified herself to the bank as, Mrs. Reddington! Oh my! Madeline sends a message to Red to meet her at a bar. Before saying hello, Red asks her how she got the key. She has taken 10 million dollars in documents from Red. It seems as though these two may have a romantic history. She tells Red she has a proposition for him.
Red and Liz are teaming up to steal an antiques statue, the Effigy of Atargatis. Hidden in the statue is a list of the Kungur Six, top Soviet spies that the US hopes to capture to preserve national security. The statue is currently inside the Syrian embassy. Liz and Red intend to go there and pull off the heist. I am not sure if they are working with Madeline Pratt or against her at this point.
But first they go to talk to Cooper who is very suspicious of Red’s involvement in the disappearance of Diane Fowler. Cooper allows Liz to go with Red to the embassy to nab the effigy. Red introduces Liz to Madeline under a fake name with a fake backstory. I am kind of bored. I mean I hate to say it, but…yawn. Maybe it’s just me.
Tom and Liz are still not getting along. Tom wants Liz to go to a teacher conference in Orlando with him. They agree that they need some time together alone.
Cooper asks Agent Malik to investigate Red for the murder of Diane Fowler. Which is interesting because Agent Malik gave Red the intel that lead him to bump off Fowler.
At the party at the Embassy, Liz goes off alone to steal the statue, dumb idea. Red keeps Madeline distracted. Sparks are flying between Red and Madeline. Madeline is upset that Red stood her up in Florence. She is asking Red for an explanation when our favorite newbie FBI agents sets off all the alarms and all hell breaks loose. The guests are taken to a secure bunker, but Liz is caught red-handed. Madeline literally points the finger at Reddington sending security after him. Red goes to save Liz in a somewhat hilarious act as her gay BFF who carries her furs and bikinis. Red saves Liz from the incompetent bodyguard. However, Madeline has already made off with the effigy.
Tom calls Liz excited about the Orlando trip. Liz has to cancel. Tom decides to leave early on his own. Liz is frustrated that her work keeps screwing up her marriage. Liz and Ressler interrogate a guy with information on the effigy. The Kungar Six are not Soviet agents at all but six nuclear bombs the Russians have hidden all across the country.
Red goes to talk to Madeline. The two argue because Madeline seems to be a scorned lover. As they are standing out on a sidewalk in broad daylight they are both tasered and shoved into a van. They come to in a dark and scary place where they are placed in separate cells. Madeline says the statue is already gone. She sold it to the Russians. Red starts rambling about running out of gas. A sad story about walking home on Christmas Eve trying to get home to his wife, and daughter who would be playing the piano. It sounds like bullshit to me but Madeline is hanging on his every word. Red is so making this story up. He gets there and finds blood everywhere and his family dead. Red is going into emotional details and Madeline is crying. Red says that is why he didn’t show up in Florence. That is why he has not shown up in a lot of places over the years. The bad guys come for Red presumably to kill him. Madeline spills her guts to save him. Moments later, Red is there all clean and pristine in a suit. He set Madeline up and now he has the location of the effigy. Bravo, Red. Bravo.
So off everyone goes to get the effigy. There is a huge gun battle. Somehow Ressler!!!!??? manages to restrain the bad guy running off with the effigy. It was hand to hand combat no less and Ressler managed not to get shot! It’s a Blacklist miracle! But alas, the statue was just full of liquid. Madeline set Red up on a good old-fashioned goose chase. But why? What is her angle? Apparently, Red got the coordinates out of Madeline in the heat of a passionate moment they shared while the Feds were off getting the effigy. Red trades the effigy for the coordinates. And everyone is happy I suppose.
Liz thinks Tom is going to leave her. She and Ressler share a moment. Are these two going to end up together? Red goes home to find his priceless Vermeer has been taken and a note from Madeline in its place. The note reads, ” She’s waiting for you in Florence, M.” We are then shown Madeline, presumably in Florence happily gazing at the Vermeer painting.
Liz goes home to an empty house. Tom runs into the “substitute teacher” at the conference and seems very happy to see her.
Some big wig shows up to tell Cooper to stop investigating Diane Fowler’s disappearance. He is to stop his investigation immediately.
The preview for next week indicates that A BIG TRUTH WILL BE REVEALED. I will believe it when I see it. Overall, I was expecting a better episode after such a long hiatus. What did you think?
Love this show. “Suits”, “The Americans”,and “Chicago Fire”.
I so agree with you TT. After the Garrick episodes, this entrée after the break was kind of ho-hum.
But, loved Red’s gay impersonation – wasn’t overboard flamboyant and hell that was a lot of fast & furious dialogue for Spader. Bravo. Of course he could read a recipe and I’d probably enjoy it.
I have a couple feelings 1) there is some truth to the story about finding his family dead; and 2) that ‘big wig’ agent looked like a slicked-back slimy criminal guy that I think Red arranged for him to call off the investigation of Fowler. He cited this ‘Level 4’ and I’m thinking it means that the case is above Cooper’s level of intel that he won’t be able to verify if the agency actually called it off. I’d also think that Malik having given the mole info to Red, also told him she’s been ordered to investigate him.
Yes it was a ho hum episode but I also enjoyed it. For once I wasn’t left questing about do many things that my brain hurt.
Liz’s husband made a quick comment about his his alias’s. She smiled back at him so that means those two talked about the box of alias of his. When did that happen? I only remember her finding them not anything about a conversation about them.
calipatti, remember back in the episode when Tom (the husband) was taken to “The Post Office” with a hood over his head? That was to interrogate him concerning the contents of the box. He claims to not know anything about well, anything. He is definitely lying in my opinion but that is no surprise considering I think all men lie. Ha! But I feel he is more involved in a lot of shadiness. Just waiting for that story to unfold…
Thank you, then the one – liner on this episode was him being sarcastic/joking in his denial of alias’s and Liz thinking the alias were planted by someone. (Red)
Tom is in this mess, IMO. No way is he a school teacher wanting to move to middle America.
I concur. I do not trust him… could be the beady eyes, sketchy actions, or this odd relationship he is developing with this “substitute teacher”. I have a feeling Red is behind this mystery lady in Tom’s life. I am so thrilled to be watching a show that makes me think as opposed to the brain numbing bullshit involved with these reality shows… still I fall prey to them every once in awhile.
LM~effin~AO about a teacher wanting to move to middle America. Hard to fathom, considering my relatives are mostly comprised of educators (Professors, Superintendents, and Teachers in the Mid West)! They are all miserable, bless ’em… :/
T, great recap. I love this show. James Spader makes the show for me.
I always look forward to your recaps then forget to thank you. Thank You!!
When I win the Lotto I will share. I am going to win big.
I am aware we are all on the edge of our seats fiercely attempting to put the clues together and sort out varying paths we have been lead down in this ongoing mystery which surrounds Red. However, after tonight’s episode I was left with one burning question…. where the hell did Lizzie get that bright red, 80’s prom dress she wore to such a formal occasion? Did wardrobe feel making the slit as close as possible to her “coo coo ca choo” would make this monstrosity work? FYI: Not working for anyone with taste!
Now, onto a more serious note, I feel there was some truth to what Red was sharing with Pratt during their fake imprisonment. Excerpts of his Christmas anecdote coming home to chaos and “so much blood” (in which he never states his family was dead but merely the continual reference to lots of blood) match tidbits of Lizzie’s flashbacks of the fire when she was a child. I believe this may have been a subtle clue for this week’s episode.
Not all the episodes can be as fascinating as “The Stew Maker” and I for one can appreciate the slower one’s which give me more time to digest previous episodes. A HUGE kudos to Red for his gay rant. Spot on! Is it wrong for me to still want in his pants even as a gay man? Maybe a better question for my therapist this week…
I spent most of the episode trying to catch up on the changes to Liz. I wondered if the writers took the break to read the comments and decided she needed to be Sidney Bristow (Jennifer Garner) from ” Alias.”
She showed up on the dance floor in the red dress, picked a pocket, created a distraction, and as she descended the staircase, I thought “that’s a scene out of Alias.”
I wonder if her commenting that she thinks her husband is going to leave her was the writers way of announcing the change in direction for her character. I would rather they just say that they are divorcing than waste screen time on an affair. Give that time to James! The gay BFF was the best scene all season.
Loved it – and the recap!
I cannot wait for something to be revealed. I just think there are so many things that are confusing at this point, it is starting to NOT be fun.
I agree with several of you who say at least part of his family story was true. During that entire story, I just kept thinking about the house he had to buy and then blew up.
I just thought maybe I missed the whole point of that episode. And after WEEKS of time to digest the previous episodes I was ready for some ANSWERS to something. Or at least some decent clues.
The chick who plays Liz is getting better as an actress, or else we are all just getting used to her. But really what did we this episode have to do with anything at all?
I figure Tom knew that Liz could not just get away for a whole week and was planning to meet whatsherface there anyway.
What is with all the baby story lines? Baby farms and surrogate mothers and baby showers only for Red to convince Liz not to adopt with Tom. Will Tom knock up the “substitute teacher” in “Orlando”? Fun fact: Substitute teachers don’t go to teacher conferences.
On Wed, Feb 26, 2014 at 11:04 AM, Tamara Tattles wrote:
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I think they are just giving Liz better interaction with Red. Before the last couple of episodes, her scenes with him were really short. I think more screen time with Red and making her a little more “sinister” is giving us the impression that she is better. I am afraid that we still have the same ole Liz.
I am still holding out for Red being her father, whether biological or “stand-in”. I think this is why we keep being bombarded with adoption stuff – to keep our minds thinking “non-traditional” family.
I am really over Tom! He reminds me of the woman who marries a military guy and then constantly complains that he is out on maneuvers – It’s just part of the job. I just need to know the truth about him and then they can kill him off.
Thanks for recapping this show………….. : )
I, too, believe Red is picking specific numbers off the “BlackList” that are relevant in forcing Liz to question her personal life… This show is too yummy for words!
I have to admit I watch The Blacklist for James Spader and him alone. OMG, how that man can act! Very under-rated bad ass who flats under the radar. Spader despises fandom and his being an eccentric recluse might just backfire.
Maybe the connection between Red and Liz that’s been the mystery thread of this show, is that if he turns out not to actually be her bio father, Red had a connection to her father where he promised him if anything happened to him, he’d take care of Liz for the rest of his life.
I too thought Red was telling the truth about his family during his ‘confession’. Why is Tom’s stalker EVERYWHERE? Time for Lizzie to put her on blast if she wants to stay married to creepy Tom.