What a relief. After a few weeks in a slump, it was as if
the writers who had once stood at the helm of their boat with only the vast sea
surrounding them, recalled that past magnificence.
Slumps happen to every show, and The Blacklist was no exception. Red's singular brilliance could only carry the show so far. The writing became predictable, and the plot lines lacked real drama. Was it Obamacare bad? No. But The Blacklist had slipped from the summit of its splendor.
In this episode, however, we witnessed a return to the thundering power of horses racing around the Piazza del Campo and the subtle graces of a good book under the shade of a cool tree that marked the early crafting of The Blacklist.
Sure, I could nitpick about a few scenes or the copious amounts of violence and blood in this episode.* But to do so would take away from the pure entertainment of this episode.
And joy of joys! Round two comes next week.
Many times I get frustrated when one episode gets split into two parts. Sometimes the cliffhanger is just too suspenseful, lacking sufficient resolution. The quintessential example of this to me is Pirates of the Caribbean 2. It doesn't stand alone as a movie. At all. Completely unsatisfying. It needs Pirates 3 in the worst way. The Blacklist, however, provided enough closure to stand alone as a proper episode while leaving enough suspense to keep me anticipating next week.
Here's hoping the second part delights us like a second bottle of wine at L'Ambroisie.
*Is it any wonder America has a violence problem?