The Blacklist - Ep 1.14 - Madeline Pratt (No. 73) - Review

"All my life, there you go
Oh please stay, just this once
Anyway"
- Starf*cker - "Rawnald Gregory Erickson the Second"

Ice hockey is done and curling is finished. All of the international athletes and teams have gone home to their respective countries. The Olympics are officially over but if they gave a gold medal in acting James Spader would win one for his efforts in Monday night's episode of The Blacklist. Every scene he acted in was amazing to watch and every nuance of his acting was outstanding. People should tune in every week just for that alone.

This week's villain is Madeline Pratt, number 73 on the blacklist and an old acquaintance of Red. We learn quickly that she is a thief and of course, to be on the blacklist, a great one. My favorite parts of the episode were the duplicitous plot twists that seemed to be everywhere. To be honest I thought this was going to be a filler episode as the writers head into the final stretch of the season with only nine episodes left; oh how wrong I was. Right off the bat we see "Mrs. Reddington" opening a safe deposit box belonging to Red and I immediately thought that she had to be Ms. Pratt. The theft of Red's documents from the safe deposit box was to get his attention for a much bigger heist and one of great historical importance.

Madeline has asked Red to help her steel "The effigy of Astarte", an ancient Syrian artifact. In essence, it is a small sculpture of Astarte, the Syrian representation of Aphrodite or Venus. However, that is not the true treasure that Madeline seeks. Like I said, this episode is filled with duplicity. The real item of value is what is hidden inside; a piece of paper listing the Kungur Six. The Kungur Six are Soviet spies from the Cold War era but we find later that the list is not of spies but coordinates to nuclear bombs the Soviets hid at integral locations across the US during the Cold War - "The Holy Grail of US Counter Intelligence". Madeline concocts a plan for Liz to pilfer the statue while at a gala event at the Syrian Embassy where the effigy is located. This is where we learn that our very own Lizzie used to be a thief. We don't find out much about this part of her past but it's very interesting to say the least.

Liz - "I don't have a criminal record."
Ressler - "Because you never committed a crime, or because you were never caught?"
Liz - "Yes"

The plan for Liz to steal the statue was a set-up by Madeline so she could get the statue herself and get Red and Liz caught. James Spader does an incredible job acting in the scene where he rescues Liz from handcuffs. It was hilarious and I must have watched it 3 or 4 times. Red figures out Madeline betrayed them out of vengeance against Red. Apparently Red did not show up in Florence to meet Madeline last summer and she holds a grudge because it was their "way out, a fresh start". But, as we have learned in the past, no one betrays Red (especially Red AND Liz) and gets away with it. The following scene shows the lengths Red will go to in getting what he wants. He stages a kidnapping of himself and Madeline and they get locked up. Red warms up to Madeline by telling her the reason he did not make it to Florence which just so happens to be part the story of what happened to his family on Christmas Eve in 1983. For your pleasure I typed the story down below. Madeline was so touched by the story that as their captives were taking Red away she tells them she will give them the contents of effigy, the coordinates of the bombs. Red wins the game. We know Red loves revenge but he loves winning the game between thieves and criminals.

The B story this week is the continuation of Liz and Tom's struggle with their relationship and the idea of them adopting a baby. Liz, being much stronger emotionally than Tom, seems to be handling the situation alright. Tom, on the other hand, not so much. There have been a few episodes, Monday night's included, where he acts childish and callow. He storms out of the house and refuses to talk to Liz the moment the conversation is not going his way. We all wonder if Tom is a bad guy or a good guy but if you are a "bad guy" Tom you need to start acting like one. At this point he is opposite of Red in some ways. Where Red can manipulate people to get his way Tom runs and hides. It seems he is apologizing to Liz a lot lately and his "relationship" with Jolene is getting into adultery territory. Like I mentioned the duplicitous nature of the episode Tom is no exception. The scene where Liz's back is turned to Tom's mirror reflection was no accident. We will have to wait to find out what culminates from Tom's trip to Orlando where he meets up with Jolene but something tells me Tom will do something he is going to regret.

The C story revolves around the fallout from the death, or "disappearance", of Diane Fowler. Agent Cooper wants to find the truth behind her disappearance and tasks Agent Malik with finding out everything she can about Red's coming and goings because he suspects Red had something to with it. What we know is that truth would not bode well for Agent Malik since she conspired with Red to find out the identity of the FBI mole. By the end of the episode we learn that Special Agent Walter Gary Martin with the D.C. Bureau has asked Agent Cooper to stop any investigation he has going on the Fowler disappearance. I wonder who sanctioned that and what it means for Red and/or Malik?

This episode was definitely one of my favorites and I was happy to watch it a second and third time. It played out like a movie and I love when writers take the time to make episodes like this one and The Blacklist writers make a lot of them, thankfully. I would describe the forty-four minutes as "The Blacklist meets Ocean' Eleven". Well, Ocean's Three really...well...Reddington's Three. You get the point. I really enjoyed seeing Liz finally figure out how to talk to Red. Red is a master at controlling conversations and changing the subject. Liz has become so adept at handling Red's charm she can block and parry any attempts he makes of speaking about topics Liz wants kept under wraps. It's been fun watching Liz grow as an agent and as someone who can challenge Red at his own game. The scenes these two have together are some of my favorites to watch now that Liz has become accustomed to Red's articulation. I'm looking forward to the next episode.

Thoughts and/or Questions

- How cool was it to find out Liz has a past that possibly includes thievery? I love that we learn little bits of info about these characters to really flesh them out. They don't give us too much but at the same time they leave us waiting for more of these characters pasts.

- Liz flipping the sonogram back and forth in her hand at the end spoke volumes (and was really neat to see). One second they are adopting, the next they are not. One second her and Tom are together, the next they are not. One second Tom is seeking comfort with Jolene, the next...well...still seeking comfort with Jolene but in a hotel.

- And here is that story that Red told Madeline about the night he disappeared and what he saw at his home. I won't make a habit of writing stuff out like this but I thought we will definitely want to come back to this episode and relate that story he told to whatever the truth is...maybe that was the truth but with so much trickery this episode who knows?

"I ran out of gas. I was so excited to get home I didn't even bother to look. My head was just...I ran out of gas. It was Christmas Eve. I pulled off to the side of the road, seemed like it'd been snowing for days. No Traffic. No cars to come help. Just me and a car full of gifts. It was more than 20 years ago. I must have walked four miles. Five, maybe. It was so still. Just cold and white. The whole time, all I could think about was them in our house. the warm light in the windows. The smoke from the chimney. The sound of my daughter at the piano. The smell of the tree, and the fire, oyster stew on the stove. I was so upset to think that I'd ruined Christmas for them, being late, leaving the gifts in the car. But the closer I got, the more I realized how funny the whole thing was. How much they'd love the story. Daddy running out of gas. How every Christmas they'd get such joy from telling that story at my expense. And then finally, I got there. I walked...I walked through the door. And there was just blood. All I saw was blood. All there was, was blood. I can...I can still smell the nape of her neck. Feel her little...fingers on my cheek. Her whisper in my ear."

- Do you think Tom will cheat on Liz with Jolene? And I'm calling it now, he can't use the "We were on a break!" excuse that Ross gave Rachel.

- I think that was nice of Ressler at the end to stay with Liz and drop his date with Audrey. Maybe he has a thing for Liz now that she is potentially on the market? That's a joke...but maybe?

- What is Liz's past? Was she a criminal? a small-time thief?

What did you think of the episode? What do you think the future of Liz and Tom will be? Tell me in the comments below. Thanks for reading everyone!

About the Author - Geo N

My name is George and I am from Detroit, MI. My favorite shows are The Blacklist, Hell On Wheels, The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, LOST, Sons Of Anarchy, Sleepy Hollow and countless other shows. When I'm not watching tons of TV, I enjoy reading, playing hockey, comic books, weightlifting, and writing. Thanks for checking out my post.