Eastcoast wrote:

I am now wondering and worried on one hand that Liz is going to go to Red and blow up the way she does at Red. On the other hand we will see if she has grown. Maybe she will realize that this could cost Dembe if she shoots her mouth off.

Eastcoast - I agree.  I think maybe this will be a test for her, she will have to think it through before reacting (hopefully).    And, will she tell Tom and/or will Red find out that way - there are some that think Red/Tom working together in some way.  I don't know about that, but I think we are going to find out some things in the next couple of episodes.

Ditto with what you said re Tom - I think the allure of the passports will be too hard to resist.  he's being honest with Liz by telling her he retrieved them from the trash.  But, he did retrieve them ---
 

Well now, looks like we are getting back to business. What started out as being a creepy psychopath turned out to not be a psychic child but ended up as bad guys manipulating the stock market for profit via carefully targeted murders. And Red exacting some revenge, taking out some baddies who exploit children and hiring a new cleaning crew. The twist, of course, was Dembe being pushed to the limits over the Kate affair and going to Liz to tell her that Red didn't replace Kate, he killed her. I suspect that Kate and Dembe's closeness probably does go back to when Red rescued Dembe and she likely helped to care for him. Dembe is obviously very conflicted between his loyalty to Red and his sense of justice for Kate. Because "Dembe is a good man." Which was underscored by Red telling Enoki that he was a bad man. It made me think of his conversation with Peter Fonda in The Mombassa Cartel. in any case, I don't think that Liz will rush off to confront Red, at least not right away. The way Dembe told her, he seemed to make it very clear that Red only cares about Liz and Agnes anymore, to the exclusion of everything else. He sees what Kate was saying that she saw. I think Dembe regrets telling Kate he was not on her side in this, because he has come to the same conclusion - that Red is on a self-destructive path. But I also think Dembe was telling Liz that he would not hurt her or Agnes, and that was why he decided to tell her, figuring  she might be the only person in the world who had a chance to save Red from himself. Especially if she is shown how far Red has gone in killing Kate.

So, I still don't understand why Dembe has never gone back to The Acre to give Kate a decent burial, at the very least. I don't think he is worried about Red finding out. Red might disapprove, but he should understand why Dembe might want to do that. Of course the writers can't have Dembe do that because he would find out that Kate had "disappeared" and that would really complicate things and I don't think they are ready to go there just yet. But I think they will eventually. And now they might have to drag Liz into it. So let's just say that Liz and Dembe go out there and find Kate gone. They would realize that either she was still alive and got away or that if she was dead that somebody might have found her body. But whatever they concluded, they would need to find out for sure what happened. They couldn't tell Red, because that would mean that he would know that Dembe talked, and if Kate was alive that he would have to find her and finish her. It would put a lot of people in a lot of awkward and compromised positions, that's for sure. Then again, it could even be that Red has been pushing Dembe all along to test his loyalty after he saw what Kate had done to him. I'd hate to think he's been doing that, but you never know where that story might be going. Whatever the plan is, I hope they don't waste a great opportunity for some really potentially great plot twists and storytelling. But I'm not too worried about that! 

Oh, my dear moderators - You have so much more faith in Liz than I do. I think in the end Liz will try to save Red from his self-destructive nature. But in the meantime, I believe she will feel both intense guilt and anger over Kaplan's demise. I expect her to go through all the stages of grief over what happened to Kate. For a while, I think, this will push Liz and Red farther apart - kind of like when she found out about Red killing Sam at the end of Season 1. So far, everything this season has paralleled the events of Season 1, so I think this will too. I do agree that this is a test for Liz. The Blacklist is first and foremost a tale of the hero's journey, and Liz is that hero, even though Spader highjacked the show as the antihero and mentor.. Seeing how Liz handled Tom and his passport confesssion does give me hope that she will offer than same gift of forgiveness to Red "someday". But Tom is doing something we've never seen Red do - freely offer up the truth without being asked. I hope Tom and Dembe's truthfulness is foreshadowing Red's. 

I like that the new cleaners are kind of fearless and sassy. And I do think the one who called Dembe a tall drink of chocolate milk has a man crush on him. I'm not sure these cleaners are the right cleaners for Red since they work for the police as their day job. Bringing in these cleaners may be a big mistake.

Last edited by Tuxie400 (1/13/2017 11:06 am)

Only minor regret for episode "Club Soda" (I take liberties in re-naming things) is they really put Agent Navabi on the bench. Tom had one good scene and a couple short scenes playing daddy longlegs with Lizzy.

Dembe, Red & The 2 new cleaners were probably the 3 stars of last nite's affair....

Red always seems to have the last word or the last play on things. I kinda feel that he knows kate is alive. Knew everything all along. like we've said before, Red doesn't miss when he really wants to kill someone. He probably set up mountain man to find her. And they are definitely setting up for Redemption with Tom and the passports. And I kinda liked "daddy" Tom singing to Agnes.

I don't know, susmize13, he "missed" Anslo Garrick when he shot him in the face. That cost him Luli, almost Dembe, and caused a whole lot of extra trouble. Maybe he was trying out some new ammo when he shot Kate, too? 

You may be right there, BBB #66, Red may be going on a bloody war soon. Kind of like when Naomi was kidnapped by Berlin and he went on a killing spree, keeping Kate extra busy cleaning up after him. Something is going on with him that we haven't been let in on yet. Things should be pretty good for him right now, nobody is in imminent danger - that we know of. Of course Red lives under constant threat, that's "normal" for him.

I'm thinking that Kate is smart enough to just stay away. And I think the only thing that would bring her out into the open willingly would be if she thinks she is the only one who can save Red from something. And that would have to be something big that forced her back. I got that impression from her conversation with Mountain Man. She told him the story very matter-of-factly until she got to the part about Red being a danger to himself, then I thought I detected some worry and emotion about that part. But it would have to be something that only Kate could fix, otherwise I don't think she's planning on coming back. We will see her again, though, of that I am sure.

 

Thanks Tuxie! I am totally obsessing over this show right now! I absolutely love it!!! I had lots of thoughts about this episode. Maybe after a rewatch I'll make another post. Glad to be among some like=minded people!! 

Fangirl - welcome!!   Always good to have another obssessed fan on board!

Tuxie400 wrote:

BBB - As for stars of the episode, don't forget Aram. He was the one who really figured the case out. And he was out in the field for a change.

Aram had lots of face time - but I found they directed him way too frantically. Even for Aram's semi-frantic chaotic character type!

The two fellas who ended up dead were also afforded lots of screen time - but neither of them made much impact immo

I'll give you Aram then cuz he's part of the main cast - and CLUB SODA could be a one & done for all we know!
 

Overall, I liked the episode, but it didn't have to be the Blacklist. Could have been any crime drama except for Dembe's visit to Liz at the last second.
A few random observations:
1. The cleaners can only work in DC (NYC) because of their day jobs. I think Mr. Kaplan and her team went everywhere.
2. Odd that the killer didn't kill Aram but only knocked him out. (Good thing!)
3. I thought Red was trying to get the entire cobalt mine. In the end he may have done just that. His comment that he only invests in things he can control...
4. There are so many loose ends from previous seasons! It feels like they're being ignored.
5. For instance, the Cabal/fulcrum storyline that was everything for such a long time. Are they done going after Red because he gave patents to Laurel Hitchins? And they're ignoring Liz, who was once so important to get?
6. Where are the Blacklisters who weren't killed or jailed? Was it Mr. Kaplan who was in charge of them, and at some point they may be loyal to her if she goes up against Red?
7. What will be the impetus for Tom leaving for the spin off? Gina Zanetakos is still out there... (As are the German guys who wanted to kill him and the Major!)