Change Your Image
cbenzion
Reviews
The Blacklist: Godwin Page (No. 141) (2021)
Glaring Double Standard
I am writing this review as a needed correction to an unending load of, in my opinion, poor reviews, perhaps by the same recurrent group of people who laud Reddington and condemn Elizabeth.
These reviews are apparently by adolescents who fawn over the macho Reddington so much that they can't possibly objectively judge his egregious evil.
Simultaneously, as expected, they actually portray Elizabeth as being the bad person who unjustifiably wants to revenge Reddington's killing of her mother, right in front of her!
Add to this the now overflowing and growing consensus of most FBI team members that there is a huge double standard vis-a-vis Reddington's immense brutal criminality and thievery which are totally overlooked vs the almost instant decision that Elizabeth's focused campaign against Reddington (for good reason) brands her as an renegade agent who deserves to be 'burned'.
Let me remind one and all:
Reddington kills some 150-200 people a year - most of whom would otherwise not die - and most are unnecessary and would not have been "shoot-to-kills' if FBI agents were involved, and most of all: the majority are for the main purpose of Reddington stealing tens of millions of dollars.
Furthermore, Reddington has sold-out his country many times, and even if not absolute treason, he comes very very close. And, this includes the sale of very serious weapons to terrorists and repressive regimes.
Lastly, let's compare Reddington's contribution to the FBI and justice vs his crimes: we have seen him kill what must be about 200 people a season - a large portion of which are not fully condemnable villains and would otherwise not die, and as mentioned earlier, are mostly killed to protect Reddington's identity or to garner him huge profit and control of serious criminal operations.
So, if in one season Reddington helps in the capture of 20 blacklisters, let's assume he helps save about 500 lives. If, as we said earlier, we see him kill about 200, then this means that he kills each year, 40% as much as the blacklist villains he helps the FBI neutralize!
And the FBI team actually aids him full-time in these barbaric and criminal acts. Can this be justified, by any stretch of the imagination?
So, enough of the lambasting of Elizabeth whose life has been ruined by Reddington and after witnessing so much, including his cold-blooded killing of her mother, cannot accept the status quo any longer.
Her anger and desire to eliminate him should - in light of what I have explained above - be the unanimous feeling of any decent and objective person who witnesses the rank corruption that is manifest in the FBI's empowerment, abetting and actively aiding such horrific and wanton murderous criminality.
The Blacklist: The Cryptobanker (No. 160) (2019)
Sickening
We have watched Liz flip flop on Reddington more times than I can count.
But the worst was her pleading and praise in court. "His many acts of conscience".
What baloney! The man kills a dozen people every month. For every bad guy he helps the FBI catch, saving lives, Reddington kills in cold blood a dozen others. And most not by necessity to catch the villain, but to achieve some ulterior notice for his own gain, like selling arms to terrorists.
It's safe to say that one Reddington equals five of the violent criminials he help the FBI capture.
Add to that the fact that he is NOT Liz's father and therefore he's "working over" Liz and taking advantage of her - until recently - under false pretenses.
And even now that she knows he's an imposter, she still aids and abets his criminal career.
Even the FBI team has become railroaded into believing that Reddington can murder dozens of people they themselves never would, in order to catch criminals often not much worse than Reddington himself.
I am most disappointed at reviewers her that ooh and ah about Reddington as he were Robin Hood instead of a selfish violent criminal that helps the FBI 10% and himself 90%.
The Blacklist: Mr. Kaplan (No. 4) (2017)
High Rating - Disgusted with the Message
This and other episodes are undeniably well done. Yet, I cannot possibly accept the attitude of the characters and the resultant message:
"It's valid and acceptable to capture serious criminals at the cost of facilitating (yes!) Reddington's murder of 3-4 people in each case, and not only making money from crime, but even dastardly crimes that threaten national security, like selling weapons to terrorists."
There is no way this "compromise" can be whitewashed because the gain - at least in all but dire ticking-bomb situations - cannot outweigh the FBI facilitating a level of murder and serious crimes of such a monstrous scale.
This besmirches Elizabeth, Cooper and the entire team - beyond redemtion.
And Elizabeth's disregard and forgiveness of the wanton attempt by Reddington to kill her life-saving, loving nanny Kate, destroys any credibility and sympathy for her.