Ever since James Spader’s Raymond Reddington, the most wanted criminal on the FBI’s list, gave himself up for arrest in The Blacklist’s pilot episode, we have been hooked. With his and Elizabeth Keen’s (Megan Boone) contentious relationship at the forefront, as well as his intangible blacklist containing the names of countless underground criminals, the seasons evolved rapidly, creating a riveting mystery around the true identity of Reddington. This question became the driving force of the show later on, up until the tenth and final season, which didn’t quite hit the same. Perhaps the mystery became stale after ten years of pondering on it, or perhaps after Elizabeth’s death the answer simply became meaningless. As such, when Boone decided to exit the show in Season 8, The Blacklist should have followed suit and wrapped up its storylines alongside Elizabeth’s death.
‘The Blacklist’ Should Have Ended After Elizabeth’s Death
When Season 8 rolled around, Elizabeth was a fugitive and was battling with the idea of taking over Reddington’s criminal empire. Many of her former team members on the task force urged her to take up Reddington’s helm, so she could follow in his footsteps and help the FBI take down more elusive criminals. However, her concern over her daughter and her distrust in Reddington prolonged her decision-making until the fateful finale. Reddington and Elizabeth finally come face to face, but Reddington implores her to shoot him, as his empire will only accept her if she herself takes him down. To encourage her, he promises he will give her a letter that was written by her mother, and as such, she is about to make the excruciating choice, slowly raising her gun.
But before she can pull the trigger, one of the antagonist’s henchmen does so first, shooting her squarely in the back. The two share a dismal moment together as Elizabeth’s life slips away, never having the full closure of knowing what truth was in her mother’s letter and who Reddington really is. While Elizabeth was never the most popular character, she was critical to the overarching narrative arc in The Blacklist, and her relationship with Reddington was the most compelling, as duty, emotion and curiosity all swirled together in conflicting cycles of love and hate. As such, without Elizabeth and their ambiguous “father-daughter” driving the show, seasons 9 and 10 never really felt the same.
Reddington’s Mystery Doesn’t Make Sense Without Elizabeth
Though their cycle of agreement and arguing became repetitive throughout the seasons of The Blacklist, their relationship was the crux of the show’s most intriguing mystery. In the pilot, Reddington’s caveat for helping the task force was being able to communicate directly with Elizabeth, which was strange considering she was the newest member, only recruited because of this stipulation. As their relationship grew, giving us cute scenes of them dancing or hiding out together, they gave us something to invest in, especially as we wonder why this crime lord has such a vested interest in her. Without it, the final two seasons lost its momentum and purpose, simply sticking to the police procedural aspect and the team’s ability to cope with their grief.
The prevailing theory around Reddington’s identity is that he is Elizabeth’s mother (yes, you read that right), subtly supported by the show’s finale where his conversation with Agnes hinted that he couldn’t drop his “motherly” habits. But the series never outright confirms this, and it makes sense, as there is no one with any real stakes in the answer to the series’ most burning question. Without Elizabeth, the truth would simply fall flat — it simply isn’t as significant anymore. Her death stole the wind out of their sails, and the series should have petered off with it, wrapping up the show at Season 8.
Reddington Deserved His Own ‘The Blacklist’ Spin-off
In the context of The Blacklist, the secrets around Reddington and pursuing them simply doesn’t make sense anymore, but that doesn’t mean it needs to be stopped completely. The suave and elusive crime lord is absolutely the star of the show, and a better way to continue his story would have been to create a spin-off rather than the measly two seasons we got. The creators did try and expand their potential franchise before with The Blacklist: Redemption, following popular character Tom Keen (Ryan Eggold) before, but it was ultimately cancelled after one season. Though this seems like a bad omen, they could actually learn from their mistakes of switching up the storytelling style and genre to create a more effective spin-off for the insanely beloved Reddington.
While Reddington’s relationship with Elizabeth was the driving force of the show’s central mystery, Reddington was the heart of the show — the reason we kept sticking the final two seasons out. Considering Boone’s exit was also planned, a more powerful move would have been resolving the identity arc in Season 8, then shifting gears with a spin-off and let Reddington truly take the reins. Unfortunately, we have to chalk this up to wishful thinking and instead enjoy the cop procedural aspects of Seasons 9 and 10, all while knowing the show’s rightful ending was with Elizabeth’s death and her tumultuous bond with the eccentric Reddington.
