The Blacklist: Redemption

Characters are great - Tom, Scottie and Mattias work well together but it is awful without the focus on Reddington.

A real hotch-potch of an attempt at a spin off. Never liked split screen rubbish in anything but coped because I loved the characters.

Shame season 2 has been axed rather than fixing the drunk writers and having another go.

So far, it's OK, it's not surprising for The Blacklist's viewers since we've already seen a glimpse, yes, we want to understand Tom's story and whatever happened there but does that involve filming a spin off? I'm not so sure. Also, Alias was in my head the whole time, it looks a like it and not in the good way.

The indefatigable Tom Keen from The Blacklist sets off on new adventures as part of a shadowy organization contracted by the US government that may or may not be the good guys. As with The Blacklist, it's hard to tell who's naughty and nice in this exciting TV show that, while derivative at times, benefits immeasurably from breathless pacing and meticulously plotted stories. At its core, this is a story of love and betrayal, with liberal doses of paranoia thrown in. I wouldn't want to live in Tom Keen's world, but I have to admit that it makes for an entertaining hour of television.

Of course, this is not The Blacklist, without Reddington. But the idea of making a spin-off with some of the lesser-than-leading characters from the main series is, well, fascinating. The pilot was entertaining, but definitely lacked the depth and intrigue of the original series. I just hope the authors manage to make the main characters a bit less flat than they currently are. Eggold is a decent actor, but his character needs to mature. Hopefully, this does not become just another action show.

So far I enjoy the characters they are building. I find that today stories need to unfold and people always jump on the hate wagon to early to allow the story to be told. This series has action, suspense and interesting characters, the uncovering of Tom's story is very good.

I feel the key is how they weave it into the Blacklist to give this world a sense of cohesion with the BL universe. It will be nice to see Liz and Red join the fray. I am enjoying it thus far 3 episodes in and look forward to seeing what is next. I find good stories are not in if the story has similarities to other stories but the nuances of how the story is told and the feelings we get toward the characters who are setting the pace.

I have always thought Tom was a bad ass and loved Famke she is top notch and nice on the eyes. Again the key is in how they cross over the two shows and I sure hope people give this show a chance to develop as i feel every spin off needs time to stretch its legs. Until later I think this is a great watch.