Spoilers for last night’s episode of The Blacklist entitled "The Cryptobanker" lie beyond this point.
The Blacklist shocked with Red’s prison escape backfiring catastrophically. Confident his daring exit would work, he pleaded guilty to all counts. Before the hour ended, he got sentenced to death. A sentence he had asked the jury to deliver. Well, be careful what you wish for.
All of that is pretty dire. Well, strap on your seatbelts because The Blacklist’s creator promises even more dire times to come for Red. Discussing the shocking conclusion of last night’s nail-biter, Jon Bokenkamp had this to say to TVLine regarding the road ahead:
Looking ahead, things only become more dire. Reddington’s not just in prison anymore, he’s shipped out to Terre Haute for an execution in what are the most dire circumstances we’ve seen him in before. Some incredibly emotional scenes and some great acting come out of the episodes that are to come. He’s all but grasping at straws, and I don’t think Reddington ever thought he would be in his place.
This viewer never thought he would be in this place either! Wow. It is hard to think of things getting even worse for Red. Now, he is on death row, so they have. The only thing between him and the death penalty is going to be one heck of a miracle.
Having already waived his right to appeal, it will take one extraordinary last-minute effort to save him. That brings us to the mysterious "man in Cairo." Can he save Red -- and how? Jon Bokenkamp teases he will be a "pretty significant" player moving forward, saying:
The man in Cairo represents maybe the last lifeline he might have, but even just calling him "the man in Cairo" — we know so little about him and who this person is, how he might be able to help. Liz’s desperation is coming from a genuine place, because they’re out of time. People always say that a certain location is a character, and the clock is definitely a character in this next episode, because they are quite literally out of time.
There is no Blacklist without Red, so this guy has to come through. Right? Right. It is tough not to be more than a little frustrated with Liz at this point. She catastrophically underestimated the implications of her plan. Sadly, so did Red. When you are playing with fire, be wary of the flames.
Liz’s belief that Red could surmount any obstacle made her think she threw a minor roadblock in his path. Meanwhile, Red overestimated his abilities to mount a prison escape. In a stinging bit of conflicting symmetry, Liz’s sincere care for him inadvertently led to Red’s premature capture. Now, she will have to make things right. Red is running out of time!
I have to hand it to The Blacklist. They have thrown this viewer for a substantial loop. Red’s plans have always worked. The way things have currently been going for Red, this man in Cairo, may or may not hold the key to his freedom. As Jon Bokenkamp said, the audience knows little about him. So, it is unclear how he could help.
One of the few possibilities that make any sense is that he can fake Red’s death. The chemicals meant to kill Red could knock him out, lowering his heart rate to undetectable levels. Then, when his body arrives at another location, he can be revived and walk away as a ghost.
That would give Red a chance at a fresh start. What better place to be operating from in the future than being thought dead? How the Task Force will explain where they are getting their leads may be the only issue. Red's situation is life or death now, so the logistics of that will have to wait. Save Red!
Find out if Red can cheat death when The Blacklist continues with new episodes airing Fridays at 9 p.m. ET on NBC. The crime drama is among many shows featuring new content throughout the midseason.
