Spoilers for the 150th episode (“Roy Cain”) of The Blacklist are below.
The 150th episode of The Blacklist culminated with Liz reuniting with her mother (again) and the sense that Katarina is the show’s real villain. All of this is assuming that the woman saying she is Katarina is really Katarina. Again, I still have some doubts but, if she is, then Liz’s mom is a villain.
In the 150th episode, there was plenty of focus on an explosively specific plot reveal relating to The Blacklist’s overarching mythos. However, there was a lot of foreshadowing for Katarina and her daughter, Liz. Both parties know that Red knows Katarina faked her death and is alive. Liz also seems to be awakening to the fact Red’s days are potentially numbered.
According to Katarina, the reason for her monstrous behavior is Red’s fault because he won't tell her what she wants to know. The sought-after knowledge seems to be a combination of Red’s true identity (good luck finding that out) and whoever is trying to kill her. She hasn't made tremendous progress with in either respect between The Blacklist’s Season 7 premiere and the show's 150th episode.
By the time that “Roy Cain” ended, Katarina had threatened to murder Dembe’s Imam, Sadiq Asmal, unless Dembe agreed to spill Red’s secrets. Dembe was on the verge of doing so when Red showed up and disrupted things. The Blacklist’s150th episode ended without Katarina’s horrifying tactic succeeding, hough it confirmed how far she was willing to go to “win.”
Many could argue that Red has also threatened lives to get information but, to my knowledge, he has not done that with a known innocent on The Blacklist. Katarina has, and she did not precisely affirm to Liz that she was bluffing. The justification is self-preservation and knowledge that is not entirely her business (Red’s identity), unless you consider unsatisfied curiosity enough of an incentive.
Katarina’s willingness to torture people is absolutely horrifying. She did it with Red at the start of Season 7, and she did it to the real Ilya Koslov, who she left emotionally broken afterward. The Blacklist has expressed to viewers that they can “trust” Katarina, but that doesn't mean she's not a villain.
Katarina was never known to be a heroine on any level. Her time on The Blacklist during Season 7 has solidified that she is not an antiheroine, either. Liz’s mom is a full-blown villain willing to do whatever it takes in the name of herself. I don't buy that she has any other motive, and I am not sympathetic. So let the fallout and Red’s next move commence!
Threatening Dembe’s Imam should have been it for Liz, and yet she continues to have a soft spot for her terrible mother on The Blacklist. If Liz doesn't act fast, her descent into her mother’s level of villainy may not be far behind. After all, doing nothing is the same as being complicit.
The Blacklist’s most recent season ended with Red warning Katarina that she was in danger. If he was the villain that Katarina seems to be trying to convince Liz that he is, then he wouldn't have alerted Katarina. It's only brought him trouble, and Red is probably regretting that now.
Red’s act of compassion led to Katarina’s squad shooting her father (and Red’s good friend) and leaving him in a coma. How things play out with Katarina’s dad, Dom, is one of the many aspects of the show that should get addressed when Season 7 comes to its early conclusion. But however the Season 7 finale concludes, I will not be Team Katarina by the end of it.
Tune in to see what happens next with Katarina when the part-animated/part live-action Season 7 finale of The Blacklist airs this coming Friday, May 15, at 8 p.m. ET on NBC. Thankfully, TV fans have this summer’s premieres to help look forward to afterward. You can also watch past villains roam The Blacklist by streaming previous seasons on Netflix, along with lots of 2020 arrivals.
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