The Blacklist with James Spader

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by The Panda, Sep 19, 2013.

  1. tonyc

    tonyc Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    I thought it was funny when she decided to clean the rug rather than visit her husband in the hospital.
     
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  2. PNeski@aol.com

    [email protected] Forum Resident

    Location:
    New York
    this show really is pretty stupid,the FBI are a bunch of stooges who aren't in the same league as the Brilliant Criminal's ,They can't do a thing ,the poor helpless heroine is bound to find out that Spader is her dad
    the idea that some critics are calling this the best show of the new season is sad, I do think its somewhat entertaining because Spader is perfect casting
     
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  3. tonyc

    tonyc Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    I thought of that, too. It really is the only thing that would justify his interest, isn't it?
     
  4. The Panda

    The Panda Forum Mutant Thread Starter

    Location:
    Marple, PA, USA
    I'm thinking more along the lines of her father saved his butt once and died in the process and he feels compelled to make amends. If he's really her father, I'll be disappointed. That's been done before in a galaxy far far away.
     
  5. etzeppy

    etzeppy Forum Resident

    Location:
    Texas, US
    The comments early in this thread were very positive but turned south quickly. I was starting to think that I just had a bad attitude since I checked out less than halfway through the first episode. I do not give serial dramas much latitude after being burned so many times buy shows with no payoff. I am either in or out pretty quickly. I bailed on this one.
     
  6. tonyc

    tonyc Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    From my point of view, my comments were positive about the pilot as a highly entertaining stand alone episode. I think the recent comments in the thread are about problems this show may face in the long run as a series which I think are very legitimate. But, as I said earlier, I'm at least going to tune in to Episode 2 and give it a chance.
     
  7. Vidiot

    Vidiot Now in 4K HDR!

    Location:
    Hollywood, USA
    I thought the show was very lame and predictable until they got to the surprising reveal about the husband with the half-dozen passports and $500,000 in cash hidden under the floor. The story kept me guessing, and while James Spader is chewing up the scenery, I can't dispute that it's an entertaining show.

    It's clear to me that they're headed towards Spader helping the female FBI agent because she's his daughter -- that's the only place they can go, unless I'm very mistaken. It would explain why he paid some Russian guy to go and deliberately stab her (apparently bad-guy) husband in the gut.
     
  8. Mylene

    Mylene Senior Member

    They've been advertising this show in Australia for at least 6 months. It starts here tomorrow night and I was going to avoid it like the plague but this thread has sparked my interest. Hostages starts here tomorrow as well as series 3 of Homeland.
     
  9. kwadguy

    kwadguy Senior Member

    Location:
    Cambridge, MA
    No way. That's just entirely too predictable. And although we have no guarantee that this show isn't going to be entirely predictable, I'll give them that much rope, for now.

    If he turns out to be her dad, I'm done. But my guess is that he had a relationship with her father.
     
  10. Dave

    Dave Esoteric Audio Research Specialistâ„¢

    Location:
    B.C.
    I won't judge just yet. It is interesting enough to give it some more viewing time and I think Spader's perfectly cast. Hostages... not so much.
     
  11. PNeski@aol.com

    [email protected] Forum Resident

    Location:
    New York
    I have to say from the first episode ,Hostages was a lot better ,even if it has its own problems
     
  12. tonyc

    tonyc Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    Any comments on Episode 2? I thought there was a dropoff especially towards the end. I will try one more week.
     
  13. Paul Saldana

    Paul Saldana jazz vinyl addict

    Location:
    SE USA (TN-GA-FL)
    I thought the second episode was better than the first. Without any prompting my wife speculated that Spader is the agent's father. It seems to be the obvious conclusion.
     
  14. The Panda

    The Panda Forum Mutant Thread Starter

    Location:
    Marple, PA, USA
    I did not see the twist coming in the second episode, enjoyed it a lot.
    Right now, the focus is clearly on what she will do about the husband.
    They'll save the 'I am your father, Luke' for the end of the season cliffhanger, I bet.
     
  15. jpelg

    jpelg Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Elm City
    There are certainly problems that can be nitpicked. However, for now it's worth watching just for Spader, imo.
    How long that will hold my attention, dunno...
     
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  16. I liked that she considered that maybe Spader had planted the evidence against her husband. They are maintaining the paranoia of not knowing who anybody really is. I'm still interested. I think the lead being Spader's daughter is just too obvious. I'm guessing it's more to do with her being the perfect person for Spader to manipulate. Maybe he genetically engineered her to react in predictable ways or planted some kind of Manchurian Candidate post-hypnotic suggestion when she was a child.
     
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  17. Vidiot

    Vidiot Now in 4K HDR!

    Location:
    Hollywood, USA
    Yeah, I'm in the same boat. This also brings up the ongoing question: is James Spader's character a good guy, or a bad guy? Does he capture crooks that he has a past with because they wronged him in some way? Is he getting revenge? Or is he truly trying to help the FBI agent? And are they related?

    I'm sure they'll also tie in the burn scar she has on her hand, and we'll know that Spader was involved with that in some way as well. I agree with Kevywevy above: I'm glad that at least the agent wondered aloud whether Spader had planted her husband's fake passports and money in her house for her to find. My guess is when the guy wakes up, he'll have amnesia or something, or otherwise won't know anything.
     
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  18. Lonson

    Lonson I'm in the kitchen with the Tombstone Blues

    This is the new ALIAS. I wish I could get as excited about it as I did ALIAS. I'm still in, but with reservations.
     
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  19. F_C_FRANKLIN

    F_C_FRANKLIN Forum Resident

    In the second episode, I could see that trafficking twist coming a mile away. Show needs more Spader, less 'Lizzy'.
     
  20. tonyc

    tonyc Forum Resident

    Location:
    United States
    I hope it turns out to be as smartly written as your analysis suggests. I'm not sold they have all that figured out yet.
     
  21. chacha

    chacha Forum Resident In Memoriam

    Location:
    mill valley CA USA
    Watched the first two episodes and thought the female lead was really weak - mystified as to why she was cast opposite Spader.
     
  22. Lonson

    Lonson I'm in the kitchen with the Tombstone Blues

    Because she likes like the hot slice of all american apple pie next door?

    [​IMG]
     
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  23. JohnG

    JohnG PROG now in Dolby ATMOS!

    Location:
    Long Island NY
    Even has an American flag pin.
     
  24. Vidiot

    Vidiot Now in 4K HDR!

    Location:
    Hollywood, USA
    Usually, the studio and the network demand that the showrunners come up with at least 12 entire episode ideas, some sample scripts, and then a broad overview of where the story arc is going to go in a few seasons. I think Blacklist can do that. It's a wide-open concept in that Spader's character will have enemies, he'll have friends, he might be up to good deeds, bad deeds, and the fact that he's surrounded by FBI agents merely adds a thrill to what he does. The comparisons to Silence of the Lambs are very apt, and that's another case where you have a good bad guy (Dr. Lecter) vs. a bad bad guy (the other serial killers).

    I'm grudgingly impressed by Person of Interest, where when they sensed that the show was running out of ideas, they brought in some new regulars just to keep things going. We've gone from one ex-CIA agent and an eccentric billionaire computer genius to adding a frustrated NYC police detective (now reduced to a street cop), a crooked NYC detective, and now a fairly angry hired killer/sharpshooter who's compelled to help them. Stuff like this keeps the conflict going and makes the stories more interesting, plus it lightens the load of the stars since they don't have to do all the dialogue and all the action scenes themselves.
     
  25. rjp

    rjp Senior Member

    Location:
    Ohio
    spader makes everything he is just a little bit better.

    he was wonderful, and terribly overlooked in "lincoln".
     

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