The characters or the performances? My impression is that it's too early in the season and the overall story line to make that conclusion about the characters. It seems to be a case of "to be revealed". Tom, the husband - obviously something is going on with that character. It's been hinted that the agent in charge of this task force - Lennix - has a dubious past and that Reddington knows it. Not much has been seen of Malik (Parminder Nagra). This character seems like an ideal choice for more more depth. Ressler - the other agent working with Elizabeth. An unlikable character. I assume the character was written that way. Too straight laced and uptight, resentful over the favouritism shown to Elizabeth, doesn't trust Reddington. He's the type of character you are suppose to suspect would never be the bad guy or the traitor but turns out to be.
The performances. I think maybe they're directed that way, certainly we've seen much better from Diego Klattenhoff in "Homeland" for example.
I think I'm one episode behind. The 1st 20 minutes were really good but when she worked out what port was going to be bombed be remembering a completely random phone conversation it lost all credibility. Plus, planting a dirty bomb which could be neutralized in water on a dock ain't the work of a criminal mastermind.
This show is awful. There is so much wrong with these episodes. (the glass shattering from the bullet which rains down on people, the bad guy walking around with no disguise, the fact that the FBI agent didn't have a pocket knife to cut cords, the whole gas mask from the firefighter, etc.) They don't make any attempt to make this show believable in the slightest. The only reason I watch is because I'm hooked on the storyline with the husband and I want to know what the relationship will be revealed to be with Red/Elizabeth.
I Think the last episode clarifies some thing. Raymmond buying that old house without seeing it first, and by the end of episode making a visit at the house, saying that it was smaller than he remembered it, taking away those louverd piced of wood where they were noted the height of a children as he/she grows by, those brief and fuzzy images of a young she-child girl on the garden, Raymmond mentioning the bad memories that broght this house back. And at the end, making it explode. There's a refrain we say in Spain "white and in a (well, now in cartoons) bottle...".
I saw the father-daughter connection between Raymmond and Lucy very early on the show, first, he needed a "why", why this agent in particular, second, Spader is a very nuanced actor, he knew to give that look of a father to Lizzy, third, I said it before, he gave clues like in Montreal on the the dinner when he said it wasn't necessary a dinner between lover, it could be father-daughter dinner, fourth, on the Chinese computer vault, he said to Lizzy that if there was a danger, he would always get in the middle (of a bullet for example) so she never gets hurt. And now the house thing.
Nucky (Steve Buscemi) renovates the house he grew up in then (after an altercation with his father) burns it to the ground.
Spader makes the show great fun to watch, but the continual portrayal of the agents as bumbling goofs is getting old. The producers need to bring in some guest stars to keep Spader on his toes. I'd love some sparring between Red and villains with some substance. They should bring Shatner in for a little spark.
Shatner? Forgive for what I'm about to type, but he' a dredful actor, he can't hold a candle against James Spader.
Thought last night's episode, while ramping up the backstory (good) also demonstrated the weakness in the casting of the female lead. They're expecting her to take on the burden of emoting over her dad, and she's not really up to that as an actress. Still wonder if Spader is her real dad. They seem to be implying that, but the fact that they aren't saying it suggests that there's still more to that story. Seems there was a suggestion that maybe all is not as it should be with the female lead's FBI antagonist/partner near the end? The way they got the plastic surgeon to reveal the name was silly. I mean, even if that ruse worked, the fact that the FBI would then have captured the guy (very publicly) a few days later would raise all kinds of red flags. Anyway, I like every drop of Spader's scenery munching, but there sure are a lot of things to go hmmm... about.
I agree that she is not a good actress. It kind of takes you out of the action when you're thinking "you should have said that line like this. . .". I still think Spader being her father is too obvious but some of their plot holes have been very obvious so maybe I'm wrong. Or maybe he's responsible for her being an orphan. I liked the scene between Spader and the boyfriend. It seemed like there was lots unsaid between them, based on the looks they were giving each other. I still think the boyfriend is not innocent.
The blame could also be attributed to the director for not getting the appropriate performance from her. Bad direction can make even good actors look amateurish. Not sure if that's the case here (I gave up watching the show after 2 episodes, though not because of her).
I laughed when I realized the doctor was Andrew Dice Clay! I kept expecting him to say, "AAAAY! Hickory dickory dock!" [Punch line redacted.] Now we seem to be back on the plot line where Spader is her real father. Note that in next week's show, somebody is trying to kill Spader for a change, so maybe now the FBI will be forced to spring into action and not let Spader run the show. BTW, was anybody as shocked as me by Spader's casual willingness to kill <major character's name omitted> in that scene? He did it without hesitation and with very little guilt, save for maybe some slight tearfulness at the end. Great direction can pull good performances out of so-so actors. And I'm always amazed how great editing can make mediocre actors look good. I know of films where 80% of the actor's performance was horrible, but they were able to piece together scenes so good, the actor got award nominations (and in some cases, actually won). Then why are you here?
She is damn cute so that keeps me watching. I like the show and Spader but the "villain of the week" premise will get old. Overall it's still a must DVR show for me.
