Episode Five, “The Front,” comes to us at a very odd time about a group of radicals using pneumonic plague to start a global pandemic. The Front is a group of radicals that believe that humans are endangering Earth as we know it. The leader of the group, Maddox Beck, starts his movement by killing his wife who is trying to stop him.
Maddox uses a hidden map written by priests on the back of a painting from the 14th century to find a strain of pneumonic plague. Maddox follows the map to Staten Island, New York to retrieve the strain. In his mind, humans have destroyed the Earth and must be eradicated. According to Maddox, “To preserve life on Earth, we need to become extinct.†His followers from The Front are all willing to be carriers of the disease to spread the plague across the globe.
Luckily for the FBI and the world, Maddox wasn’t willing to die for his cause. He synthesized a cure to the pneumonic plague, so that he could ride out the pandemic in his home with his girlfriend. Even though this episode is fiction, it was scary to see how fast Washington DC was quarantined, and the panic was widespread. Granted, they did have a reason to be scared.
Meanwhile, Raymond Reddington is in search of someone who is crucial in his war against Berlin. Is this Jennifer, his daughter, for whom he is looking? Red has revealed that he didn’t actually kill Berlin’s daughter, so this girl could potentially be Berlin’s daughter, not Red’s. He uses a contact at the DMV to help him track her down. After his contact fails to find her, Reddington asks Aram to use FBI resources to track down the girl. After Aram accidentally slips to Keen that he is going to help Red find this girl, Elizabeth lets Red know that they are not going to use FBI resources to find his daughter. Lizzie is under the impression that Red is looking for his daughter and actually seems jealous. Luckily for Red, his contact at the DMV came through with an ID on the girl. He reminded Red that these things just take time. She is now going by the name Zoe D’Antonio, and Red is seen watching her from across the street at the end of the episode.
In this episode, we notice that we aren’t the only ones who are following Agent Keen. It is clear now that the stranger from the motel is actually a hired bodyguard from Reddington. Unfortunately for Lizzie, this means that everywhere she goes, Reddington will have eyes on her. Lizzie, not to be outdone, has hired a body double to stand in while she watches that mysterious door. At the end of the episode, she even goes inside.
The Verdict
If there is ever a time to get caught up on The Blacklist, it’s now. Next week’s episode promises us answers to our biggest questions. What is Lizzie hiding behind that door? Plus, will Reddington approach Zoe, and will we find out who she really is? If she turns out not to be Reddington’s daughter, will he continue to look for Jennifer? Next week we should get at least some answers to these questions, so get caught up before it gets spoiled.
+ Great scenes with Samar and Elizabeth trusting each other more
+ Hospital scene with Samar and Aram looking cozy
+ Scenes for next week’s episode show that we will get answers
– Bad timing on the whole worldwide pandemic
– Still too many questions left unanswered
