The Blacklist Season 10 Episode 11 Review: The Man In the Hat
Denis Kimathi
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It's starting to look more like what we wanted to see.
A random robbery found Raymond in the thick of it as the Task Force struggled to get to him before someone else did on The Blacklist Season 10 Episode 11.
Elsewhere, Siya discovered her biological relationship with Meera.
Senator Panabaker asked all the right questions but, in the end, fell into the bottomless pit of people Raymond had corrupted over the years.
There was so much expected of Panabaker, and while it looked like she was going to do the job everyone had failed to do over the years, it didn't amount to anything.
Panabaker was the most powerful person who knew the workings of the Task Force and had the power to do something about them.
Her announcement about dropping by the Post Office was enough to scare the team.
Ressler: What happens tomorrow when Panabaker turns us over to the DOJ? I mean, we're the ones who are gonna take the full blame for Wujing's murder.
Harlod: Panabaker will do what she does. If we have to face Main Justice, we'll mount the best defense possible, but we can't do anything until we locate our asset, who's becoming more erratic by the hour.
Harold was quick to chant his mantra about the good the Task Torce did because they worked with Raymond, but if he believes that to be true anymore, he's not as smart as we'd pegged him to be.
Panabaker was prepared to go scorched earth to end Raymond's influence over the Task Force, forgetting that she was under the same spell.
Whether Raymond was sincere in giving her the recording or it was one of his mind games, it achieved the intended effects.
But if I were a betting man, I'd bet that since copies of recordings can be made, he had a contingent plan with another one. He hoped that Panabaker would listen to the content, realize how damning they were and stop whatever she was planning to say to the Attorney General.
Siya: I made it through the case files. As expected, Reddington used the HexRoot program to scrub himself. Any references to him or the intel he provided from the records are missing or redacted.
Harold: What about his immunity agreement?
Siya: Gone.
Ressler: It's like he was never part of this team.
The problem with accepting favors is no matter your moral compass, it is bound to be corrupted because your heart will soften towards the giver. Panabaker had fallen victim to it no matter how much she tried to convince herself otherwise.
Her decision not to investigate the Task Force was disappointing, but it made sense on some level. She was too close to be an effective adversary.
Also, she might have been spooked seeing how easy it would be for Raymond to get her. The only hope is if she does it by proxy or someone else takes the mantle.
The highlight of the hour was the robbery and what it revealed about Raymond and the Task Force at large.
Realizing that Raymond might get arrested, Ressler and Dembe acted to prevent that.
It had almost become second nature for them to insulate Raymond from the natural consequences of his actions, but at that moment, something else was happening.
Dembe: How do we explain our presence here?
Ressler: Lie.
They were working to protect themselves.
It's not lost on the team their position if an investigation was to be launched. They would be lucky to go to prison.
Every crime that happened while they were in the vicinity would fall on them since there was no way they could prove it was Raymond. Their deal was no longer existing, so it would be their word against seasoned lawmakers.
We know who would win.
It started with a little lie to gain access to the crime scene and then escalated to blatant interference with first responders, preventing them from doing their job.
Ressler knowingly put lives at risk just so that he could protect himself and the Task Force. That was so not like him.
It was another example of how far gone the team had become.
The situation was thrilling because human lives were in danger, and it offered a glimpse into what it might look like if the team found themselves hunting down Raymond.
That might become a real possibility because Raymond's moves previewed what he had planned for the future.
Without any information about his collaboration with the FBI being found anywhere, Raymond might be looking to disappear. He has no one close to him as he did with Dembe or Weecha; there are no ties with anyone else significant apart from those he has with Agnes.
I don't understand Raymond's play here. He's left himself completely unprotected from prosecution by the US government.
Dembe
And even with Agnes, he withdrew and left gifts instead of delivering them in person.
Be careful what you wish for because you might find something that will upset your entire world as you know it.
Siya had been digging into her mother's past, but nothing in her wildest dreams could have prepared her for the truth.
If she thought she had questions before, now they've intensified.
In her case, there are two outcomes.
She might decide that the new developments have no bearing on her life and Meera is her only mother, or she might go on a goose chase trying to uncover the truth about her biological roots.
Either way, she still has intuitions about Raymond that would not go away no matter how much she tries.
Panabaker's decision not to investigate the Task Force returned us to square one, but "The Man In The Hat" went in a great direction. The only hope is that someone else picks up the slack and goes after the team and Red because they always had it coming.
Extra thoughts
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Four people walked into a convenience store poor and emerged rich beyond their wildest dreams. All they had to do was fear for their lives and lie.
See? It's not just hard work that can make you rich. Maybe Ji-Min will quit that job, the man and his wife will be able to afford extravagant purchases, and the aspiring influencer will buy 762 more followers. Imagine how much he'd freak out over 1000.
- The Task Force really overestimates themselves with Raymond. He never does anything you'd expect him to do. The fact that he never left the store the whole time never even occurred to Dembe, who had been his right-hand man.
Over to you, The Blacklist Fanatics.
What did you think? Was this a much better episode than The Blacklist Season 10 Episode 10?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments section, and don't forget to watch The Blacklist online via TV Fanatic.
Denis Kimathi was a staff writer for TV Fanatic. He has watched more dramas and comedies than he cares to remember. Catch him on social media obsessing over [excellent] past, current, and upcoming shows or going off about the politics of representation on TV. Follow him on X.
