The tenth and final season of The Blacklist has now concluded. Well actually it officially concluded the series on July 13, 2023 with the final two episodes on NBC.
However in Australia we had to wait till the entire season landed on Netflix recently.
James Spader, Diego Klattenhoff, Hisham Tawfiq, Harry Lennix returned for the season, while Anya Banerjee debuted in a new main role. Amir Arison only appeared in the first episode, while Laura Sohn as agent Park also left at the end of season nine.
It is also the second and final season without Megan Boone.
So after 218 episodes, ten seasons, between September 23, 2013, and July 13, 2023, The Blacklist is finally over. I sat through all 218 episodes, alongside the spin-off, The Blacklist: Redemption. Sharing the same fictional universe with the original series and was entirely focused on Ryan Eggold's character, Tom Keen. Elizabeth Keen's (Megan Boone) husband .
Back to episode one, the pilot, this gathered 12.6 million viewers in the United States.
During its run, The Blacklist won a Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Award and was nominated for six more, as well as received nominations for two Golden Globe Awards, two Saturn Awards and two People's Choice Awards.
SPOILERS AFTER THE TRAILER!
So how does it all end? After all those episodes? Read on to find out about the last network series I will be watching for some time!
Reddington and his squad deliver Dembe to the closest nursing home where Reddington's blood is transfused to Dembe after he loses a significant amount of blood. After the transfusion is done, Reddington escapes to Andalusia, Spain and recovers from blood loss at his mansion, suffering from his disease.
Meanwhile, the investigation continues and Nixon is furious after Hudson's death.
Herbie leaves the Task Force, deeming it a betrayal to his friend.
Cooper and Siya head to Red's safehouse and find out that Red returned there to pick up Islero's skull. It appears that Red escaped to Spain to bring Islero's skull to its homeland, the abandoned Miura ranch.
Dembe awakens, his condition improves. The court has decided to relieve Dembe of duty after Red is captured. He gives details on Red's closest place to the ranch, the mansion, and Ressler is sent there.
However, his arrival is late; Red has set off to the ranch, without the skull or any protection weapon. When he finally reaches the ranch, weakened after an arduous walk, an angry bull gores him, and there is nothing Ressler could do.
Ressler picks up and dusts off his brown fedora hat and places it on the deceased Reddington's body.
So James Spader's Reddington could only up one way. Dead. The net was closing in too much. A dead senator (who look a little like Ted Cruz) and the team, FBI and others all chasing him.
It was a decent season. A super easy watch. Something you could switch off to at the end of a LONG day. The Blacklist might have gone for a few too many seasons, however it did end fairly well. Even without the majority of the initial cast.
We never really knew that much about Raymond Reddington, however Spader did play an impressive, is he a good guy or a likeable bad guy?
The Blacklist streams ALL ten seasons on Netflix in Australia. Minx season two finale to come!
The Afterparty may have just had its final episode on Apple TV+. In this uncertain time of renewals and cancellations with the writers strike now continuing almost right up until the usual US TV season.
Created by Christopher Miller, the second season premiered on mid-July, extending its episode count to 10, up from 8 in season one.
The second season takes place the day after a wedding and follows the same formula of each guest's perspective of the day before.
Tiffany Haddish returns Detective Danner, along with Sam Richardson and Zoë Chao are set to reprise their roles for the second season.
With Elizabeth Perkins, Zach Woods, Paul Walter Hauser, Poppy Liu, Anna Konkle, Jack Whitehall and Vivian Wu joining round two as, respectively, Isabel, Edgar, Travis, Grace, Hannah, Sebastian, and Vivian.
Also starring big hitters Ken Jeong and John Cho for the wedding afterparty.
I remember almost bingeing all episodes of season one almost back to back. Look I gave it a second go, however this was one of those anthology series that actually did start from scratch new and improve.
It actually remained the same with Tiffany Haddish honestly being the saving grace of the second season. Her Danner's Fire episode was the BEST by far. This episode was funny, a little horny, but overall focusing on the best character this show has produced.
Apple TV+ must have a few shows in the bag as the content just keeps rolling out. We will farewell Physical after three interesting seasons in a few weeks.
My prediction for this series is it may be another casualty of the writers strike. It seems to be biting at HBO with little high quality content on the way. Unless you liked the Gilded Age, as that's returning. Showtime also seem a little stuck with The Chi airing the current sixth season in two parts and on Stan I can't see the final Yellowstone episodes coming anytime soon.
Thank god they have Starz content with another Power spin-off on now, with another to come, followed by BMF returning in March 2024. Shining Vale also on Starz stateside but Binge in Australia will also return after a lengthy break next month.
The Equalizer 3 lands several months after the television ironically concluded its third season. However in place of Queen Latifah we get Denzel Washington as the title role, The Equalizer. We did however get to see RnB Friday's star Kelly Rowland in the TV version! The version I am talking about is the second TV series, the first, from 1985-1989 is which this film series is loosely based on. the television series of the same name
The film version however sees Dakota Fanning, David Denman, Sonia Ammar, and Remo Girone star alongside Washington.
Directed by Antoine Fuqua, this is a sequel to The Equalizer 2, while potentially becoming the final instalment of The Equalizer film series.
Washington, reprises his role as retired U.S. Marine and DIA officer Robert McCall. In the third film, McCall discovers that his new friends of a small town in south Italy are intimidated by members of the Camorra, after which he sets out to free them from their control.
Filming locations were lush, in the Amalfi Coast in Italy, followed by Naples, before wrapping production by January, in Rome.
The Equalizer 3 looks a million bucks with some big, gory action scenes. It has a decent plot which sort of reminds me of Mafia Mamma from earlier this year.
Now I was very kind to that film giving it a glowing 4 stars. However I feel like being a little tougher. The films are of a high standard right now. We have The Nun 2 coming out, another murder mystery with, A Haunting in Venice and in similar action vein, EXPEND4BLES.
For now The Equalizer 3 will have slightly limited sessions in, its second week due to the dream box office run Barbie is continuing to have.
So if you want to catch the action film, Get Outta da House NOW!
How many stars you ask? Let's go with 3 for this shot, stab em, punch em up picture.
Full disclosure, I never watched the 1987 film, which this eight episode series is based on. Fatal Attraction premiered late April, this year on Paramount+. It concluded late May so I am still (sort of) playing catch up.
A passionate affair takes a volatile and dangerous turn when a woman (Lizzy Caplan) refuses to allow her married lover (Joshua Jackson - Dawson's Creek) to put an end to it.
Is Jackson the most successful Dawson's Creek star? The Affair (similar theme to this series really), Dr Death, a few films and now this.
Lizzy Caplan was cast to star as Alex, portrayed by Glenn Close in the film. While Joshua Jackson was cast as Dan, portrayed by Michael Douglas.
Also starring Amanda Peet, Alyssa Jirrels, Toby Huss, Reno Wilson, Brian Goodman,Wanda De Jesus, Doreen Calderon, Jessica Harper, John Getz, Toks Olagundoye, David Sullivan, Isabella Briggs, Walter Perez, David Meunier and Dee Wallace all star.
It feels a bit on the B grade side, if I am honest. Paramount+ have given us some decent dramas of late. Tulsa King, The Flatshare, Evil, Five Bedrooms and The Betoota Advocate Presents.
So my subscription does get a decent workout. In this light on week to week TV era right now. The writers strike, end of winter, too much reality TV on Australian TV. It's time to catch up with some series on my watchlists.
So no spoilers here, however I don't think you will ever pick the killer. I needed to read a recap to completely understand what I just watched.
Will a second series come? We are left on a bit of a random cliffhanger, despite the killer being revealed. Also could this have been slightly shorter? I feel they dragged it all out a little too much. Six episodes would have been tighter.
That said this isn't a bad watch, it's just not the best. It's addictive, easy to consume but the conclusion is a little underwhelming.
Paramount+ is the home of Fatal Attraction's 2023 remake.
