#anti-ressler

[meetmeatthecoda]

Somehow, even though I haven't watched in years - and am 0% tempted to tonight - I've still got this tiny sliver of anxiety about the ending of The Blacklist. Is that crazy? It's like I know they can't possibly wrap up the story in a way I'll be happy or satisfied with (and after the 8th season I mostly gave up caring about what happens in "canon")...and yet I'm sure when I hear about what happened in the finale it's going to feel like one last, poorly written gut punch.

How are you feeling about tonight?

Hiya, anon ❤️ Ugh, can I just say that you summed up my tangle of feelings absolutely perfectly? 🥺 More specifically, no, that is not crazy at all. I am in the same place as you with not caring about any of it anymore - not since 8.22 ripped my fucking heart out - & I literally can't think of anything I'd like to do less than watch the series finale. But even in the years since 8.22, there was still that awareness that the show was still out there somewhere, even if I only heard drips & drabs, & I scoffed at it all, & I didn't give a tiny rat's ass what happened. And while that remains true, the fact that it's OFFICIALLY ending (despite the fact that it ended for us two years ago) is... a little sobering. For me, I think it's a reminder of the pain & grief of The Terrible Awful™️ 😓

Also, yes, anon, I completely understand the sliver of anxiety & dread... I felt the same thing when I heard that they were finally blessedly cancelled & again when I realized the last ep was coming up... I can only speak for myself, but I think it's bc I still care at least a little about Red &, deep down, I still want a happy ending for him, even though I fully believe he can't have one without Liz. But I have zero faith in TPTB & I'm sure they will make it a nebulous, "cool" ending with no real answers, like always, or they'll confirm godforsaken R*darina, or they'll just kill off Red because they're incapable of writing anything else. And I'm sure every other aspect of it will be disappointing, like Ressler being the hero or something (LMFAO) & it will be awful all around. I have no other expectations & I suppose I have to either accept it and/or ignore whatever happens AND/OR consider it all a crap AU & Lizzington as our canon. But the way you describe it, "one last, poorly written gut punch", perfectly describes how I feel. I tell myself that none of it matters anymore - it's not like we're getting a Lizzington ending lolz - but I think I'm just afraid of being hurt again bc, for all my posturing, I know TPTB still have the power to do that, simply bc I still care just a tiny bit. Despite all the heartbreak I've already felt... a little remains of the show, the characters, & my heart for them to destroy 💔

Idk if that made any sense at all, anon, but I hope I communicated at least 3 things: 1) you're not alone in the way you feel, 2) the ending will probably hurt & ache & betray in just the way we're afraid of, & 3) we simply have to deal with the residual hurt, know that TPTB failed us & it's not our fault, &... cherish what we had by holding our Lizzington AU close to our hearts & keeping them alive through fanfic... at least, that's what I plan on doing. So, feel free to drop another ask if you want to talk more, anon, I would certainly love to commiserate & work through our feelings together tbh, & btw I'm very flattered you came to my ask box with this & wanted to know how I feel, thank you for being so sweet. In the meantime, hang in there, anon, you're definitely not alone, & much love to you, my friend ❤️

[kiss-my-freckle]

Anti-Rederina fans have a hard time grasping the concept of living in two identities. If Red isn’t the real Red, which they’ve already confirmed he’s not, then he’d speak from two different perspectives. Those perspectives being that of the real Raymond, and that of his original identity - Katarina. The very reason I tell fans just how important it is to consider what perspective he’s speaking from at all times. At ALL times. For instance... while speaking to a federal agent, it would be wise for Red to speak as the real Raymond so as not to inform said federal agent that he’s an imposter. So when he’s talking to Aram over an open grave, he’d speak of the real Raymond’s mother rather than his own. Expect Katarina’s mother to be alive - until she dies of cancer. While speaking of the Takoma Park house, expect him to speak from both perspectives - Raymond and Katarina. When Katarina hid her daughter with Sam, it would be wise to know why she chose him to begin with. “You have to leave Masha with someone unconnected, who I can trust.” Ivan Stepanov is connected, considering he was Katarina's handler. THIS would be the very reason he'd threaten Elizabeth Keen. Because he has no idea that she’s Masha Rostova until he actually sees her face-to-face. Until he actually sees her, she’s a random woman risking their business. 

It’s not my fault fans can’t differentiate the clues. Can’t see when they’ve introduced an imposter Katarina, pulled a fake reveal like Red is Ilya, or somehow fail to see how Rederina fits the entire series. Rederina fits EVERY clue in the show, no matter how many fans claim it doesn’t. I know it does because after 5x22 aired, I rewatched the series for the sake of it. Everything I saw aligned with Rederina... and everything following season 5 continued to align with it. That’s why I haven’t been wrong about Red and Katarina since then. I told fans Red isn’t Ilya, and that Tatiana wasn’t Katarina. Do not blame me because I chose to follow a theory that fit. I follow the only theory the writers gave me. The moment they removed Red as the father, there was only one theory left. Not my fault fans are angry because season after season, the writers continued dismantling their theories. Perhaps those fans wouldn’t be so angry had they fallen in line with the Rederina theory rather than spent 5+ seasons trying to debunk it. There’s nothing left to do with Lizzington but laugh my ass off at their posts because they have nothing left to fight with. Same with Daddygate, third man, etc. 

It’s not my fault fans can’t move their puzzle pieces around because they only see them one way. It’s not my fault fans can’t reason beyond what they’re used to, are limited by their own belief that clues can only be interpreted one way.

When Red was talking to Ressler in the box in 1x9, he was speaking with intent. What he wanted in that moment required the use of “boy” rather than “child” because it wasn’t for him. Red wanted Ressler to see, to feel, to want “one more” for himself. He was painting a picture, and when painting a picture, details matter. Not just any horses or any number of horses, but exactly 10 race horses. Not just any cigar, but Cubans. Not just a set of sheets, but a cool set of sheets. Not just a child, but a boy. 

Ressler: We’re not gonna live through this. Red: I think we will. Ressler: How?

Red wanted Ressler to imagine himself sleeping like he slept when he was a boy. And he wanted this for the sake of giving Ressler hope. Giving him hope in response to Ressler’s own comment. That’s why he chose to refer to himself as a boy. Because it was for Ressler. That’s why Ressler is shown staring as he does and crying. He’s imagining these things for himself... as Red painted this very picture FOR him.  

These are things fans need to consider. It’s all perspective. Stop viewing things one way - your way - because they don’t fit your theory. Perhaps then you’ll stop posting idiotic arguments. 

[blacklist-notary]

#109: General Ludd

Synopsis: This episode is kind of hard to describe from my perspective. The Blacklister of the week is General Ludd, a weird mish-mash amalgamation of Anonymous and Occupy Wall Street, who begin carrying out anti-capitalist terrorist attacks amidst the ongoing civil unrest of the Occupy movement. Occupy is never explicitly named, but a sign displaying the movement's name is shown on screen for long enough that a viewer can catch it.

This episode also features Elizabeth Keen's father, a man named Sam. He calls early in the episode to tell Liz he's getting some tests done, but he's in worse shape than he lets on. Liz is caught up in the General Ludd case and can't leave until they catch the mastermind, so Tom goes ahead of her to visit him in hospital - and he might not be the only person making a visit.

Thoughts: Oh brother, do I have some thoughts.

The storyline with Liz's dad keeps this episode relevant for anyone who's interested in watching The Blacklist. The General Ludd storyline, however, has aged pretty gracelessly. And I'm gonna get into politics for this one, so my apologies, but with this episode I'm gonna get into copaganda and the conservative bent that shows about law enforcement often have.

The Blacklist is basically two different shows smooshed together. You have the cop procedural side of things, where Elizabeth, Ressler and Malik skid up to an action setpiece in a black SUV and run around with their pistols - Ressler gets to punch a guy or break down a door, Liz shows her hardening resolve as she becomes acclimated to the hardball tactics she needs to use as an FBI field agent, and Malik uses any and all tactics available to squeeze info out of her perp. Then you have the criminal side, where Raymond Reddington resides along with the villain of the week. Reddington is very much a man behaving badly, crossing lines the FBI won't cross, and his criminal enterprises are often freely flaunted for flair, humor and drama.

As much as Reddington will undermine the FBI and get his hands dirty for his own nebulous ends, and for as delicious as the resulting drama is to watch, the "cop" part of this show - or the "fed" part, more accurately - hems close to some of the more defining hallmarks of copaganda. Malik tortures her perps for info because she's with the CIA, and her actions are framed as just because of how high the stakes are - civil liberties are as valuable as dogshit when the feds Need A Name. Stuff like that.

A show about feds who act above the law because the ends justify the means, making an episode about Anonymous/Occupy anti-capitalist terrorists, feels off. The real-life Occupy movement was quashed violently through police raids and the forcible dismantling of encampments, and I feel like the narrative of this episode - alongside other topical depictions of the Occupy movement in other contemporary TV shows and the way that the movement was spun by the news media - was a means of manufacturing consent from the public to shut that movement down before it became more "radical", like the group in this episode is.

And like I like this show a lot, and I love the characters - including Ressler eventually, who's probably the most insufferable fed of them all up to this point - but as a show that subscribes heavily at times to the "would you hit a Christian baby for a World Series-winning home run if the pitcher threw one at you" school of exaggerating harm to weasel the most optimal agreement out of a captive audience, I don't think this episode's premise of "AnonymOccupy terrorists bomb planes and burn money with the goal of bankrupting America" is made in good faith.

In total, I think the plotline has aged like dogshit in the sun, and I'm critical of this episode's intentions despite enjoying the show itself.

And look, one more quick dig before I get into the actual meat of the episode - but there's one thing that Reddington says that was a serious eye-roller. His thing about liking capitalism is whatever - of course he likes money. It's consistent with his character. He makes scores of the stuff through his criminal enterprises and one of his most defining characteristics is how much he enjoys the finer things in life.

The thing that gets me is his quip about how an actual Luddite wouldn't be taking a plane to escape, they'd dismantle the plane instead.

It's just like - the whole thing about Ludd is that he led a group of workers in dismantling and destroying a series of factory machines that automated the jobs of those workers, so that the fatcats who ran the factories - who were already taking a lion's share of the profit from the work being done - wouldn't be able to hoard even more money while leaving the redundant workers destitute. My understanding of the Luddite movement, at least what it started as, was a worker's movement against automation.

Airplanes don't automate a job that a human can do. People can't fly. Maybe it's a quip at the expense of how General Ludd starts the episode by bombing planes, but this particular line felt like kind of a lame platitude being dressed up as pointed critique by virtue of having the snappiest character with the most well-versed sense of conversation and vocabulary throw it back in the face of this week's disposable perp.

So with that out of the way - let me talk about the heart of the episode: the plotline with Liz's dad, Sam. The rest of this post will be talking about spoilers from prior episodes, as well as the most salacious details of this episode's fed-less storyline. And for the sake of disclosure, I'll be bending my policy on future episode details too - though I'll be careful not to give too much away.

---

I was originally going to use my first Read More break on the Anslo Garrick post, but this post is already pretty long and this aspect of the episode is very juicy.

For starters, we learn that Liz was adopted - first from Reddington, who is STRONGLY IMPLIED to have been involved in Liz's adoption by Sam, and then from Tom as he speaks to Reddington. Then we learn that Sam and Reddington know each other very well; on top of last episode's house-bombing, this episode is some of James Spader's most emotional acting.

This is just rampant nerd speculation, but I feel like the reason we're getting more of a glimpse into Reddington's emotional state is because we're nearing the end of this filming block for season one. I know absolute donkey dick about filming blocks for any TV shows, let alone The Blacklist, and I haven't done any research - but here's my theory about Red's storyline in these last couple of episodes.

I think The Blacklist had a short run of episodes to see if it could pull ratings. The pilot was good, so they commissioned a season comprised of one filming block - if the resulting episodes were good, and if they were well-received, season one would receive a second filming block where they could film another eleven or twelve episodes of the show to round out the season.

I think that by this episode, the show had been picked up for that second filming block. There's a shot late in this episode that screams "reshoot", and given that we're ramping up to the mid-season finale - which, had the show not done well, might have been written as a series finale considering how violent and threatening it is - it makes sense to give Spader a bit more emotional weight to chew on.

He's had a lot to chew on given his contentious relationship with Elizabeth Keen, but we're seeing him touch on the past he had before defecting from the US in the prior episode, and we're seeing him have one of his more emotional outbursts in the midst of suffocating Liz's adoptive father - a dear friend of his. So with the show hanging on the line, give James Spader something a bit more vulnerable than the unknowable enigma he's been so far. If the show gets cancelled, it's some great character work for the viewers to enjoy before the show disappears forever. If the show gets renewed, then we're building something complex behind the Reddington character.

There's such a tenderness to the way that Red treats Sam, even after he's suffocated him. There's a deep sadness, and a well of gratitude for the man's devotion to raising Elizabeth. Reddington suffocating Sam is partially due to the dying man's desire to come clean to Liz about her parentage and the circumstances of her adoption, but I think they hash out an agreement with Sam's last phone call to Liz, and I think Reddington killing Sam is just as much a mercy kill as it is a way to protect his secrets.

And with Tom's conversation with Reddington, I like how deep you can read into their conversation based on whether you think Tom is a fraud or not. They work hard to make the dialogue sound equally free-flowing as a conversation between two strangers, and laden with context between two deeply repressed, entrenched individuals if you want to read into it that deeply. After all, despite Liz bringing Tom in to be interrogated - the money, passports and gun still existed, and you can't say for sure where they came from. It's pretty tense all things considered.

The funeral scene they have at the end is really good, and the scene with Red and Liz on the swings was very touching. He's obfuscating what he knows about the $100 bill schematic, and he's actively keeping his connection with Sam hidden from Elizabeth, but Liz telling Red stories about her adoptive father is helping Reddington grieve the loss of his friend as much as it's helping Liz mourn the loss of her father. It's a very solid scene.

[renthebarbarian]

I would make a joke about how I’m not a feminist, I just hate men, but it seems sarcasm goes right over your head, so I’ll be genuine.

Ftr, I don’t think Liz is The Bestest Character Ever, I think she like most of the other BL characters are fine. As in okay. (And admittedly I’m only in season 4, so maybe her character does get shittier down the line, IDK) What I don’t understand is why men (like Ressler) get to be mid and people tolerate them, even love them, but when women are mid, they’re the Anti-Christ in the fandom’s eyes.

I think real feminism is letting women be mid, actually.

No, I’m not going to block you. You block me first 😘

If a male character sucks, he just sucks. If a female character sucks, it’s because the writers are misogynistic and don’t know how to write women and she [the secret well-written version of her that lives in my head] is perfect, actually. No I will not be taking criticism.

[maidmerrymint]

SPOILER ALERT

Rewatching the Blacklist because I missed a bunch of episode. Just started season 2 and I've just got to say I don't really like Tom Keen. His whole relationship with Elizabeth in season 1 makes me feel really yucky.

And from the episodes I did see I know Liz and Tom get back together and have Agnes. But I just don't like Tom. I just can't get over how he was the first couple seasons.

I think Elizabeth and Ressler would have made such a better couple. Ressler and Liz have such a good working relationship that if Tom was out of the picture I think that they would have gotten together and Agnes would have been their child.

[fancycaroline]

Febressuary ~ fanfic prompt ~ “Nice Jeans” / Ressler’s “Heart” Week

(NB: this super mini fic may not be for everyone, but all I’m going to say is that it is no worse than what the show has already subjected us to. Anyways, proceed with caution as you would, but don’t worry about anything worse than what you’ve already seen.)

Between Sleep and Awake

First, a deafening blow that struck with such force, he couldn’t tell where he had been hit. But looking down, he watched as a crimson blotch spread over his heart with the chaotic grace of a carnation in full bloom.

Vaguely, a succession of loud noises registered, muffled as if he was in a fish bowl. Voices became clearer as they approached, “Agent Zuma, Agent Ressler, I specifically told Harold not to let you or anyone in the Task Force follow me here..” A second voice said, “Rehmond, you cahn’t stay here. Weecha, get him out of here, NOW!”

Amidst the blur that permeated his vision, Red’s face came into focus, his eyes full of concern when they took in the bouquet blooming on his chest. His tone became softer, “Donald, don’t take this the wrong way, but I don’t relish the idea of being in your debt in perpetuity…”

Suddenly, what had seemed like water all around him drained away instantly and his surroundings came into crystalline focus. The quiet street they had been surveilling gave the misleading impression that it would lead straight to a bridge that towered majestically in the distance, but they were actually far below and away from any significant traffic. Everything had been perfectly still at 4am, when they had arrived, and now, following that brief but explosive skirmish, the street was perfectly still once again. The violent perpetrators lay dead, and Ressler could now clearly see Weecha and Dembe, standing together in quiet tolerance of each other, looking on as Red bent over him.

High above, a ribbon of speckled sky had managed not to get totally crowded out by the tall row houses and mature trees lining the narrow street. The stars sparkled with unusual brightness and one seemed to drift gracefully down toward where the bridge stood and disappeared behind it’s stone arches.

Red was speaking in hushed tones to Dembe and Weecha, when suddenly a silver light all but obscured the bridge and stretched it’s rays to exactly where Ressler lay on the pavement. A luminous figure approached. She stretched out her hand in invitation and Ressler joined her with a warm hug. When they pulled apart Liz smiled up at Ressler and smirked, looking him up and down, “Nice Jeans.”

Ressler chuckled, marking the approval in her eyes, and replied, “You know they’re my favourite, rips and all.”

Liz dropped her gaze, blushing a little and biting her lip, “I never had a chance to tell you, but… they’re my favourite too.”

Ressler’s eyes saddened a little and a couple of pearly tears formed, “I figured we could make up for all those lazy Saturdays we missed out on.” Then it was his turn to look her up and down, saying, “I guess you had the same idea.”

Liz smiled her widest, dimpled smile, which he had loved since the day he had met her, and said, “Where I came from it’s all lazy Saturdays. With no consequences.” She added, a hint of humour playing about her eyes.

They both laughed lightly, neither able to hold back the tears now as they pulled each other close again. Liz rested her palm on Ressler’s cheek and he cupped her head, stroking her hair and letting it run through his fingers. They were speechless for a little while, their intense feelings overwhelming their ability to form coherent thoughts. So they stood their gazing into each other’s face, each drinking in the sight of the other.

Finally, with raw emotion, Ressler managed to utter, “I missed you.” Liz, her face streaked silver with her tears, replied, “I didn’t want this for you. But now, I’m just glad you’re here.” And then their lips met as they melted into each other in a profound kiss, the deep well of their mutual love finally flowing freely between them. Even when the kiss ended, they resisted letting each other go, showering a myriad of tiny kisses, peppered liberally, over their faces, as they gradually grasped the utter joy of finally having this moment together.

By now Red, Weecha and Dembe were deliberating over how best to handle the injured Ressler and the cleanup, and when Red turned around, he bent down, over Ressler’s limp form, “Donald!” He cried in a hushed tone. “Donald!” Dembe approached Red, gently placing a hand on his shoulder, “Rehmond, he’s gone.” Red bowed his head in grief.

Liz and Ressler had turned their heads at the sound of the alarm in Red’s voice, and now they looked on with pity. Liz, shaking off the somber scene, linked her arm with Ressler’s, and said cheerfully, tossing her head in the direction of the light, “Come on. I’ll show you around.”

Ressler’s mood easily rose to meet Liz’s and, without a second look back, he fell in step beside her, curling his arm affectionately around her neck and pulling her in for a loving kiss on the side of her head. Liz shifted her arm to wrap snuggly around him, and they walked together like that, arm in arm, disappearing into the light.

FIN

{Some other renderings of the original sketch, which incidentally, I first shared in this Tweet, where, if you are so inclined, you will see the original inspiration for the drawing. Of course when I saw the prompt “nice jeans”, my muse just went, oh yeah let’s do this. But it also works for Ressler’s “Heart” Week 😭 }

{Another little edit I made for my Tumblr cover page, so I guess I was already kind of formulating this story in my head weeks before I found an opportunity to write it. Actually, I think how the gif turned out made me think of Liz and Ressler being in heaven together. My headcanon is that Liz IS alone, bc Tom went to hell 🤷‍♀️ Anyways, as shitty as losing Liz was for our Keenler hearts, at least we got 9.07.}

~ Thanks for reading. I hope I didn’t ruin anyone’s day with this story. It’s an AU. I’m sure Ressler ain’t goin anywhere the show won’t go…

[falle-ness]

Let me blow some uncomfortable truth from my horn:

Ressler has buried Liz already in s3. He thought she's dead. He carried the fucking hearse.

The writers had just decided to move on from that, and turn everything into rainbow and peaches and forgiveness and sweet love, but whatever.

Can you imagine what he felt? After and before, knowing she lied to him? Her death was almost the same as Audrey's, under bullets. Just look at it without any romantic implications.

Losing someone who is close to you is always a trauma.

It fucks you up—for life.

And now, as fucked up this finale is, she dies again in his arms.

Do y'all even realize how fucked up that is? And what it means for Ressler?

Yes, you all remembered he had lost Audrey, but conveniently leave out the fact Liz made everyone believe she's gone. She made Ressler (and Red) believe she's dead.

They lost her twice.

Ress is fucked up for life now.

Red, considering his condition and age, may not make it.

I don't know where the writers wanted to go with that or they just slapped the plot points here and there and vomited the end scene.

But the message—even if you can't see it or don't want to see—is clear. It's one of the recurring themes on TBL.

Consequences of your actions. For all the characters. Butterfly effect at its best.

I'm not saying she deserved to die like that. But you can't deny she—and those who enabled her, even Ress—didn't steer clear of danger. And surely, Red's consequences will catch up with him on s9.

And maybe, just maybe, as stupid and dumb that ending for Liz might seem, you can't deny she toyed with death. If you knock on the door hard enough...

[lovingcoldplayertonystark]

Why does anyone want Ressler and Liz together in the year of our lord 2021, Liz is terrible

[smol-blue-bird]

the blacklist is certainly A Show

[meetmeatthecoda]

I know that you haven't seen the s9 eps, which I totally get. But in e7, they show Liz's gravestone. By golly was it sad. Not for the reason you'll think. First of all, it was a R*ssler eps. The amount of red flags that eps had *exhales*. Anyways, they made it so that she was buried next to T*m. Aaaaaand they had T*m's stone read yk he's name, lifespan, that he was a husband and father. The usually stuff. The stuff you'll expect on a stone. Or whatever. But for Liz? Pfft! She got her name, lifespan and.... Yup that's it. Nothing about her being a mother, wife, etc. Nothing else.

Well all know that Red would've given her the works. But I bet R*ssler was the one in charge of it all 🙄.

Hey there, anon!! 👋 Ah, thank you for being understanding of my complete & utter rejection of season 9!! 😁 Buttttt yeah, I unfortunately saw a pic of her headstone briefly while doom-scrolling on Twitter & I could only look at it for about 0.4 seconds bc my initial reaction was something like ohmyfuckinggodareyoufuckingkiddingmewhatthefuck. But then that was quickly followed by 'WELP... IDK WHAT I EXPECTED ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ'. But honestly, it just goes to show how little of a shit they gave about her character in the end... they stuck her in the ground next to her abusive fraud ex-husband & couldn't even be bother to photoshop something decent on the headstone in the editing room lmfao 🥲 Also, sidenote, I would estimate TPTB have approximately the same amount of shits to give about Liz as I have about their new golden boy: I couldn't give a singular rat's ass about the Hilariously Ridiculous R*ssler Retcon 2k21/2 & I want to know absolutely nothing about his uTtEr ReLeVaNcE & ePiC lOvE sToRy (that I apparently blinked & missed) oh & of course his fAsCiNaTiNg ChArAcTeR dEvElOpMeNt that makes me want to scream laugh with tears streaming down my face as I clutch Lizzington photos to my aching chest just to remember who the actual main characters of this show used to be... *ahem* Anyway, just, ya know. Sidenote. 🙃 ANYHOO thank you muchly for this hella relatable lil update ask, anon, I do appreciate it, & much love to you, my friend!! ❤️

[imyourplusone]

*

[samwinchestersleftshoe]

ressler is so black-and-white yall

i feel like he would yell at me for killing in self defense

[lizziekeen]

i sure hope that the blacklist writers didn't forget that ressler never actually had faith in elizabeth

[bi-ressler]

Lmao why does everyone on insta think that as soon as you kiss someone you‘re a couple?? I mean i haven‘t watched 8.01 and i‘m not planning to, but those people yelling „thanks for making liz and ressler a couple“? Wrong on so many levels

[kiss-my-freckle]

Harold, see if you can round up Dr. Krilov. Donald and I have some catching up to do with the dreamweaver. Alright, dream scenario. We finish our coffee, we hop on my boat. We leave, okay. We never look back. Preferably, we take our clothes off at some point.

[goldenclasp]

honestly, Donald Ressler can choke.