Blindspot Roundtable: I Came to Sleigh

After a year-long hiatus and a crazy cliffhanger, Blindspot is back at last for its final season.

In the season premiere, Jane (Jaimie Alexander) tries to pick up the pieces after the explosive finale in Iceland. She gets a strange message from an unknown ally that allows her to mount a rescue mission to free Rich Dotcom (Ennis Esmer) from a CIA black-site…but she’ll need the help from her old rival Sho Akhtar (Guest Star Ajay Naidu).

Join the NiceGirls staff as they discuss the episode using our new feature SASSY: S(tupid), A(wesome), S(o) S(o) and Y(our Thoughts):

STUPID

Roz: My hate for Burke is growing and growing and growing. I know she has it in for the team for ruining her plans, but her evil plans of evil are going to get to me if this is what she’s doing to the team week after week.

Cay: How the heck was she put in charge of the government? Tattoos with secret messages and people getting their identities wiped by drugs I can go along with, but her going from being America’s Most Wanted to being in charge and NO ONE in the government stopping her – ridiculous!

The other thing that bugged me, which was much more minor, was that Patterson was able to instantly detect 20 some differences in the tattoo versus the Times Square bird just by glancing at Jane’s tattoo? She’s a genius, but that was too fast!

Lisa: Cay you took the words right out of my mouth! I had the biggest eyeroll when Patterson looked at Jane’s tattoo for half a second and said there were 21 differences. Get out of here! I love Patterson but that was too far fetched. Also, I’m ready to come through the screen at Burke. She is the definition of evil!

Rueben:  Yeah, I have to agree about Burke.  How is it possible for her to be in control like that?  It’s just not plausible.  I agree that it seemed mighty fast that Patterson figured out that tattoo.  Sure it was convenient to get them to finding Rich, but quite a bit outlandish.

AWESOME

Cay: “The mouthy Turkish pervert” made me chuckle as did all of his “confessions”! And I was glad that the majority of the team survived (especially Rich and Patterson). I also sort of liked that it was Weitz that saved them. About time the sniveling little weenie did something redeeming!

Lisa: I loved how the team honored Reade at the end of the episode. Seeing Tasha open up to Rich was touching. I hate that they killed him off, but the tragedy will bring the team closer together.

Roz: I really like the way that the team adapted to this new situation and managed to get Rich out of being tortured more than he already was. I think this problem with Burke will make the team way more creative in how they get back at her.

Rueben:  I was really taken by watching Zapata kick the crap out of those CIA agents – there were at least 4 or 5 of them – and she was like a machine taking them down.  I was moved to tears as the flashback rolled out of the aftermath of that drone strike.  We knew from the promos that someone was going to be lost, and it was going to hurt to learn which team member it was, but actually watching it play out was heartbreaking, as we’ve come to care about each team member.  The tribute they made to Reade at the end was touching.

SO SO

Roz: READE!!! I know we needed to see someone die, but I’ll miss Reade so so much. (Maybe I’m biased because I know the actor personally.) He was such a good part of the team – a good mix of everyone’s attitudes – but I know he’ll be missed.

Cay: Yeah, Reade was the most expendable so it made sense, but honestly, I’m kind of sick of Tasha so I wish it would have been switched!  She also let Rich get tortured for much longer than necessary, which isn’t cool, although obviously things aren’t quite that simple with them all on the run.

Also the idea that the team’s main hope is Weitz is pretty scary (yeah, I know, I also said him saving them was awesome); but, he did save them in Iceland, so hard to argue!

Rueben: I didn’t really care for the whole having to team with Sho Akhtar (that slimball!), despite it being a means to an end to get Rich out of that black site.

Lisa: I’m really going to miss Reade. The thought of Weitz as their lifeline is scary. This will prove how amazing the team really is.

YOUR THOUGHTS

Cay: It’s an interesting set up to now have the team without their resources, but I don’t know if I can handle a whole season of gleeful, evil, Burke or Zapata grieving and generally being impossible.

Who warned them about Rich with the big Times Square scene? How is it exactly that *someone* is always so far ahead when it comes to the tattoos? It’s almost as if they were all added by someone from the future, who already knew how it would all play out!

Rueben:  I’m very curious who was that person in Times Square that sent up that blackbird on the screens to start off the episode?  Do we know who this person is?  How does that person know the team?  Is this someone new or a surprise return?  You never know with this show. Cay: someone from the future? That’s would be an interesting twist, wouldn’t it?

I also agree about finally seeing a better side of Weitz (it’s about time really, isn’t it?!).  Also, what’s the deal with this mercenary group?  I don’t like them at all, especially that leader.  That little display of her “prototype” was unsettling.

Roz: While I like that we’re getting creative with the team’s way of pulling information now, will it get old quickly?

Lisa: I’m glad most of the team is back and seeing them adapt to their new normal (which is fitting because we are all dealing with a new normal as well) will be interesting, but I have to think there will be more twists and shockers for the last season or it will get boring after a few episodes.

[Photo Credit: Barbara Nitke/NBC/Warner Brothers]

BLINDSPOT will be back with an all-new episode next Thursday at 9/8c on NBC.

Make sure to check out our discussions of Blindspot here.