Samar Handles 'The Blacklist', 'Vampire Diaries' Makes One Mother of a Reveal


The Blacklist
came on strong with a Samar-centric episode that led to several surprising developments for the tough-as-nails agent. It was great to have the character fleshed out more, and it gave her portrayer Mozhan Marno, a chance to shine.

Samar’s backstory had been previously touched on, and in “Zal Bin Hasaan (No. 31),” it was significantly shaken up when her presumed dead brother was revealed to be alive. Although some twists were a bit predictable, they were sad to watch unravel.

Everything Samar believed in and had served as the catalyst for her life’s work was ripped away, and she was left spiraling. That might explain her rather surprising hookup with Ressler. They had been sharing some flirtatious looks since they started working together on the search for Liz.

Even though Ressler and Samar had exchanged a few sultry glances, Samar appeared to be in a committed relationship with Aram, who neither she nor Ressler even seemed to give a second thought. (My precious, Aram!)

Ressler’s behavior made him come off especially bad. First of all, he was not anywhere near the emotional state Samar was in, so it was not a tryst of joint grief. Secondly, he had seen how visibly upset Aram was over Samar’s safety and had even witnessed him cry tears of joy after hearing news of her well-being.

How could Ressler do what he did to a guy he considers a friend? As for Liz and Red, they continued to elude authorities, and neither played a major role in the episode. Red came in with a few clever lines to aid Samar, while Liz met up with Tom, and that was about it.

The promo that followed last week’s episode turned out to have over-promised an all-too-brief reunion scene between the estranged spouses. The good news is when Tom told Liz he had what it took to clear her and declared it was a mistake to have left her behind, a full-blown reunion seemed more possible than ever. Liz must first remove her name and get off the most wanted list.

As for Tom, his partnership with Harold proved to be very entertaining, and the two definitely have great buddy chemistry. The only bothersome issue with the Karakurt storyline was how Karakurt got the upper hand on Tom by grabbing him around the neck in the garage. It's hard to believe a trained gun like Tom would make such a rookie mistake.

Side Notes/Burning Questions: Ressler is now a gnome killer. After an onset of explosive rage following a standoff with Tom, Ressler took all of his frustration out on one of Harold’s innocent lawn gnomes. Sorry, I like Ressler. This was just too good, not to mention.

What is the legal status of the Keen marriage? Did anyone else notice the look between Harold’s wife and their neighbor and wonder if they were having an affair? Is Aram the only one headed for heartbreak? What will be the big cliffhanger that caps the fall portion of the season?

[Image by The CW]

The Vampire Diaries
never ceases to astonish, which is not always good. Let’s get right to it because no matter what else transpired in “Best Served Cold,” you weren’t thinking about any of it after the last-minute reveal that Caroline is carrying Alaric and Jo’s twins. (No, you did not misread that.)

Apparently, there was a womb swap, and when Jo was murdered by Kai, her coven teleported the twins she was carrying into the nearest incubator. The unwitting recipient of their spell was none other than Caroline Forbes. 

Set aside the shock, and let’s try to wade through the obvious contradictions to the vampire mythos established to this point. Early in the series (circa Season 1), didn’t Damon state that while vampires’ bodies are dead, they function the same as normal people? Hence, they can sleep.

The catch was they could not experience or retain long-term changes to their body. So how on earth can Caroline be a surrogate? Yes, viewers are already required to suspend their belief, and none of the show’s plotlines are possible; however, they should, at least, adhere to the series' mythos.

Side Notes/Burning Questions: Season seven should be called “Season of the Babies.” Between Caroline’s newfound surrogacy and Stefan’s baby drama, it’s raining baby plot twists.

[Featured Image by NBC]

Comments