‘The Blacklist’ season 1, episode 5 review: Did Liz find out the truth about Tom?

After what was its best episode so far in “The Stewmaker,” “The Blacklist” returned tonight with an episode that was all about finding a ghost named The Courier, a man who makes his living making sure nobody knows who he is … mostly because he takes out anyone who tries to get him. The show brought in a great guest star in Robert Knepper for the role, but here’s the issue: When you have a great guest star, you probably should find a way to feature them with a character who is not known for being a ghost.

This episode was mediocre at best, mostly because the entire premise of the show is getting tired: Red and Liz find out about someone on the list that they need to take out, and then they find a way to do it and restore as much balance as they can.

What intrigues us so much more right now is the tale of Liz and her corrupt, messed-up husband, who seems to be at the center of a murder case of his own from when the two went on “vacation” in Boston. This was the episode where those chips started to fall into place, and the few short minutes that were spent on this story were far and away superior to any amount of time spent on the other case. Tom is seemingly found out, or it is at least not looking very good for him.

On a personal level, we don’t want Tom to be a cold-blooded killer completely, since that feels so pedestrian and predictable for this show at this point. It would be much more intriguing if he was someone along the lines of a double-agent, or a guy within the CIA who has had to keep it a secret. There is no reason to make him into an assassin and destroy what is already a not-so-thrilling life for Liz. She already has to deal with Red, so we don’t want to see it all taken away from her.

At least the cliffhanger here washes away some of the pain from the courier case, and we have something now worth looking forward to. Grade: B-.

What did you think about “The Blacklist” this week, and do you think that the show needs to shake things up now in some way? Be sure to share your thoughts below.

Photo: NBC