The Blacklist: The Complete Fourth Season - Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

The Blacklist: The Complete Fourth Season

Movie:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score: ​

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Movie
The Blacklist was one of those shows that just sort of jumped out at me. The initial trailer for the 1st season didn’t really do anything, but I was actually pulled into the show when Sonnie (one of our very own admins) raved about the first season enough for me to binge watch the first two years in the matter of a week and a half. I ended up LOVING the procedural type show and was immediately hooked by James Spader completely dominating the screen with his portrayal of Raymond Reddington. It was also enhanced quite a bit by the inherent mystery and drama surrounding his relationship with Agent Elizabeth Keen. A super high ranking criminal is allowed capture to the FBI and refuses to work with ANYONE but a rookie agent. It smells of mystery and intrigue, with secrets soon to be releases. Well, the years have passed and some things have changed drastically, but the core of show itself is still very much intact. A precedent which allows for the comfort of familiarity, but also the realization that many of the “secrets” of the first season were not completely thought out at the time of inception.

After last season when Elizabeth Keen (Megan Boone) went on the run with Raymond Reddington (James Spader) for shooting a high ranking government official, we have returned to ALMOST normal. We found out where Elizabeth and Tom (Ryan Eggold) were being held prisoner, and have returned her from the clutches of the maniac Alexander Kirk (who claims to be her father). With this new reveal of who her father might be, Elizabeth is becoming more and more reticent of Reddington’s involvement in her life (as guessed by her and Tom going halfway around the world to start a normal life), and relationships start to wear thing.

HOWEVER, this is a conflict that is resolved (mostly) in the first 8 episodes, and we soon have Red and Agent Keen back at the FBI working on more blacklist cases. Once again we’re back to the normal machinations of Red and his constant mission to keep Elizabeth (and now her baby Agnes) safe, but it comes with a twist. After the events of last season’s finale there HAS to be some changes in the roster and the biggest one comes with the involvement of Mr. Kaplan (Susan Blommaert, a fan favorite), in a chilling action that opens up the doors for even more dissent and misdirection among the mystery that is Elizabeth’s and Red’s relationships

I really do love The Blacklist. It’s a basic procedural show at heart, and has some banally basic twists, but it has James Spader doing what James Spader does best. Being James Spader. In fact, while I love the show, I have to fully admit that the series has devolved into just a basic criminal/police procedural at this point. What started out as a huge mystery is obviously losing steam as the writers are having a hard time figuring out just how to wrap up all of the mysteries that they laid out in the first couple of seasons. I hate to say it, but TV shows tend to have grandiose ideas in the beginning and then figure out how to wrap them up as time goes on. The Blacklist is a victim of such mentalities, having amazing secrets and twists in the first season or two, and then realizing that they’re having a hard time wrapping up said twists and secrets without ending the series. As such a show, The Blacklist has a small problem with wrapping up many of the twists and turns of previous seasons. It’s not a HUGE deal due to the inclusion of James Spader completely dominating his role, but it is a small disappointment as you see the show spinning its wheels at certain points trying to keep the show moving forward.

This year is the year of the OTHERS in the series. In past seasons Red, Elizabeth, and Agent Ressler (Diego Klattenhoff) has been the focus of the show. The year the 20+ episodes try and focus more on Agent Navabi, Aram, Tom, and even Mr. Kaplan a WHOLE lot more in an effort to expand the viewing base. In many ways it really does work, but there is a sense of repetition and regurgitation due to certain plot points being Megan Boone does her normal great job, and so do the rest of the cast, but it’s really James Spader that makes the show. Without him this would be your average police procedural. James Spader is not THE most incredible actor on the planet, but he MAKES the character of Raymond Reddington so much that he is irreplaceable.




Rating:

Rated TV-14




Video:

The Blacklist has maintained a very striking and very consistent look on home video for the last several seasons, and season 4 is consistent with that pattern by giving us a very beautiful looking 1080p transfer. Shot digitally the show looks magnificently clean, with fantastic looking detail from the rumpled look of James Spader’s aging face, to the intricate detailing or the pristine curves of the Browning Hi-Power (and sometimes 1911) pistol he likes to carry. Daylight shots are glossy and clean, without any real major color grading and the show tends to have a very dark layer of interior shots that show off a teensy bit of black crush, which is something have noticed in just about every release of the show, making me conclude that it is a source issue rather than an encoding problem. Skin tones are extremely accurate, and the show seems to have very little digital artifacting to speak of, leaving me to conclude that it is a spectacular looking show in general.




Audio:

' The Blacklist comes with a pair of French and English 5.1 DTS-HD MA lossless track (of which I’ll be reviewing the English track, of course) once more, and once again manages to shine in the audio department. The show manages to balance very bombastic and engaging action oriented bits with more traditional dialog centric moments in the show with relative ease. Dialog is crisp and clean with strong vocal range, and the dynamic range is impressively wide, with explosions and gunshots rocking the listener back in their seats after coming out of nowhere. Music is rich and full, adding to the sense of depth and backed up by a very powerful LFE support structure. The Blacklist has managed to sound stellar in all of it's home video releases, and season 4 is no different, making it one of my favorite dramatic action shows to watch consistently. Sony does a fantastic job on most of their home video releases and The Blacklist maintains that level of impeccable quality just fine.








Extras:

• A Darker Shade of Red (Blu-ray exclusive)
Featurettes:
- A Lighter Shade Of Red
- Mr. Kaplan: End Of An Era
• Gag Reel
• Deleted Scenes
• 3 Episode Commentaries

Final Score: ​

I once described the show as “Elizabeth Keen and her horrible, no good, bad life”, and I stick to that mantra. No matter the season of the series, the show revolves around agent Keen and the horrible situations that have brought her here to this point in her life. Although, I will admit, season 4 has the least to do with Agent Keen than any of the three previous seasons. Agent Navabi, Naram, and even more so Raymond Reddington, take a more prominent role in the spotlight this year. Some of it is the show spinning its proverbial wheels, and some of it is the necessity needed to expand the show from JUST being about Agent Keen’s mysterious past. I still love The Blacklist to death, but completely understand that it’s success is largely hinging on James Spader BEING Raymond Reddington at this point. While not as perfect as it once was, The Blacklist still never fails to entertain this reviewer. Recommended as a good watch.



Technical Specifications:

Starring: James Spader, Megan Boone, Diego Klattenhoff
Created by: Jon Bokenkamp
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1 AVC
Audio: English: DTS-HD MA 5.1, French DTS-HD MA 5.1
Studio: Sony
Rated: TV-14
Runtime: 960 Minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: August 22nd, 2017

Image

• Michael Scott
• May 11, 2017

Recommendation: Good Watch

 

[tripplej]

Thanks for the review. I agree this is a good series to watch.