He gave interviews right after saying he was done, that there weren't even plans for flashbacks (though he'd be open to it) and he already has work being in a Spike Lee movie that is currently filming. Honestly I can't think of the last time a show went to such great lengths to make it seem like a character was 100% dead, including having the actor say he (or she) was dead in interviews, then in the season finale say "Sike! I'm back! It was all a ruse!" At best the actor would avoid interviews or the show would be coy about it.

This is the Blacklist thinking it's being bold but isn't the show on the bubble every season? As in they get renewed at the 11th hour not early like most shows with good/decent ratings? In other words I'm not sure its a good idea to test the fanbase like this.

Maybe it's my heart speaking more than my mind because I love the character of Tom Keene. I was pissed his spinoff was cancelled but thrilled he came back to The Blacklist...but just to be killed? By a short bald @sshole? I will never put anything past these writers. Every time I thought something was definite, it wasn't.

Trust me we're on the same page. Tom has his detractors but they are outnumbered by the people who like him or else a spinoff wouldn't have even been a viable option.

I feel like this show is tone deaf to a lot of things. Namely how much people dislike Liz or rather Boone's portrayal of Liz. What would have helped the show AND the spinoff was to keep Liz dead and just spin Tom off into the Redemption and have Red create new connections with the task force. That would have breathed new life into the show plus ended early the "is Red Liz's father or what?" nonsense that bogged the show down for so long.

Somehow Bokencamp (screw spelling his name right he thought it was a good idea to kill Tom) figured keeping the mystery going was a GOOD thing to the point he made it a part of the spinoff, just Tom's version. Only he thought he was being clever by making it in reverse (Tom knows, Scottie didn't). But when people talk about the spinoff the mention the fun episodes like when the Russians went to a special school to learn how to pretend to be American. And that's the problem with both shows, Boken...guy forgot these shows have to be fun, not a damn chore to watch. He's one of those showrunners who don't get there needs to be some sort of payoff for the viewers. When viewers realize no payoff is coming they start to tune out.

But he may not CARE since 100 is the magic number for syndication, and in three episodes after the fall finale The Blacklist will have its 100th episode, which will probably be the death of the bald guy who killed Tom. Ho hum.

Fans also don't like redundancy. Lets talk about how this will go. Whatever's going on with the bones, Liz will find out and Red's part in it, and that Tom was trying to expose Red. She'll be mad at Red, yes...but how long she'll be mad will depend on if the show is picked up for season 6. If it is, she'll be mad until sometime in season 6. If it is not, they will reconcile in the series finale. And that's the problem, reconciliation is always a foregone conclusion, which means Red never has any true consequences besides feeling bad for his actions.

So the question I and others, perhaps you as well, is asking...what's the point to continue watching?

@RodimusConvoy said:

And that's the problem, reconciliation is always a foregone conclusion, which means Red never has any true consequences besides feeling bad for his actions.

So the question I and others, perhaps you as well, is asking...what's the point to continue watching?

It seems like you read my mind. No matter what Red does, he's always forgiven. Liz forgave him even when she didn't know his true identity. Is she now going to start holding him responsible for things now that she knows he's her father? Certainly not. This happens all the time, and it's when a series starts getting old. I don't think it's out of the question say that this show jumped the shark when Tom was killed, if it hasn't already. I think there are going to be quite a few people who are not going to tune in when it resumes.

And that leads up to your question. I myself have stopped watching the show twice. I deleted the season pass from my DVR twice. I admit things have gotten better overall in the past two seasons, but there was some storyline--maybe it was Berlin--that finally made me throw my hands in the air. It was like a mouse running on one of those exercise machines. It felt like the show was going nowhere.

Where has it gone, actually? We know Red is Liz's father. But we kind of already knew that and the writers were just dragging out the confirmation. I, like you, think Liz should have stayed dead and the show should have gone in a new direction...give it new life. If they think killing Tom off will do that, they are sorely mistaken. I think they miscalculated how much people really like Tom. I hated him in the beginning, but seeing how happy he makes Liz and that he has that goodness inside him, and will defend her even against a powerhouse like Red without thinking...I really came to like the guy. Of course, that dedication is probably what lead to his (apparent) demise. I actually pointed at the screen and said, "if Tom dies, I'm done with this show!" Maybe I won't watch and binge on Netflix next summer if I hear it will be worth it. I really don't know what I'm going to do.

I'm surprised I feel so much emotion about a TV show, but I feel like I've been yanked around too much by these guys!

And now its like you read my mind. Agreed, but again, the showrunners may not care at this point if people pull out and there is no season 6 thanks to hitting 100 eps this season. They wouldn't have pulled such a stunt 1-2 seasons ago. All any show cares about, really, is syndication cause then that's residual money for a decade if not longer. It can either be actually good to get to the point, or yank us around like the Blacklist to barely get to that point. Sigh.