The Blacklist

As both a parent and former social worker, I checked out several episodes trying to find a reason of any value in this series on Netflix. First place, if it was a single movie, it could have shown the primary character played by Spader, as an immoral person who lives a life resulting in death, often played by his own hand, able to manipulate law enforcement, and justify his lifestyle of wealth and privilege, it may have fallen into the "Silence of the Lambs" category. But because this is a series, that has had several years of existence and still under contract, it feels like salacious violence in a world of no-trust, and controlled by evil people and /or cartels, is only managed by a "smart" murderous psychopath, who charms and "saves lives". If I wanted to show performances that question in untidy ways, human nature, life, the world, something that allows young adults the chance to really explore in a healthy way, the value and contradictions of life, Shakespeare would make more sense. A friend who is an educational psychologist compared this series as porn for those who want to get off on the cruelty and selfish of humankind. Neither of us would want our children to cross paths with Blacklist.

Really good crime thriller with twists and unexpected turns. On a personal level Elizabeth is not a likeable character and you find yourself rooting for a criminal throughout most seasons.