S8e22 It is obvious who Red is : r/TheBlackList Skip to main content

Get the Reddit app

Scan this QR code to download the app now
Or check it out in the app stores
r/TheBlackList icon
r/TheBlackList icon
Go to TheBlackList
r/TheBlackList
A banner for the subreddit

Subreddit for "The Blacklist", an American crime thriller television series that premieres on NBC.


Members Online

S8e22 It is obvious who Red is

FINALLY made it to the episode where she is gone (lol). I have read the numerous theories about Red being her mother. When I read them, I was like why are people on?! How in the world would that be.

Now...

How is it NOT her? So many things point to it, everything pretty much. Red's answer to Liz when she asked why can't she read the letter before he is gone - because you won't want to kill me if you do. Liz's last vision moments flashing from Red and her mom back and forth fading into each other. Red's burn scars and her mom saying both her and Liz were burned.

There is literally no other answer. Right?

One thing I don't understand, why would Townsend want to kill Liz as soon as he learned the truth? At first I thought it would be to hurt Red but it was always obvious Red's feelings for her. He didn't need to know the truth to do that. So what did I miss?

Share
Sort by:
Best
Open comment sort options

It was not just to hurt him, it’s to make him pay the same, an eye for an eye, he knew Red cared about Liz, but learning that he’s in fact her Mother in desguise? That changes everything, because that means she’s her family, and Townsend’s family was killed, so now that’s why he would try to kill Liz, because she’s Red’s Family, real family, his daughter, and that makes it an eye for an eye

Ahh, I didn't make that connection! Yet another example of Red is definitely her mom. I assume the answer is never verified since I have seen so many folks discussing the possibility of it. It really seems obvious to me that Red is her mom. I'm now on S9E4

More replies

One thing if I can recall as well, Liz is looking at that one photograph of her with her mother and says to Red, “wait..someone had to be behind the camera as well. You were there..weren’t you?” And Red smirks a bit and says “yes I was there”.

u/outofwedlock avatar

NT needed to kill Liz in front of Red, so that Red would have to watch his family be murdered, just as NT was forced to watch his family being murdered — murdered due to something Katarina did.

Van Dyk made his boss’s dream come true: Townsend won, Red lost, and Red’s entire 30-year mission — protect Masha at all costs (8.21) — blew up in her/his face. Red got his just desserts. Remember that Kaplan said Red was full of shit when he claimed he was re-entering Liz’s life to protect her; Kaplan said he was really doing it out of his need for control. Throughout the series, many of the key characters (Tom, Dom, Cooper, even Naomi) said pretty much the same thing.

He got what he deserved. Her death was all his fault.

Forget it, Jake, it’s Chinatown.

THE END.

Until the next season, when they retconned almost everything but the identity reveal.

Until the next season, when they retconned almost everything but the identity reveal.

To be fair, they never explicitly confirmed it onscreen... so there was no identity reveal to retcon.

More replies

Part of it was that he wasn’t 100% certain Reddington was N13. When he was torturing Ivan Stepanov he asked if Reddington or Katina had been N13. He found out both who N13 was and that Reddington had been Katrina at the same time.

Also part was that he didn’t realized Liz was his daughter or that he loved her as much as he did. He said when he had them that he’d never loved someone enough to live as someone else like Reddington had.

I FINALLY got to this episode. I have to admit I thought that Red was actually Katarina for seasons. So wasn’t shocked.

However I don’t understand how anyone can be in any doubt that Raymond Reddington is actually Katarina Kostova.

Television is a visual media.

Show, don’t tell. We’re not kiddies performing Show AND Tell to other kiddies. The Blacklist is a show for adults.

You SAW on screen the answer. So was it “never given?” Not really. It’s there for all to see, just as you did.

I mean thats kinda bullshit considering writers went in so many directions and then got lost in them.

Personally if I didnt find out about this subreddit, I wouldn't even know Red being Katarina is even a possibility. I can imagine it's like that for many people. People on this subreddit know story better than the writers lol

Many of us “got it” without help. That’s a fact, not a judgment. Some caught on in seasons one, two and three. I jumped on Facebook at the end of Five to confirm MY independent deduction.

For those who weren’t sure, there have been articles in Entertainment Weekly- for example. After the season five finale they outlined and detailed why real Reddington was dead and our Reddington was a definite imposter.

The Blacklist Exposed podcast on Golden Spiral Media also had reliable inside info.

Yea you completely missed the point of my comment. Obviously more invested Blacklist fans will educate themselves through outside content and/or understand it themselves.

Average joe who just watches the series most likely won't understand what's really happening.

More replies
More replies
More replies

good

I'm on the first episode of season 8, but I'm curious. Has Red known that "Maddy Tolliver" isn't Katarina since they met in Paris? Cause if not, that pokes a huge hole in the Redarina theory.

I don't care about spoilers, so feel free to answer in detail.

Yes I believe he did know she wasnt. What I do not understand is why he didn't just come out and tell Liz she was not her mother when Liz went off the deep end. SO. MANY. TIMES. I almost just went to the last episode but made myself watch the season. I figured I have came this far lol. Liz is infuriating in 8. Far worse that before.

More replies

Bingo. Now keep watching😌 youll get the answer to the question.

It was also very much said when Reddington told the Russian who thought was Liz father something to his ear. Like what else could’ve been. What could possibly Raymond say to him that would make him back off at that very moment from killing him and not say anything? He told him “I am Katharina” simple answer.

u/Da-Bears- avatar

The writers cornered themselves with ever expanding loose ends and copped out on the ending because they could not resolve it. The 3 dimensional chess to come up with Katrina as Red ignores the showrunners obvious failure to make a coherent ending. People looking for Easter eggs are ignoring the other nonsense dead ends all through the series.

Who are you claiming red is

Katarina Rostova, Liz's mom

More replies

it really isn't ...stop jumping to conclusions outta nowhere.

u/ReaperCrew86 avatar

dowwwwnvotedddddddd~

gooooooooooooood

More replies
More replies

I understand what you all are saying but I believe that Red is actually Ilya Koslovs lover, it explains how he has all the intel on Reddington through Katarina plus we know that “Red” was excommunicated by his father for not understand good heart. We also know that Ilya tried to impersonate Reddington with limited success so they needed someone close to him to complete the position so a gay lover could be one of the only people he could trust. Not to mention that Red (if his honour towards Elizabeth is to be trusted) mentions that she’s not his daughter, Dembe knew it too so for Liz to be his daughter but on the other side of the equation sounds like something out of left field. Lastly whoever Red is has a really strong connection to Ilya!

u/Cleocatra25 avatar

Ilya's aim was to empty the bank accounts where the Cabal parked the money used to frame Reddington. Ilya achieved his goal, so that would not be considered "limited success" - it was mission accomplished. The idea from the beginning was to get the money and then have Katarina become Reddington - Katarina and Ilya grew up together, and he was the only person she trusted. There was no hint whatsoever that Ilya was gay or had a gay lover. That thought is out of left field.

Well which situation seems more probable, Redarina or a secret gay lover that would have been against the law back in Soviet Russian, Occam’s razor suggests we use the theory with the least amount of jumps in it. Red also confirmed that he still talks to Katarina while him and Liz were in the bunker.

At the end of the day this is just a theory

u/Cleocatra25 avatar

Redarina, definitely. There were clues abound.

What do you mean Red confirmed he still talks to Redarina?

More replies
More replies
More replies