'The Blacklist' Recap: 'The Kingmaker'

On this week’s episode of The Blacklist, a Kingmaker helped elect people, Liz found out about Sam’s death and Red continued to prepare for the war that was coming toward him.

The episode began overseas, a man is in a town car. He turns the heat up and waits for someone else to get in. Dusek, who is talking about Red, gets into the car. He says that he is hot. The driver offers him a drink. Dusek drinks it and passes out.

Next thing we know, we find Dusek in a hotel room. He wakes up and looks on the ground. There is a male escort on the ground, strangled to death. The police break in and arrest him with murder.

Cut to Red. He believes that Dusek was framed. The man he is talking to says that Red’s friends are worried that a war is coming. Red says that he doesn’t have any friends and tells the man to send them a message that he knows what is going on and nothing is going to happen.

Meanwhile, Liz is looking in Tom’s safety deposit box. She finds that there are pictures of Red entering the hospital that her father died in on the day that her father died. She is shocked but doesn’t say anything to Red.

Red talks to Liz about the Kingmaker. He is a man who gets people elected by using dirty tactics. He grooms them from a young age and when it is time for them to run, the Kingmaker makes them as electable as possible. The Kingmaker is Scandal’s Olivia Pope meets Lion King’s Scar.

Liz asks about Tom but Red deflects it. Liz is impatient with Red and asks him why they need to find him. She figures that Red is being selfish with sharing the name.

Meanwhile, the Kingmaker is meeting with his next politician. He tells the man that he needs to be on the bridge at 4:00. The man is worried that he might kill himself but the Kingmaker knows that he won’t because of science and math.

At the post office, the team is narrowing down their list of suspects. They think that his name is Paul Fredrick and that he is staying in a hotel. When they crash the hotel, they find a nice family. It turns out that Fredrick cloned his card and now they have no idea where he is.

Red meets with Allen. Allen says that he doesn’t believe Red about this war. Red says that someone is after him and that the secret that he is holding will be released if he dies or if that person gets him. Allen says that he’ll talk to his people.

The Kingmaker’s target is driving on the bridge at 4:00 when a truck hits him. His car goes through the bridge and into the water. The target and his daughter survive but his wife dies. Red says that this is a media stunt to get the man attention.

Aram shows Liz surveillance footage from the day that her father died. Liz finds that Red did visit her father hours before he died. Liz is angry that Red didn’t tell her.

Ressler and Liz head to the bridge to figure out why Patrick, the target, drove off the bridge. They think about why he would do it and what the after effects would be. Patrick says that he is mourning his wife and that it was an accident. He then calls the Kingmaker.

The Kingmaker goes to the truck driver, Arturo. He says that he didn’t do his job correctly. Then, he kills him and makes it look like a suicide. The FBI find him and don’t believe it is a suicide.

Elsewhere, Allen tries to get his colleagues to help Red. The colleagues don’t want to and say that they’ll call Red’s bluff. They don’t believe that anyone is after him and they don’t even know if Red even knows their big secret. And if there is someone, they believe that they can handle them.

After looking at the truck driver’s cell records, they find that the Kingmaker called him from a payphone. Red says that he knows what payphone it is. They walk into the store and find that there is a secret restaurant in the back. Red sits with Liz.

Liz finally asks Red why he went to the hospital to see her father. Red says that he went to say goodbye. Liz says that she knows that they weren’t friends and Red tells her that he had known Sam as long as he could remember. They also find out where the Kingmaker is staying.

Ressler and Liz go to the hotel and find the Kingmaker. He isn’t there but they find blueprints to a house. They find out that the house is a senator’s. They all rush to save him.

At the senator’s house, the alarm goes off. The senator grabs his gun and tells his wife to go lock herself in the bathroom. He goes downstairs to find the Kingmaker. He says that he’ll do anything. The Kingmaker wants him to quit. He says he will but the Kingmaker says no.

The FBI rush the house and the Kingmaker shoots the senator. Liz and Ressler look around for him. Ressler leaves to call for help. The Kingmaker walks into the room and starts to choke Liz. Just as she begins to break down, Ressler comes back and shoots the Kingmaker.

Allen tells Red that he will not be helping Red with the war. Red says that he won’t help Allen when it is all over. He says that he will win but Allen will lose.

Red calls Liz and says that he needs to talk to the Kingmaker. Liz tells him that it isn’t possible because the Kingmaker is dead.

Liz and Ressler arrest Patrick while he is giving a press conference about the senator and his wife. After Liz walks away, Aram calls Liz and tells her that Red was in the room when her father died.

Liz goes to Red and asks her about it. He says that he did kill him to put him out of his misery. Red sits alone after she leaves. He knows that he is going to be in big trouble when this war comes.

Liz goes to Ressler’s apartment and says that she didn’t know where else to go. I guess Ressler’s support during Liz’s “trouble at home” really convinced her that he was a good friend.

Quote of the night: “You’re a monster.” -Liz, after Red tells her that he killed Sam.

What did you think of this week’s episode of The Blacklist? Who do you think Berlin is?