Featured Image Credit: NBC
Topics: TV, TV and Film, Amazon Prime, Social Media
Anish Vij
A crime thriller with arguably the 'greatest opening to a show' ever is getting rewatched by fans who are seriously urging people to give it a try.
The popular US drama follows James Spader who plays Raymond 'Red' Reddington, a wanted criminal mastermind who mysteriously surrenders to the FBI.
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In return for various luxuries, Red offers to help catch a group of high-profile criminals, known as the 'blacklist'.
The one bizarre condition is must work alongside rookie profiler Elizabeth Keen, played by Megan Boone.
The show ran for a whopping 10 seasons from 2013 to 2023 and fans have called it one of the best TV programmes they have ever watched.
Titled The Blacklist, you can take a look at the epic opening scene below:
Despite the love for the show as a whole, it's the opening scene of the pilot that seemed to catch everyone's attention.
Spader's character - who is a wanted man - casually walks into the FBI's headquarters and tells them he has arrived.
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The criminal then is dramatically told to kneel down, while the FBI swarm over and point guns at him.
The dramatic showdown sets the tone for the whole season.
With a 91 percent critics score on Rotten Tomatoes, The Blacklist is certainly in and amongst the most-highly-rated US crime dramas in recent years.
"One of the best first seasons seen on TV. Spader does an absolutely wonderful job here and the rest of the cast, even those with less than stellar moments, are covered by the fast pace that races over intriguing episodes," one viewer said.
"The concept of a bad guy per episode with a big overarching plotline feels so nostalgic and fun when done with the healthy dose of adult themes from violence and mental health issues to everyday drama that we love.
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"The entire series, all 10 seasons and 218 episodes, is what I'm reviewing here," another added.
"And while it's a long run and at times quite unrealistic, I just have to say: one of the ABSOLUTE BEST TV SHOWS I'VE EVER SEEN! FULL STOP."
While a third commented: "Absolutely love this show!! Can't seem to stop watching. It sucks you in and has so many twists and turns."
According to lead actor Spader, the show ended at the right time.
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“I think if the show went beyond this year, it would turn into a very different show," the actor told NBC.
"And I think that the thing that has been nice about this show was that we’ve never really had a really clear paradigm for the show.
"Tonally the show shifts a lot from episode to episode, and I think that even the show has taken strange turns, and I suspect that the show, if it went much further, would just become something that would be less recognisable to me."
The first five seasons of The Blacklist are available to watch on Amazon Prime Video now.