Tom Keen

Template:Episode S2

"Tom Keen" is the sixteenth episode of Season 2 of The Blacklist and the thirty eighth episode overall. It aired on March 19, 2015 on NBC.

Synopsis

In Dresden, Germany, we see Tom Keen beating up a man to find where he hid his stash. He was able to do that and let him live but not before breaking his knee.

Liz is in Judge Richard Renner's chamber, and he tells her that he has a bullet fragment that was found on the ship belonging to her. She tells the judge that she did not kill Eugene Ames and he sends her home letting her know there will be a ruling in the morning.

Red tells the team that in order to exonerate Liz, they have to bring in Tom Keen, who is undercover. He lets them know they are looking for a group called Die Entrechteten in Dresden. They are drug dealers and the most ruthless in Europe. Liz comes by and wants to know what they are doing, Red and Donald tells her they have found Tom. Liz tells Red that Tom will not come back and that this is her fault, the reason why Eugene is dead.

Red visits Ruddiger in rehab, trying to obtain information about Die Entrechteten. He lets Red know about an arms dealer named Kohl's death and they recruited a new boy that is looking for F2000 assault rifles.

Donald and Red are looking for Franz Becker, who they think will get in contact with Tom. Red lets Donald know once Tom takes a new undercover role, he becomes real. He is the covert operative that convinces himself into the role.

At the MWC Kaiser Airfield in Munich, Germany, the FBI led by Donald storms in and raid a shipment container full of machine guns.

Liz calls her financial advisor, Jeff, to move her money to another account and have her current account closed. Harold tells Liz that he perjured himself for her. She apologizes for that, but not because of the mission. She wanted Berlin caught and will do anything for that. He has a nosebleed and falls unconscious.

Red is at a tattoo parlor, talking to a man and letting him know about the shipment that was raided. He lets him know that he can get the shipment back if he gets 35% of the cost. He agrees.

The doctor tells Harold's wife, Charlene, that Harold has a seizure cause by his condition.

A car drives into the garage and Tom comes up to the car where he sees Red and Donald. He wants to know why they are here and tells them to leave. They inform Tom that he needs to come back to save Liz. Elias arrives and sees Red and wonders why he is here. Red lets him know that his shipment was raided and he can get it back. First, he lets him know that Tom is untrustworthy. Both sides engage in a gun battle, while Tom escapes. Donald wants to go after him but Red says no, they already delivered the message.

Det. Wilcox tells lawyer Morrison that Liz is planning to leave because she moved her money to an offshore account. Morrison lets him know that it is not illegal to move your accounts and tells him they can't do anything.

Tom goes back to his apartment and calls Red. He doesn't want to come back but Red tells him that she will be indicted and must protect Liz at all cost.

Liz talks to Charlene and wants to know the Harold's condition. He has a brain tumor, glioblastoma, that was found a year ago, when he was attacked. She lets Liz know that he was put into an experimental trial program that seemed to work, until today. She asks Liz not to say anything and she agrees.

Aram made a get well card but got news that Harold was in the hospital because of low blood sugar. Donald comes back and tells the team that they did not bring Tom back.

Back in court, the Deputy Attorney General lets the judge know that the Attorney General is involved now. Judge Richard Renner lets her know if the Attorney General is interested in the case, he will be in the courtroom. Suddenly, Tom Keen walks into the courtroom and confesses that he is the killer.

Tom is in Richard's chambers, trying to get answers. He tells him he doesn't care what happens to him but is only here for Liz. He confesses, saying he killed Eugene and Liz had nothing to do with it.

Liz comes to see Harold and apologizes. She lets him know that the reason why she is here and a better person is because of him. Charlene lets Harold know the doctor is ready to go over his results.

Judge Richard mentions that Liz will still be charged for murder because of her previous answers. He finds out that Tom is still in love with her and that they will go to grand jury. Tom Connolly walks in and says this deal won't happen. Tom leaves and the two talk about how Renner did something that wasn't necessary. He had obtained information of national security, which he shouldn't have. Connolly lets him know that he crossed the line and must stop doing what he is doing. He leaves.

The doctor states that Harold's health is improving and the trial is working.

In the court room, Judge Renner doesn't like that the government is part of this. He makes a ruling that if Liz does testify, it is a matter of national security. Det. Wilcox and Morrison are outraged by this ruling and let Liz know to remember the name Eugene Ames, which will haunt her. The Attorney General lets Liz know everything is what it should be. Liz wants to know what will happen to Tom and he says he doesn't know him and never met him.

Connolly goes to see Harold in his office. They exchange talks and he is satisfied with what had happened. He congratulates Harold - a job well done!

Liz is on the phone with Jeff and he informs her that the money was sent to Mr. Ames' daughter as a scholarship and it is to remain as an anonymous benefactor. Red lets Liz know that everything is about her and she shouldn't reflect on this. Liz receives a call from Tom, asking if she is okay.

Press Release

LIZ'S EX-HUSBAND RATES A HIGH RANKING ON REDDINGTON'S BLACKLIST AS THE TEAM TRACKS DOWN TOM KEEN TO CLEAR LIZ FROM MURDER CHARGES - As evidence mounts against Liz in the case of the murdered DC Harbormaster, a federal judge makes it clear to her that she will face severe criminal charges. Reddington and Ressler jump into high gear to exonerate Liz but the only solution is to find the recently vanished Tom Keen - wherever he may be operating in the world.

Number on The Blacklist

• 7

Unanswered Questions

1. Why did the characters keep saying they cared about justice?
   1. Elizabeth Keen is following Red’s path about guilt, a path that is certainly based on his history.
   2. Harold Cooper alternated between rage and acceptance of his perjury.
      1. A: Cooper knew that Keen was innocent, and did the moral thing keeping her out of prison, where the system would have had her incarcerated for a crime she didn't commit. He just did not think he would ever have to do something like that in order to actually do the right thing.
   3. Thomas Connolly stated that his rise to power was based on not caring about morality.
      1. A: Connolly may be somewhat rough, but he means well and seems to genuinely care about Cooper and getting justice for those who deserve it. He is not totally ammoral/immoral, he just breaks rules to get things done.
   4. Richard Denner gave in to legal blackmail and exceeded his authority within the court system.
      1. A: Denner doing what he thought was right, stopping the government from covering up a crime. He just broke too many rules in the process. Connolly reminded him that he had exceeded his authority.
   5. Martin Wilcox illegally accessed Keen’s bank accounts without a warrant.
      1. A: He meant well. He thought he was trying to stop a killer.
2. Elizabeth Keen and Tom Keen
   1. Why do they love each other? Liz imprisoned Tom illegally. Tom should have received training to avoid emotional relationships.
      1. A: He did, but because he spent so much time with her, and also because you can not always help who you love, he fell in love with her for real, while he was pretending to love her.
3. Raymond Reddington
   1. Was Red the person who sent the Federal Ministry of the Interior (Bundesministerium des Innern) (BMI) to the airport?
      1. Donald Ressler was on the scene during the raid so the implication is that it was part of the task force, not just Raymond Reddington.
   2. How did Red expect to get the weapons released?
      1. A: Red has contacts everywhere, probably including the German Ministry of the Interior, who had the weapons.
4. Harold Cooper
   1. Why was perjury the line Cooper would not cross?
      1. A: He may bend the rules, but he always thought of himself as an honest man, and not someone who would lie under oath.
   2. Was Cooper’s anger towards Keen caused by the chemotherapy?
      1. A: He was not angry. He was sad that she was becoming a hardened individual instead of the good person she was when she first joined the task force. The chemo caused the seizure, which was brought on by his worry for Keen and him having committed perjury to protect her.
5. Thomas Connolly and Richard Denner
   1. Connolly and Denner's argument showed that they are different sides of the same coin. Connolly focused on the limits of Denner's authority and stated that Denner had ignored his jurisdiction. Denner was sickened by the government's tactics of threats and secrecy. They insulted each other with accurate descriptions of their flaws.
   2. What would Connolly have done to Denner and the case if Denner had refused to end the inquiry?
   3. Will Connolly take revenge on Denner? Will Denner’s career be wrecked by Connolly?
      1. A: No. He will probably reward him later on, after Connolly is Attorney General, for dropping the case and sparing Keen and Cooper.
      2. A: No, that would have happened if he did not drop the case. He will probably move higher up because of his cooperation.
      3. Q: Denner showed rage at Connolly for supporting the government's tactics of secrecy. His speech showed that he was sickened that the government had won.
      4. Q: Connolly mocked Denner and offered to promote him to a “real court”. Denner was sickened that Connolly won.
6. Thomas Connolly
   1. Why did it take so long for Reven Wright to call Connolly in for help?
      1. A: Wright was sure that after Keen and Cooper's testimony, that Denner would drop the case. When he refused to change his position due to his hatred for a secretive government, Wright played the last card she had: Thomas Connolly.
   2. Why did Connolly say he regretted learning of Red?
      1. A: He meant it as kind of a joke, kind of how you learn a secret and wish you had never found out the truth. it was easier not knowing.
   3. How did Connolly get Tom released without questions?
      1. A: Connolly released him to preserve the secrets of the task force, which would have been brought to open court if Tom was tried for the murder of Harbormaster Eugene Ames.
      2. Q: What did Connolly do to get Tom released without leaving a record? Connolly told Keen that there was no Tom Keen in custody. Connolly would need a plausible reason for Tom's release and the destruction of any records.
7. Richard Denner
   1. Why did Denner take the Keen case even though it was outside his jurisdiction? He must have known that somebody would have stopped it on legal grounds.
   2. Will the ruling set a precedent that allows the task force, Wright, and/or Connolly to silence similiar incidents?
8. Martin Wilcox
   1. Why did Wilcox illegally access Keen’s bank accounts?
      1. A: He thought it was worth it when trying to catch who he believed was a murderer.
   2. Will Wilcox return?
      1. A: Probably not. He knows he has lost. But you never know, as he still thinks Keen is the killer. Marking objected, but quickly realized that he had lost.
   3. Wilcox's and Brad Marking's reactions to Denner's ruling indicate that they have lost previous cases because of the “national security” reason. In several episodes of “Babylon 5”, the main characters are enraged when another character uses their position to undermine the law.
9. Max Ruddiger
   1. Why was Max not in prison? What is his legal occupation? He would need a cover story for the police.
   2. What model was the Volkswagen Passat?
10. Why did everybody refer to the FN F2000 as a machine gun? It is an assault rifle. Also, the weapon seen resembles the FN P90, which is a personal defense weapon.
    1. A: Probably because they are just regular people, who often call assault rifles, “machine guns”, and the rifles in the crate were in fact F2000s.
    2. Q: Red and the others are weapons experts, they need to know the difference when selling or identifying weaponary.
11. Why does Donald Ressler have a “looks like a cop” image? Red said the same thing about Keen in “The Cyprus Agency”.
12. Why did Samar Navabi state that Liz and Tom had a romantic relationship based on their felonies?
13. What will happen to Samuel Aleko?
    1. A: He will be imprisoned for other crimes committed in the process of the murder such as perjury, accessory to murder, and obstruction of justice.
14. What will happen to “The Disenfranchised” (Die Entrechteten) now that the leader is dead?

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External Links

• NBC.com
• NBC.com