The Blacklist 4×01 Esteban (No. 79) Recap: Here’s What Happened in Cuba
Cold Open
Red surveys the kidnap scene while Dembe and Mr. Kaplan offer insight. Dembe tells Kate he’s not on her side here, and then we see the most awesome night club walk through scene known to man. Red is on the trail of the kidnappers; he tells Kate he can’t trust her. He shoots four dirty cops, and Mr. Kaplan looks like she needs a parka after the cold shoulder Red gives her. Aram expresses shock and surprise about Liz actually being alive, and the team discuss the situation in Cuba. Agent Navabi seems especially irritated about it. We check in with Liz and Tom briefly, they both appear to be in dire straits.
Act I
Back with Liz, who is also good at giving the cold shoulder, Constantin Rostov gives his accounting of events. Liz doesn’t want to hear it. Tom is still in the trunk and his situation doesn’t improve after knocking out the tail light. Cooper asks the Task Force for an update and Samar tells him she informed the bureau “that Elizabeth Keen has risen from the dead. They said three Hail Marys and they’re on the lookout for the zombie apocalypse,” with a smirk on her face.
They all talk about how they are feeling about Liz being alive after all. Red finds Liz, but their meeting is obstructed by bullet proof glass. She seems intent on breaking away from Constantin, but is more concerned about Tom and Agnes and asks Red to find them. He says he’s not leaving without her.
Act II
Red checks in with Harold and sets them on the trail of the next Blacklister: Manuel Esteban. They debrief each other, and we find out all we need to know about him: he’s a horrible person who works for the U.S. government in Cuba. He takes out his eyeballs and all are horrified. Cooper meets with Cynthia Panabaker and they discuss Reddington and Esteban. He tells her that Red told him Esteban works for The Agency, and she responds, “Is there anything that man doesn’t know?” A meeting is set up between Esteban and Ressler only. Navabi refuses to go. Ressler is taken to Esteban and facilitates a meeting between he and Red. Tom is still in the trunk, but after a second failed escape attempt, he heads off to dig his own grave.
Act III
Red and Esteban talk, Red offers him protection. Tom tries to bribe his captor, but he’s not very good at it. Mr. Kaplan finally confronts Red about Liz. After she finishes talking, Esteban shows up again and instead of responding to her, Red tells her to wait in the car.
Esteban tells him he has a location for Liz, but knows nothing about a child. Constantin tells Liz about his blood disorder and that he is dying; this information pleases Liz. Agnes arrives, much to Liz’s relief and they check in with Tom. He is still digging, but because of the phone call, Tom manages to get the drop on his captor and tells Constantine that he is coming for him with an army to get Liz and Agnes.
Act IV
Liz makes her own plans to escape because Constantin tells her they will be leaving soon. She tells him that she has to feed Agnes and that he has to leave. Esteban tells Red that he must hurry because Kirk has charted a float plane. Ressler and Red argue. Ressler wants to go with Red; he refuses, thanks him for his assistance, and tells him “safe travels home Donald.” Constantin discovers that Liz took Agnes and fled; everyone is gone except the hitman-kidnapper. Constantin tells him to find the child and the girl. Tom calls Aram and asks for his help finding Agnes. Romina and the hitman-kidnapper search for the child and the girl, aka Agnes and Liz. Liz makes a decent attempt at subterfuge, but fails to finish the job quickly enough. The hitman-kidnapper threatens the life of the child for the second time this episode, and Romina takes Agnes away.
Constantin decides to take Liz away first without Agnes because Red will be there soon, and she fights against being separated from her child. Aram calls Red and tries to tell him where Liz is, but Red already knows. What he didn’t know was that Agnes was also there. Red directs the men to positions around the house, but tells Mr. Kaplan to stay put. Dembe finds the hitman-kidnapper, Red arrives too late to catch the plane, but Mr. Kaplan finds the baby. She tells Romina, “That’s not your child.”
Act V
In the final scenes of the episode, Red helps Dembe up, and Mr. Kaplan brings Agnes to Red. Dembe says they’re gone and apologizes, but Red says, “We have her.” Cynthia is losing her crap because Ressler told the Cubans about Esteban, but Cooper says he saved a lot of lives. She insists there are bigger issues. Ressler replies, “Torture, abuse, murder. I don’t see any bigger issues than that.” Aram tells Navabi he knows she won’t be able to live with herself if something happens to Liz or Agnes and she didn’t help. Red, Dembe, and Mr. Kaplan drive away with Agnes when Dembe receives a phone call from Tom. Red says to tell him that they couldn’t get Liz, but they have Agnes. Tom is frustrated. A car flies out of nowhere and crashes into them. The hitman-kidnapper takes away a crying Agnes. Mr. Kaplan looks on, unable to stop him.
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