BWW Recap: 'Scottie Hargrave' Arrives On THE BLACKLIST

Ah, BLACKLIST, you bring back memories tonight. Red on his knees, surrounded by officers with guns. A wife inviting him to dine with her and the hubby, when it's just not going to work. And then you give us Famke Janssen, too. Such gifts you bring along with a hefty pile of dead bodies.

We begin with a businessman, Samuel, telling Scottie (Famke Janssen) that he's unsure about secretly transferring company funds to hire mercenaries to take out the competition. She uses a pair of very nice breasts (it's Famke Janssen, after all) to make a business point until she's interrupted by an underling with the news that Operation Cobalt's gone south. She strolls through a pile of dead mercs and blood that needs professional help from Mr. Kaplan, and tries to ignore a note from Red knifed into one merc's body.

Aram tells the task force that Red's given him the name Susan Scott Hargrave as their new target. She and her husband Howard own Halcyon Aegis, which does secret henchman work for governments, businesses, and various creepy people, and is Mr. Solomon's new employer. Not-Tom pops in and says that Scottie was after Liz. But Cooper's been ordered to keep hands off Halcyon, as if that's going to stop anything. Not-Tom offers to close in on Halcyon staffer Amanda with his not-grieving-much charm. Aram gives him a toy to read Amanda's hard drive at a coffee shop, but apparently Halcyon's protected it. It didn't protect her eyes though, so she flirts with Not-Tom. He and she exchange fake names and he gets a date and a SECOND CHANCE to steal data.

Red and National Security Advisor Laurel debate going after Halcyon. She says she can't get permission but Red reminds her that the NSA doesn't need permission. He also blames her for Liz dying because of Laurel's public revelations about Masha Rostova, which guilts Laurel into helping. More prior season referencing. She gets Red together with Halcyon underling Brad, who promises Red that he will get a message to Scottie. And he will because Red kills him, makes sure a new message is staked into him, and then decides he's hungry. Hard work sure helps the appetite. Scottie gets the Brad-blood-soaked note and decides to ignore it, too.

Cooper is ignored by government lawyer Rodney who can't find any cause to get a warrant for Scottie or Halcyon. Cooper tells Rodney off and accuses him of having been gotten to, which, of course, he has. That's the plot of this series, Harold, or haven't you noticed? The rest of the government's been sold out, and no, they don't want to help you find who killed Liz Keen. Not-Tom tells the task force he has a date with the female Halcyon underling and her laptop, and Samar has dead underling Brad's phone. It's live, and Aram can triangulate where the call is coming from. Ressler and Samar grab an underling on a sidewalk in the hot zone, but it's Samuel, the oilman from the opening, who was on the phone to Brad's number. He escapes but Samar gets the license number.

"Lester" comes to make Samuel an offer on his lovely home, while Samuel's wife, Cynthia, makes a cheese platter and her special CUCUMBER dip -shades of Janet and her stroganoff. However, when Red demands info on Halcyon from Samuel, Cynthia, unlike Janet, proceeds to fill Red in on every imaginable detail Sam doesn't want to spill. She's pissed because of his internet porn habit and has read every one of his emails lately. Go, Cynthia!

Aram helps Tom understand how to use a device to hack his date's computer. The "plug and play" references become embarrassing sexual humor. Sigh. Meanwhile Cooper and Red meet, and they trade information. There are competing oil companies whose oil Halcyon is supposed to steal for Samuel. Cooper tells Red that Red is not allowed to steal the oil for himself. Better luck next time, Harold. The task force watches on video during a Halcyon raid that the feds are intercepting, when the SWAT leader is killed by a Halcyon bomb, as bombs also explode at oil facilities in Europe. Now Ressler and Samar want even more blood. Samar also proves to be this year's Ford Escape commercial.

Not-Tom and his target have a date at her apartment. His "I'm a widower with a little girl" line gets her hot and bothered, so he spills wine on her "accidentally" to get her out of THE ROOM so he can be alone with her laptop. She comes back before he hacks all the data, though, so he distracts her with attempted sex on the desk. Then he plays the "I'm not as ready for this as I thought" card to get out of the apartment. He didn't look too not-ready, though, which Aram calls him on later.

Scottie is now pissed that Red is driving away business, since he scared off Samuel. She calls and says she had nothing to do with Liz dying. She wants to meet him in a first-class lounge at BWI. He says he can't possibly go into the security lines at a major airport, but she says she's not safe without it.

Not-Tom tells Aram that the task force will die without Liz while Aram checks the data. They hack into a phone call from Scottie offering to kill Red as a peace offering to a disgruntled client. The client wanted Liz alive, but her pursuit just left Liz dead.

As Baz, the world's best merc leader, calls Red to say that Scottie's arrived at BWI, Not-Tom calls to tell Red that he's walking into a trap. Red tells Baz and Dembe he's going in anyway. He gets through security looking geeky in a golf cap and huge glasses that deflect retina scans, but when he sees her in the lounge she calls 911. A security detail arrives way too fast, and Red is on his knees, shades of the pilot, being taken into custody. This visual recollection can only be intentional. But the one airport cop is Scottie's; he takes out the legit one so Red can be dragged off. Red knew this would happen, so Dembe's in a stairwell. But they don't kill the guard -they let him lead them to Scottie.

Scottie is waiting in a hangar, but Red's team, led by Baz, take out her mercs in moments. He asks her who hired her to kidnap Liz. She deflects, so he shoots her in the shoulder. "You know exactly who hired me. Alexander Kirk."

Cooper discovers the oil rescued from Halcyon's been "disappeared." He realizes Red did not listen to his sage advice. Really, Harold, we're disappointed. You thought Red was doing all this for charity?

Scottie tells Red that the planned kidnapping was just business, but she'd turned down Kirk's request to kill Red. Red says he won't kill her because she and he have to get Kirk before he gets either of them.

All righty, then. Does Not-Tom know that Liz is alive? Can Scottie's and Not-Tom's characters support a spin-off, and how will there be tension between them to keep that show going if Liz is alive? Will Aram become Red's new BFF? And where the hell did Red get those geek glasses (or are they secretly Spader's own)? Comments, comments!

Photo credit: NBC/Universal

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