The Blacklist needs Tom Keen too stay on the show just like Once Upon a Time needs Captain Hook to stay on the show. They are NOT real characters but are good actors that appeal to a lot women (me included) with a pulse (before I get hate mail I said a lot not all. Shows that are battling for ratings has to try and get as many followers as possible so you got people that love a strong female lead or a strong male lead you’ve got people that prefer gorgeous women and people that prefer handsome men. If you can hit most of these demographics then you may have jackpot. The show would be less in my opinion without Tom and Liz like Once wouldn’t be the same without Emma and Hook I maybe the only keen2 shipper but I know I am not alone.
Here is my thing:
Tom Keen doesn’t make any sense. If his stay on the show only because he appeals to some or many women, then it is a WRONG reason to do so. And I am sure, Ryan Eggold would more appreciate if the viewers like him because of the character he plays, and not because he is a handsome man (which he is.)
His story line is dragging the whole series down. We got a strong independent woman, who can’t think or blind when it comes to a man. Hello??? Tom Keen had been lying to Liz several times. When it comes to try to live in an honest way, he gives up at the first attempt.
Yeah, somebody else doesn’t want him to be with Liz. Yeah, somebody throw a monkey wrench, so what? Does he think that if the school found out about his activities they would not reject him or report him to the police? Does he think the world will become easier once he wants to stay clean? Well, tough.
And if the whole heist was successful, does he think that the jewellery owner will not come after him - which in return, he put Liz and his child in danger?
To me, Tom Keen is a spineless liar with a pretty face. He belongs in a garbage can, and not in Liz’ life.
We got a strong independent woman, who can’t think or blind when it comes to a man.
So, this is a question that’s been bugging me for a bit now. Why does loving this man make her less of a strong woman? She knows who he is and she chooses him. It sounds like her decision to me.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and there are plenty of people that want them together or apart for a variety of reasons, but it sounds like she only becomes less of a strong female role when she does something that certain members of the fandom disagree with. He’s not forcing his presence on her. When she was released, he was content to stay on his boat and simply be happy for her instead of instantly bound back into her life. Liz knows what she’s getting into, for better or worse, so that makes it her decision and her choice.
Personally, I enjoy his arc. I’m a redemption arc fan and I love complicated characters, which he very much is. He’s more than eye candy. You just have to be willing to peel back layers and give him more than a five second glance. He’s not a single-layered character.
Because she doesn’t use her brains anymore. She is a trained agent, who is trained to calculate the risks. But she is so in love that every traits we know and love about her is gone.
Come on, she is a FBI agent, for crying out loud. Going to Tom or Jacob or call him whatever you want, who works (or used to work) for cabal (or a high ranking member of cabal)… when everybody looks for her (the cabal and the government) does she really think they can just disappear and nobody will find out about it?
I disagree with the whole story of Tom Keen because it is forced. One might think that he is brave when he comes to the silly rich boy who likes to fight (I forget his name), who can connect him with Karakurt. Seriously?! That is not brave, that reeks of desperation (an answer to @anonauthor-a1023 too). And written waaaay too easy. And the heist, that was the stupidest story I have ever seen (in the Blacklist universe). No, wrong. The whole free fight was. Not to mention cliche. The heist too, by the way, For what? To give Tom Keen more screen time? Again, for what?
Yes, he is spineless because he seems not to be able to find solution outside his old world or not want to. Like some people wrote, if he really loves LIz, he can try to find jobs within the city. Or at least, try to find another job! And not accept the old life job without even considering Liz’ condition.
And he will admit that Red is the only person who can guarantee Liz and his child safety. Or he can try to prove to Red that he is trustworthy and the right person for Liz regardless of his past.
To me, the willingness to kick some ass without thinking of the consequences is not bravery. Many times, it is a sign of desperation and stupidity. From story telling, it makes the story not believable. Especially when the story is not written well, or too easy.
To me, bravery is to stand the ground or to stay true to your principal, when the world around you is falling apart. Like what Aram and Ressler did.
I am all for love story, either the man or woman is bad or good, as long as the character or personal traits is not gone or makes the female or male character behave or make illogical decision. They can do it to Ressler (the way he treats Samar as soon as he found out what she had done), why can’t they do it to Liz? You know, like in the first season. That was a good twist and quite shocking
The least they can do is giving Tom a redeeming character, something that makes the viewers believe why Liz can love him, without jeopardizing or lessening Liz’ characters. More importantly, without dragging the series.
I like Ryan Eggold; I think he’s a good actor. It will be a pity if his skill is wasted on stupid story line. Whether Tom will be kept or not is a secondary question in my eyes. The most and probably the only important question is will the writers be able to bring the dynamic relationship between Tom and Liz like in the first season?
On some of this we agree I would like to see a redemption arc written well for him where we know more about what makes him tick. Well written is the major factor for ANY actor
Exactly. A well written story (and character) is the major factor for any actor. Unfortunately Tom Keen story is not. I agree with @tesslerlove (sorry, can’t reblog you because of the gif file. I try to avoid any picture on my blog.)
It even puzzles me how Tom Keen character changed so drastically. From this mysterious person, who made the viewers wondering whether he was what Red accused him to be, into this predictable, not believable character. Worse, his stories seem to become a fairy tale type of filler - or in other word, the writers do not know what to do with him, but they must keep Ryan Eggold because he plays damn well. The result is Tom Keen becomes an annoying factor.
Just so anybody know, I live in a free country. Tumblr is located in a free country, although sometimes I have a feeling, recently, tumblr must have been located on a place, where free speech is an endangered species.
I love many tv series: Grimm, Elementary, X-Files, Blue Blood, The Blacklist, etc. And if I have opinions on some series, I will express it. Somebody might agree with it, Somebody might not agree with it, it’s all fair to me. I love engaging in a discussion or debate on some subjects. As long as it’s all about the subject, nothing I write is personal. Since as far as I understand, the characters in those series are products of imagination.
If I criticize a subject (in the recent case Tom Keen from “The Blacklist”), I DO NOT criticize any person. Tom Keen doesn’t exist in real life. What I criticize is the way the character or the story is written and the impact on the series in general, and specifically on Liz’ character.
If you are a Tom Keen fan, and for whatever reason, you think I attack you or ‘hate’ Tom Keen, I tell you know, you are wrong. And if you have thin skin, and think that the subject and everything around it belonged to you, well tough. You don’t own Tom Keen character, the tag, the expression, etc. Even if you owned Tom Keen, you still don’t have any right to tell me or anybody else not to talk about it or to use tags. Telling somebody not to use the tags tells only that you don’t know how tumblr works, by the way.
So do me a favor, either block me, or start behaving like an adult, and tell me your reason you disagree with me. Calling me a hater doesn’t count.
The Blacklist needs Tom Keen too stay on the show just like Once Upon a Time needs Captain Hook to stay on the show. They are NOT real characters but are good actors that appeal to a lot women (me included) with a pulse (before I get hate mail I said a lot not all. Shows that are battling for ratings has to try and get as many followers as possible so you got people that love a strong female lead or a strong male lead you’ve got people that prefer gorgeous women and people that prefer handsome men. If you can hit most of these demographics then you may have jackpot. The show would be less in my opinion without Tom and Liz like Once wouldn’t be the same without Emma and Hook I maybe the only keen2 shipper but I know I am not alone.
Here is my thing:
Tom Keen doesn’t make any sense. If his stay on the show only because he appeals to some or many women, then it is a WRONG reason to do so. And I am sure, Ryan Eggold would more appreciate if the viewers like him because of the character he plays, and not because he is a handsome man (which he is.)
His story line is dragging the whole series down. We got a strong independent woman, who can’t think or blind when it comes to a man. Hello??? Tom Keen had been lying to Liz several times. When it comes to try to live in an honest way, he gives up at the first attempt.
Yeah, somebody else doesn’t want him to be with Liz. Yeah, somebody throw a monkey wrench, so what? Does he think that if the school found out about his activities they would not reject him or report him to the police? Does he think the world will become easier once he wants to stay clean? Well, tough.
And if the whole heist was successful, does he think that the jewellery owner will not come after him - which in return, he put Liz and his child in danger?
To me, Tom Keen is a spineless liar with a pretty face. He belongs in a garbage can, and not in Liz’ life.
We got a strong independent woman, who can’t think or blind when it comes to a man.
So, this is a question that’s been bugging me for a bit now. Why does loving this man make her less of a strong woman? She knows who he is and she chooses him. It sounds like her decision to me.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and there are plenty of people that want them together or apart for a variety of reasons, but it sounds like she only becomes less of a strong female role when she does something that certain members of the fandom disagree with. He’s not forcing his presence on her. When she was released, he was content to stay on his boat and simply be happy for her instead of instantly bound back into her life. Liz knows what she’s getting into, for better or worse, so that makes it her decision and her choice.
Personally, I enjoy his arc. I’m a redemption arc fan and I love complicated characters, which he very much is. He’s more than eye candy. You just have to be willing to peel back layers and give him more than a five second glance. He’s not a single-layered character.
Because she doesn’t use her brains anymore. She is a trained agent, who is trained to calculate the risks. But she is so in love that every traits we know and love about her is gone.
Come on, she is a FBI agent, for crying out loud. Going to Tom or Jacob or call him whatever you want, who works (or used to work) for cabal (or a high ranking member of cabal)… when everybody looks for her (the cabal and the government) does she really think they can just disappear and nobody will find out about it?
I disagree with the whole story of Tom Keen because it is forced. One might think that he is brave when he comes to the silly rich boy who likes to fight (I forget his name), who can connect him with Karakurt. Seriously?! That is not brave, that reeks of desperation (an answer to @anonauthor-a1023 too). And written waaaay too easy. And the heist, that was the stupidest story I have ever seen (in the Blacklist universe). No, wrong. The whole free fight was. Not to mention cliche. The heist too, by the way, For what? To give Tom Keen more screen time? Again, for what?
Yes, he is spineless because he seems not to be able to find solution outside his old world or not want to. Like some people wrote, if he really loves LIz, he can try to find jobs within the city. Or at least, try to find another job! And not accept the old life job without even considering Liz’ condition.
And he will admit that Red is the only person who can guarantee Liz and his child safety. Or he can try to prove to Red that he is trustworthy and the right person for Liz regardless of his past.
To me, the willingness to kick some ass without thinking of the consequences is not bravery. Many times, it is a sign of desperation and stupidity. From story telling, it makes the story not believable. Especially when the story is not written well, or too easy.
To me, bravery is to stand the ground or to stay true to your principal, when the world around you is falling apart. Like what Aram and Ressler did.
I am all for love story, either the man or woman is bad or good, as long as the character or personal traits is not gone or makes the female or male character behave or make illogical decision. They can do it to Ressler (the way he treats Samar as soon as he found out what she had done), why can’t they do it to Liz? You know, like in the first season. That was a good twist and quite shocking
The least they can do is giving Tom a redeeming character, something that makes the viewers believe why Liz can love him, without jeopardizing or lessening Liz’ characters. More importantly, without dragging the series.
I like Ryan Eggold; I think he’s a good actor. It will be a pity if his skill is wasted on stupid story line. Whether Tom will be kept or not is a secondary question in my eyes. The most and probably the only important question is will the writers be able to bring the dynamic relationship between Tom and Liz like in the first season?
The Blacklist needs Tom Keen too stay on the show just like Once Upon a Time needs Captain Hook to stay on the show. They are NOT real characters but are good actors that appeal to a lot women (me included) with a pulse (before I get hate mail I said a lot not all. Shows that are battling for ratings has to try and get as many followers as possible so you got people that love a strong female lead or a strong male lead you’ve got people that prefer gorgeous women and people that prefer handsome men. If you can hit most of these demographics then you may have jackpot. The show would be less in my opinion without Tom and Liz like Once wouldn’t be the same without Emma and Hook I maybe the only keen2 shipper but I know I am not alone.
Here is my thing:
Tom Keen doesn’t make any sense. If his stay on the show only because he appeals to some or many women, then it is a WRONG reason to do so. And I am sure, Ryan Eggold would more appreciate if the viewers like him because of the character he plays, and not because he is a handsome man (which he is.)
His story line is dragging the whole series down. We got a strong independent woman, who can’t think or blind when it comes to a man. Hello??? Tom Keen had been lying to Liz several times. When it comes to try to live in an honest way, he gives up at the first attempt.
Yeah, somebody else doesn’t want him to be with Liz. Yeah, somebody throw a monkey wrench, so what? Does he think that if the school found out about his activities they would not reject him or report him to the police? Does he think the world will become easier once he wants to stay clean? Well, tough.
And if the whole heist was successful, does he think that the jewellery owner will not come after him - which in return, he put Liz and his child in danger?
To me, Tom Keen is a spineless liar with a pretty face. He belongs in a garbage can, and not in Liz’ life.
From the beginning on, the writers of “The Blacklist” had never intended to make , Tom Keen or whatever his name was to be other than this chameleon sexy killing machine. It’s pretty obvious.
But only for a moment, let’s tease ourselves with a thought, he had been a normal ordinary school teacher. A devoted loving husband, who got tangled and dragged into the crazy world of his wife.
I am dying to know, how an ordinary person tried to help his beloved wife, who lived and led a dangerous, extraordinary life. How would he cope, what could he do? How would his daily gray life change - and in what ways?
Questions, so many questions. And no answer.
But it could have been a bit of fresh air into the boring predictable stories of the whole Tom Keen segment. An illegal underground fights - how cliche. Abusive relationship - dangerous and not healthy. Not to mention, the love and the redemption part - that is too fast and too easy.
