Blindspot Review: Fire & Brimstone (Season 5 Episode 6)
The Dream Team is back to solving puzzles on Blindspot Season 5 Episode 6, “Fire & Brimstone.”
The heist this week got them one step closer to clearing their names. Rich DotCom and Ice Cream’s back and forth makes for a speedy catch-up. Having the original thief then leave clues as esoteric as Jane’s tattoos make for an enthralling sprint across Europe.
Ice Cream is a very interesting addition to the cast fulfilling a fun-loving and yet menacing role. He’s a character that should definitely come back, and if the team still has to provide a “TBD” then it’s likely he will before the series closes out.
Yet, following the pattern of this season, the episode doesn’t rely too much on the plot. Instead, it bakes in character-driven subplots that enhance the story overall and have a big payoff for longtime fans.
While they might be back to what they do best–solving puzzles–it’s still different. They’re not saving the world anymore they’re stealing priceless works of art for criminals. That doesn’t sit right with Jane, and she’s exactly the person who should recognize that switch.
The character growth from Remy to Jane has been immense. In many ways, it probably feels for Jane like she’s spent the last several years fighting for some kind of normal only to end up back where she was before.
Yet, being on the run, they need the help where they can get it, and right now their only friends are other criminals. It’s a heartbreaking realization and something that should drive them forward as they continue to clear their names and get back to their lives.
The thing is that being on the run is affecting everyone on the team, especially Patterson who has focused all her energy on Zapata’s baby. Rich recognizes what’s happening here and it’s a very on-brand moment when he gives Patterson a heart-to-heart.
“Fire & Brimstone” even manages to examine Matthew Weitz’s mixed morality.
It’s been a couple of episodes since we saw Breanna’s death at the hands of Madeline Burke, and while resistance activities may have stopped, there’s no stopping the cogs in Madeline’s plan.
Weitz did promise to get Shah out of the way, and creating something to blackmail her with is a genius way to do it. Ideally, no one would have had to get hurt, and certainly not murdered, but this is far from ideal.
The fact that he can’t even bring himself to blackmail her is speaking volumes about where his loyalties lie. He doesn’t want to blackmail Shah. He actually seems to like her. He doesn’t get anything out of blackmailing her, except staying alive.
Lying about it was where he went wrong. Duping Afreen into transferring money from Shah’s account to the intern’s saying it was from his account is a breach of trust. He needs Afreen to help him and he can’t afford to lose her loyalty. This was a big secret and if she decides not to cooperate it could cos the entire resistance to go down.
Let’s hope that Weitz hasn’t completely shot the resistance in the foot, because the team is going to need all the help they can get now that they’ve unearthed Madeline’s plan.
Leaving the episode on the note that the chemical compound Madeline plans on using is ZIP is terrifying.
Yet, it fits Madeline. Given that Madeline’s grudge is with the government over what they did to her dad, it makes sense that she would want to create a world where she could rewrite history, and ZIP is the quickest way to do that.
Case study: Jane Doe. Formally a mercenary who went to work for the FBI, foiling Sandstorm. As vile as it might be, it has its applications when you’re an archnemesis.
Jane is going to have to grapple with this. It’s sad to think of any member of this team gone, but this possibility is entirely different.
Remember Jane’s dream on Blindspot Season 5 Episode 3, “Existential Ennui,” and how Madeline said to her that she was the cause of all the death around her? It hits differently now that you realize that could be a possibility. These friends she spent years making could be gone in the vicinity of one of Madeline’s weapons.
On a larger scale, this has terrifying consequences too. Now, take a moment and imagine the world you might wake up in if you have no past and Madeline is at the helm. You couldn’t confirm history. The only arbiter would be Madeline. Her word would be gospel, and anyone who detracts can be punished. It’s the ideal autocracy.
This revelation raises the stakes because it’s no longer about just saving people’s lives. It’s about saving people’s lives. Everyone’s identity is all at stake and in a much more vital way than just having social security numbers or credit cards stolen.
At the center of it all is someone who has enough empathy to realize the devastation it could cause.
Now that the team supposedly has a backdoor into her private conversations they can make some headway into circumventing her plan.
Let’s hope they aren’t too late, and none of them get ZIPed in the process.
What did you think of this episode of Blindspot? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Blindspot airs Thursdays at 9/8c on NBC.
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Lauren Busser
Lauren Busser is an Associate Editor at Tell-Tale TV. She is a writer of fiction and nonfiction whose work has appeared in Bitch Media, Popshot Quarterly, Brain Mill Press Voices, and The Hartford Courant.