The Blacklist: The Complete Third Season

This high-concept conspiracy/espionage thriller about an elite FBI team tasked with tracking down international criminals is ostensibly an ensemble action series featuring a crack team of agents and analysts, but the overpowering presence of James Spader as renegade agent and international criminal turned FBI informant Raymond "Red" Reddington is still the real draw of the series. Red has come out of hiding to protect Liz Keen (Megan Boone), an FBI profiler framed for murder by a powerful government cabal. The series continues its established formula, with each episode focused on apprehending a different criminal identified by Red while the larger conspiracy plays out through the course of the season, which begins with Liz on the run with Red, trying to clear her name even as her former teammates are assigned to bring her in. Liz's outlaw life ends halfway through the season, when she returns to active duty, but more twists arrive when she gives birth to a child and she and ex-husband Tom (Ryan Eggold) attempt to create a normal life in a world filled with international supervillains, corrupt government figures, and revenge-minded criminals. Along with Spader's larger-than-life performance, the show features inventive action scenes, impressive production values, and high-caliber guest stars, including David Strathairn, Christine Lahti, Fisher Stevens, Paul Reubens, Famke Janssen, Tony Shalhoub, and Brian Dennehy. Compiling all 23 episodes from the 2015-16 third season, extras include behind-the-scenes featurettes (exclusive to the Blu-ray edition are episode commentaries, additional featurettes, and deleted and extended scenes). Recommended. (S. Axmaker)