The Blacklist Wiki
Register
Advertisement

The Longevity Initiative” is the seventeenth episode of Season 2 of The Blacklist and the thirty ninth episode overall. It first aired on March 26, 2015 on NBC.

Synopsis[]

Press Release[]

The task force tracks a scientist who abducts disabled patients to conduct experiments on immortality. Now back in Washington, DC, Tom scrambles to save himself from new enemies.

Number on The Blacklist[]

  • 97

Unanswered Questions[]

  1. Moral shades of gray/grey
    1. Chemical Mary“ -- Mary Bremmer questions the double standards applied to weapons of mass destruction.
    2. “The Longevity Initiative” -- Roger Hobbs and Red had valid points about the history of risky medical research. None of the characters seem to have the right to make moral judgements about the letter of the law and the spirit of the law. They show outrage when somebody else evades the law, but ignore those arguments when they are involved.
    3. The Pharmacist“ -- Pascal and Aram's informant had valid points about the history of risky medical research. None of the characters seem to have the right to make moral judgements about the letter of the law and the spirit of the law. They show outrage when somebody else evades the law, but ignore those arguments when they are involved.
  2. Corporate and fringe research morality
    1. Chemical Mary“ -- double standards concerning warfare and weaponry
    2. The Lindquist Concern” -- innovation is suppressed to ensure corporate profits
    3. “The Longevity Initiative“ -- there are moral shades of gray/grey concerning experimental medical research
    4. The Pharmacist” -- moral shades of gray/grey and corporate suppression
  3. Crown Pharmaceuticals
    1. “The Longevity Initiative” -- Gold Crown Pharmaceuticals
    2. The Pharmacist“ -- Crown Life Pharmaceuticals
  4. Why do the Major and Raymond Reddington prefer personal history stories before undertaking an action?
    1. A: It seems to be a psychological tactic to mentally unsettle their opponents before getting to the important point.
  5. Raymond Reddington
    1. Why did not Red ask Hobbs for help with Keen’s memory retrieval?
      1. A: Hobbs can't be trusted. Besides, Red prefers to keep his plans in secrecy.
      2. A: Hobbs is not a scientist and does not conduct any medical research himself, so he would not be able to help Red.
    2. What would Red have done if Julian Powell’s research was useful for memory retrieval? Hobbs hired Red to kill Powell.
      1. A: Had Julian Powell's research been successful and he was able to restore his fiancée's memories, Red would still keep him alive because he would be needed to help restore memories locked inside Keen about both the Fulcrum and her past before the fire.
      2. Q: What would Red have told Hobbs? Hobbs wanted Powell dead. Red wanted the research and the debt over Hobbs.
      3. A: Red would find someway to keep Hobbs satisfied by telling him that Powell had committed suicide. This would keep him unaware that Powell is hidden in an undisclosed and safe location, at least until his usefulness came to an end.
    3. What is the incoming “dark cloud” Red referred to?
  6. Elizabeth Keen
    1. Why did Keen show rage towards Red? She has committed illegal actions.
    2. Keen admitted she was the “puppet of a high-functioning sociopath” and her personal identity had been destroyed.
    3. Keen's interactions with Red are following a cycle: rage, depression, acceptance.
    4. Why was Keen surprised that Red would use the FBI for his personal gain?
  7. Donald Ressler
    1. Why was Ressler surprised when Cooper ordered Hobb’s release? The evidence was weak. He did not care when Keen walked free despite her felonies with/against Tom.
    2. Why did Ressler make accusations against Hobbs at the first meeting? He had no evidence.
  8. Harold Cooper
    1. Why was Cooper reluctant to give in to Connolly’s pressure concerning Hobbs?
      1. A: Because he's honest and Hobbs was a murder suspect.
    2. Why was the drug trial age limit being lowered?
      1. A: It was suggested that Connolly was behind it to pressure Cooper into helping Hobbs.
      2. A: In Phase 1/I of clinical trials, the testing is limited to otherwise healthy patients for safety. Cooper's age could've been high enough for a clinical researcher to deem him legitimately unsafe for a Phase 1/I trial.
  9. Thomas Connolly
    1. Why did Connolly ask Cooper to limit the investigation into Hobbs?
      1. A: It’s presumed that Hobbs, a corrupt billionaire, asked Connolly for help.
    2. Is Connolly’s appointment to Attorney General being influenced by the corporate employees who are financing his political supporters? In “T. Earl King VI” he asks for information on the fraud indictment.
  10. Roger Hobbs
    1. How much money did Hobbs lose? He said ”tens of millions”.
    2. Why did Hobbs not have oversight on Powell’s research?
      1. A: Hobbs claims that he has employed over a 1,000 people, so he would be unable to closely oversee every person's work.
    3. What is the history between Hobbs and Red?
      1. A: Red claims that in the past, Hobbs asked if Red wanted to partake in his project and potentially receive immortality, but Red declined.
    4. Is Hobbs who Alan Fitch was referring to when he told Raymond to “talk to Mitchum and Hobbs”?
  11. Tom Keen
    1. Who was Sarah Hastings?
    2. What happened in Capetown?
    3. Why did Die Entrechteten want revenge?
      1. A: They believed that Tom betrayed their trust being an informant to Red that lead the police to them. The Germans believe Tom's weakness is with his ex-wife, Elizabeth.
    4. How did Die Entrechteten find Tom?
      1. A: They had some agents living in the US that informed them of Tom's whereabouts.
  12. Major
    1. Why did the Major tell Tom to lower the car window?
      1. A: Probably to minimize the amount of blood in the car.
      2. A: At close range, the bullet would have shattered the window on the way out.
    2. Why was the Major released by the Germans?
  13. Loyd Munroe and the traffic stop
    1. Why did Monroe not hide the bodies in the back of the truck?
      1. A: Like most low profile criminals, he was not careful enough.
    2. Why did Monroe keep the gun he used for the murder?
      1. A: Many criminals keep self-incriminating evidence due to overconfidence and/or ignorance.
    3. Why did Monroe agree to allow the officer to search the truck?
    4. Did the highway officer have probable cause to search the truck?
      1. A: Probably not, but Monroe consented to the search making it legal.
    5. Why was the response time of the other police unit so quick?
    6. Why is killing a police officer a death penalty offense?
      1. A: Killing a member of the law enforcement community and/or legal system has always held a higher punishment than just killing a normal civilian and tends to garner capital punishment.

Slanders on the FBI[]

Cast[]

Main star[]

Guest star[]

  • Hisham Tawfiq as Dembe Zuma
  • Reed Birney as Thomas Connolly
  • Kevin Weisman as M.E. Jeffrey Maynard
  • Josh Close as Julian Powell
  • Ralph Brown as Roger Hobbs
  • Valerie Pettiford as Charlene Cooper
  • Elliot Villar as Lyod Munroe
  • Chandler Williams as Elias
  • Jack Koenig as Dr. Levin
  • Kim Ramirez as Allison Cruz
  • David Patrick Kelly as Heinrich Gerst
  • Lance Henriksen as Major

Co-star[]

  • Timothey Smallwood as Sergeant Townsend
  • Paul Niebanck as Mitchell Pruitt
  • Christine M. Campbell as Leann McGrath
  • John B. McCann as John Paul
  • Eden Marryshow as Orderly Todd
  • Kate Easton as Assistant
  • Anthony Mangano as Officer
  • Anne Runolffson as Reporter
  • Addison Lemay as Skinhead #1
  • Chris Holliday as Female Victim

Gallery[]

External Links[]


Season 2 Episodes
 · Lord Baltimore  · Monarch Douglas Bank  · Dr. James Covington  · Dr. Linus Creel  · The Front  · The Mombasa Cartel  · The Scimitar  · The Decembrist  · Luther Braxton  · Luther Braxton: Conclusion  · Ruslan Denisov  · The Kenyon Family  · The Deer Hunter  · T. Earl King VI  · The Major  · Tom Keen  · The Longevity Initiative  · Vanessa Cruz  · Leonard Caul  · Quon Zhang  · Karakurt  · Tom Connolly  ·
Advertisement