The Blacklist: 10 Main Characters’ Arc, Ranked Worst To Best

For eight seasons, The Blacklist has provided fans with nothing but mysteries and plot twists. From the moment Raymond Reddington walked into the FBI Building, the show has been nonstop action with plenty of deceit and intrigue tied in. Who is Raymond Reddington and what does he want with Elizabeth Keen? With such a large and diverse cast, the writer’s main goal was to give everyone a voice.

Reddington is the criminal and Keen is the agent. Harold Cooper is the leader who gives the orders to Samar, Ressler, and Aram. Dembe is the right-hand man who protects the King and Katarina is the one pulling all the strings. But who has had the best character development of them all?

10 Harold Cooper

Cooper is the leader of the Reddington Task Force. He appears to be clean but like everyone else in the force, he does have his dirty secrets. Cooper’s arc has been pretty boring throughout the years. He’s mostly clean-cut and not many times has he had to force the law in his direction.

Cooper is going to stand for what’s right no matter the cost, even if that, means fighting to save the life of Raymond Reddington. For eight seasons, Cooper’s personal life has not really been mentioned in his character’s arc. Instead, he’s been the guiding light for a team that often tiptoes the line between good and bad.

9 Samar Navabi

Samar was a friend of Reddington’s whom he helped make it to the Task Force. Samar has always been about business much like Ressler. While Ressler displayed at least some human emotion, Samra was the exact opposite. She almost never smiled and when she did, it was over in a blink of an eye.

Her past was troublesome and her allegiance to Reddington did not last too long. The writers gave her an out that was not really great for her character or the fans. After falling in love, she was forced to leave making an excuse that it was the best thing to do to save Aram.

8 Donald Ressler

Ressler gets in his own way more than anyone else on The Blacklist. He’s a good agent but viewers want to know more. His characters’ arc is thin and for a regular on the show that needs to change and change fast. Ressler was given one episode where his past was explained and then everything went dark.

Ressler wants everyone to believe that he’s clean-cut, when in fact, Ressler has more Reddington in him than he cares to let on. Ressler can spot a criminal from a mile away but cannot see when his emotions are being played with by Liz.

7 Aram Mojtabai

For the majority of the show’s run, Aram had been stuck behind a desk either giving directions or updates on criminal’s personal details. His characters’ arc has been filled with computer tech-savvy, bad jokes, and broken hearts. In the early stages, Aram was comfortable playing the backseat. But in later seasons, Aram has been living more adventurously and part of that has to do with the absence of Samar.

Aram is coming out of his shell but it would be nice to see him in the field. He’s a bit more open to the idea now and that may give fans a chance to see a different side of him.

6 Dembe Zuma

Despite being the right-hand man to one of the most dangerous criminals in the world, Dembe Zuma still tries to live by a code. For Reddington, Dembe is the angel over his shoulder but can still be the devil on the other side. Dembe has dealt with bits of conflict over the last several seasons and on more than one occasion, has thought about turning on Reddington.

Dembe’s characters’ arc has been tied to Red’s but he has more personal scenes than those of the Task Force combined. The writers have done a marvelous job of constantly forcing Dembe to choose between his beliefs and his friend.

5 Raymond Reddington

Despite his criminal background and knack for either lying or bending the truth to his liking, Raymond Reddington is still the most beloved character on The Blacklist. However, his character’s arc is not as strong as Elizabeth Keen’s. Red has not changed one bit from Season One.

He’s still the same guy doing the same things he was even before he walked into the FBI Building. Back then he was protecting Liz from a distance, now he’s doing it up close. The writers have found ways to make Reddington more aware of his actions but at the end of the day, he does things that will benefit him more than others.

4 Tom Keen

Tom was holding just as many secrets regarding his life as Reddington in the beginning. He married Liz but that was not what he was supposed to have done. Reddington sent him there to keep an eye on her but Tom took it a step further. But just like his wife, Tom had questions regarding his past. He didn’t know who he was or where he came from.

His story arc was often ignored but Tom was a complex character. He went against Reddington’s wishes but he did so for good reason. He loved his family and would give his life for them. And eventually, he did just that.

3 Katarina Rostova

Katarina’s character did not have a much screen time as the others but her name alone carries enough weight to be on this list. She’s more than just the former lover of Reddington and Liz’s mother, Rostova is one of the keys to the missing puzzle that The Blacklist has been slowly piecing together since Season One.

She’s a former spy who’s out for revenge. The writers haven’t dug too much into her past where the truth may sit, instead, they decided that killing her off would make for better drama. But is she really dead? Her arc is still left without a clear direction but her importance cannot be ignored.

2 Mr. Kaplan

Kate was the caregiver who handled the early duties of taking care of a young Marsha Rostova aka Elizabeth Keen. She swore an oath do to whatever she had to be to protect her and that even meant going against Raymond Reddington if need be. Kate was good friends with Katarina Rostova in their younger years which in turn made Kate very valuable to Reddington.

They would go on to join forces. Reddington was the master criminal and Kate was the one who cleaned up his messes and knew his secrets. Mr. Kaplan was loyal but not to the person viewers expected. Her loyalty rested with Liz.

1 Elizabeth Keen

Raymond Reddington walked into the FBI Building to meet Elizabeth. Little did he or viewers know that the innocent looking female in Season One would make such a drastic change in not only her appearance but lifestyle and actions. The Keen fans knew and loved, is no longer there. She is now replaced by a woman set on revenge and she will do whatever it takes to get the answers she wants.

Liz’s characters’ arc has had more twists and turns than any other character on the show. One minute she’s sweet and the next she’s as deadly as Reddington or Katarina combined.

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