Episode no. Season 3
Episode 1 Original air date October 1, 2015 | Directed by Michael Watkins | |
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Written by Jon Bokenkamp
John Eisendrath | ||
"The Troll Farmer" is the first episode and season premiere of the third season of the American crime television series The Blacklist. The episode aired October 1, 2015 on NBC. The episode reached 7.76 million viewers in the United States.
Contents
Plot
With Liz and Reddington on the run, Ressler, the new director of the task force, interrogates Cooper about Liz's last known whereabouts and strives to find them. A cabal operative lures Dembe to his lair by threatening his granddaughter. The Troll Farmer creates diversions on social media, helping Reddington flee the city, but Liz is unable to escape, so she takes refuge in the Russian embassy.
Reception
The episode was watched by 7.76 million American viewers and received an 18-49 rating/share of 1.8/6. The show placed second in its timeslot and sixth for the night. Ratings for the premiere are down considerably from the second season premiere "Lord Baltimore," which was watched by 12.55 million viewers and attained an 18-49 rating/share of 3.5/10. It is the lowest-rated season premiere for the series yet.
Including DVR playback, the episode received a total viewership tally of 13.24 million viewers and attained an 18-49 rating of 3.5.
Jim McMahon of IGN gave the episode a 7.3 out of 10, saying "A seamless return for season 3 finds The Blacklist right where it left off: plenty of action, an entertaining James Spader but also with a lackluster FBI task force running the show."