Raymond Reddington is someone you do not want to mess with. Not only is he an ex-government official and a FBI most wanted fugitive, but he also knows how to get what he wants, no matter the cost. When he mysteriously turns himself in for an unknown reason, he says one thing—he will only speak with Elizabeth Keen.

Meet Elizabeth Keen: she has a loving husband and is soon hoping to adopt. She seems to have a good life, and her new job (and FBI agent) seems to be full of promise—until she walks outside and the FBI has surrounded her house.

When she’s introduced to Red (Raymond) Reddington, she has no idea who he is, but he knows her. Soon after, he introduces something called The Black List. It’s a list full of the world’s most dangerous people (according to himself). As Keen is thrown into a world full of criminals and secrets she has never known before, she soon realizes that everything is not what it seems, and everything she thought she knew–about her whole life—is not at all what it really is. While she struggles to keep her personal life and work life in balance, eventually the two will collide into a jaw dropping series.

“I think you will discover that your feelings about who he is and what he’s up to will change directions and change directions again,” James Spader, the actor who plays Raymond Reddington, said. “That’s one of the great surprises of the show. Just when you feel you might be getting comfortable, you haven’t. Just when you think you can get cozy with him, he does something to make you realize he’s not someone to be cozy with.” James Spader says about his role of Raymond Reddington. (Fernandez, “Spater strikes gold again on The Blacklist”)

Each episode includes a new case, where they try to catch a name that’s on Reddington’s list, and underneath the cases lies a more complicated scheme that will eventually wiggle its way into future episodes.

The Blacklist has gained millions of viewers. As a matter of fact, on the show’s opening night, it reached 12.6 million views, earning even more than The Voice. (Adalian “Premiere Week Ratings: Blacklist Starts Strong, Hostages Does Not”)

Personally, I was completely drawn into the show by episode one. I like thinking about a way a problem can be solved, finding what secrets are being kept, or figuring out things that a main character hasn’t even figured out for themselves. The episodes are filled with interesting characters that strongly develop over the course of the seasons. Someone you thought you knew turns out to be somebody completely different, or someone you thought you loved as a character is someone who should not be loved. It certainly keeps you guessing.