James Spader and Megan Boone in “The Blacklist”

At a time in television history when more pilots and freshman seasons are at our fingertips than ever before, it’s always inspiring to see a series make it big and run for several seasons before cancellation. 

“The Blacklist” is one of those unique series that has simultaneously captured the viewers' imagination while also stringing them along for a tantalizing cat-and-mouse chase for years. If done poorly, a show of this nature can truly disappoint. If done well, however, the series may be one of the lucky productions with a decade-long TV tenure. Fans of the Emmy-winning “Blacklist” are no doubt pleased their beloved series falls into the latter category; on the other hand, they may not be pleased to learn the show’s upcoming 10th season will be its last. Season 10 of “The Blacklist” premieres Sunday, Feb. 26, on NBC.

For those new to the crime drama (or simply waiting until all seasons have been released for optimized binge-ability), the series opened with a new-on-the-job FBI profiler, Elizabeth Keen (Meghan Boone, “My Bloody Valentine,” 2009), whose entire life took a turn for the bizarre when career criminal Raymond “Red” Reddington (James Spader, “Boston Legal”) suddenly decided to turn himself in after years on the run from authorities. To add extra pressure on Keen during this turn of events, Red made the FBI a strange offer: he’ll give up his so-called “blacklist” — a list of everyone he’s ever worked with in the criminal world — provided he can deal exclusively with Keen.

As the series progressed, the unlikely duo united to take down nearly every living criminal on Red’s infamous list. Of course, having a major criminal working alongside the FBI’s newest agent poses many unique risks, so two agents — the FBI’s Donald Ressler (Diego Klattenhoff, “Homeland”) and the CIA’s recently rehired agent Meera Malik (Parminder Nagra, “Bend It Like Beckham,” 2002) — were assigned to monitor the ongoing operation. 

As one might come to expect, however, the biggest risk with such a job is death — and not everyone made it out of each season alive. (Those not yet caught up should beware of spoilers ahead.)

Two characters of note will not be returning for “The Blacklist’s” 10th and final season this year. Keen died after having been shot in the back by one of Neville’s (Reg Rogers, “Analyze That,” 2002) underlings during the Season 8 finale. Malik, meanwhile, met an equally unfortunate fate much earlier in the series when her throat was slashed by an assassin in a nightclub during the two-part Season 1 finale. 

That said, Season 10 does offer a comeback of sorts. Sure, there is always the opportunity for Keen and Malik to make a reappearance via flashbacks, but series writers have something more familial in mind. 

James Spader stars in “The Blacklist”

“Auckward Love’s” Anya Banerjee joins the cast for the final season as Siya Malik, daughter of the late CIA agent. Not only will the law-enforcement legacy have to navigate the complicated situation created by Red and his cohorts across nine seasons of backstabbing, double-crossing and vigilante justice, but she will also need to fill the two-person-sized void left by agents Aram Mojtabai (Amir Arison, “Girls”) and Alina Parks (Laura Sohn, “Worth,” 2020), who both left last season.

As “The Blacklist” begins its final instalment, all signs point to Red being exposed as an FBI informant, which would naturally provoke all remaining criminals on his list to join forces in order to take him down before he can see his project through to the end. This seems especially likely when turning to the official NBC trailer for clues. But no matter what happens, as Red states in the final seconds of the clip: “There’s an end waiting for all of us.”

“Blacklist” executive producer and showrunner John Eisendrath agrees, stating in a news release that the time is right to say goodbye to Red and the gang.

“After 10 years, hundreds of ‘Blacklist’ cases and more than 200 episodes produced, we're honored to reach our conclusion," Eisendrath said. "It's been incredibly fun to create the strange, devious and delightful Blacklisters to challenge Raymond Reddington and our FBI Task Force each week.”

Sony Pictures Television Studios co-president Jason Clodfelter expressed a similar sentiment, adding kudos to the cast and crew for their hard work and dedication over the past decade.

“James [Spader] has led a multi-talented and diverse cast that also featured legendary guest stars and hundreds of Blacklisters who made us all root for this antihero,” Clodfelter said. “We tip our Reddington hat to the dedicated production staff, hard-working crew and talented writers. The unpredictable plot twists have produced a legacy TV show that served to entertain a worldwide audience, and as we enter the final season, we can’t wait for audiences to see how Raymond Reddington takes a final bow.”

Tune in to catch the final moments of “The Blacklist” before Red hangs up his hat one last time. The series’ 10th and final season begins Sunday, Feb. 26, on NBC.