The long running CBS series continues on through the various
changes in personnel once again this season. Last year they introduced the
character of Stephen Walker (Damon Gupton) but the season opener finds him
killed off. Introduced into this season was the character of Matt Simmons
(Daniel Henney) who was part of the CRIMINAL MINDS: BEYOND BORDERS that was
canceled after one season. He fits in well and does a good job here.
So what else is new with the Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU)?
So much after the convoluted season they had last year. Spencer Reid (Matthew
Gray Gubler) is back in the team but limited due to the predicament he found
himself in last season when he was accused of murder. Running the group is the
fully returned Emily Prentiss (Paget Brewster) who takes on the role once held
by Aaron Hotchner (Thomas Gibson). Or so it seems.
Part way through the season the top brass send in a new
adversary for the team in the form of Assistant Director Linda Barnes (Kim
Rhodes). Known as a headhunter more inclined to disband a group she’s
supposedly sent in to clean up the team does not take well to her. Even more so
when she argues with them about how cases should be handled creating more chaos
than is needed. When the team steps in to correct her issues she then takes the
credit for the solving of the cases.
The back and forth with the team leads to two specific
items. The first is the removal of Prentiss by Barnes, a leave of absences with
the intent to remove her forever. The second is the team realizing that the
only way they can take back the reins from Barnes is to work on their own off
book. Meeting at Prentiss’ apartment they begins working in secret.
And while all of this is going on the BAU takes on the
normal sets of cases they are always called in for. Serial killers, work place
violence culprits, emasculated businessmen, dead prostitutes, disfigured women,
robbery-homicides, murder-mutilations, mass graves and more are on their plate
here. As they have in the past the killers always seem fascinated with creating
some form of image of themselves as opposed to just randomly stabbing someone.
Then again if they didn’t there wouldn’t be a show now would there?
After 13 seasons and high profile firings for various cast
members as well as the potential upcoming loss of two more actors due to pay
disparity, you would think that the show would be losing steam. Not so. Instead
the actors involved here continue to bring their A game to the set and show
just why the series remains on the air. Having seen various member of the cast
in other films or shows I can attest to the fact that they endow their
characters here with their own personal traits, characteristics and quirks. It
rounds out those characters.
There is no single actor involved in this series that can be
held up as being the best. Every single one of them here is integral to the
series as a whole. Some characters may come and go but we mourn their loss
here. Each of them are just that good in their roles.
The end result of that is a captive audience that watches in
dread hoping that the rumors of this or that cast member leaving aren’t true. With
the development of these characters we the viewer become attached to those
characters. We care about them, worry about them and have concerns about them.
Yes, we realize these are actors portraying roles. But when done properly you
find yourself drawn to those actors as these characters. That happens and has
on this series since season one.
Season 13 continues the tradition that the series has held
in place for the previous 12 seasons. Great story telling, gruesome killers and
justice by a group that unites not just as a team but as a surrogate family as
well. And by the time the final episode of the season is done you find yourself
checking the calendar and waiting for the next one to begin. That’s an
achievement for a show like this. It deserves the credit it receives and the
fans that love every minute of it. Some of the show might make your skin crawl,
the killers incredibly strange and twisted. But it’s a show that holds your
attention start to finish. What more could you ask for?
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