Criminal Minds Review "The Fallen"

Incredible episode.

I have several more words I can use to describe an episode that I believe shows off the wonderful things that a Criminal Minds ep can be, but I'll stick with incredible. This outing, penned by the always fantastic Rick Dunkle, was a tribute to the heroic soldiers who have protected us. It offered this up, however, without being overly sentimental. It felt truthful without being cynical, and it was emotional without being cloying.

The overall story was about the team hunting down a former firefighter who was killing homeless folks in Los Angeles because he saw them as less than human. The bigger story was about David Rossi coming face to face with his Marine Corps platoon leader from his time in Vietnam, played by Meshach Taylor. 

I've always been a fan of Mr. Taylor. I grew up with his flamboyant and often hysterical turn on Designing Women. This was so much more than that. This was such a lovely and beautiful acting job. With his rich gritty aged voice, Mr. Taylor (and Mr. Mantegna, who was phenomenal) brought tremendous honor to the Marine Corps and vets everywhere, not shying away from the horror of war all while highlighting the heroism of it.

A couple other things which stood out:

-Loved the JJ/Morgan/Rossi scene at the warehouse. Beautifully executed. I'm a bit surprised they didn't have JJ and Morgan shoot the UnSub after he let himself on fire. Terrible way to die even for a sociopath.

-The music at the beginning and the end was great. Would love to know the names of those songs.

-Small of the small moments of the ep were especially grand such as Reid having the woman drink milk (?) to ease the bleach down her throat. It was a small thing and if it hadn't been there, no one would have noticed, but that it was helped really authenticate the episode and enhance the gravity of what had just happened.

All in, one of this seasons' finest eps.

Sir Gareth 


Editor note: the songs played were "Keep Holding On" by A.lav played by Brooke Adams "Born On The Bayou" by Creedence Clearwater Reviva "Home" by Rockie Lynne. Thanks to muccia12 

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