Hope you've enjoyed today's episode, and remember that next week we'll have a new brand one!
Wednesday, January 21, 2015
Criminal Minds Season 10 - 1012. Anonymous - Comments Thread
Hope you've enjoyed today's episode, and remember that next week we'll have a new brand one!
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One word sums up this episode for me: BORING!!!!
ReplyDeleteI thought the entire unsub plot was boring and unengaging. I absolutely didn't care about him or his victims. I'll probably forget all about it by tomorrow. It seemed like a throwaway case, so as not to detract from the real point of this episode: Sgt Scott's funeral. It was nice, and Rossi was good with his daughter and Sgt Scott's son. But still...not sorry it is over with.
I thought the episode was okay, though I dislike when any member is away from the case and away from the others in an episode. The case of the week was fine with me and I liked seeing Rossi and his daughter together. The only thing I really hated was the fact that JJ and Morgan are ALWAYS the ones to apprehend the unsub. It annoys me beyond belief! Seriously, no one else it's allowed to take down the unsub, besides them two?? They really need to switch things up. :/
ReplyDeleteso totally agree with you aboutJJ and Morgan ALWAYS been the one taking down the unsub! Really Hotch, Reid and Kate to wear kevlar, can run and do cary cuffs and guns, in Hotch's case the man cary two! They too are trained and can take out the unsubs, please be more creative writers!
Delete@CMRT, yes! Hotch carries two! I forgot about that. Every episode I watch, I am hoping and praying that JJ and Morgan are not the ones to arrest the unsub--and every episode I end up completely disappointed.
Deletei like this episode, the acting was good, maybe a little be boring that second storyline; predecible, but Rossi storylines was great, one of the best this season so far for me. except for callahan.... and JJ morgan wasn't so much the center
DeleteThe beginning of this episode felt childish with Rossi and Morgan....Hotch not being there and meeting them at that plane, was probably to allow for those opening two scenes.....
ReplyDeleteThat said, the case was interesting although there wasn't enough time to develop it as it should have been. Sometimes I think when they do a heartfelt tribute like they did, they should just scrap the case and find a way for the 'team' to be together for it... Over all though case was ok.
The tribute to Sgt Scott and therefore Meshach Taylor was good and JM did a good job with his presentation of that. I didn't mind his daughter being there but I do hope at some point Hotch actually talks to Rossi about her??? After all they are supposed to be best friends.
There was actually a good deal of Hotch actually profiling in this episode so I will forgive his lack of being at the briefing. The team that was on the case was balanced nicely. And this just proves that they do NOT need 6 profilers and a tech analyst to boot... JJ look worn out and old in this episode... remnants of the last week? But didn't show any residual from that episode so I'm thinking the whole PTSD is going to be glossed over.... No consequences for her... I was ok with the whole episode until the end... WHY ohhh WHY do Morgan and JJ have to always take down the unsub.???? Please for god's sake let someone else to it for a change.
Over all I give the Episode a 5 out of 10 stars or a C....
This was an ok episode for me. Joe good with directing. The tribute to Sargeant Scott was good. Joe Mantegna got good chemistry with the actress playing his daughter. The case was ok but I don't know, I was not into it. I don't know if it was the writing or directing but it felt a bit flat.
ReplyDeleteThe actor playing the unsub was good. The reason why he killed different. The team working the case was good, never felt things were rushed like last week. For once it was Hotch and not the omnipresent JJ ( talking season wise not episode wise) who solved the case.
I loved the scenes at the start with Rossi and Morgan. Morgan is definately a city guy! Also like all the Garcia scenes with Rossi. Sometime Garcia can be over the top but not tonight.
Why was Hotch NOT at the case briefing? This was not explained ( unless I missed something). Hotch never ever miss those, why now? and especially why no explaination? Why no one asked why Hotch was meeting them at the plane?
Was a lovely funeral for Scott but glad this storyline will be over with. I liked that we did learn about Rossi's past as a marine but time to move on. Speaking of back story, will everyone BUT Hotch get one?
All and all I will give this episode a 6.5/10. Was not as awesome as 'A thousand suns' but not as bad as last week. Was a decent episode.
garcia over the top just when she find the info so quckly, i wish she contribute more with the team, not having a couple os scenes to find the unsurb, otherwise she is very interesting character. Writers need to hire a good ex hacker or IT to help with the show....
DeleteI don't live in America so cannot watch the show as aired. I usually watch early in the morning about 8 hours after it shows in the US and I always take a quick peek here before watching to get a feel for how the episode was received. If an episode is really good or really, really bad like last week's then there are many comments in the thread by the time I get to have a look. This morning there are just 6 so I guess that places this episode clearly as an unremarkable one.
ReplyDeleteI thought the tribute side of it was well done and, even though I dislike the long lost daughter storyline lifted straight out of the worst of fanfiction, I actually like Rossi and his daughter together. They do actually have a believable rapport.
The case? Meh. Unsub up front, predictable motive, predictable ending - especially with JJ and Morgan at the take down again.
I liked that Hotch did something very rare in the show these days - "profiling"!
Huge dislike for Garcia's kitten ears - they were just wrong. Although Garcia herself was just about tolerable. I also thought JJ looked old this week but I doubt that that was a subtle nod to her PTSD - they wouldn't have the nouse to be that subtle.
I give it a C-. On a very shallow note, Reid is looking super scrummy these days!
Hey, what does scrummy mean?
DeleteSorry! That's English slang. It's short for "scrumptious".
DeleteMore like a combination between scrumptious and yummy.
Delete@ Mary Haha! Yess, scrummy it the perfect word!
DeleteMary; Can I suggest a change in your viewing habits? See the show first and then see what's being posted on CMRT. The reasoning behind this is simple. IMO no one on the Round Table is shy about speaking their own minds, without the added distraction of other people's opinion. I value your opinion as much as I value my own. Just a thought.
DeleteRTF
My viewing habit doesn't affect my objectivity. I take a quick glance to see how the episode was received as I find the poll on here is a good reflection of the audience view. I read the comments in detail after viewing. But if I log in and see scores of comments I know immediately it was either a brilliant episode or a controversial one. This one had so few comments I knew what to expect. My personal views are my own and not affected by just getting a feel for the episode. And incidentally, I know other people also have a preliminary peek at the reactions to see if, for example, there is too much JJ or if Reid disappears half way through. By your reasoning, I also have a quick scroll through Twitter before hunting down the episode online and from that I would think the episode was the best ever as all the posts on there are gushingly positive! Luckily my mind is my own and I don't form my own view till I have seen it..
DeleteMary needs to see the episode and talking later
DeleteMary forms her own, very strong opinions as and how she sees fit.
DeleteThe first thing I noticed about this episode was the attempt to show a different mix of characters doing the "family things" other members of the team usually do. IMO, it was a nice change of pace. The second thing I noticed was JJ having a "softer" look about her. It reminded me of the days before her "assignment" to the State Dept. Her hair was swept back and parted to the side like the season in 2010, and yes, she did look tired.
ReplyDeleteMy big takeaway from this episode is I think this was a bridging episode. It closed off some of the past and allowed new melodramas to continue, or expand. (UGH) Everyone appears to be on point about the writing. Could it be, that the CM writers have painted themselves into a corner, having no idea how to get out from under it? IMO they appear to be foundering in the sea of one melodramatic story line after another that usually accompanies a show that is slowly running it's course. I hope not. I think there's still a story to tell.
In reading the other posts, the common complaint centers around Morgan and JJ taking down the Unsub. every week. I agree, it's a bit much when you see the same scenario play out week after week. It is stale and for the sake of the show, things need to change.
Barbara, to answer your question, IMO, I don't think the JJ saga is over yet. I do think that Hotch will have a stern conversation with JJ. But when it does happen, it will be brought out by yet another adventure of the JJ high wire act we saw last week. In "Elephants Memory", Reid had, I think, a three episode arc concerning his meltdown. I think the episodes were "Jones, the previously mentioned Elephants Memory, and the episode in Houston, Tx. with the PTSD vet. Given that EM has a history of three episode arcs, I think it's coming due soon. This thing with JJ seems to have backfired badly on EM. The softening of JJ's physical look in this episode seems to be the result of it.
Although this episode wasn't the best I've seen, it wasn't the worst either. Here's hoping that next weeks episode with newly minted KV writing the script will be better.
RTF
Robert, Elephant's Memory was a standalone Reid-centric in Season 3. The PTSD aftermath episodes for Reid were in Season 2, after Revelations, and each contained a little Reid business to indicate he's having difficulty. Fear and Loathing, Distress, and Jones had him struggling and deciding to get clean; then Ashes and Dust and Honor Among Thieves had hints of the aftermath of his getting clean.
ReplyDeleteI agree they should show at least some glimpses of JJ dealing with Hotch, talking to Reid or someone about it, etc., but I think the only way these writers know how to write JJ is full-on !Amazing!
Robert and Sue, I don't think we'll see 'anything' further about the PTSD... and maybe that's a good thing... From comments made about last weeks episode it maybe became apparent to TPTB that these writer's don't know 'how' to make something subtle....
ReplyDeleteHotch's reaction to Reid was immediate (on the plane home) in Elephant's Memory. The more time that goes by with this, the more if doesn't feel cohesive but rather 'someone' trying to fix the mistakes...
As for this episode, it simply was unremarkable... Not good, Not really bad....
@Barbara, I agree with you about no more PTSD. But what episode are they shooting now? Is it 19 or 20? The episodes it could happen on IMO would be the ones they shot before the mid-season break. Or do they shoot alternate scenes to be mixed in later? I really don't know. The lag time between shooting the episode and the airing, seems to be pretty large. Or is this normal?
DeleteRTF
Answering your questions in order:
Delete- Right now they're shooting episode 1017. Breath Play.
- They shoot the scenes in whichever order works for them better, but they go episode by episode (never mixing scenes of one with another). For curiosity shake: they usually film the scenes in the offices, the round table room and the interior of the jet the last day, plus if they can, Fridays are left to film the scenes where only guest cast is present; one or both of those days, Kirsten films her scenes in front of her bank of screens.
- From the moment they wrap the filming work of an episode, they need 2-3 weeks for editing purposes: selecting the scenes that will end in the final cut we see on TV, adding music, adding voice-overs (be the quotes or re-recording parts of dialogue that can't be heard as good as it should), adding graphics (at the very least, the credits that overlap over scenes). Final step is getting the OK from both, CBS and ABC Studios.
Hope this helps!
I thought it was pretty underwhelming and it hurts me to say that because I really like and appreciate JM and want to love everything he does. It seems though that his interest and passion is unable to extend past doing something to honor the military. I suppose there is nothing at all wrong with that being your passion in real life, but one would hope you have creativity beyond that.
ReplyDeleteEven Hotch actually getting to solve things and do profiling was not enough for this to merit more than a "Meh" rating from me. My husband OTOH loved it.
Nice episode! I don't want to get anyone's hopes up, so don't get your hopes up completely but I read somewhere that the next two episodes have a strictly Reid-related emotional story arc, but whoever was interviewed didn't really want to spoil anything about it.. (I think it was EM but I could be wrong) As for "Anonymous," I was expecting the killer plot to be much less interesting, so as to put more of the spotlight on the Rossi/Joy/Harrison plot, but I was wrong. Not only was the death of Harrison Scott well written and made for a moving final scene and brilliant acting by JM, but the case was quite interesting and was an intriguing balance of emotionally empathetic/creepy, and for some reason I wasn't bothered by the fact that we saw the unsub right away. This plot would make for a bland episode if it were to be the only plot, but with the amazing tribute to Meshach Taylor it made a well-fitting unsub plot to this episode.
ReplyDeleteBut OMG, I totally agree with everyone who is tired of Morgan and JJ being the only ones to take down the unsubs. I want to see Reid and Kate Hotch take some killers down, interchangeably or together! There are two things I loved in particular, Hotch was able to put his superior profiling skills to use, and Reid was able to show off his intelligence and have some (better than none) much-needed prominence in the episode, even educating some of us about organ transplants. In my opinion, Bruce Zimmerman can write for Reid fairly well when he puts his mind to it, and he seems to work very well with JM; also, Garcia was awesome in many ways. Zimmerman seems to be quite the "Hit-or-miss" type of writer, and I believe it has been that way since he came on in Season 7. Some episodes he wrote were quite memorable, like "Snake Eyes," "Perennials," "In the Blood," "The Road Home" or "If the Shoe Fits." IMO, "Pay It Forward," from Season 8 was also a good episode as it was creepy as hell. But some episodes he has written have been complete letdowns. Tonight's episode, however, was IMHO an out-of-the-park home run for BZ, JM, and Danny Ramm. R.I.P. Sgt. Harrison Scott. Can't wait for "Nelson's Sparrow."
Long live CM.
CMaddict,I too read about Reid's so called emotional arc that is suppose to take place during episodes 13 & 14. Here's the thing though Reid isn't even mentioned in the official press release of either of those episodes.So you have to wonder just how significant his arc is going to be if he doesn't even warrant a mention.So indeed as a huge Reid fan I don't plan on getting my hope up.
Deletei have to add that i don't like Callahan/JLH, sorry she doesn't look a profiler, i don't like her acting, and still miss some other characters like Blake, strauss or even prentiss, JJ sometimes is too much for me too, but i would prefere they don't hire JLH, keep the original cast, give time to develop the characters storylines ( not appart from the others. like i say i like the team chemistry) and write more tense creepy episodes.
DeleteSadly this episode got a series low in the ratings a 1.9. I feel bad for JM who wanted to honor his friend. But the fact is this show has stiffer competition than it use and they are not given people enough reason to turn in anymore. I shudder to think what the rating would be had Modern family been new and not a rerun.Many people have stated that something has been off about this season.That they just can't get into it. Others have called it outright boring.CBS/CM people need to wake up,and smell the coffee. They need to get back to giving us compelling cases.And by that I don't mean showcasing the unsubs committing the crime but rather the team working and solving the case.And by the team I mean the whole team not the know it all Mary Sue or Garcia's magic computer for that matter.I am not against personal moment/storylines, if done correctly it can add interesting layers to the characters.The problem is while Ed and his writers were able to do it in away that added interesting nuances to our characters, but at the same time not take anything away from the case itself,Erica and her people just not have been as successful.
ReplyDeleteNeed to add that these are not the final ratings.Hopefully they will adjust up or stay the same as oppose to adjusting down when the final ratings are released.
DeleteFinal ratings have the episode adjusting up from a 1.9/6 to a 2.0/6. and from 10.16(million viewers) to 10.29(million viewers) So that is a bit of good news.
DeleteThe ratings are not too bad for live viewing but as many networks are no longer reporting live ratings, we have to wait for what the L+7 will be like. Remember that CM is the most DVR show on CBS after the big bang theory, so CM ratings may get higher after people have watched what is on their DVR. And, let's not forget, CM is still in the timeslot with the most competitions, Empire, Modern family. all of the other CBS shows do not have to face this amount of competitions.
DeleteBut you are right, yes to personal storylines BUT we need the suspense to be back. seeing the unsub in the promo is not helping. having the unsub show is not why we watch, we watch to see the team profile killers, catch them. We get excited when the team can show us why they are the best at what they do, not when the unsubs show/tell us what they do and why. We do not like to see the writers gloss over the case and have Garcia magically solve it by a few keystrokes on her keyboard.
The writers need to get that episode like omnivore, ridding the lightning, tabula rasa, revelation and so many others from season 1-5 that showed us how brilliant this elite team could be. Yes 100 was about the Hotchner's drama but the whole team was part of it, they were all involved one way or another AND it was part of what the BAU does. JJ going to the middle east to catch Bin Laden is not.
Last, not following on storylines they started or what was established on the show annoys people who get invested in those storylines and characters. How often have we asked for backstory or at least answers about Hotch childhood? It isn't something fans have asked out of a whim but because they, the writers, have planted the idea that Hotch may have been a victim of some sort of abuse and this was done in season 1 episode 8! yes we are a patient lot but we want ansswers!
hopefully the writers can look at what works and not, take into account what fans have been telling them and will make some changes. We all want the same thing, for CM to continue and for us to enjoy watching new episodes week after week :)
I'm certainly not the Nielsen ratings expert around here (the CMRT board has two much more educated in those numbers than me). That said, I do know the number that "counts" the most is the L+7 number (live + 7 days), taking into account DVR watching, etc. That is is the number that is now used by TV execs.
Deletei found the episode really ineresting. Rossi scenes with Morgan were fun. I don't like garcia kittens ears but she was phenomenal, giving support to Rossi and that hugs when he needs it the whole first few scenes makes me cry. Great tribute to veterans and Taylor, Great acting eveyone, and very well directe episode. But th the other storyline, the unsurb one bored me a little be.
Deleteagree about JJ but Garcia need to has more rol than just find the info so quickly, but get some time to investigate to get it and be more proactive with the team (because that way is more interesting), this episode give us more than just Garcia having a quick info....good.
DeleteEven if the +7 gives them what it has all season long.. This episode will still fall short of any other episode of the season... The average increase is roughly 1.5 over the Live view numbers...However, if it doesn't do even that well, that will be a huge tell as to how the fans are accepting of story lines.
ReplyDeleteThis average was done against very to no competition from FOX. Would be very surprising if CM and Empire didn't have a few viewers in common.
Deleteand remember, the REAL competition for renewal is not Empire, Modern Family, SVU but NCIS, POI, NCIS:LA etc... shows on CBS.
I think their own competition right now is the writer's and some of the lackluster story lines being developed. The writing room needs to get back to what CM was about to begin with and leave the soap operary stuff behind... Good cases, sadistic killers, demented unsubs, who take pleasure in killing others... Lately unsubs have been mostly 'average' people who have 1 trauma and snap.
ReplyDeleteI really don't think that is possible until EM is shipped off to the spin off and takes the majority of those writers with her.IMO She has not improved in the nearly 4 years she's been in charge. If anything I feel she has gotten worse. Seeing she was with the show from day one it is inexcusable how far off course she has taken it.She needs to be gone like yesterday.
DeleteKudos Debra. Well Said
Deletei think of a mix of everything it is what people likethe most : we need to se the team as a family that help each other...that have their own isues and life, (but the others supponting him like a family) and of course profiling, investigation, fun scenes, creepy minds, tension...
Deletesome people need to watch documentaries...there is realistic documentaries about pchychos and killers. This is a serie, i like from season 1 because there are creepy minds, this serie is sometimes are more or less realistic, but i like it. The team: as a family helping each other and to investigating and support each other when they have problems, i have to notice that i like some other seasons : more of thislike a family (revelations, damaged, penelope, Lo fi, mostley Lane etc etc than this season has less of this, and yes a little be of more creepy minds should be very wellcome, but not only that. and the unsurbs and their storylanes yes are a little be boring...mostly predecible
DeleteJJ and Morgan are not the only ones who arrest the unsub. I believe the Amelia Porter ep it was Kate, Hotch, & Rossi. There have been others, but I can't quite remember them at the moment. I love JJ so I am happy with any episode that she is prominant in. As for Morgan, he could leave the team tomorrow and I wouldn't even miss him.
ReplyDeleteEvery now and then someone else does the arrest, but most of the time there are Morgan and JJ. I don't like Morgan, at all, but he doesn't look or sound so bad when paired with everyone else but JJ. Now, I hate the JJ character, I hate her with passion. If she would just disappear in the horizon I would be the happiest CM fan. Just for her to stay in the background wouldn't just be enough,
Deletei like Morgan sorry
Deletei like him too
DeleteI like Morgan too.
DeleteMorgan also hadn`t been in any arrest scene since episode 10.08 and he has only been in one more arrest scene than Rossi this season so far. So it is not always JJ AND Morgan who take down the unsub. It is almost always JJ though.
Barb, your comment about the writers dropping the soap (pun not intended?) and getting back to 'sadistic killers and demented unsubs who take pleasure in killing others', I have to take exception to a degree. The writers show quite frequently they know how to do sadistic and demented, torture porn and too-much-unsub. I'd much rather have the good profiling emphasized, and have the personal lives of the team members be skillfully interwoven into the stories, and less emphasis on how much glee an unsub will take in killing. Yes, the BAU exists because there are people out there who can't control their impulse to kill, etc., but there has to be an emphasis on the team, their different contributions to solving cases, and, yes, something about their real lives (just not too gooey a soap opera). My take.
ReplyDeletetotally agree...
DeleteOhh I agree with that... the profiling should be the focus. I guess all these unsubs that are sadistic etc are often shown in too sympathetic a light for my liking. They're killers, the team profiles and catches killers, I would rather have exactly what you said, with the lighter moments not books ends but scenes between the team during a case to lighten the horror of what a particular case is about. I don't need the 'bookends' that they do now. Maybe once in awhile... but every episode it seems has the case bookended with personal story of one of them.
ReplyDeleteI know exactly what you mean Barb. And I too am sick of these types of unsubs. Once upon a time they were an exception. Now they've pretty much become the norm.I miss the unsubs like George Foyet, Arnold Fox and Frank Breitkopf. All of them killed just for the sake of killing.Best of all they didn't hog the screen and get more focus then our team.And yet they were far more interesting not to mention more complex than the unsubs we are getting today.
DeleteYes, the "bookends", which have replaced the sort of thing i was talking about, the subtle interweaving of the teams lives within (say it again, within!) the story. I do want to know why the unsub is hellbent on killing these people, but I don't want to see them licking the blood off the knife (so to speak) or any other sensationalized crap. The bookends are the bread of a lazy writing sandwich, and usually the meat is too much unsub action instead of profiling.
ReplyDelete@Suegypt I feel the same way you do. The problem is based on what one of the writers said one time they feel their way of doing it, the "bookends" is superior to the way the earlier and "better" writers did it, which of course as you mention was the subtle interweaving of the teams lives within the story.
DeleteMore than ever I want the show to come back next season with a new show runner,preferably an outsider and some new writers that will restore it back to it's originally greatness. Or it least get it close to what it originally use to be.
i don't know the fascination with arresting people, it's not the scenes i like the most, but the profiling, the investigations and others
ReplyDeletein fact arresting unsurbs is the police work not the proliers... i don't mind profilers arresting people catching them....but isn't the best work for a profiler
ReplyDeletein fact i preferes when callahan arrests people and not talking at all....
ReplyDeleteI don't watch live any more either. You can't trust the show runner to tell the truth. Especially with her crappy season finales which are little more than JJ tween fanfic plots on screen. I trust unpaid fans and unbiased reviewers who don't have ties to the show or staff to give a more accurate representation of what will actually happen.
ReplyDeleteSadly I think there are more and more of us long time fans who don't watch live but have to brace ourselves for the JJ show!
Delete