CRIMINAL MINDS Summer Rewatch. WEEK 12

O 823. BROTHERS HOTCHNER O
	Written by:	O Rick Dunkle O
	Directed by:	O Rob Bailey O
	Original Air Date:	O May 22, 2013 O
O The BAU is called in to investigate a string of deaths in Manhattan tied to apparent ecstasy overdoses, and Hotch discovers that his estranged brother, Sean, is caught in the middle. Meanwhile, The Replicator begins to zero in on the BAU. O

O 824. THE REPLICATOR O
	Written by:	O Erica Messer O
	Directed by:	O Glenn Kershaw O
	Original Air Date:	O May 22, 2013 O
O The Replicator zeroes in on the BAU when the killer targets one of the team as the next victim. The team must now struggle against his endgame as the stakes grow higher. O

• What worked? Why?
• What didn't? Why?
• What could have been better? Why?
• What was nearing perfection? Why?

CRIMINAL MINDS Summer Rewatch. WEEK 11

O 821. NANNY DEAREST O
	Written by:	O Virgil Williams O
	Directed by:	O Doug Aarniokoski O
	Original Air Date:	O May 8, 2013 O
O The BAU travels to Los Angeles looking for an unsub who is abducting nannies and the children they care for on the same day each year. O

O 822. #6 O
	Written by:	O Breen Frazier O
	Directed by:	O Karen Gaviola O
	Original Air Date:	O May 15, 2013 O
O The BAU goes to Detroit to track down an unsub with a rapidly changing M.O. Also, Blake's husband returns from overseas with a life-changing career proposition for her. O

• What worked? Why?
• What didn't? Why?
• What could have been better? Why?
• What was nearing perfection? Why?

CRIMINAL MINDS Summer Rewatch. WEEK 10

O 819. PAY IT FORWARD O
	Written by:	O Bruce Zimmerman O
	Directed by:	O John Terlesky O
	Original Air Date:	O April 10, 2013 O
O When a time capsule in a small Colorado town is opened twenty-five years later and contains a gruesome discovery, the BAU investigates the crime and find a possible link to the death of a local police officer. O

O 820. ALCHEMY O
	Written by:	O Sharon Lee Watson O
	Directed by:	O Matthew Gray Gubler O
	Original Air Date:	O May 1, 2013 O
O The BAU travels to Rapid City after two male victims are discovered murdered in a ritualistic manner. Also, Reid continues to grieve over Maeve's death. O

• What worked? Why?
• What didn't? Why?
• What could have been better? Why?
• What was nearing perfection? Why?

CRIMINAL MINDS Summer Rewatch. WEEK 9

O 817. THE GATHERING O
	Written by:	O Kim Harrison O
	Directed by:	O Michael Lange O
	Original Air Date:	O March 20, 2013 O
O The BAU investigates victims who were documenting their personal lives and inner desires on blog posts and social media. Also, Kevin gets jealous when he learns Garcia may have a new love interest. O

O 818. RESTORATION O
	Written by:	O Jim Clemente Janine Sherman Barrois
	Directed by:	O Felix Alcalá O
	Original Air Date:	O April 3, 2013 O
O The BAU goes to Morgan's old neighborhood in urban Chicago in search of an unsub targeting middle-aged men, and a clue leads Morgan to believe that they are after someone connected to the man who molested him as a child. O

• What worked? Why?
• What didn't? Why?
• What could have been better? Why?
• What was nearing perfection? Why?

CRIMINAL MINDS Summer Rewatch. WEEK 8

O 815. BROKEN O
	Written by:	O Rick Dunkle O
	Directed by:	O Larry Teng O
	Original Air Date:	O February 20, 2013 O
O The BAU heads to Austin to investigate victims found there with their watches set inaccurately, a clue which may connect the crimes. Meanwhile, the unsub stalking the BAU inches closer in his pursuit of the team. O

O 816. CARBON COPY O
	Written by:	O Virgil Williams O
	Directed by:	O Rob Hardy O
	Original Air Date:	O February 27, 2013 O
O When victims are found in Philadelphia in a similar style to victims of The Replicator, the stalker who has been tracking the BAU's every move, the team thinks this could be the break they need to try and apprehend him. O

• What worked? Why?
• What didn't? Why?
• What could have been better? Why?
• What was nearing perfection? Why?

CRIMINAL MINDS Summer Rewatch. WEEK 7

O 813. MAGNUM OPUS O
	Written by:	O Jason Bernero O
	Directed by:	O Glenn Kershaw O
	Original Air Date:	O January 23, 2013 O
O While Reid copes with a loss in his personal life, the rest of the BAU travels to San Francisco to investigate victims discovered in the Mission District. O

O 814. ALL THAT REMAINS O
	Written by:	O Erica Messer O
	Directed by:	O Thomas Gibson O
	Original Air Date:	O February 6, 2013 O
O When the daughters of Bruce Morrison, a writer whose wife mysteriously vanished a year ago, go missing on the anniversary of their mother’s disappearance, the BAU is brought in to study Morrison as a possible suspect. O

• What worked? Why?
• What didn't? Why?
• What could have been better? Why?
• What was nearing perfection? Why?

CRIMINAL MINDS Summer Rewatch. WEEK 6

O 811. PERENNIALS O
	Written by:	O Bruce Zimmerman O
	Directed by:	O Michael Lange O
	Original Air Date:	O December 12, 2012 O
O The BAU heads south to investigate a fast-moving unsub whose signature matches that of a serial killer from thirty years ago. Also, the team learns that someone is keeping track of their cases and replicating crimes they have solved. O

O 812. ZUGZWANG O
	Written by:	O Breen Frazier O
	Directed by:	O Jesse Warn O
	Original Air Date:	O January 16, 2013 O
O When Reid discovers that his girlfriend has been abducted by her stalker, he and the BAU band together to find and rescue her before it is too late. O

• What worked? Why?
• What didn't? Why?
• What could have been better? Why?
• What was nearing perfection? Why?

CRIMINAL MINDS Summer Rewatch. WEEK 5

O 809. MAGNIFICENT LIGHT O
	Written by:	O Sharon Lee Watson O
	Directed by:	O John Kretchmer O
	Original Air Date:	O November 28, 2012 O
O When a recent attendee at a popular motivational speaker's conference in Seattle is murdered, the BAU looks at the speaker as the main suspect, but they have to refocus their investigation when the speaker himself goes missing. Also, Garcia is puzzled when Morgan declines to attend a dinner honoring an old family friend. O

O 810. THE LESSON O
	Written by:	O Janine Sherman Barrois O
	Directed by:	O Matthew Gray Gubler O
	Original Air Date:	O December 5, 2012 O
O The BAU investigates a series of male bodies that have been oddly disposed of in Arizona, finding themselves in search of a killer with ritualistic tendencies. Also, Reid gets anxious when faced with the possibility of meeting his mystery woman. O

• What worked? Why?
• What didn't? Why?
• What could have been better? Why?
• What was nearing perfection? Why?

CRIMINAL MINDS Summer Rewatch. WEEK 4

O 807. THE FALLEN O
	Written by:	O Rick Dunkle Danny Ramm
	Directed by:	O Doug Aarniokoski O
	Original Air Date:	O November 14, 2012 O
O The BAU travels to Santa Monica when burned bodies of homeless people begin showing up by the famous pier. Also, Rossi reconnects with his former Marine sergeant from Vietnam. O

O 808. THE WHEELS ON THE BUS O
	Written by:	O Kim Harrison O
	Directed by:	O Rob Hardy O
	Original Air Date:	O November 21, 2012 O
O The BAU team goes in pursuit of a missing school bus full of children outside the Washington, D.C. area, and it becomes a race against time for them to bring them home safely and to capture their abductor. O

• What worked? Why?
• What didn't? Why?
• What could have been better? Why?
• What was nearing perfection? Why?

CRIMINAL MINDS Summer Rewatch. WEEK 3

O 805. THE GOOD EARTH O
	Written by:	O Bruce Zimmerman O
	Directed by:	O John Terlesky O
	Original Air Date:	O October 31, 2012 O
O When four men go missing in rural Oregon, the BAU searches for a common link among them in order to track them down. Also, JJ gets upset when her son Henry doesn't want to celebrate Halloween this year. O

O 806. THE APPRENTICESHIP O
	Written by:	O Virgil Williams O
	Directed by:	O John Bailey O
	Original Air Date:	O November 7, 2012 O
O When prostitutes in Miami are discovered murdered in a similar style to local animals found dead there, the BAU must work fast to find an unsub whose confidence is quickly escalating. Also, Morgan tries to increase Reid's athletic skills by convincing him to join the bureau softball team. O

• What worked? Why?
• What didn't? Why?
• What could have been better? Why?
• What was nearing perfection? Why?

CRIMINAL MINDS Summer Rewatch. WEEK 2

O 803. THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS O
	Written by:	O Sharon Lee Watson O
	Directed by:	O Dermott Downs O
	Original Air Date:	O October 17, 2012 O
O When a family in Kansas turns up dead and another goes missing, the BAU looks for a link between the cases to find out who is behind these crimes. Also, Hotch gets surprising news from Beth. O

O 804. GOD COMPLEX O
	Written by:	O Breen Frazier O
	Directed by:	O Larry Teng O
	Original Air Date:	O October 24, 2012 O
O When a legless body is found in the New Mexico desert and a second unwilling amputee shows up at the hospital, the BAU team searches for this amateur surgeon before he preys upon his next reluctant victim. Also, Reid's phone calls to a mystery woman have the team intrigued. O

• What worked? Why?
• What didn't? Why?
• What could have been better? Why?
• What was nearing perfection? Why?

CRIMINAL MINDS Summer Rewatch. WEEK 1

O 801. THE SILENCER O
	Written by:	O Erica Messer O
	Directed by:	O Glenn Kershaw O
	Original Air Date:	O September 26, 2012 O
O When a Texas prisoner escapes during a transfer, he leaves behind victims with his unique trademark, sewing their mouths shut, a signature the BAU remembers as unique to the infamous serial killer "The Silencer". While they investigate who he was and who he's become, the BAU also gets to know the newest member of the team. O

O 802. THE PACT O
	Written by:	O Janine Sherman Barrois O
	Directed by:	O Karen Gaviola O
	Original Air Date:	O October 10, 2012 O
O When the bodies of two seemingly unrelated victims are found just hours apart in San Diego and Los Angeles respectively, the BAU suspects that that not one, but two killers are working together to commit these murders. O

• What worked? Why?
• What didn't? Why?
• What could have been better? Why?
• What was nearing perfection? Why?

CRIMINAL MINDS Summer Rewatch. WEEK 0

The Criminal Minds season finale came and went, may looks like it was yesterday, but several weeks have already passed, and what's more, due to the elapsed time between filming and airing for each episode, it happens that our lovely writers are finally back at work plotting with their devious and evil minds how to scare all us to death during season 9!

Sadly that means too that we still have a big handful of weeks without a new episode to dig our teeth in, so the as devious and as evil minds of yours truly, the Knights and Ladies of the Criminal Minds Round Table, have thought that we, together, and starting next week, could help our writers a bit, help them to give us the best season 9 possible.

How?

• Let's rewatch all at once season 8, let's try to pay attention to the details of each episode now that the thrill of first watching is over, let's see what works and what doesn't so much; ours is a well experienced opinion as fans that love the show and know everything to be known about it... Let's give them food for thought!

• Each week we're going to make a post with the basic information of 2 episodes, and during that week, whenever we can/are in the mood for, we all rewatch them.  

• In the comments thread of each week post, we write what we think worked best and what we think could have done with some improvements/changes/modifications because it didn't work as well.

• Because we all are intelligent and mature fans, the comments will be polite. If we disagree with other commenters, we explain why we think differently. And when writing about something we didn't like about an episode, we too explain it with utmost politeness; the writers, and everybody else on the Criminal Minds set, work very hard to give us the best show possible, thinking otherwise is completely foolish, and acting as that wasn't the truth won't be tolerated.

• Lastly, something all of us need to remember: Elle Greenaway, Jason Gideon and Emily Prentiss are former agents of the FBI who aren't about to come back. No matter if any of them was our favorite character, the actors that portrayed them decided to pursue other endeavors and take their careers in directions that didn't include Criminal Minds; each one of them did so for their own PERSONAL reasons, some of which were made public, and some of which we will never know. As they weren't part of season 8 and won't be part of season 9, talking about comes-back or anything related, will help nobody.

Are you game?