[Aaron Hotchner: High and Tight]

Aaron Hotchner is a really amazing character when you really get down to it. He is the boss I wish I could have. Yes, he is a hard ass, and yes he will hand you your ass if you screw up. But really, he has the best interests of the team at heart. He wants you to succeed, and I think he inspires superior performance, because he just makes you want to go above and beyond for him. He is very loyal and he will have your back when you need it (no Elle, Hotch is not responsible for you getting shot, but I understand she was in a highly emotional state when she said it). I honestly think he was a better mentor to the team, but especially Reid, than Gideon was. Gideon was a more intuitive profiler than anyone on the team, but that just lead him to be unable to compartamentalize. He was too emotionally unstable. Hotch on the other hand was a master at compartamentilizing for the most part (his dealings with Foyet notwithstanding). He provided the cool, steady, capable hand of leadership. Seeing him mentor Reid in the early seasons was a joy. I'm not sure what the writers are going for in writing for Hotch these days, and I am not sure what is going on in Thomas's head when it comes to his performance. We see glimpses of the original Hotch, but not enough. 

[Alex Blake: Words Are Her Bag]

Alex is a character I am very ambivalent about. On the one hand, I like that she is very intelligent and very cerebral. I can relate to a character like that. I adore her interactions with Reid, because she is the one person who really is his intellectual equal. But I can't say I ever grew to love her character, and if Jeanne elected to walk away after this season, or CBS elected not to renew her contract, I can't say I would be heartbroken. I think I have to chalk it partially up to the writing, because they never really developed her, but part of it is Jeanne's performance. Like I said in the Emily thread, Paget was able to elevate her standard, procedural dialogue and create a relatable, interesting character just based on her performance alone, and Jeanne just doesn't do that. While I like quiet, introverted, and intellectual in people, Jeanne's performance just doesn't draw me in, and is too much of a blank slate for me to love. Reid is also quiet, introverted, and intellectual and I adore his character above all others, and a good chunk of that rests on the quality of Matthew's performance. 

I wish the team would lose one of the main profilers (as long as it is not Reid or Hotch), because I think that would create a tighter group. Up until season seven, there were only five profilers, and now there are six, and there just isn't that much for all of them to do, not when the focus is so often on the unsub and what s/he is up to. I guess CBS just assumed they needed to replace Paget when she left, but I don't really think they did. I could easily see CBS letting Jeanne go, just because they are paying her $100,000 per episode (more than AJ), and she just doesn't have enough to do to justify that salary, nor is her character beloved enough to pay her that kind of money either, in my opinion. 

[Emily Prentiss: Sin to Win]

Emily was definitely one of my favorite characters when she was on the show. There was just something about her that I really responded to, and since we weren't given a huge window into Emily's background, I chalk it up to Paget's superior performance. She could take normal procedural dialogue and elevate it into something more. Emily was, and remains, a cool, fresh river of water on the show. I missed her intensely when she left in season six, and was delighted to have her back in season seven. And even though I despised "200" to the very core of my being, and Emily's appearance in the episode was nothing but contrived fanservice, Paget's actual performance was nice. Like I said, I think Emily is refreshing. She is intelligent, professional, funny, loyal. Honestly, there could never be too much Emily in the show, and she was a great friend to the team. If only CBS hadn't screwed over Paget, because I doubt she would have left otherwise. 

[Penelope Garcia: Manic Pixie Baby Girl]

Penelope used to be one of my top favorite characters, and I still like her from the earlier seasons. But the writers and Kirsten's performance have absolutely ruined this character in recent years. She dresses in a ridiculous, highly unprofessional way. She acts like a flippity child who has no emotional maturity. Her interactions with Morgan and the rest of the time descended into a farcical caricature. If I was actually around a person like Penelope, I would either have to leave the room, or I would say something incredibly mean, because I can't stand people like her (or at least how she has been written the last few years). She is exhausting and has no actual personal boundaries or respect for privacy, and she never stops talking. The writing for her has been better season nine (maybe the writers realized how ridiculous they were making her, or they listened to some fans' complaints), so Penelope has been more tolerable. Small doses of Penelope go a long way, and I actually still like her when she is acting professionally.