JMO

I can only comment on the Reid-related portions of the episode. The scenes with JJ were a relief. At least someone is prioritizing Reid! But there had to be at least two more scenes worth of material to cover---like an update on what the team was currently doing to help him, and Reid informing JJ that he’s not in protective custody. MGG broke my heart portraying Reid trying not to cry. I appreciated that so much of each scene was delivered through body language, from the time they first spotted each other, through JJ’s breaking down at the end. More, please. I agree with those who think Reid purposely made himself a target. It came right on the heels of ‘I don’t know prison, but I do know how to stop a psychopath’. Although I hate the thought of Reid getting hurt, now I know that he won’t actually be a victim in the process. Yes, he’ll be the guy with the injuries, and you can only have so much bravery when the foe is upon you, so I’m sure he’ll be frightened in the moment. But he’s taking charge. We’ve seen him put himself at risk to save the underdog before. He’s just doing what he always does. I still don’t quite know what to make of Calvin Shaw, but I think he’s only on for three or four episodes, so I guess we’ll find out soon. That final scene with Rossi was emblematic of the bizarre decision not to portray the team working on Reid’s case. It was obviously an indulgence between JM and VW, both from Chicago. I don’t begrudge the ‘W’ or the nod to the Cubs, but it should have been done in some other context. Really, Rossi doesn’t know what’s bothering JJ? Really, he wants to reference something that took more than a century to inspire her about getting her best friend out of prison? Really?! An aside re: JJ and sports. It was Gideon who said she liked football, not JJ. That was when he turned his comped tickets into a makeshift birthday present for Reid and decided to play matchmaker. All we know is that she played soccer. Hockey is quite popular in Pennsylvania, where there are several pro teams. So, if she says she likes hockey, I believe her. EM has pointed out that they’ve never done a long arc like this before. I think their inexperience is showing in the pacing of the Reid story, in the dribbling out of details, and in their struggling to find balance between the arc and the case of the week. They would have been much better off making this a three or four episode arc, fully devoted to Reid and Scratch.

I'm curious as to how people think Spencer will change. Will he be wary, and cowed? Will he be angry, and aggressive? Will he be more sympathetic of criminals, or less? Spiffy or scruffy? Any thoughts?

I think Paget, and thereby Emily, had a hard time finding her footing with this return. She was asked to play a role that was both familiar, and yet different, without having been through an on-screen and in-character transition. But I saw the real Emily again during her scenes with Reid at the US jail----maybe Collision Course? (For me, one of the down sides of this long arc is that I can't differentiate the episodes, since I pay absolutely no attention to the case of the week). I wish they would abandon doing other cases, or at least show Emily overseeing their working the Scratch case on the side. I think Paget is ready to bring it.

If you are referring to world peace, I'm right there with you, Hotchgirl!

Not to me. Serial killers are probably not in the open population. Even if they were, Reid has been omitted from the take down so many times that most of them have never seen him.

One more. Can't last a full week without a fix. Post-ep 12X15, Alpha Male. This one is Letters. https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12399360/1/Letters

I'm probably one of the few people who did not like that Tabula Rasa courtroom scene. To me, that was bully Hotch, and I was surprised the judge didn't call him out for it. It might have felt good, but it was just a pissing contest. Sorry--wrong thread!

Reid has always done best one on one. You put him in the middle of any crowd, and he's off kilter. Add to that the shock of being unexpectedly transferred to federal prison, on top of the shock of the entire situation in the first place, and you have someone not operating on all of his usual cylinders. Given time, he'll probably get there. He might already have begun studying his fellow prisoners while he was in the yard, and even in the cot area, but that was aborted when they fell upon him.. I don't think profiling was going to help him in the situation he was in with the attempted assault. He might have wanted to try talking down the thug with the knife, but he certainly wasn't going to do it with his mouth full of dirty sock. Once he gets his footing, I think we'll see him pull out some of his bag of tricks. I do think he will profile Shaw---I think he will have to. For all we know, he may find a way to gain some points with his fellow inmates through magic!

Post-ep 12X15, Alpha Male https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12391886/1/Three-Sixty

I truly wish it didn't look like Reid was going to be in prison for the rest of the season. I get that it would be anticlimactic to (presumably) get him released and then have a couple of pedestrian cases to close out the season, but they could have easily avoided that problem by not putting him away so early.

I agree that he can't use profiling to save himself from a gang. But he might well try to profile Calvin Shaw, and I hope he does. None of us know yet whether Reid should actually trust him. I sincerely hope Rossi and Lewis are there with files for Reid's case, and that they're not consulting with him on another.

One evaluates one's own role in the situation, makes any necessary changes, puts her shoulders back and her head up, and carries on.

Hello, Unkempt!

Last week, I wanted Garcia to sleep with the fishes. This week, I was ready to feed her to Bruce, the infamous shark from Jaws. But, mostly, I wanted to strangle whoever thought it would be a good idea to inject a little comic relief about Reid’s situation via Penelope and her ridiculous, and highly decorated, visitation schedule board. So, the Reid stuff---the scene of him walking into the open holding area with his box of belongings was, for me, the most affecting of the night. The two times he was rescued at the last minute were also frightening, but there was something about seeing him looking around at the others, and taking in what would be the quality of his life for the foreseeable future, that got to me. MGG was understated and convincing, as usual, in conveying Reid’s fright. And to think he’s there, all alone, the team not even working his case….. Richard T. Jones was already a familiar face before he did Judging Amy, but I can’t think of why. I wonder if he and the Harold Perrineau character are actually both undercover, working together. Calvin Shaw actually seems to have quite a bit of freedom to move about, considering he’s incarcerated. Is he in protective custody? Is that what an individual cell means? I hope we’ll see Reid use his smarts, and not just rely on Shaw and his influence. For me, the case was filler for the Reid stuff. So….it was ‘fine’. But the fact that they were working it wasn’t. If they want to give the newbies a case to work on, that's fine with me---as long as they get under ten minutes of air time. But, consider the situation: they have a number of serial killers on the loose. Apprehending them was the work of Luke's unit, and maybe still is, for those he left behind. For those killers who've stayed under the radar, an apprehension unit is all that's needed, because there is nothing more to add to the profile. But they also have a serial killer who has targeted at least two members of their team (Hotch and Tara), and they've made the leap to decide he's behind Reid's situation as well. If they are right, that's new activity on the part of Scratch, and could contribute to the profile. They should be working the case, at least some of them, full time. It would certainly add to the tension of each episode to have the team actively working to free one of their own, instead of bookending their concern.

Post-ep for Collision Course https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12382430/1/My-Best-Friend-s-Mother

For me, it was Garcia's behavior, accented by her wardrobe, that ruined that half of the episode. Her attire is always inappropriate, but she sometimes reins in her behavior. In this episode, neither worked in her favor. She was flippant on the plane and in the police precinct (ie, in public), ridiculous in the car chase with Luke, and then overly dramatic in the courtroom (as usual). The mock-run in the heels was just the icing on a very half-baked cake.

Up until this episode, I was able to tolerate Garcia in small doses. But now…..now, she needs to go. Be gone. Disappear. Sleep with the fishes. I don’t want to see her on my screen ever again. Don’t want to hear her voice, nor the clacking of her heels. Go. CMBB needs you. Send Monty over. Dispensing with the ‘case’ first. It’s unfortunate they wasted the idea on this episode. The growing possibility of hacking into a car’s computer has been in the news for years now, and it’s probably only a matter of time before there are real life case reports. As a stand-alone episode, it would have benefited from a growing suspicion on the part of the media about what was actually happening, and the expected reaction from the public, both putting pressure on the team, at the same time that the team’s vehicles might have become targeted. That could have been highly suspenseful. But, as it is, it was only the ‘non-Reid portion of tonight’s episode’, marred by the ridiculous appearance and behavior of someone they should have left behind. So, the main reason for watching: the Reid story. MGG did great, only falling into ‘little boy lost’ mode once (his whole life is in the FBI). His scenes with his attorney were interesting to me, mostly because he immediately broke eye contact with her when she said she couldn’t have a client who lied to her. Reid/Matthew doesn’t do that unless there’s something going on. So now I’m intrigued that maybe he is holding something back, or maybe he’s repressing, and his subconscious is guiding his eyes. But I think something is up about the murder scene. My favorite Reid scene of the night was the phone call with his mother. Just heartbreaking. He doesn’t show weakness with her, because he knows how much she needs him. So, when he breaks down with her, it’s because he is truly overwhelmed. Emily’s back!!! I felt like PB delivered her first really believable scenes of the season throughout the episode, and especially in that scene where she told Reid she was frightened for him. So glad to see that. I was disappointed not to be able to have a Rossi/Reid and/or JJ/Reid interaction as well. Felt cheated by both. The lawyer delivered her lines way too quickly. It was off-putting. I thought they were bringing Reid to a federal jail, but it looks like he’s in the Metro PD facility. Wonder if Will has been visiting. I’m not surprised Reid was not given bail. That judge was not about to put her career on the line for an agent involved in a murder in another country, especially when he wasn’t traveling on government business. I’m surprised not to see them actively working on Scratch, even if it had to fit around their other casework. Thinking back to ‘Penelope’ (the episode), Hotch took them off everything else to work that case. Granted, an FBI agent had been shot, so there was probably Bureau support for that, in a way that there would not be when an agent it accused of murder. But Scratch’s attack on Reid should be considered more evidence toward their profile, or even just toward an investigation, and I thought it was ridiculous that they weren’t all working on that. Especially Garcia, who should have been searching for a record of travel to and within Mexico, etc. And Rossi should have tried to get a message to Hotch somehow. Not sure what to make of next week, and the time going forward. It seems like the prison episodes may have been filmed as a package, which may mean that there is not a lot of Reid/team direct interaction. If that's the case, I hope we'll get at least a few phone calls. But, please, none with Garcia.

Reid walked across, this time, maybe each time. I've walked across the border in Tijuana a few times, but not in decades. Back then, you were just waved in and out, but even then, the lines for crossing by automobile were very long and very slow. The border patrol was obviously more concerned about the smuggling of people, or large quantities of drugs, than they were about whatever you could carry on your person. Don't know if it's still the same. If so, he could easily have walked it back to the States. But, theoretically, so could Rosa, the American citizen. It will be interesting to see if we get an explanation.

Thanks RF and Norm. These episode reaction pieces I really write for me, especially when they're just filling in some background---but I post them in case anyone else feels as I do. Glad you enjoyed.

Not sure that we know it was a single dose. If so, you are correct on the withdrawal issue. Still, and considering his circumstances, it could trigger a craving. My point is that I'd like to see those thoughts go through Reid's head, even if his fears don't reach fruition. To simply drop the issue (especially after showing the Revelations scene) is way too superficial for my taste.

When I write a long story, I pretty much live in that CM headspace until it's done. So, yes, when I saw the promo, I thought, "But he's already been on trial for murder!" Anxious to see how it's portrayed by the professionals.

It was good, but it didn't bowl me over. A re-watch improved it for me considerably. Still, for a KV/EM episode, I found it a bit emotionally wanting, and found myself far less moved than I'd expected. Maybe because I consider Reid to be the emotional center of the show, the character (and actor) who always brings it----but watching a drugged Reid for most of an episode was, to me, like not watching Reid. I did appreciate the concern on the part of the others, especially his oldest friends on the team, even if I wish Garcia had dialed back her 'Garcia-ness'. Haven't a clue why we needed the CMBB duo, nor the random threat of 'El Diablo'. Most of the episode seemed like a lot of exposition, to the team, of information that I, the viewer, already had. Maybe, given that it's an arc, that was necessary, if unsatisfying. Instead of that, I wish we'd gotten a better look at: What's gone on with Diana? Her status went, essentially, from Reid having difficulty finding someone to care for her for even a few hours, to him being able to leave her for days at a time, and JJ being able to 'stop by with the boys'---all happening off screen. Is she stabilizing? If not, how did he finally get round-the-clock care for her? If so, how? He hasn't been there to give her whatever amount of med he had left. I expected more concern on Reid's part when he came back to the BAU, because hiring a nurse for three days is a lot different from hiring one for months or years. The long term effect of the drugging on Reid. There was a little bit of set up for a relapse, or at least withdrawal, with the harkening back to the Hankel episode. Because they inserted that scene from Revelations, I expected to see some inkling of fear in Reid about the physiologic fallout from having been drugged once again. Not to say it won't play out in future episodes, but if it does, it will be a pretty delayed reaction. Concern for the rest of the team, re: Mr. Scratch. Since they're assuming it's him, he's showing that he will come after another member of their team just as easily as he did (the now witness-protected) Hotch. So I would have expected some renewed concern about the rest of them, and their families. So, it was a set-up episode, and a serviceable one. I don't think it will work all that well as a stand-alone, so ION and A&E, please take notice. Maybe we'll see some of the above played out in the coming weeks. The promo certainly looked promising.

Between Emily and Reid, I always saw 'Spencer' as her affectionate name for him. Just as I call my friend Jimmy, 'James' and my friend Tim, 'Timothy'. It's just between us. To change it now is just to emphasize the strangeness of it all.

Emily has called him 'Spence' a few times, and I've noticed it every single one. Not just for the JJ thing, but because it wasn't Emily's usual. She's always called him 'Reid' or 'Spencer' (or 'Handsome'!) in the past. Along with other things, it's been part of what's made Emily seem so 'not Emily' since she came back. Whoever described it as 'an actress playing Emily playing Hotch' nailed it, I think. The character was put into an awkward situation, which was glossed over way too quickly. I would have welcomed a conversation or three between Emily and each of her former teammates about the strangeness (and tragedy, really, considering why Hotch was said to have left) of coming back to the BAU in this circumstance. A few lines here and there might have re-established old relationships, and brought them to a new place. As it is, to me, she always looks nervous and uncertain, socially isolated from her usual social circle, and in need of having a good, long talk about it with someone. Morgan comes to mind as someone who's been in her reheeled boots in the past.

I'm sure I'll forget again, but at least I remembered this time: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12359319/1/Tangled Post-ep for 'A Good Husband', because I needed something more.