Penelope Garcia: Manic Pixie Baby Girl

[ForeverAlone]

Well, the reason Reid didn't talk to Penelope (and couldn't focus on work, because he was worrying about JJ), is because the writers wrote some crappy stuff. Janine would rather have Penelope flipperty gibberty about over something that she was not responsible for than for Reid to reach out to her and the two of them having an adult conversation about what she did. Janine would rather have made a political point than develop the characters at hand, but that was her usual MO. Unsub stuff, political stuff, torture porn, but not a lot of real interesting character development. 

Edited November 11, 2015 by ForeverAlone

[SSAHotchner]

I haven't checked this thread in a long time because I pretty much detest Garcia these days. I caught Rock Creek Park on ION TV tonight, and it occurred to me how stilted and phony Kirsten's line delivery is now. It's as if she's going out of her way to punch certain words in lines. I know you need to do that for emphasis, but it really feels phony and choppy. I'm so tired of how many of her lines in recent seasons are about her. You don't catch the others doing that. Occasionally someone might mention a former role, as in Morgan having been a cop, Hotch mentioning SWAT or being a prosecutor, Rossi mentioning being in the military or when the BAU was first developed, but it's never about patting themselves on the back for these things. It always has to do with something about the case, whereas Garcia's lines are all about how amazing she is and how difficult her job is (or would be for anyone else.) Give it a rest. In fact, just shut up. 

[Droogie]

I tend to think that Reid's neck rubbing scene was supposed to be the first breadcrumb in what was to have been Reid's addiction relapse story. But Matthew balked before they could take the story any further, so any subsequent breadcrumbs were discarded.

Oh, ITA. But they went there. And rather than let it drop and hope it goes away, they should've done something. They're the writers. It's what they get paid to do. Frankly, I hate them. They've been allowed to ruin the show.

They're incapable of writing for Reid, and they don't seem to feel compelled to rectify the situation.

Give it a rest. In fact, just shut up.

Oh yes. Just go away. How I wish she were the one leaving the show, Edited November 11, 2015 by Droogie

[smoker]

It's late and I'm writing with my ipod so I'm not going to quote but about these comments about Morgan's attitude:
He is the kind of man never gives you moral suport, ever. At least it's convenient for him or he thought your problem deserves his precious time.

Ex:
he treats Emily like shit in that episode about her suicidal friend" (walton goggins was there)
He treats Hotch like shit in season 3 finale
He complains about cases chosen by JJ at least twice and he was wrong. He never acts contrict even when it's probed he is wrong and he has been an ass the whole episodes
He is quite dense (being nice here) before Penelope is shot. I like it when Emily calls him off
Then he treats her like shit when she wants to go to the execution or in season 6 premiere or when she gives him advice about Tamara. However he is nice when she begs for help in Hope.
And I dont like how he treats Reid sometimes either.
In my opinion he is close minded and an arrogant and he is only nice when being nice is cheap and he can actually shine.
He is more swat meat than a behavioral analist.
I dont hate him but I would like work with him. No way.

Edited November 11, 2015 by smoker

[amensisterfriend]

I agree with pretty much every syllable written here! 

 

It's funny, because I really want to like Garcia and often feel like I should. Unlike the vast majority of current and former CM characters, and particularly the female ones, she has actual personality rather than just being dully, blandly undefined and perfect-by-default in every conceivable way. She's not a size zero, which is always a refreshing change on network TV. She adds (or at least attempts to add!) some levity and energy to a team dynamic that can otherwise be overly serious, flat and borderline humorless.  She has a really close friendship with Morgan---as opposed to the majority of intra-team relationships, which are just interchangeable, identical, blandly friendly coworker relationships often played up as "just like family" in ways that feel forced and unearned. I even love the name Penelope :) 

 

And yet I range from "meh" to "ugh,  please get her off my screen forever!" She just feels more like an obnoxiously cutesy, attention-seeking pre-teen than a genuinely quirky and interesting adult woman. That aforementioned relationship with Morgan has felt false and forced to me from the outset, and the "baby girl" nonsense and some of the conversations they have just emphasizes how smarmy and condescending Morgan can be to me rather than bringing out the more likable sides of either character. Her need to make cases all about HER by wasting everyone's time with her melodramatic reactions over the details she magically discovers (I mean...she's STILL this freaked out?! After all these years? Then maybe she's in the wrong job!) annoys me to no end and threatens to ruin some episodes I otherwise love, like S4's House on Fire. Even worse is her cringe-inducing boasting and need to point out how awesome she is for every little thing she does and to have other team members point out said awesomeness as well. I used to charitably fanwank that that was a cover up for her latent insecurities...but, nope, she really DOES think she's that legitimately fantastic and wants to make sure that we all notice and agree. 

 

Thanks for letting me vent! 

Edited November 12, 2015 by amensisterfriend

[MCatry]

Regarding Garcia, this is the last thing I will write in this thread:

I hate her. With passion.

I wish she would die, but quickly. A long, painful death she deserves, but it would take too much tv time.

[Bookish Jen]

Regarding Garcia, this is the last thing I will write in this thread:

I hate her. With passion.

I wish she would die, but quickly. A long, painful death she deserves, but it would take too much tv time.

And then she would become a martyr. No, just no.

[SSAHotchner]

She used to be fun. A little bit of comic relief. She is now annoying, tedious, barf-inducing. 

[ForeverAlone]

You all might have already seen this on social media (I've seen it for the past few days now), but now it is officially published in entertainment news.

 

http://www.tvguide.com/news/criminal-minds-kirsten-vangsness-engaged/

[Danielg342]

Congrats to Kirsten, but...

...I'm confused as to how she's marrying a man despite having come out as lesbian and not identifying herself as bisexual. I mean, all the power to her with regards to her sexual orientation, but something just doesn't compute with me with what I know.

[normasm]

Why do people have to identify themselves? Let them be who they are. Sexuality is fluid with many people.

[Danielg342]

Why do people have to identify themselves? Let them be who they are. Sexuality is fluid with many people.

I agree. Labelling just leads to pigeonholing and division...no good ever comes of it. So I never understand why people do it.

[Bookish Jen]

First, congrats to Kirsten and her betrothed-I'm very happy for the both of them.

 

As for sexuality, well it's very individual and not always set in stone. For the most part I'm straight, but I often find myself attracted to a certain woman and can see myself being with her in a sexual way. Now, I've only had boyfriends; I've never even kissed a girl, let alone had sex with one. But I can definitely be tempted.

 

On-topic: I've been watching earlier eps of CM on ION (as one does) and Garcia is a completely different person. Yes, she is quirky, bubbly and fun. But she's also competent, can handle the gross and crimes with some maturity and compassion, and her banter with her Chocolate Thunder is kept in check. Her outfits are fun (no serious suits for this gal), but she still looks somewhat polished, not like a clown college reject. She doesn't keep tootin' her horn, her computer skills don't always find the secrets to the universe and she keeps the jibber jabber to a minimum.

Edited November 25, 2015 by Bookish Jen

[SSAHotchner]

This may have been mentioned before, but does it bother anyone else that she is constantly tapping on her computer while she talks to the team, even when she's already found the information that she's giving them? It makes me think of old movies and TV shows where someone is supposed to be driving a car and they're constantly yanking the steering wheel back and forth to show that they're driving. 

However, I'm watching some season 3 on ION TV today and I really, really like her. Penelope was the first episode I saw and that's what drew me to look for more episodes of Criminal Minds. But anything past season 5 or 6 and I'm screaming at the TV for her to shut up. 

[friendperidot]

I haven't been watching all the time for several seasons, catch something if I remember to watch. Saw an episode a couple of weeks ago where Penelope realized that some major crime thing was using some program of hers (really haven't been paying attention). skipped a couple of episodes, watched tonight and she cannot go home. What happened?

[ForeverAlone]

Penelope is so dangerous she has four hitmen after her. :) :) :) :) 

[smoker]

I just watched the sneak peek and I want to respect the "no complains before the end of the episode" rule, but I also want to complain about Vangsness's facial expression when she's presenting the case of the week, so I came here.

Is she smelling shit every time they shot those scenes? :S

[smoker]

I hope this works

http://www.spoilertv.com/2015/12/criminal-minds-episode-1110-future_8.html?m=1

[Droogie]

Maybe the "no complaints" rule is for the episode thread?

Because I believe I can say here, in this thread about Garcia, that I am so incredibly sick of this character. The Dirty Dozen can take her out. Fine by me. Actually, anybody can take her out. Any time. I'm not picky about it.

I wouldn't miss her. I'd barely notice she was gone. I get a tiny kick out of her inappropriate banter with Morgan (moreso in earlier seasons) but I'd get over the loss, and quickly.

Edited December 9, 2015 by Droogie

[missmycat]

I can't for the life of me figure out why it was decided that this infantile clown should be allowed to continue to present the cases instead of allowing JJ to return to doing it. Now granted I don't like JJ in the least bit,but at least she was a hell of a lot more professional when she presented the cases.IMO to say that Garcia is beyond ridiculous is nothing short of an understatement.

[Reghan]

I think I'm the only one here that loves Garcia LOL. She's not afraid to be herself. Yeah she's quirky, but I love her for it.

[thewhiteowl]

Maybe the "no complaints" rule is for the episode thread?

 

 

 Right, those who want to discuss the episode should not have to slog through 15 to 20 posts of complaints by those who haven't even seen it.

Just sayin'.

 

[Noirprncess]

I like Garcia but I think this season has been a setup for her departure. It just feels like they are slowly setting up her decision to leave the BAU.

[ForeverAlone]

Honestly? At this point, I would almost be relieved to get someone competent, but more professional into her job. Just like I loved Kevin being the technical analyst last year in "Burn" (of course that lead to Penelope's B story that I hate with the strength of a fiery sun). 

[Reghan]

I hate Kevin haha. He bores me. I don't get why y'all hate her so much. I love her<3 She makes things interesting

[ForeverAlone]

I hate Kevin haha. He bores me. I don't get why y'all hate her so much. I love her<3 She makes things interesting

I will only speak for myself. I loved Penelope in the early seasons, because she was a great blend of quirky and intelligent professional. But in the past few years, her quirkiness has been ramped up to 11, and has reached cartoon caricature proportions for me. She no longer seems like a competent, professional woman, but an emotionally immature child, who is ill equipped to do this job or act and dress professionally. I find her deeply annoying most of the time she is onscreen at this point. I like her best in very small doses, and when she is written and acted like an actual professional woman.

[missmycat]

I hate Kevin haha. He bores me. I don't get why y'all hate her so much. I love her<3 She makes things interesting

Well if it makes you feel any better I can't stand the other 2 CM females either. I do find it rather ironic that I liked the females on this show so much better when it was being run by a man as oppose to today when in it's being run by a woman.

[SSAHotchner]

Maybe the "no complaints" rule is for the episode thread?

Because I believe I can say here, in this thread about Garcia, that I am so incredibly sick of this character. The Dirty Dozen can take her out. Fine by me. Actually, anybody can take her out. Any time. I'm not picky about it.

I wouldn't miss her. I'd barely notice she was gone. I get a tiny kick out of her inappropriate banter with Morgan (moreso in earlier seasons) but I'd get over the loss, and quickly.

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

She once was one of my favorites. Now I end up screaming at the TV for her to shut up. She is beyond annoying. 

[missmycat]

I am so sick of Penelope Garcia. Sick of seeing her stupid face allover CM's social media pages. At this moment I probably despise her more than I do JJ. I even called them out about it asking if they could please post about some of the other characters. I suggested they might want to post something about Reid since they must realize there are still a ton of concerned people asking about him,unless of course they aren't even bothering to (reid) those comments any more.

[SSAHotchner]

I'm watching some season 1 episodes on ION TV tonight, and Garcia speaks like a normal person. Her delivery is calm, and while she doesn't enjoy looking at torture or crime scene photos, she is professional and doesn't shriek or flinch. She gives facts without adding a lot of useless comments or letting everyone know how difficult (or easy) it was for her to get the information.

 

Now the way she speaks is so annoying. She over emphasizes. While that's good for diction purposes, it really sounds like she's "acting" and is a caricature rather than a character. Also, in Natural Born Killer, there was a scene where Reid said, "Garcia has a list of unsolved murders in the Baltimore area...." and I thought how refreshing it was to hear someone else deliver information that Garcia acquired rather than listen to her deliver it....and that was back when I actually liked her. 

[Droogie]

Besides the kitten ears (which, truthfully, gave me an eye twitch. Or maybe Tourette's), I was aghast at her "presentation" of the case this week. I've mostly blocked the episode from memory, but during the Roundtable briefing, she was clearly too squicked to be professional and even finish a sentence and instead simply waved her hand around and told the group that they could look at the rest on their tablets.

Can you imagine doing that IRL, especially in a setting like that? Hotch must have the patience of Job.

[SSAHotchner]

Besides the kitten ears (which, truthfully, gave me an eye twitch. Or maybe Tourette's), I was aghast at her "presentation" of the case this week. I've mostly blocked the episode from memory, but during the Roundtable briefing, she was clearly too squicked to be professional and even finish a sentence and instead simply waved her hand around and told the group that they could look at the rest on their tablets.

Can you imagine doing that IRL, especially in a setting like that? Hotch must have the patience of Job.

I can't believe they brought back the kitten ears. That suggests to me that they're all treating the show as a joke now. I absolutely hate having Garcia even in the room when they are presenting the case, much less being the one to do it. They need someone more professional.

[wknt3]

Can you imagine doing that IRL, especially in a setting like that? Hotch must have the patience of Job.

He has a LOT of self control. And he knows that her magic computer is the reason his team has such a high closure rate. A boss will put up with a lot of nonsense for good numbers. I'm more surprised Rossi doesn't tell her to cut the crap actually.

[normasm]

Reality is, no supervisor or unit chief would put up with the way she behaves. I know we had a big dust-up about her attire recently, and we probably talked about the behavior, too, but, yeah, last week's behavior was totally that of a 7-year-old. Most bosses see employees as replaceable (even if they do produce good numbers), and Garcia most certainly is, IMO. 

[wknt3]

Reality is, no supervisor or unit chief would put up with the way she behaves. I know we had a big dust-up about her attire recently, and we probably talked about the behavior, too, but, yeah, last week's behavior was totally that of a 7-year-old. Most bosses see employees as replaceable (even if they do produce good numbers), and Garcia most certainly is, IMO.

But in the past few years actual profiling has solved, what, two cases maybe? Compared to 60 or more for Garcia and her magic computer while the highly trained and expensive profilers mostly do routine police work? He must be worried that if he crosses her she could point this out to his bosses and they would get rid of all of them and that hugely expensive private plane and replace the whole unit with an 800 number that detectives could call and say they have a killer who drives a green Chevy, used a Craftsman wrench, and wears a size 10 LL Bean boot and she just tells them who it is. Don't want to chance that.

And did you did start a post here "reality is" without following it with "clearly of no concern to the writers and producers of CM these days?"

Edited January 31, 2016 by wknt3

[Danielg342]

But in the past few years actual profiling has solved, what, two cases maybe? Compared to 60 or more for Garcia and her magic computer while the highly trained and expensive profilers mostly do routine police work? He must be worried that if he crosses her she could point this out to his bosses and they could get rid of all of them and that hugely expensive private plane and replace the whole unit with an 800 number that detectives could call and say they have a killer who drives a green Chevy, used a Craftsman wrench, and wears a size 10 LL Bean boot and she could tell them who it is. Don't want to chance that.

And did you did start a post here "reality is" without following it with "clearly of no concern to the writers and producers of CM these days?"

You do raise a great point but, as you also state, reality isn't a thing with these CM writers, so the writers likely think they can make Garcia do all the actual work and think the BAU's superiors will never actually notice that.

On a better written show, the writers would notice this trend, set the Office of Professional Responsibility on the BAU's behinds, and we'd get some real character drama where Hotch and his team have to answer hard questions about their methods while taking a huge hit to their confidence.

Unfortunately...well, I don't mean to be rude, but I think everyone else here can finish this post for me.

[normasm]

Yeah, wknt3, I was talking reality as opposed to what the writers think makes a spiffy action show. I just reeeeely have a problem with the "Garcia is a genius, too, and her computers solve everything, there's no need for a true genius, or even 3 other certified experienced profilers and some other folks not to mention the LEOs"

Sad to say, the writing that many are finding so very GREAT is stuff that plays to action show fans. I like action shows, too, but CM isn't that for me.

[Bookish Jen]

Penelope is so dangerous she has four hitmen after her. :) :) :) :) 

 

Well, to me-head of the alternative BAU-the "Bad Accessories Unit," she is.

[senin]

JMO, I'm sure we must have met in a previous life!! 

I was going to look for this thread, and you have already done it!! I agree with most of the points you made.

I'd like to add that I used to like García, mainly in the first seasons, but also sometimes in later seasons. And I understand the role of her character in making things a little bit lighter in a show that deals with such dark matters. But they have gone too far, and in Collision Course she was distracting me from both the case and Spencer's story. 

[ed2962]

I'm behind on the last couple of seasons of Criminal Minds although I'll still occasionally catch episodes on Ion. Garcia is a little like The Fonz, JJ from Good Times, and a few other characters from TV shows through out the years...someone who starts out as an intriguing side character but as they get more popular, turn into a cartoon version of their former selves.

I still like her, but yeah...

[Andyourlittledog2]

I have just been watching some episodes from last season that I recorded and never watched and now I remember why. Garcia. Her petulant, childish, ridiculous character is so damn distracting and aggravating that I simply cannot stomach this series any longer.  The damn woman is in her forties for god's sake. Grow the hell up. That they humor her and find her shtick 'adorable' just infuriates me. So much that I had to find this thread and post it.  

I feel better now. 🙂

[BookWoman56]

12 hours ago, Andyourlittledog2 said:

I have just been watching some episodes from last season that I recorded and never watched and now I remember why. Garcia. Her petulant, childish, ridiculous character is so damn distracting and aggravating that I simply cannot stomach this series any longer.  The damn woman is in her forties for god's sake. Grow the hell up. That they humor her and find her shtick 'adorable' just infuriates me. So much that I had to find this thread and post it.  

I feel better now. 🙂

I used to find her tolerable, but FFS she needs to quit babbling on and on when she’s being asked for information the team needs ASAP. Just give them the facts your magic computer spat out, and stop editorializing. We don’t need to know how icky you find a potential unsub, or how upset you are, working with the BAU, at having to pull up crime scene photos. 

[Danielg342]

While most characters tend to lose their nuances the longer a series goes- especially the peripheral ones- I don't think I've seen a character regress as far as Penelope Garcia has. Garcia definitely had her "cute, kiddish moments" as well as her moments of vulnerability, but before Erica Messer came to town (funny how that works), Garcia could also be strong, confident, adult...professional.

Traits we can no longer apply to her.

I mean, I do kind of understand why Garcia is portrayed the way she is. The rest of her team are pretty expressionless most of the time- my guess is that Messer wants them to be "scientific" in their approach so they have to be able to process the crime scene without having to lose their lunch. So, to give the show some levity and perhaps react Messer thinks the audiences reacts, the role of "being expressive" goes to Garcia.

Which underscores Messer's issues as this show's showrunner. She's just not that great at writing an ensemble cast, as she either treats the team as robots or overexaggerates their personality. She'd much rather do "personal" stories, so if Garcia were the central character, she'd be better written.

Instead we get...this.

[Orsa Curiosa]

Cannot stand Garcia. I used to like her in the very beginning; even thought her funny at times. But no longer. She's self-centered, it's almost always about HER, she's fake -- the type of person who, in the heat of the moment, offers sympathy and tea but in reality, would run away from you if you actually had a problem you wanted help in, or just a listening ear. Have known people like her. She wasn't very nice to Kevin who's far more likeable, even if he does act like a ridiculous wimp at times -- would have loved to have seen him stand up to the yappy screech that's Garcia, more often. Why the writers thought creating such a clown-character would be funny, Idk! Also, how she first began working for the BAU is so fake! In reality, the FBI would have put such a hacker in jail so fast your head would spin! The only thing I like about Garcia now is her lipstick. Love the colours (even the pink), and love the way it stays on! I want those lipsticks! As for JJ: Why does she croak like a bloody frog when she speaks? What is with that style of speech, I've noticed this amongst many North Americans! It's really annoying! Like the woman's trying to sound cool and sexy....Well, ladies, you don't! Makes you sound like you need to fix that catch in your throat and stop talking till you're feeling better! Very annoying! Plus she's so bland! Ugh. Otherwise, have been enjoying watching the series on Netflix. Didn't know about it till it came on Netflix, so don't know if it's still going on. It's one of the few US tv shows that I like. 

[Brookside]

On 10/17/2019 at 8:49 PM, Danielg342 said:

 before Erica Messer came to town (funny how that works), Garcia could also be strong, confident, adult...professional.

 

Who's Erica Messer?  A little context please 🙂

[Danielg342]

54 minutes ago, Brookside said:

Who's Erica Messer?  A little context please 🙂

She's the current showrunner of CM, having been in that role since Season 7.

[The Wild Sow]

On 11/17/2019 at 9:40 AM, Orsa Curiosa said:

Also, how she first began working for the BAU is so fake! In reality, the FBI would have put such a hacker in jail so fast your head would spin!

Not necessarily.  She's Frank Abagnale!

[Danielg342]

7 hours ago, DarkHorse said:

4. Unprofessional attitude. Rossi: "Garcia we need you to look this up quickly, lives are at stake". 

Garcia: "Oh okies then, hey I was just eating the best donut ever, mmmm so choc-latey... mmm chocolate, speaking of which. Is my baby doll Morgan there? You there baby doll?"

Morgan: "Listen to me you stupid bitch. People are gonna die. We need the information now"

Garcia: "Mmm hmmm I do love it when you take a strong hand to me" and so on.

I didn't know Garcia liked it rough. 😛

[SSA Emily Prentiss]

Penelope Garcia, BAU's insufferable, petulant little gnat, who makes everything about her, and is responsible for me not even wanting to watch the last hour of a show I've watched for 11 seasons. 

[Mysteyman]

On 2/23/2020 at 2:54 AM, DarkHorse said:

Can't stand her. A character that never progressed at all. 

1. Too old for the pixie stuff. 

2. Too fat to be squeezing herself into baby doll clothes. 

3. How long did she do that job and still acts like it's her first day. 

4. Unprofessional attitude. Rossi: "Garcia we need you to look this up quickly, lives are at stake". 

Garcia: "Oh okies then, hey I was just eating the best donut ever, mmmm so choc-latey... mmm chocolate, speaking of which. Is my baby doll Morgan there? You there baby doll?"

Morgan: "Listen to me you stupid bitch. People are gonna die. We need the information now"

Garcia: "Mmm hmmm I do love it when you take a strong hand to me" and so on.

5. Never saw what was so special about what she brought to the team and how she was fitting of a show called "Criminal Minds".

Well, The FBI does have technical analysts. So, at the very least there is a real life reason for her to be there.