Jennifer Jareau: Pennsylvania Petite

[Droogie]

It really isn't that people feel like JJ hasn't "earned" her PTSD. The problem I (and I suspect many others have) is that JJ's supposed PTSD comes after she had gone to a bar with friends right after being kidnapped/tortured, she functioned perfectly fine in the field for a year after (even watched Reid deliver a baby with nary a mention or a sad glance about her own loss) and literally mocked said incident on the plane with co-workers. Moreover, other members of the team have had experiences at least as bad and maybe worse (I'm looking at you, Reid and Hotch). Yet, their problems were glossed over, ignored and written out. Moreover, they weren't addressed at this time when it would be absolutely prudent to do so.

I liked JJ's character before she was let go and came back. I didn't sign any petitions, but I was glad she returned. The people who clamored for her return missed the JJ of old. They wanted her back, not some bastardization of her. Now, the show focuses on her to the exclusion of the other characters who made the show great. That is my beef with JJ.

AJC performed well in this episode. The problem I have is the focus on her, to the exclusion of the other great characters who make up what we know and love of the great show that is Criminal Minds.

Edited January 16, 2015 by Droogie

[normasm]

Thank you, Sweet Tooth, that was a great way to demonstrate that most of us don't hate anybody, we just hate how one character has come to dominate the show. I have said more than once here and elsewhere that i don't want the Reid show. I want the nice balance the show used to be scrupulous about maintaining. Where everyone gets a time to shine and no one is wallflowered.

[missmycat]

Oh I remember quite well the Reid critics screaming about the Reid show.Well at least when it was the Reid show the team as a whole was still getting decent screen time.And at least they were still contributing significantly to the episodes. However this isn't really the case so much now that it's basically become "The JJ Show"

Edited January 16, 2015 by missmycat

[normasm]

MMC, even when they called it the Reid show, it wasn't. There were a couple of times where he was heavily featured in back-to-back episodes (Fisher king 1 &2, The Instncts/Memoriam), but in each mini arc there was lots of focus on everybody else.

Nowadays, nearly every episode has had JJ front and center, outsmarting everything but Garcia's computer, and running around, usually in the dark, with a gun, apprehending the unsub, which she usually has deduced, interrogated, blah, blah, blah.

So, no, there never was a character, not even Gideon, who dominated nearly every storyline and who appeared in nearly every scene until the remaking of JJ.

[ForeverAlone]

Well, depending on the outcome of this episode, JJ may very well be the new Gideon, in every sense of the word.

[Cobalt Stargazer]

Well, depending on the outcome of this episode, JJ may very well be the new Gideon, in every sense of the word.

 

Indeed, ForeverAlone. I'm sort of morbidly curious to see where this breakthrough, or whatever you want to call it, JJ has had goes. If she seeks help, stops being in the denial that JustMyOpinion saw her as being in, that will be one thing. If she goes in the opposite direction, spirals downward as Elle and Gideon did before her, that will be another. If it leads nowhere, which is what I'm afraid of and she's right as rain by the next episode, I'm going to get pissed off because I won't be able to help it. I'm aware that this show has always had issues with consistency, but I also don't think its unreasonable to expect a little follow-up on something like this.

 

It's too long a story to tell right here, but one of my uncles was captured during WW II and held in a POW camp. My dad was the youngest of eight kids, and all of his siblings were a fair bit older than he was. Uncle Gavin was always very quiet about his war experiences, and he died when I was a teenager. If they must take this route with JJ, I don't want her to get over it in five minutes because that will fucking offend me in a way that few things can. I don't need to see her in session with a shrink, but I would like to know that she is either taking steps to deal with the trauma or to see subtle signs that she's slowly sliding out of control. Whether or not AJ Cook is up for that is open for debate, and given her apparent efforts in the past to make JJ into Wonder Woman, she might not even want to be. But FFS, I want to see her - and the show - make the effort, since they're the ones who brought us to this point.

[ForeverAlone]

The show can't believably have JJ go back to normal (and mean it- not like suppression and denial) without losing the last shred of credibility. Not with the level of downward spiral she exhibited in this episode. This was beyond what we saw from Hotch. Elle and Gideon melted down to the point where they had to leave. Granted, the story choices might have been different if they had stayed, but in any case, the writers chose to go with extreme PTSD resulting in them unable to do their job. Reid struggled with addiction on more than one occasion. Even Emily had to have some mandated therapy after Doyle. If the show doesn't hint at, or explicitly state, that JJ is in therapy (again, unless they are planning on having her implode completely), it just won't match with reality in the slightest. People don't come back from the sort of PTSD JJ is experiencing on their own. They need some sort of therapeutic intervention. 

[missmycat]

MMC, even when they called it the Reid show, it wasn't. There were a couple of times where he was heavily featured in back-to-back episodes (Fisher king 1 &2, The Instncts/Memoriam), but in each mini arc there was lots of focus on everybody else.

Nowadays, nearly every episode has had JJ front and center, outsmarting everything but Garcia's computer, and running around, usually in the dark, with a gun, apprehending the unsub, which she usually has deduced, interrogated, blah, blah, blah.

So, no, there never was a character, not even Gideon, who dominated nearly every storyline and who appeared in nearly every scene until the remaking of JJ.

I totally agree with that. My calling it the Reid show wasn't my own opinion but simply echoing the sentiments of those Reid critics in order to make a point.

[missmycat]

After that ridiculous story line they gave JJ in 200 and the way she was portrayed, I didn't think it was possible for them to make her into anymore of a Mary Sue.

Well I now stand corrected.I now realize that there is no limits, no boundries when it comes to the Mary Suefication  of this character.

[zannej]

I have been thinking (not about world domination) and I think I have a way to describe how I feel about JJ. This is not an attempt to de-humanize her or objectify her. I'll use a food analogy. Let's just say that I loved a certain type of spaghetti and garlic bread that was served to me along with other delicious meals. Then one day they stopped being served. There were other meals to eat, but I still missed those two items. I lobbied to have them returned to the menu. Then those items started being served again only the recipe was different. The spaghetti sauce was now more tart and runny. The bread was too dry and I didn't enjoy them quite as much anymore. Eventually the garlic bread was ditched and replaced with other carbs. Suddenly the new, less tasty spaghetti was being served more often. The portion sizes increased and the other meals were now reduced to appetizer portions or maybe even single bites. It gets to the point that the spaghetti is being served at almost every single meal and I am utterly sick of it. I don't hate the spaghetti, but I miss the old recipe and I would like to have the other meals more often.

So, basically, JJ came back more tart and was so overused to the point that she has become tiresome and I need a break from her and I want to see more from the other team members for awhile, but not get rid of her entirely.

Edited January 17, 2015 by zannej

[amensisterfriend]

Now I know a lot of people say AJ Cooke cannot act and I disagree completely with that (but you are entitled to your opinion).  I happen to think that people who hate a character let in influence how they view an actor.  I try not to do that myself (although I might have on occasion).

 

Maybe, but I also think that in many cases the acting contributes to why people dislike a character in the first place. AJ Cook, whose acting style I find incredibly flat and detached, was IMO terribly cast as someone who's allegedly warm, energetic and empathetic. She's always made an already poorly defined character even less likable and compelling to me. I never saw Higher Ground. Did she play a snotty ice queen on that show? If so, I could see that as a better fit for the actress. 

 

As others have said, for me it's not just that she's gotten more screentime. It's that that screentime has never been used to make her a more layered or even likable character. Even now with her sudden PTSD, for me she's still the same personality-free cipher she's always been---just a personality-free cipher we've seen a lot more of in recent seasons. 

[potatoradio]

 

it's Super JJ, Wonder Woman, who shakes off mental illness like the flu.

 

Well, now I can't unsee JJ driving along in the black SUV singing Taylor Swift as she puts on her cape and continues to restore world peace via lucky guesses.

 

 

"Haters gonna hate hate hate hate hate

but I'm just gonna shake shake shake shake shake

shake it off! Shake it off!"

 

 

[zannej]

I think that is the only taylor swift song I ever heard and I only heard it because it was part of a video from a cop's dashcam and he was emoting to the song while it played.

[MCatry]

The actress latest tweet was during last 15 January, inviting fans to her tweeting event, and she also retweeted two other things: a picture of herself with Gubler, behind te scenes, and a link to E weekly. I wonder if she actually perceive the reaction of the entire fanbase, and not only the one from her followers...

[zannej]

I really don't know. I think she's been deluded into thinking that only an "extreme minority" of the fans object to the way JJ is being written. I think perhaps she might have seen the reactions and gotten upset and was assured by someone else on the crew that it was just a small band of malcontents who don't like change for the sake of change.

 

I don't want AJ to feel bad about how the fans feel about JJ, because even if she had feedback for the writers, ultimately it was the showrunner who dictated what actually happened with the character so the onus is on Erica (and whoever else was involved in the decision-making process). However, I do think AJ should be aware of how the fans are perceiving JJ.

[ForeverAlone]

I focus much of my ire toward the writers and the producers of Criminal Minds, because they are the ones responsible for this character imbalance. While AJ certainly doesn't get a pass from me for wanting to turn JJ into Buffy and Sydney Bristow, she isn't the one ultimately responsible for the fact that she has dominated the last few seasons to the detriment of others. So I don't tell her what I really think, though based on her responses, she is aware of the growing backlash toward JJ. But I do tell the writers and producers when they ask. Though they don't seem to ask as much, but I have seen some tweets that could definitely be defensive responses to fan displeasure. 

[zannej]

I will say that I think any comments directed toward AJ about why people dislike JJ should be constructive and polite. None of this "JJ sucks!" type messages to her, but instead well-thought-out explanations of what is wrong and what can be done to rectify the problem. If she can be told about things that she is doing to make it worse, perhaps she can adjust.

[Old Dog]

I just saw Simren Basra make this comment on another site concerning all the talk about JJ and Morgan always doing the takedowns. He counted the times for the first 12 episodes of this season and the figures tell a story!

 

Total # of times character took out gun:
Hotch - 9
Rossi - 9
Callahan - 10
JJ - 13
Morgan - 10
Reid - 3

# of times character was a part of unsub takedown:
Hotch - 4
Rossi - 5
Callahan - 4
JJ - 8
Morgan - 6
Reid - 2

 

Not too sure why Reid needs to carry his revolver at all from these observations!

[MCatry]

Wow!

I think I would love to meet Simren Basra!

I love figures, because they don't leave space for perceptions. JJ is obviously at the top of this list, which looks even worst when you combine the data to show how many times the character is 'there' at those action sequences.

I only have two doubts: since JJ has a first figure of 13 times taking out a gun,most of twelve episodes, does this mean than she did that twice in the same episode, how can someone have the nerve to say she is not that prominent this season?

And my second doubt is about Reid. It is stated that he participated in two 'unsubs-takedown'. I only remember that ridiculous Cinderella thing, and no matter how happy one may be because he at least was on the screen for more than three seconds, it was really not a great part. Anyway, which is the other one? Maybe it was in one of those episodes I blinked and I missed him? Or maybe it was that with JJ-crisis which I refuse to watch?

[Old Dog]

You should get in touch with them McCatry! I love your stats as well. I was especially impressed as they said they were a JJ fan and had no problems with her character development yet still posted these somewhat damning figures!

[JMO]

 

# of times character was a part of unsub takedown:

Hotch - 4

Rossi - 5

Callahan - 4

JJ - 8

Morgan - 6

Reid - 2

 

And one of Reid's 'take downs' was done with a slipper and a kiss.  That's my boy!

[Droogie]

And my second doubt is about Reid. It is stated that he participated in two 'unsubs-takedown'. I only remember that ridiculous Cinderella thing, and no matter how happy one may be because he at least was on the screen for more than three seconds, it was really not a great part. Anyway, which is the other one? Maybe it was in one of those episodes I blinked and I missed him? Or maybe it was that with JJ-crisis which I refuse to watch?

The other was in "Amelia Porter."

Who is Simren Basra?

To balance that out even a little bit, JJ needs to stay at the police stations for the rest of the season.

Edited January 25, 2015 by Droogie

[normasm]

Yeah, McCatry, I'm with JMO, I love it that Reid did a takedown without a gun. That actually takes brains and a heart...

[MCatry]

The other was in "Amelia Porter."

Who is Simren Basra?

To balance that out even a little bit, JJ needs to stay at the police stations for the rest of the season.

Thank you! Now I remember he was the one who grabbed Amelia, although she looked defeated anyway.

Simren Basra was the one who did those counts mentioned in a previous post. Given the fact that I also love to count I think we could build an interesting set of data to analyse it...

And regarding JJ staying at the police stations,... Well, I would prefer if she stays with Garcia, in Virginia, for the rest of the decade.

Yeah, McCatry, I'm with JMO, I love it that Reid did a takedown without a gun. That actually takes brains and a heart...

This.

What happened with putting themselves in the mind of a criminal?

Lately, it is rare the occasion when they try to keep the unsub alive.

What happened with the interviews of serial killers, to learn from them?

[missmycat]

I saw those interesting statistics. Didn't this person admit to being a JJ fan. It's nice that they can be objective and let the facts speak for themselves.

Indeed those numbers speak volumes.And it's a little harder for JJ fans to try and deny it, because numbers don't lie.

Somebody asked them if they could also do it for season 9. I hope they do because it should be interesting. And no doubt JJ will also come out ahead in those statistics.

[MCatry]

I will do it for season nine.

Even if I will have to consume great amounts of ice cream to compensate such a hideous task.

Just give me some time!

[SSAHotchner]

I will do it for season nine.

Even if I will have to consume great amounts of ice cream to compensate such a hideous task.

Just give me some time!

Thanks, MCatry. I kind of feel like we should buy you some ice cream as a thank you for compiling all of this information.

[Old Dog]

I will do it for season nine.

Even if I will have to consume great amounts of ice cream to compensate such a hideous task.

Just give me some time!

MCatry you are a hero! There are vast swathes of Season 9 that I never want to see again!

[SSAHotchner]

MCatry you are a hero! There are vast swathes of Season 9 that I never want to see again!

Yes, but season 8 was worse IMO.

[Danielg342]

Thanks, MCatry. I kind of feel like we should buy you some ice cream as a thank you for compiling all of this information.

I shall also happily contribute to the ice cream fund. :)

[whitespace]

I might save you some time (and ice cream) since I've just finished S9 and thought I could keep track of the last few(8) episodes after reading this.
 
So here's what I got from 9x17 - 9x24:
Total # of times character took out gun:
Hotch - 3
Rossi - 6
Blake - 4
JJ - 10
Morgan - 10
Reid - 5
Garcia - 1

# of times character was a part of unsub takedown:
Hotch - 1
Rossi - 4
Blake - 2
JJ - 6
Morgan - 7
Reid - 2
Garcia - 1
Note: I didn't count a character to the second list if he/she was in the building but stayed behind with the victim (which would give +1 to JJ and Reid)
 
Poor Hotch wasn't even first in the interviews if I recall right.

Edited January 27, 2015 by whitespace

[Old Dog]

Well done whitespace! That's fairly clear in supporting our view that it's usually JJ and Morgan!

[normasm]

Guys, it might be a good thing to create a whole new thread and name it Statistics Spiel. Therein, we can talk about all these numbers and really have a place to point everyone to who is interested, so they have one-stop shopping.

[zannej]

I like the Statistics Spiel thread idea. I second it.

 

As for JJ, they need to tone her down and not have her being better at everything than everyone else. I admit I wouldn't mind to see her asking someone else for cooking advice and admitting that Will does the cooking or that they order takeout or get frozen meals. (I admit I did like that about The Mysteries of Laura show where Laura had to get her boyfriend to bake cookies because she messed it up and was overwhelmed with having to do all sorts of stuff for her kids because her ex-husband volunteered her for something).

 

I'm trying to think of things they could do with JJ (other than making her disappear for the rest of the season) that would make her more likable-- but something that makes sense instead of coming out of nowhere.

[missmycat]

I like the Statistics Spiel thread idea. I second it.

 

As for JJ, they need to tone her down and not have her being better at everything than everyone else. I admit I wouldn't mind to see her asking someone else for cooking advice and admitting that Will does the cooking or that they order takeout or get frozen meals. (I admit I did like that about The Mysteries of Laura show where Laura had to get her boyfriend to bake cookies because she messed it up and was overwhelmed with having to do all sorts of stuff for her kids because her ex-husband volunteered her for something).

 

I'm trying to think of things they could do with JJ (other than making her disappear for the rest of the season) that would make her more likable-- but something that makes sense instead of coming out of nowhere.

I agree. She takes a few profiling classes, although I am still trying to figure out when the hell she had time to take those classes,and suddenly she has morphed into Reid.And then she supposedly took some self defense training course and pretty much morphed into Morgan. And I guess you could also add Hotch to the list as someone she has morphed into. Jeepers! It's no damn wonder AJ/JJ is getting all this damn screen time. I mean just look at all these character besides her own she is essential playing now. 

[Cobalt Stargazer]

I agree. She takes a few profiling classes, although I am still trying to figure out when the hell she had time to take those classes,and suddenly she has morphed into Reid.

 

More than that, we don't even know when she decided to take the damned classes and become a profiler. or why. We never saw her change her mind at any point after Hotch asked her why she didn't want to be out in the field working cases, that he thought everyone wanted to be a profiler. Fair enough to say that it happened off-screen, but now that she's almost literally the center of everything, it would be nice to get some insight into why she opted to make the change after saying she didn't want that particular job.

[ForeverAlone]

I think we are supposed to infer that because she had to do so much profiling during her mission to Afghanistan, she now wanted to go back to the BAU and be an actual profiler. There was no clean explanation, but that is because they have been making this crap as they went along instead of having some story planned in advance. I mean, if you go back to season seven, the impression was that now she was back at the BAU, she was now working long, crazy hours and not home as often as she was when she was working elsewhere. Basically, when CBS rehired AJ, the producers (working with AJ) decided to now make JJ a profiler. If they had just left it at that, or said that JJ had a change of heart and wanted to try something new (as many of us make changes in our career aspirations over the years), it would have been fine. But noooooo...the producers and writers had to go make her backstory as ridiculous as possible (just like they did with Emily's first exit). It's when they seemed to lose the plot on what Criminal Minds' core mission really was.

Edited January 28, 2015 by ForeverAlone

[MCatry]

I might save you some time (and ice cream) since I've just finished S9 and thought I could keep track of the last few(8) episodes after reading this.

 

So here's what I got from 9x17 - 9x24:Total # of times character took out gun:

Hotch - 3

Rossi - 6

Blake - 4

JJ - 10

Morgan - 10

Reid - 5

Garcia - 1# of times character was a part of unsub takedown:

Hotch - 1

Rossi - 4

Blake - 2

JJ - 6

Morgan - 7

Reid - 2

Garcia - 1Note: I didn't count a character to the second list if he/she was in the building but stayed behind with the victim (which would give +1 to JJ and Reid)

 

Poor Hotch wasn't even first in the interviews if I recall right.

That's great! You saved me not only for wasting time but also to watch some bad episodes!

I already started from number one, and I will stop then at number sixteen. I think I may be done in about three more days.

Thanks!

[JMO]

 

Basically, when CBS rehired AJ, the producers (working with AJ) decided to now make JJ a profiler. If they had just left it at that, or said that JJ had a change of heart and wanted to try something new (as many of us make changes in our career aspirations over the years), it would have been fine.

 

It was such a lost opportunity, and would have required absolutely no contrived backstory.  They could have had a season-long background arc of JJ as a beginner profiler (albeit with some experience through her liaison work), learning to apply her knowledge.  If they'd shown her colleagues helping her learn the process, we could have been learning right along with her.  And then people would have cheered her on, and celebrated her progress.  Somehow I doubt there would be the same distaste for the character if we'd seen her transformation in relatively real time.

[MCatry]

Guys, it might be a good thing to create a whole new thread and name it Statistics Spiel. Therein, we can talk about all these numbers and really have a place to point everyone to who is interested, so they have one-stop shopping.

Yes! Please!

(I really, really love to count, and I promise I will contribute to this thread until the end. If I could watch 200 twice to count the screen time, I can handle everything!)

[Cobalt Stargazer]

If they'd shown her colleagues helping her learn the process, we could have been learning right along with her.  And then people would have cheered her on, and celebrated her progress.  Somehow I doubt there would be the same distaste for the character if we'd seen her transformation in relatively real time.

 

JustMyOpinion, this would have worked so much better than what we actually got. Ya'll probably wouldn't believe it from how much I bitch, both in general and specifically, but it takes relatively little to make me happy with a TV show. If we had seen bits and pieces of JJ's path to becoming a profiler, that would have satisfied me. God knows she had enough more experienced people around who could have helped her, and one of those people was the guy who helped start the BAU in the first place.

[missmycat]

I think we are supposed to infer that because she had to do so much profiling during her mission to Afghanistan, she now wanted to go back to the BAU and be an actual profiler. There was no clean explanation, but that is because they have been making this crap as they went along instead of having some story planned in advance. I mean, if you go back to season seven, the impression was that now she was back at the BAU, she was now working long, crazy hours and not home as often as she was when she was working elsewhere. Basically, when CBS rehired AJ, the producers (working with AJ) decided to now make JJ a profiler. If they had just left it at that, or said that JJ had a change of heart and wanted to try something new (as many of us make changes in our career aspirations over the years), it would have been fine. But noooooo...the producers and writers had to go make her backstory as ridiculous as possible (just like they did with Emily's first exit). It's when they seemed to lose the plot on what Criminal Minds' core mission really was.

What makes it even more ridiculous with all this going on we are suppose to buy into the fact that her and Will were trying to have another kid. Sorry I'm not drinking the kool Aide. Although it's more than obvious that so many JJ fans sure as heck gulp it down without so much as given it a second thought.

 

In fact so many of them seem oblivious to the fact it was actually insulting to JJ. Because she came across as being rather careless when it came to this pregnancy.First of all if her and Will were indeed planning another child JJ must of known there was a chance she was pregnant.What she should have done was refuse to go there until she found out for sure whether or not she was pregnant. And then when she was over there she risked her and the unborn baby's life even more by going out on that convoy.

Edited January 28, 2015 by missmycat

[DiamondDoll]

I started rewatching the series from the beginning when I was recovering from an injury this summer and I think I can pinpoint where her character (imo) started going downhill. For me, it was S3x17. She was such an unlikeable snot throughout the whole episode. The smug eyerolling and the childish behaviour started something we see on the screen today. I know Will is not a popular character in the fandom but for the way she treated him during that episode was revolting. I kept having to pause and breathe so I wouldn't throw the tv out the window in the middle of the episode. I had quite liked her till then but she totally lost me there.

[Chaos Theory]

I started rewatching the series from the beginning when I was recovering from an injury this summer and I think I can pinpoint where her character (imo) started going downhill. For me, it was S3x17. She was such an unlikeable snot throughout the whole episode. The smug eyerolling and the childish behaviour started something we see on the screen today. I know Will is not a popular character in the fandom but for the way she treated him during that episode was revolting. I kept having to pause and breathe so I wouldn't throw the tv out the window in the middle of the episode. I had quite liked her till then but she totally lost me there.

We tend to be hard on characters we don't like. I do it too on other fandoms, if JJ looks at Reid funny half the Fandom goes nuts and calls JJ a bitch. I do agree the show has turned her into super agent but that was out of necessity when the show changed after AJ Cooke got fired and the rehired. It would have felt like a backward step if she had gone back to the jobsge had before.

I do however think the fandom is waaaaay to harsh on JJ.

[normasm]

Chaos, I think you missed Diamond's point. She wasn't hard on JJ because she didn't like her, she liked her until she changed. In Season 3, mind you. I used to like JJ as well, and i was reminded so nicely of the old JJ last night with the ice cream scene with Garcia, another character who has changed very negatively over the past few years. They were both funny and sweet, but not infantilized, and that is decent writing.

 

And i disagree that it would have been a step backward for JJ to go back to media liaison; they always harped on how important her job was and how good she was at it; then, suddenly all this mess happens, and, no, they don't really need those skills, they need her to be like Morgan. I think most of us are harsh on the writers and producers rather than JJ, they are the ones we get miffed at when she hogs whole swathes of seasons.

[Cobalt Stargazer]

 if JJ looks at Reid funny half the Fandom goes nuts and calls JJ a bitch.

 

*eyebrow*

 

Since I have often taken issue with JJ's behavior towards Reid (the sighs, the eyerolls, the part where she says 'Wow' as if she can't believe he doesn't realize that she couldn't care less about what he's talking about) I feel like I resemble that remark. Proof was the nadir of this attitude, where she tried to act as if he was upset about something trivial, and Emily and Hotch backed her up by getting involved instead of letting them hash it out between them. IMO, it isn't "nuts" to be annoyed when she's being so, well, snotty towards him when all he's doing is being himself.

[DiamondDoll]

We tend to be hard on characters we don't like. I do it too on other fandoms, if JJ looks at Reid funny half the Fandom goes nuts and calls JJ a bitch. I do agree the show has turned her into super agent but that was out of necessity when the show changed after AJ Cooke got fired and the rehired. It would have felt like a backward step if she had gone back to the jobsge had before.

I do however think the fandom is waaaaay to harsh on JJ.

I think you sort of missed my point. When the series started, I liked JJ. The early version of her character was well written and for such a dark show, her sweetness and light balanced out some of the gross characters we had. She was written to be human, but also someone who treated others with respect and kindness. The first time we really saw her as, lack of a better word, a selfish bitch, was 3x17. Will was someone who was supposed to be important to her, someone she had been dating for over a year but she treated him horribly. She was snotty, mean and condecending to someone who seemed totally devoted to her happiness. Will wanted to be acknowledged as a part of her life but she wanted things her way, end of discussion. It was her way or the highway which is a pretty hurtful way to treat someone you have been in an exclusive relationship for over a year. Will and JJ's whole relationship is written to be all about JJ. She has to always be right and always get her way and compromise doesn't seem to be a part of her vocabulary anymore. Relationships are supposed to be about give and take but as it's written, JJ takes and Will gives and gives and gives.

 

Way before they fired AJ, JJ was starting to change and not for the better. Sure, the change was amplified after she came back but it was there already.

[Chaos Theory]

I think you sort of missed my point. When the series started, I liked JJ. The early version of her character was well written and for such a dark show, her sweetness and light balanced out some of the gross characters we had. She was written to be human, but also someone who treated others with respect and kindness. The first time we really saw her as, lack of a better word, a selfish bitch, was 3x17. Will was someone who was supposed to be important to her, someone she had been dating for over a year but she treated him horribly. She was snotty, mean and condecending to someone who seemed totally devoted to her happiness. Will wanted to be acknowledged as a part of her life but she wanted things her way, end of discussion. It was her way or the highway which is a pretty hurtful way to treat someone you have been in an exclusive relationship for over a year. Will and JJ's whole relationship is written to be all about JJ. She has to always be right and always get her way and compromise doesn't seem to be a part of her vocabulary anymore. Relationships are supposed to be about give and take but as it's written, JJ takes and Will gives and gives and gives.

Way before they fired AJ, JJ was starting to change and not for the better. Sure, the change was amplified after she came back but it was there already.

If this is the episode I am thinking about (the gay friend of Will's ep). I get why she didn't want him there. It was not her being snotty. She was separating work and home life and was kind of freaked that they were meshing at the time the relationship was not well defined.

And of course it is writeb to be about JJ. JJ is the lead. Hotches entire marriage was about him all the way up until Haley was murdered and even that was about him.

Then this is just my opinion. Hotch and JJ are the only reason I watch the show anymore.

[Chaos Theory]

I think you sort of missed my point. When the series started, I liked JJ. The early version of her character was well written and for such a dark show, her sweetness and light balanced out some of the gross characters we had. She was written to be human, but also someone who treated others with respect and kindness. The first time we really saw her as, lack of a better word, a selfish bitch, was 3x17. Will was someone who was supposed to be important to her, someone she had been dating for over a year but she treated him horribly. She was snotty, mean and condecending to someone who seemed totally devoted to her happiness. Will wanted to be acknowledged as a part of her life but she wanted things her way, end of discussion. It was her way or the highway which is a pretty hurtful way to treat someone you have been in an exclusive relationship for over a year. Will and JJ's whole relationship is written to be all about JJ. She has to always be right and always get her way and compromise doesn't seem to be a part of her vocabulary anymore. Relationships are supposed to be about give and take but as it's written, JJ takes and Will gives and gives and gives.

Way before they fired AJ, JJ was starting to change and not for the better. Sure, the change was amplified after she came back but it was there already.

If this is the episode I am thinking about (the gay friend of Will's ep). I get why she didn't want him there. It was not her being snotty. She was separating work and home life and was kind of freaked that they were meshing at the time the relationship was not well defined.

And of course it is writen to be about JJ. JJ is the lead. Hotches entire marriage was about him all the way up until Haley was murdered and even that was about him.

Then this is just my opinion. Hotch and JJ are the only reason I watch the show anymore. I personally wouldn't be upset with an entire episode with just them.

[DiamondDoll]

If this is the episode I am thinking about (the gay friend of Will's ep). I get why she didn't want him there. It was not her being snotty. She was separating work and home life and was kind of freaked that they were meshing at the time the relationship was not well defined.

And of course it is writeb to be about JJ. JJ is the lead. Hotches entire marriage was about him all the way up until Haley was murdered and even that was about him.

Then this is just my opinion. Hotch and JJ are the only reason I watch the show anymore.

 

JJ dismissed Will like he was nothing in that episode, her bf of over a year. Will was there to id the body of his partner, he wasn't there to stalk her or throw himself into the case. This was his friend who died and she couldn't show him any affection or understanding for it and it was selfish and snotty imo. Not to mention acting like she was actively ashamed of him and their relationship.

 

I don't think the Hotch/Haley relationship was all about him. Hotch tried everything to make that relationship work and was obviously very much in love with her. Haley had her own pov and we were shown how that relationship unraveled. They were both flawed people and neither was the perfect one.

 

With JJ/Will, we know that he is the active parent, he's the one always making compromises and on the rare occasion we are shown that he's not happy about it, he's written as the bad guy. JJ didn't even bother to tell him about the miscarriage. Sure it was a hugely traumatizing thing for her but one would assume you would share that with your husband so you could move on/mourn as a family. She didn't climb on top of herself and got pregnant, so it was pretty shitty to not tell him until way later.

Edited January 29, 2015 by DiamondDoll