S14.E05: The Tall Man

[Aethera]

Quote

The BAU investigates a spooky local ghost story of the “Tall Man” and the clues it provides when two people go missing in the woods of East Allegheny’s Dead Man’s Conservatory, and a third mysteriously surfaces the following day with limited details as to what happened to her friends. To assist with the case, JJ reluctantly returns to her hometown, triggering emotional flashbacks to age 11 and her older sister’s tragic death.

Aired 10/31/18

[Annber03]

That ending got to me. As did JJ trying to revive Bethany. I breathed a big ol' sigh of relief when she showed up in the station at the end, and when the other girls woke up. 

So. This episode was quite interesting, and I'm kinda mixed on various aspects of it. I like that the case didn't go where it seemed like it was going to originally, with this being a Slenderman-type scenario among the three girls, and the "Tall Man" image all these girls saw was indeed creepy. I loved the bit with Rossi helping JJ work through her memories from her childhood. JJ talking about freezing up when she found her sister was genuinely heartbreaking. And the idea that Roz's depression and suicide had some deeper origins is an intriguing one. I also like that the backstory helps explain why we've never heard from or seen JJ's dad, and I think that lends itself well to all the stuff we've learned about JJ's family having a history of keeping secrets and not dealing with emotions well and whatnot over the years. 

But I kind of wish they hadn't sullied the nice memory JJ had with her necklace. I loved that that was a special possession for her, I loved her story in "Risky Business" about it, and I wish they'd found a way to not include it in Roz's history with this creep. Maybe he could've given her another item instead, one that JJ had never known about. 

And I'm kinda back and forth on all these people having a connection to JJ and her family, 'cause on the one hand, it felt kinda coincidental, but on the other hand, this is a small town, so on that level it makes sense. 

So yeah. A few issues here and there, but overall, I thought it was a good episode. 

[ForeverAlone]

I didn't hate this episode, but the writing felt oddly disjointed to me. In my opinion, I think the tie in with JJ's sister's death would have worked for me better if she had been murdered and not committed suicide. I thought the whole fake abduction setup and stuff was just off, because it only seemed to be about hiding the illicit relationship. Or if it was more, I didn't get that from the writing. 

I get that Matthew was busy directing, so he usually doesn't make much of an appearance in those episodes, but I really think he should have been part of the team talking with the schizophrenic teenager. More than anyone, he would know how to interact with her gently and get the most information from her. 

There were definite creepy elements (mainly due to Matthew's directorial preferences), but I would have preferred a story written differently. Maybe more horror, and less tie in with JJ's past. 

[Mysteyman]

As someone who can really relate to this episode in a lot of personal ways, I felt it was pretty tastefully done.

And, I am so glad that we got to meet Rosalyn.

Finally, we got to  see that she was indeed an actual person.

She is no longer just an ideal for JJ to live up to.

And the bond between the sisters was clear, good casting there.

Good Job Matthew, Keep them coming!

Edited November 1, 2018 by Mysteyman

[Blackbird999999lol]

I was in tears or had chills up/down my spine during the whole episode. AJ is otherwordly. The depth of her feeling... She has this well of emotion and depth that no other actor/actress has. If she doesn't get an emmy, I will lose all faith in humanity. 

Too bad the little girl playing her was TERRIBLE. Way to ruin AJ's work :( She  didn't do justice to AJ's performance at all.

[secnarf]

This is the first time in a while I have genuinely enjoyed a CM episode. I do like JJ and as I have also lost siblings (though not to suicide) that part always gets to me. I thought AJC did a great job this episode, and although I was not aware ahead of time that MGG was directing, I figured it out pretty quickly!

I also wish they had 'preserved' the necklace rather than taint it by having it be from the unsub. I called him as the guy from the first scene in the school! I wish they had gone into how/why he picked his victims a bit more, rather than just that they were 'troubled'.

[muhtwacn]

I struggled staying invested in this episode largely because their geography was so inaccurate. I'm from Western PA and East Allegheny is a neighborhood in downtown Pittsburgh, it's not a small town in the middle of the state. There is a Dead Man's Hollow Conservation area but that's probably 30 minutes from East Allegheny. There are no woods in E.A. and it's certainly not a small town. It's a minor thing, sure, but central PA has so many other small towns or counties that they could have used so once they used E.A the episode lost all credibility in my mind. 

11 minutes ago, secnarf said:

I also wish they had 'preserved' the necklace rather than taint it by having it be from the unsub. I called him as the guy from the first scene in the school! I wish they had gone into how/why he picked his victims a bit more, rather than just that they were 'troubled'.

I agree with all of this. It felt like a lot was left unexplained.

[Annber03]

10 hours ago, ForeverAlone said:

I get that Matthew was busy directing, so he usually doesn't make much of an appearance in those episodes, but I really think he should have been part of the team talking with the schizophrenic teenager. More than anyone, he would know how to interact with her gently and get the most information from her. 

I'd thought about that, too, yeah. 

9 hours ago, Mysteyman said:

And, I am so glad that we got to meet Rosalyn.

Finally, we got to  see that she was indeed an actual person.

She is no longer just an ideal for JJ to live up to.

This is a beautiful observation. Well put. 

[athelyna]

I liked the episode, and thought the acting was well-done, but there are definitely some holes in the script.  I liked the twist, because while I figured it wasn't going to be anything as straightforward as the 2 girls tried to prank their schizophrenic friend and she freaked and killed them, I was sort of expecting they would find some giant guy in the woods to be a red herring and it would turn out to be some random unsub who liked abducting teenage girls.

It was interesting to tie it in with JJ's sister, but I'm a little unclear on the unsub's motives and actions.  So he's just been seducing/molesting teenage girls at his school, and he only locked Bethany up because she stabbed her friend?  Or were they implying he had killed before?  I understand his actions were part of what drove JJ's sister to commit suicide, and I'm not sure I like the implication that when a teenager commits suicide it must be because something bad happened to her, rather than because depression and other mental illness can warp your perceptions and make it seem like death is a good option.  It was a little obvious he would be the ultimate villain, because the only other man they had shown was the other girl's dad and we hadn't seen any teenage boys, so of course it's going to be the school principal who showed up for one scene.

Also found it really odd when Tara was the one explaining that the first girl was schizophrenic and what that meant.  At the same time, it is kind of nice to know they can mention schizophrenia and not have to hammer the audience with Reid's mom is schizophrenic and he's been dealing with it since he was a kid.  

50 minutes ago, muhtwacn said:

I struggled staying invested in this episode largely because their geography was so inaccurate. I'm from Western PA and East Allegheny is a neighborhood in downtown Pittsburgh, it's not a small town in the middle of the state. There is a Dead Man's Hollow Conservation area but that's probably 30 minutes from East Allegheny. There are no woods in E.A. and it's certainly not a small town. It's a minor thing, sure, but central PA has so many other small towns or counties that they could have used so once they used E.A the episode lost all credibility in my mind. 

I forget when JJ first mentioned where she is from, but I assume they were stuck with the town name from her backstory and just ignored reality.  I don't think any show that films in one location but claims to travel to other places ever gets geography right.

[RedheadZombie]

When JJ realized the girl must be at school, I don’t get why she immediately assumed it was the brick area under the trophies. It made no sense and she was wrong. 

ETA:  The blonde friend looked like she played Lizzie on The Walking Dead. 

Brunette BFF went from dead to handcuffs so quickly that unsub thought JJ was simply talking to her co-workers.  She was pretty self-righteous for a girl who’d just tried to murder her BFF.

Edited November 1, 2018 by RedheadZombie

[jls1792]

27 minutes ago, RedheadZombie said:

 ETA:  The blonde friend looked like she played Lizzie on The Walking Dead. 

That was her!  

[secnarf]

38 minutes ago, RedheadZombie said:

When JJ realized the girl must be at school, I don’t get why she immediately assumed it was the brick area under the trophies. It made no sense and she was wrong. 

ETA:  The blonde friend looked like she played Lizzie on The Walking Dead. 

Brunette BFF went from dead to handcuffs so quickly that unsub thought JJ was simply talking to her co-workers.  She was pretty self-righteous for a girl who’d just tried to murder her BFF.

Because the principal said that Bethany was where he kept all of his girls - and he kept photos of them in the trophy case (remember JJ looking at a photo of Rosaline earlier?). At least, that is what I took from those scenes.

[Hotchgirl18]

I thought the episode was very good. It was the only JJ episode i liked. I like that we got character development and we met Rosalyn. I liked that it wasn't just an open and shut Slender Man like case. And Garcia wasn't using her magical computer and we broke from the formula. Reminded me of CM in the old days, really. But the guidance counselor being the unsub was very obvious. Next week's episode looks promising. 

[Bridget]

It was totally obvious he was the unsub from the minute he was on screen, but am I the only one who recognized the unsub as Brad from “Teen Witch”? His name in the opening credits also gave it away that he was the unsub too. I wish they wouldn’t list the guest stars’ names in the beginning credits because it’s too easy to figure out who the unsub is most of the time.

I know that the unsubs (for the most part) aren’t actors we recognize, but when the unsub is someone who is recognizable, it’s hard to enjoy the episode. The episode with Eddie Cibrian as the unsub is hard to watch - and I’m not even a fan of his! 

The exception to the rule is C. Thomas Howell; superb acting and totally believable as a bad guy! 

Edited November 2, 2018 by Bridget

[Aethera]

I thought the case was interesting, and overall, the episode was good. I agree that it was nice that it wasn't a total Slenderman case rip off, but took it in a different direction. I think AJ did really well, but I thought a few of the super closeup bits felt a bit forced or awkward. Not the Rossi scene, though, that one was good. It was nice to see her husband, too! They felt like a family in a real way. 

I thought the actresses who played Rosalyn and young JJ were good together.

[Mystery]

20 hours ago, ForeverAlone said:

I didn't hate this episode, but the writing felt oddly disjointed to me.

I felt like it was really poorly written. There were only two viable male suspects. If the heart was so "connectable" to the principal that he was willing to kill to get it back, then JJ's heart should have been just as good. 

But then I pretty much hate all of the Special JJ episodes, so I wasn't surprised to be disappointed by this one. Everyone else just makes way for her. Did Matt get to do anything but *literally* hold open a grate for her?

[mefein]

Hello all,

Once again I only managed to see the episode on the move so I may have missed important bits.

My overall opinion is that it was better than recent episodes.  I watch CM now with no great expectations and have given up looking for plot holes, continuity, sense...lol

That said I did like this epiosde better than a whole lot of previous.  I'm one of those who has always liked JJ, so having her front and center as such, does not bother me. Lets just say that I'd tale another of her upfront than next weeks apparent Luke fest.

I was interested in this episode as my sister met Gubler a few weeks ago in LA (he was out with Thomas, Thomas son and another friend).  She asked him about his episode and he called it 'special'.  It started pretty Gubleresque but I have to say I was a little disapointed that it did not stay that way.  I've not always been a fan of Matthews style, although when I think about it, I really like all of his episodes..hows that work??.  It might be because personally I don't like the scary, supernatural, ghostly stuff. This episode felt quite 'normal' after the opening and the guy on stilts with the weird face.  

Lots of you have gone over the episode and I've learned some stuff I missed, so I'm not going to repeat.  I do agree with those of you have commented on the way the JJ and her sister story turned out.  Gotta say I am sad about that.  I think it was Annber who mentioned the chain?.  Yes, I wish they had not done that.  Ok, maybe the story albeit it more than a little meh, but the story of how JJ had come to own that chain was such an important part of the character.  One of my favorite scenes was that one with JJ and Hotch in 'Risky Business', when they talked at the end of the case at the back of the plane.  JJ told her story (which I wondered how Hotch did not already know......), but in the end she ended up comforting Hotch re Haley.  It was such a really nice scene and AJ and Thomas played it so well.  How this episode turned out, felt like it ruined it.  I don't know, maybe its just me, but seeing as sometimes its so hard to get anysort of back story and continuity with these characters (the originals), I wish they would not tear what we did get, away from us now.

I liked AJ and unlike others, I really liked both the older girl playing Roslyn and the little girl playing young JJ.  In fact I thought she was really good.  Then again, I tend not to be to critical of young child actors....  I certainly did not feel she "ruined" AJ's performance.  

Joe/Rossi continues to be my favorite male following Hotch exit.  Reid you are still up there but I don't know, I'm liking Rossi alot this season.

Prentiss/Brewster....OK, so I said it before, I'm not a fan of Brewster but I really do try to review without bias.  She just does not cut it, sorry Prentiss fans. 

Next week...meh. I'm sure I'll see it at some point, but it won't be a priority. 

[Hotchgirl18]

33 minutes ago, mefein said:

Hello all,

Once again I only managed to see the episode on the move so I may have missed important bits.

My overall opinion is that it was better than recent episodes.  I watch CM now with no great expectations and have given up looking for plot holes, continuity, sense...lol

That said I did like this epiosde better than a whole lot of previous.  I'm one of those who has always liked JJ, so having her front and center as such, does not bother me. Lets just say that I'd tale another of her upfront than next weeks apparent Luke fest.

I was interested in this episode as my sister met Gubler a few weeks ago in LA (he was out with Thomas, Thomas son and another friend).  She asked him about his episode and he called it 'special'.  It started pretty Gubleresque but I have to say I was a little disapointed that it did not stay that way.  I've not always been a fan of Matthews style, although when I think about it, I really like all of his episodes..hows that work??.  It might be because personally I don't like the scary, supernatural, ghostly stuff. This episode felt quite 'normal' after the opening and the guy on stilts with the weird face.  

Lots of you have gone over the episode and I've learned some stuff I missed, so I'm not going to repeat.  I do agree with those of you have commented on the way the JJ and her sister story turned out.  Gotta say I am sad about that.  I think it was Annber who mentioned the chain?.  Yes, I wish they had not done that.  Ok, maybe the story albeit it more than a little meh, but the story of how JJ had come to own that chain was such an important part of the character.  One of my favorite scenes was that one with JJ and Hotch in 'Risky Business', when they talked at the end of the case at the back of the plane.  JJ told her story (which I wondered how Hotch did not already know......), but in the end she ended up comforting Hotch re Haley.  It was such a really nice scene and AJ and Thomas played it so well.  How this episode turned out, felt like it ruined it.  I don't know, maybe its just me, but seeing as sometimes its so hard to get anysort of back story and continuity with these characters (the originals), I wish they would not tear what we did get, away from us now.

I liked AJ and unlike others, I really liked both the older girl playing Roslyn and the little girl playing young JJ.  In fact I thought she was really good.  Then again, I tend not to be to critical of young child actors....  I certainly did not feel she "ruined" AJ's performance.  

Joe/Rossi continues to be my favorite male following Hotch exit.  Reid you are still up there but I don't know, I'm liking Rossi alot this season.

Prentiss/Brewster....OK, so I said it before, I'm not a fan of Brewster but I really do try to review without bias.  She just does not cut it, sorry Prentiss fans. 

Next week...meh. I'm sure I'll see it at some point, but it won't be a priority. 

I really agree about Prentiss. I'll take the Luke fest over her any day. She needs to GO. 

[Blackbird999999lol]

3 hours ago, mefein said:

Hello all,

Once again I only managed to see the episode on the move so I may have missed important bits.

My overall opinion is that it was better than recent episodes.  I watch CM now with no great expectations and have given up looking for plot holes, continuity, sense...lol

That said I did like this epiosde better than a whole lot of previous.  I'm one of those who has always liked JJ, so having her front and center as such, does not bother me. Lets just say that I'd tale another of her upfront than next weeks apparent Luke fest.

I was interested in this episode as my sister met Gubler a few weeks ago in LA (he was out with Thomas, Thomas son and another friend).  She asked him about his episode and he called it 'special'.  It started pretty Gubleresque but I have to say I was a little disapointed that it did not stay that way.  I've not always been a fan of Matthews style, although when I think about it, I really like all of his episodes..hows that work??.  It might be because personally I don't like the scary, supernatural, ghostly stuff. This episode felt quite 'normal' after the opening and the guy on stilts with the weird face.  

Lots of you have gone over the episode and I've learned some stuff I missed, so I'm not going to repeat.  I do agree with those of you have commented on the way the JJ and her sister story turned out.  Gotta say I am sad about that.  I think it was Annber who mentioned the chain?.  Yes, I wish they had not done that.  Ok, maybe the story albeit it more than a little meh, but the story of how JJ had come to own that chain was such an important part of the character.  One of my favorite scenes was that one with JJ and Hotch in 'Risky Business', when they talked at the end of the case at the back of the plane.  JJ told her story (which I wondered how Hotch did not already know......), but in the end she ended up comforting Hotch re Haley.  It was such a really nice scene and AJ and Thomas played it so well.  How this episode turned out, felt like it ruined it.  I don't know, maybe its just me, but seeing as sometimes its so hard to get anysort of back story and continuity with these characters (the originals), I wish they would not tear what we did get, away from us now.

I liked AJ and unlike others, I really liked both the older girl playing Roslyn and the little girl playing young JJ.  In fact I thought she was really good.  Then again, I tend not to be to critical of young child actors....  I certainly did not feel she "ruined" AJ's performance.  

Joe/Rossi continues to be my favorite male following Hotch exit.  Reid you are still up there but I don't know, I'm liking Rossi alot this season.

Prentiss/Brewster....OK, so I said it before, I'm not a fan of Brewster but I really do try to review without bias.  She just does not cut it, sorry Prentiss fans. 

Next week...meh. I'm sure I'll see it at some point, but it won't be a priority. 

most of the time i'm not critical of young actors either but this role is very important. AJ was acting her heart out in that scene with JJ & Rossi... then they show young JJ dumbly staring at her sister's dead body with no emotion in her eyes. You can't even call that "shocked face" she was just .. staring with open mouth. I feel like she was just making faces during the whole episode, 0 emotions. And i'm sorry but she's not very pretty. No charm, no personality. I know they can't get little AJ to play herself in the episode but they should've chosen a cute, charming child with warm, sparkling eyes to play her. I mean, look into AJ's eyes - so many emotions,  no wonder MGG loves her eyes so much, ... and now look at that kid.

[Unkempt]

Well, as director of that episode, MGG cast that kid himself, sooooo.....

[Unkempt]

I love the kid who played Chelsea.  She was so good when she was on The Walking Dead, and she was part of one of the most iconic moments of that show (Look at the flowers, Lizzie!).

[jls1792]

I thought the actress playing young JJ was fine.  As for her being "emotionless" when she found Roz in the bathtub, I feel like that might have been intentional.  JJ told Prentiss that when she found Roz, she just froze and didn't know what to do for 10 minutes.  Her just staring at the body without a lot of emotion I can believe, as I feel it fits with the frozen comment JJ made.  Not everyone reacts to situations the same way.  While someone who sees a dead body/dead loved one might have screamed and cried hysterically, someone else might just be in such a state of shock that they can't react or move or talk.  We got the latter with JJ.  I also wouldn't be surprised if MGG told the actress to portray it that way.  As the director, MGG has a say in how people react, and I'm sure if he and Breen (the writer) wanted her to show more emotion, they would have asked her to be more upset.  I think it also fit in with the scene of JJ after he sister's funeral.  She was kind of just sitting there, alone, playing with her sister's necklace.  She was sad, but she wasn't crying.  

[Hotchgirl18]

15 hours ago, Mystery said:

I felt like it was really poorly written. There were only two viable male suspects. If the heart was so "connectable" to the principal that he was willing to kill to get it back, then JJ's heart should have been just as good. 

But then I pretty much hate all of the Special JJ episodes, so I wasn't surprised to be disappointed by this one. Everyone else just makes way for her. Did Matt get to do anything but *literally* hold open a grate for her?

Yeah, that's my problem with her. She thinks she's a royal princess. I hope she gets killed by an unsub. 

[The Wild Sow]

On 11/1/2018 at 11:48 AM, muhtwacn said:

I struggled staying invested in this episode largely because their geography was so inaccurate. I'm from Western PA and East Allegheny is a neighborhood in downtown Pittsburgh, it's not a small town in the middle of the state. There is a Dead Man's Hollow Conservation area but that's probably 30 minutes from East Allegheny. There are no woods in E.A. and it's certainly not a small town. It's a minor thing, sure, but central PA has so many other small towns or counties that they could have used so once they used E.A the episode lost all credibility in my mind. 

Oh, come on -- they always  screw up Pittsburgh geography!  I just mentally moved the episode to the East Allegheny School District (East McKeesport, Wilmerding, Wall, and North Versailles -- which, for you non-Burgh folks, is pronounced "ver-SALES," not "vair-SIGH"!)  I cracked up when JJ pointed to the map and it showed Hays Woods.  I'm down there all the time, photographing the Hays bald eagle nest; haven't seen any spooky Tall Men or abandoned train cars.  There are 2 very active rail lines there; I think CSX or Norfolk Southern would have noticed it!

 

I remember one of the Pittsburgh-set episodes where they were looking for someone in "a vacant building."  On the map, they were showing the Byham Theater!  Fort Duquesne Blvd. and Sixth Street.  Again, I'm pretty sure all the people who actually work there would have noticed unsubs & victims running around upstairs ;-)  I can't remember which episode it was now, possibly Mr. & Mrs. Anderson?  I also remember in that ep, they had a "cheap motel" in Downtown Pittsburgh!  Um, with the sky-high real estate values and limited space down there, not hardly!  Expensive hotels, yeah.  Cheap motels are out in the 'burbs.  Possibly in "East Allegheny."

 

I'm just going to mentally fanwank the East Allegheny = some mashup of West Mifflin & North Versailles.

 

Oh, yeah, called out "Ethan" as soon as he showed up.  He was "tall" and there was only one other male suspect shown (Tom.)  Actually, the most recent teacher-student sex scandal took place in the Plum School District (involving 3 male teachers who had their own "special girls" over several years.)  So we can add Plum Borough to the above mash-up.

[mythoughtis]

I was bothered by the Slenderman tie in. Probably because in the real world, one child is dead, two ruined their lives and 3 families are destroyed. I don’t like children’s deaths turned into storylines. 

In terms of the story, was the Tall Man a legend that the bad guy and his underage victim used to get the necklace back from the other girl... or was he the story behind the Tall Man legend all along?   

Edited November 4, 2018 by mythoughtis

[The Wild Sow]

1 hour ago, mythoughtis said:

I was bothered by the Slenderman tie in. Probably because in the real world, one child is dead, two ruined their lives and 3 families are destroyed. I don’t like children’s deaths turned into storylines. 

In terms of the story, was the Tall Man a legend that the bad guy and his underage victim used to get the necklace back from the other girl... or was he the story behind the Tall Man legend all along?   

Edited 1 hour ago by mythoug

Eh, SVU did their version (Glaswgowman's Wrath) a couple of years ago.  

[Hotchgirl18]

19 hours ago, mythoughtis said:

I was bothered by the Slenderman tie in. Probably because in the real world, one child is dead, two ruined their lives and 3 families are destroyed. I don’t like children’s deaths turned into storylines. 

In terms of the story, was the Tall Man a legend that the bad guy and his underage victim used to get the necklace back from the other girl... or was he the story behind the Tall Man legend all along?   

I think the Tall Man is just an old folk tale and the unsub was using it to cover up his true crimes. 

[AuntieL]

I'm going to have to try to find this episode (I don't have a DVR) since I grew up in Elizabeth Township, which is just up the hill from Versailles (and yes, it's "Versales").  My Dad lived the last 20 years in N. Versailles, just down from the cemetery.  I do like the creepy episodes.

Edited November 6, 2018 by AuntieL
N. Versailles is different from Versailles.

[Danielg342]

Been awhile since the "A" saw these parts, but, it deserves it. Even though it's got plenty of faults- such as why the UnSub would allow someone to escape, but, then again, the UnSub would know these kids and figured Ally might not be a believable witness (which she wasn't- until the BAU came around).

I also should have penciled in the guidance counsellor as the culprit the minute I saw him. Everything I know about sexual predators would point to him, since being a guidance counsellor would give him access to kids.

Of course, this was not really an episode about twists and turns or about throwing feints about who the UnSub really is- this was about JJ's sister and unlocking how an UnSub used an urban legend to cover for his own crimes.

That story was told very well.

Let's start with JJ. I wouldn't say she was dynamite- in fact, I would probably say her performance was merely competent, good enough to get through the episode but nothing that's going to get the Emmy's calling. However, the kind of reservedness JJ displayed really did work for the episode, because this was the kind of case that could have devolved into being "all about JJ" and it just didn't do that. In fact, it's more believable that JJ would try everything she could to not make the case about her because of all the bad memories it brought up.

So the tone really did work, even if it won't result in individual accolades.

I also think it was neat getting to know JJ's sister- Rosalyn, whom I don't believe we ever learned her name before this episode- and how far she fell in her final hours. It feels a little awkward, given what we knew about in "Risky Business", but it still worked better than most times Erica Messer has tried shoehorning CM's past into its present. I also think it was quite interesting that Rosalyn Jareau's death appeared very much to be the "trigger" for the UnSub's current crimes- it's the first time CM has gone to the well of "BAU member has an indirect cause in the UnSub's crimes", making it a twist on the usual "it's personal" storyline. This time it worked very well.

As for "The Tall Man"- it's an interesting take on "The Slender Man", and a bit of a twist on the original story. The real life Slender Man was created as part of a contest on SomethingAwful where contestants were asked to come up with a creepy urban legend out of whole cloth. Right away, The Slender Man was the winner and it just grew legs of its own, going viral around the Internet.

Unfortunately, because it went viral, some believed it was real. A 12-year-old girl in Wisconsin was murdered by two of her friends who claimed they were doing The Slender Man's bidding, and both killers were assigned to mental hospitals as a result.

There were parts of that in The Tall Man, as the victims were all 12-year-old girls, and one of the girls did act in concert with The Tall Man. The twist in this one was that The Tall Man wasn't someone who was a figment of the girls' imagination but a real person, perhaps created by the UnSub as a way of controlling his victims. There also wasn't one victim and two killers, but rather the killer, his accomplice (his "girlfriend"...eww) and two victims, none of whom died. There was also a sexual component that wasn't present in the Wisconsin case.

So, while there were its faults, and while I wouldn't call it a ten-bell episode (more like nine), this episode was engaging and intriguing, and certainly worthy to hang among the better episodes in CM lore.

[Mislav]

11 hours ago, Danielg342 said:

Been awhile since the "A" saw these parts, but, it deserves it. Even though it's got plenty of faults- such as why the UnSub would allow someone to escape, but, then again, the UnSub would know these kids and figured Ally might not be a believable witness (which she wasn't- until the BAU came around).

I also should have penciled in the guidance counsellor as the culprit the minute I saw him. Everything I know about sexual predators would point to him, since being a guidance counsellor would give him access to kids.

Of course, this was not really an episode about twists and turns or about throwing feints about who the UnSub really is- this was about JJ's sister and unlocking how an UnSub used an urban legend to cover for his own crimes.

That story was told very well.

Let's start with JJ. I wouldn't say she was dynamite- in fact, I would probably say her performance was merely competent, good enough to get through the episode but nothing that's going to get the Emmy's calling. However, the kind of reservedness JJ displayed really did work for the episode, because this was the kind of case that could have devolved into being "all about JJ" and it just didn't do that. In fact, it's more believable that JJ would try everything she could to not make the case about her because of all the bad memories it brought up.

So the tone really did work, even if it won't result in individual accolades.

I also think it was neat getting to know JJ's sister- Rosalyn, whom I don't believe we ever learned her name before this episode- and how far she fell in her final hours. It feels a little awkward, given what we knew about in "Risky Business", but it still worked better than most times Erica Messer has tried shoehorning CM's past into its present. I also think it was quite interesting that Rosalyn Jareau's death appeared very much to be the "trigger" for the UnSub's current crimes- it's the first time CM has gone to the well of "BAU member has an indirect cause in the UnSub's crimes", making it a twist on the usual "it's personal" storyline. This time it worked very well.

As for "The Tall Man"- it's an interesting take on "The Slender Man", and a bit of a twist on the original story. The real life Slender Man was created as part of a contest on SomethingAwful where contestants were asked to come up with a creepy urban legend out of whole cloth. Right away, The Slender Man was the winner and it just grew legs of its own, going viral around the Internet.

Unfortunately, because it went viral, some believed it was real. A 12-year-old girl in Wisconsin was murdered by two of her friends who claimed they were doing The Slender Man's bidding, and both killers were assigned to mental hospitals as a result.

There were parts of that in The Tall Man, as the victims were all 12-year-old girls, and one of the girls did act in concert with The Tall Man. The twist in this one was that The Tall Man wasn't someone who was a figment of the girls' imagination but a real person, perhaps created by the UnSub as a way of controlling his victims. There also wasn't one victim and two killers, but rather the killer, his accomplice (his "girlfriend"...eww) and two victims, none of whom died. There was also a sexual component that wasn't present in the Wisconsin case.

So, while there were its faults, and while I wouldn't call it a ten-bell episode (more like nine), this episode was engaging and intriguing, and certainly worthy to hang among the better episodes in CM lore.

The girl wasn't murdered. She was viciously assaulted, but fortunately, she survived. Just sayin'.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slender_Man_stabbing

 

 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/abcnews.go.com/amp/US/slender-man-stabbing-survivors-mother-offers-message-hope/story%3fid=52795365

[Danielg342]

15 hours ago, Mislav said:

The girl wasn't murdered. She was viciously assaulted, but fortunately, she survived. Just sayin'.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slender_Man_stabbing

Ah, my bad. It's been a while since I read about the story. Glad to know that she survived.

[MMLEsq]

I was very late to the CM party -- just watched my first episode last November.  Binge watched all of Seasons 1-12 in order on Netflix.  While I was doing that, I had our DVR recording every episode on ION, WE, etc. to catch Seasons 13 and 14 (which I watched in order)*, then watched Season 15 in real time.  

* Since the episodes for Seasons 13 and 14 were recorded on the DVR somewhat out of order, it took me a while to figure out that Season 14, Episode 5 never recorded.  At first I figured it was just a random thing that it didn't record, but the couple of times I've looked for upcoming episodes when they happen to be showing Season 14 episode in a block, it will be Episode 1, 2, 3, 4....and then 6.  They're purposely skipping rerunning Episode 5 it would appear.  (I just confirmed -- I looked on the ION website and in their Episode Guide for the show, 1405 is missing.)

This is now the only Episode I've never seen, which is annoying, but not annoying enough at this point for me to pay to see it.  

Is this Episode really that bad/offensive/disturbing/whatever...?  I've Googled, but can't seem to find an official reason why it seems to have been pulled from reruns.  Anyone know?

[Annber03]

No, there's nothing offensive or disturbing about the episode. ION does that whenever they rotate a new season of a show into their schedule in general. There's always a few episodes they skip past the first few go rounds of reruns, then eventually they add those episodes in and show the whole season from there on out. Why they do that, I don't know, but yeah, that's just a thing with them. 

On a different note, welcome to the CM fandom! What a time to come in, just as the show's wrapped up, huh :p? We've got threads all over the place in this forum to discuss the seasons, as you can see, so feel free to pop in and share whatever thoughts you have about the show and various seasons and whatnot :). 

[Danielg342]

@MMLEsq, I don't recall anything about this episode that was particularly squeamish, at least in comparison to the rest of the series. I will say this was one of the few in the series' later run that I actually enjoyed, so I'd say check it out if you can.

[MMLEsq]

On 2/26/2020 at 11:10 AM, Annber03 said:

On a different note, welcome to the CM fandom! What a time to come in, just as the show's wrapped up, huh :p? We've got threads all over the place in this forum to discuss the seasons, as you can see, so feel free to pop in and share whatever thoughts you have about the show and various seasons and whatnot :). 

Thank you!  Watching so many episodes back-to-back over such a relatively short period of time definitely had an effect.  For example, if the dog wanted to go out in the middle of the night, I'd be standing there in the dark backyard thinking, "This is just how a Criminal Minds episode begins...."  🙂

[Annber03]

48 minutes ago, MMLEsq said:

Thank you!  Watching so many episodes back-to-back over such a relatively short period of time definitely had an effect.  For example, if the dog wanted to go out in the middle of the night, I'd be standing there in the dark backyard thinking, "This is just how a Criminal Minds episode begins...."  🙂

Haha, yeah, I think a lot of us have been there at some point. My mom's said the same thing-she's talked about how she has a hard time watching this show for an extended period of time because it makes her nervous in certain situations (leaving some place at night and things of that sort). 

[MMLEsq]

It's on tonight on ION!!  I had reruns on last night and was multitasking, so barely paying attention, when I realized they were from one of the later seasons.  The episode on was from Season 13 -- about 2/3 of the way through the season, so I looked at the schedule and ION's finishing up Season 13 today and then airing the beginning episodes of Season 14, including this one.   😀

Edited March 10, 2020 by MMLEsq
clarity

[illdoc]

ION will show all of Season 14---the question is, will they show S15 after it, or wait until October to start airing it (which is when they usually start showing the "just concluded" season). Once that (S14 or possibly S15) is over, they will start back at the beginning--S1.

[MMLEsq]

On 3/10/2020 at 1:48 PM, illdoc said:

ION will show all of Season 14---the question is, will they show S15 after it, or wait until October to start airing it (which is when they usually start showing the "just concluded" season). Once that (S14 or possibly S15) is over, they will start back at the beginning--S1.

Since I had my DVR record every CM episode from any season on any channel since November (and then I'd go in and delete the ones from Seasons 1-12, which are available on Netflix), I'm just glad I finally got it on my DVR as I have seen both ION and WE just skip from episode 4 to episode 6 while running the Season 14 episodes in order during the last 3-4 months and each of those channels has been through all 14 seasons at least 2-3 times.  I know for everyone else the last episode of Season 15 was their series finale, but this is kind of my series finale being the only episode I had not previously seen.

[idiotwaltz]

I watched this episode and North Mammon back to back. I enjoyed both and thought AJC did a good job in both. JJ looks very different - all the soft edges to her are gone, and her voice is lower than it was in S2. I thought the bit in the beginning with her younger son asking for lime juice on his eggs was cute.