Criminal Minds Unpopular Opinions

SSA Emily Prentiss · January 6, 2019

17 hours ago, Annber03 said:

We know, of course, that Hotch and JJ both had valid reasons to help protect Emily in that situation, but even so, I can see where that kind of major lie can shake somebody's trust regardless. It affected Reid's ability to trust JJ.

And here comes my U.O. #5 !

You know, I wanted to wait a while for this one. I wanted to think it through again before I typed it, not because I'm not sure of it (quite the opposite !) but because I want to get it 100% right, without missing one single thought. But since you unexpectedly brought it up, I'm just gonna jump on the opportunity. Let's talk about it !

In 07x02, I think Spencer acted like a real BRAT towards JJ, and I really didn't care for his little tantrum act. He may be the youngest member of the team but he's not a kid. And if my memory's correct, in season 7 he actually turned 30. Which means he was more than old enough to understand a few things. So what part of "We had to lie to protect Emily" did he not get exactly ? He acted as if JJ meant to hurt him personally when in reality, it wasn't about him at all, just like Hotch had to tell Morgan. It was a matter of life and death, and Hotch made an important decision in order to keep one of their own alive. Of course they had the right to feel hurt, they grieved for 7 long months. But why take it out on JJ ? What was she supposed to do ? Break Hotch's trust and put their mutual friend in danger just to make poor fragile Reid feel better ? Didn't he understand that the more people are in on such secret, the less safe the victim/potential victim is ?

So I'm sorry no, I guess I really don't see why and how that lie affected Reid's ability to trust JJ. Despite the negative things I say about her sometimes, we all know JJ loves Reid, and It's not like she goes around lying to him every chance she gets. She did it one time folks, ONE time, and for a very serious matter at that. I mean what could be more serious than the life and death of someone you care about ? The fact that she was able to keep that secret for so long to make sure their friend and partner stayed alive, that to me says she's more than trustworthy. And I'm not even a fan of hers by a long shot, but if I was a member of that team, I'd much, much rather put my life in her hands than in Reid's.

They all have this ridiculous tendency to cuddle Reid way too much in that team, so I was soooo glad no one took the time to hold his hand for once. Except for Hotch and JJ, they all mourned the loss of E and were shocked to see her alive, not just Reid. But after the initial anger reaction, Morgan realized that the most important thing was that E was there and he moved on. Even Garcia was actually (oh surprise !) very mature about the whole thing. She was shocked too but she understood the reason behind the lie and was grateful to have her friend and teammate back.

Reid on the other hand, acted as if knowing the truth was far more important than Emily's life. Which, quite frankly, wasn't a good look on him in my eyes. He should've been ashamed of his reaction afterwards, not JJ. As far as I'm concerned, JJ did nothing wrong. I actually cheered on her that day because she gave as good as she got and she didn't back down. No, scratch that, she was still far too gentle. If it was me in her place, best friend or not, Oy...

Because the whole thing was set in motion for her, Emily's the one who owed him a sincere apology. Which she offered. After that, they should've just let bratty Reid alone in his corner to pout for days, even weeks, months if he wanted to. Until he got tired of his own attitude and decided to get over himself and man up. Or not.

Edited January 7, 2019 by SSA Emily Prentiss

JMO · January 7, 2019

I see it so much differently from you, SSAP. JJ didn't lie to Reid one time. In order to keep the information from him, JJ had to lie to Reid every single day, for seven months. While I can't quite see him crying on her shoulder weekly, I can accept that he sought out the comfort of his best friend, to help assuage what he thought was their mutual grief. To find out that she'd not been grieving Emily at all (but had, one can hope, been grieving the anticipated loss of her best friendship), yet had allowed him to suffer it, was the true betrayal, not the keeping secret of a single ( albeit monumental) fact. The second slap in the face, and it looked to me as though Morgan felt it too, was the implication that those team members couldn't be trusted to keep the knowledge of Emily's status a secret. Where's the proof that says it was necessary to keep it from the team, in order to assure Emily's safety? It seems to me that JJ lost Reid's trust because she'd first demonstrated her lack of trust in him. Even if it came as an order from above, it infiltrated their relationship, and only JJ had knowledge, and thereby control, of that.

Of all of them, I think Emily is the only innocent. She was severely injured at the time the plan was hatched, and had no part in making it. For all we know, she might have been in the dark about whether her other teammates were aware of her status, until the very end. It was nice that she reached out to Reid, but I think she was the least responsible for doing so.

And then there was that infernal pasta party....

jls1792 · January 7, 2019

Both Reid and JJ were annoying in 7x02.

I get why Reid (and Morgan) were upset. Reid was making sarcastic little comments while paired up with JJ. Even though he had a right to be upset, he should have put it aside while working the case.

Then JJ also got fed up and starting taking digs at Reid while in the field.

Then we got the argument between Reid and JJ at the police station, which JJ brought up. That was not the place for them to air out their frustrations. Reid tried to avoid JJ but JJ kept going and started this argument.

Both were in the wrong in this episode. Yes, Reid had a right to be upset, but the snarky comments should have been put aside while he was working a case. And while I get JJ getting frustrated at getting the cold shoulder and snarky remarks from Reid, she didn't need to add her own snarkiness, and she definitely didn't need to bring up the issue at the local police station where a bunch of law enforcement officers could hear two FBI agents arguing. Them getting overheard would not only make them look bad, but would very likely make Hotch and the BAU look bad as well. On top of arguing, JJ basically called out Reid's profiling skills and then Reid threw the Dilaudid issue in JJ's face. Both were just very unprofessional in this episode.

jmo, I agree with your reasoning of Reid being upset and JJ lying to him. And you also bring up a good point about the team feeling upset because it was like they couldn't be trusted. Like I said, Reid and the others had every right to be upset, but there's a time and a place to express and show that emotion. We know Morgan was upset but I think he was a bit better at not making a very big scene in front of others. I know he and Hotch kind of got into it in episode 9 of that season, but I think they were more isolated than Reid and JJ were (I could be wrong though). Now, with that being said, Morgan has also let his anger get the best of him at inappropriate times, like when he got mad at Hotch and Kate in the season 3 finale

JMO · January 7, 2019

I agree with you on their behavior in the episode, jls. They were both written as petulant, which seemed out of character for each. I would have welcomed a serious conversation, and one that involved Hotch as well.

jls1792 · January 7, 2019

Yeah, Hotch definitely should have been more stern with both of them. But I think season 7 was when a lot of new writers came in and they lost the feel of a lot of the characters. Had JJ and Reid been going at it in season 2 or something, I think we would have gotten Hotch being more stern with them as opposed to "if you want to be mad at someone, be mad at me"

SSA Emily Prentiss · January 7, 2019

I love a civil discussion. But I have to go to work tomorrow and I'm already so tired. So to bed I go. But expect my replies tomorrow.

Good night folks.

Lalaland · January 7, 2019

On 05/01/2019 at 7:18 PM, mythoughtis said:

I never saw Hotch perform any parenting while Haley was alive. Never once did he call to see how Jack fared while he was gone or ever seem to remember Jack existed once he left the house.

Thats not true at all. Theres a multitude of little scenes wherein he makes a call, talks with a teammate and indeed some home scenes. The problem with the latter is that he usually got called away from home, many times while 'doing the parenting stuff'.

Hotch never showed any personality beyond a stone face or a glare. His girlfriend Beth was totally wrong for him.

Totally disagree on this. Completely aside from Beth, Hotch showed all sorts of personality. The difference is that it was very subtle, which in a way made it all the more powerful. Again, theres a multitude of examples of this but to throw out some very simple ones - reminising with Haley about the pirate hat, 'physics magic' with Reid, 'gas' with JJ's new baby, even the little fist bump with Reid on the jet. Theres lots there.

Edited January 7, 2019 by Lalaland

SSA Emily Prentiss · January 9, 2019

On 06/01/2019 at 8:13 PM, JMO said:

I see it so much differently from you, SSAP.

- Good JMO ! Life (and this board) would be so boring if we all saw things the same way all the time.

JJ didn't lie to Reid one time. In order to keep the information from him, JJ had to lie to Reid every single day, for seven months.

- Fair enough, I'll grant you that she lied many times. But since for me the gravity of the matter for which she lied more than made up for the lie itself, I still see it as ONE lie.

While I can't quite see him crying on her shoulder weekly, I can accept that he sought out the comfort of his best friend, to help assuage what he thought was their mutual grief. To find out that she'd not been grieving Emily at all (but had, one can hope, been grieving the anticipated loss of her best friendship), yet had allowed him to suffer it, was the true betrayal, not the keeping secret of a single ( albeit monumental) fact.

- Yes, and somehow I very much doubt it was a day at the park for JJ. I can't even pretend to know her that well (I would think her BFF Reid however knows her well enough to not imagine her having fun while watching him in pain), but unless I am to believe she's the world's ultimate cold-hearted *bish* , which I don't think I do despite her very cold exterior, I'm fairly sure it must've been torture for her too. A different kind of torture than Reid's, but a torture nonetheless.

The second slap in the face, and it looked to me as though Morgan felt it too, was the implication that those team members couldn't be trusted to keep the knowledge of Emily's status a secret. It seems to me that JJ lost Reid's trust because she'd first demonstrated her lack of trust in him. Even if it came as an order from above, it infiltrated their relationship, and only JJ had knowledge, and thereby control, of that.

- Slap in the face, yes probably. But in a situation like that, it's not so much about wether or not those team members can be trusted as it is about acting in the best interest of the targeted person. And the less people are in on the secret, the greater the chance is for that person to stay alive. Just like in the Witness Protection Program. I'm sure Hotch and JJ believed all 4 of them could be trusted (although personally I'm not too sure about Miss Penelope-I Can't Keep A Secret To Save My Own Life-Garcia, but that's for another debate). But he also knew that no one's perfect and anything can slip out accidently. He just couldn't take that risk.

Where's the proof that says it was necessary to keep it from the team, in order to assure Emily's safety?

- Well unless Reid needed to see Emily die a second time and for good, I'd say the simple fact that she was beaten and stabbed to "death" by someone who wanted her dead and was still very much alive is about as much proof as he needed to know that if her mortal ennemi had had even the slightest hint that she was indeed alive, he would've done anything to get the truth out of the people who were closest to her and more likely to know her wherabouts. So not only was Hotch protecting Emily, he was also protecting her teammates by extension. And even if Doyle didn't resort to violence to make them talk, I can imagine all kinds of other tricky ways he could've used to get to the same result. Nah, Hotch did the right thing, and so did JJ.

Of all of them, I think Emily is the only innocent. She was severely injured at the time the plan was hatched, and had no part in making it.

- Well if Emily was innocent, then so was JJ. They may have hatched the plan while she was still unconscious, but when she woke up and they told her what they did, she could've stopped it at any moment. Does she not have a will of her own ? And a mouth ? She could've said : "No, I can't do that to them. I can't let them grieve for me like that for no reason. They have to know I'm alive." But she didn't. So why are JJ and Hotch (mostly JJ, because the fandom -not you, obviously- has decided to put the blame almost entirely on her shoulders) more guilty than her ? Now it's very important to notice that I said Emily "could have" stopped it, not "should have". It must have been a real tough choice for her : protecting her life or risk it by letting her friends know she was alive. Hmmmm very tough. And just like I'm sure JJ and Hotch didn't have fun making it, I'm quite certain it was hell for E too. But if she could have stopped it and didn't, yet I don't blame her at all for that, I sure as heck ain't gonna blame JJ.

For all we know, she might have been in the dark about whether her other teammates were aware of her status, until the very end.

- Maybe. But I doubt so. Wouldn't she have contacted them even once during those 7 months ?

It was nice that she reached out to Reid, but I think she was the least responsible for doing so.

- Why did Reid grieve for 7 months ? Because he thought "Emily" had died. And why was he so angry and hurt when she turned out to be alive ? Because he realized that Hotch and JJ only faked "Emily's" death. And why did they do that ? To protect "Emily". So seeing as the whole unfortunate experience revolved around Emily, and because of that ONLY, even though she did nothing wrong than to deal with a horrible situation the best way she could, I think she did have a responsibility to reach out to Reid.

And then there was that infernal pasta party....

- Eh, if the alternative would have been to endure a whole arc, or even just a second episode, dedicated to "The Many Ways Spencer Reid Was Affected By Emily Prentiss' Death And Return" , when the actual person who was the most affected by those events, meaning Emily herself, was barely granted 2 minutes in one episode to express a reaction to her own trauma, then by all means, I'd gladly take more of that infernal pasta party for 10,000 please !

Edited January 10, 2019 by SSA Emily Prentiss

Hotchgirl18 · January 11, 2019

On 1/6/2019 at 7:07 PM, jls1792 said:

Both Reid and JJ were annoying in 7x02.

I get why Reid (and Morgan) were upset. Reid was making sarcastic little comments while paired up with JJ. Even though he had a right to be upset, he should have put it aside while working the case.

Then JJ also got fed up and starting taking digs at Reid while in the field.

Then we got the argument between Reid and JJ at the police station, which JJ brought up. That was not the place for them to air out their frustrations. Reid tried to avoid JJ but JJ kept going and started this argument.

Both were in the wrong in this episode. Yes, Reid had a right to be upset, but the snarky comments should have been put aside while he was working a case. And while I get JJ getting frustrated at getting the cold shoulder and snarky remarks from Reid, she didn't need to add her own snarkiness, and she definitely didn't need to bring up the issue at the local police station where a bunch of law enforcement officers could hear two FBI agents arguing. Them getting overheard would not only make them look bad, but would very likely make Hotch and the BAU look bad as well. On top of arguing, JJ basically called out Reid's profiling skills and then Reid threw the Dilaudid issue in JJ's face. Both were just very unprofessional in this episode.

jmo, I agree with your reasoning of Reid being upset and JJ lying to him. And you also bring up a good point about the team feeling upset because it was like they couldn't be trusted. Like I said, Reid and the others had every right to be upset, but there's a time and a place to express and show that emotion. We know Morgan was upset but I think he was a bit better at not making a very big scene in front of others. I know he and Hotch kind of got into it in episode 9 of that season, but I think they were more isolated than Reid and JJ were (I could be wrong though). Now, with that being said, Morgan has also let his anger get the best of him at inappropriate times, like when he got mad at Hotch and Kate in the season 3 finale

Well, JJ is a snob. I'm hoping the last season ends with her death.

Blackbird999999lol · January 11, 2019

8 hours ago, Hotchgirl18 said:

Well, JJ is a snob. I'm hoping the last season ends with her death.

I can see the show ending with JJ's death. It's a loss the team wouldn't ever be able to come to terms with. I hate the term "life goes on". For those in deep pain and despair life doesn't go on. There's no way the team could "go on" and there's no way the show could continue after JJ's death.

I'd love to see an episode where the team is grieving for her, they help her husband raise her children, they tell them about what their mom was like and honoring her memory and then just end the whole shit.

Edited January 11, 2019 by Blackbird999999lol

SSA Emily Prentiss · January 11, 2019

13 hours ago, Blackbird999999lol said:

There's no way in hell Erica MESSer would ever kill off her precious Kung-Fu Ninja Barbie. But I can very much see her making the show's last episode all about Saint Mary Sue aka Super JJ Of Quantico. Nope, I wouldn't put it past her at all. After all, this character has already been dominating the screentime for years, so what's one more episode, right ?

In case I'm right, I do hope I get a heads up first though. Just so I don't make the mistake of watching it like I watched "200" when I learned that Paget was guest starring.

Edited January 12, 2019 by SSA Emily Prentiss

smoker · January 11, 2019

On 7/1/2019 at 12:28 AM, SSA Emily Prentiss said:

And here comes my U.O. #5 !

You know, I wanted to wait a while for this one. I wanted to think it through again before I typed it, not because I'm not sure of it (quite the opposite !) but because I want to get it 100% right, without missing one single thought. But since you unexpectedly brought it up, I'm just gonna jump on the opportunity. Let's talk about it !

In 07x02, I think Spencer acted like a real BRAT towards JJ, and I really didn't care for his little tantrum act. He may be the youngest member of the team but he's not a kid. And if my memory's correct, in season 7 he actually turned 30. Which means he was more than old enough to understand a few things. So what part of "We had to lie to protect Emily" did he not get exactly ? He acted as if JJ meant to hurt him personally when in reality, it wasn't about him at all, just like Hotch had to tell Morgan. It was a matter of life and death, and Hotch made an important decision in order to keep one of their own alive. Of course they had the right to feel hurt, they grieved for 7 long months. But why take it out on JJ ? What was she supposed to do ? Break Hotch's trust and put their mutual friend in danger just to make poor fragile Reid feel better ? Didn't he understand that the more people are in on such secret, the less safe the victim/potential victim is ?

So I'm sorry no, I guess I really don't see why and how that lie affected Reid's ability to trust JJ. Despite the negative things I say about her sometimes, we all know JJ loves Reid, and It's not like she goes around lying to him every chance she gets. She did it one time folks, ONE time, and for a very serious matter at that. I mean what could be more serious than the life and death of someone you care about ? The fact that she was able to keep that secret for so long to make sure their friend and partner stayed alive, that to me says she's more than trustworthy. And I'm not even a fan of hers by a long shot, but if I was a member of that team, I'd much, much rather put my life in her hands than in Reid's.

They all have this ridiculous tendency to cuddle Reid way too much in that team, so I was soooo glad no one took the time to hold his hand for once. Except for Hotch and JJ, they all mourned the loss of E and were shocked to see her alive, not just Reid. But after the initial anger reaction, Morgan realized that the most important thing was that E was there and he moved on. Even Garcia was actually (oh surprise !) very mature about the whole thing. She was shocked too but she understood the reason behind the lie and was grateful to have her friend and teammate back.

Reid on the other hand, acted as if knowing the truth was far more important than Emily's life. Which, quite frankly, wasn't a good look on him in my eyes. He should've been ashamed of his reaction afterwards, not JJ. As far as I'm concerned, JJ did nothing wrong. I actually cheered on her that day because she gave as good as she got and she didn't back down. No, scratch that, she was still far too gentle. If it was me in her place, best friend or not, Oy...

Because the whole thing was set in motion for her, Emily's the one who owed him a sincere apology. Which she offered. After that, they should've just let bratty Reid alone in his corner to pout for days, even weeks, months if he wanted to. Until he got tired of his own attitude and decided to get over himself and man up. Or not.

I love this subject, this one and "marriage in the BAU" are great and endless discussions.

Sooo "But why take it out on JJ ?"

Weeell, I do have an answer and it's this chat:

"JJ: You know what I think it is? You're mad that Hotch and I controlled our micro expressions at the hospital, and you weren't able to detect our deception.

Reid: You think this is about my profiling skills? Jennifer, listen, the only reason you were able to manage my perceptions is because I trusted you."

Read more: https://www.springfieldspringfield.co.uk/view_episode_scripts.php?tv-show=criminal-minds&episode=s07e02

Anyway, Reid behaves petulantly before and after he calls her off, for all the reasons you have already pointed out.

Obviously, Hotch was the unit chief at the time and sometimes he had to made strategic choices, it was his duty and responsibility, period. And every time a team member had a problem with that it sounded ridiculous and childish. I won't deny Hotch failed in pointing those attitudes several times in Bernero's age, but their immaturity has been disgusting in late seasons. I consider this (as many other issues) a writing problem or a "Messer" problem...

And sorry for any grammar mistake.

Edited January 11, 2019 by smoker

BookWoman56 · January 12, 2019

Reid will always be my favorite character from CM, and was the only character with whom I could really identify. I agree the writing did him no favors after the first few seasons, but I don't think the writing did anyone any favors after the first few seasons. I didn't care for the seasons where JJ went from media liaison to super agent essentially overnight, but I don't blame A J Cook for taking the opportunity that was handed her to have a more prominent role. I was happy when Shemar Moore left the show and wish he'd done it sooner; the scenes between Derek and Garcia were painfully unprofessional on too many occasions and gave me vicarious embarrassment.

I'm glad the show will get a final season; 10 episodes seems about right to have one major arc and wrap up everything. I don't want any team members killed off, and am not expecting them to pull some lame scenario where the team is disbanded at the end of the season. I'd rather get the feeling that life is going on as expected; maybe a couple of profilers move to other teams, maybe Rossi retires, and maybe a few stay where they are. I just don't think it's necessary to do some big dramatic finale.

SSA Emily Prentiss · January 12, 2019

7 hours ago, BookWoman56 said:

I was happy when Shemar Moore left the show and wish he'd done it sooner; the scenes between Derek and Garcia were painfully unprofessional on too many occasions and gave me vicarious embarrassment.

7 hours ago, BookWoman56 said:

I hear you. I stopped watching after season 7 and only came back in season 12. So it would've been even harder for me to stomach that horrendous Morgan/Garcia pair again after I had a 4 year break from them.

SSA Emily Prentiss · January 12, 2019

11 hours ago, smoker said:

I am glad to know he has grown up, it's about time.

Gotta admit, when the prison arc ended, it's when I started paying some attention to that "boy". Before that, he was just "the kid who is too cuddled by his teammates" to me.

SSA Emily Prentiss · January 22, 2019

On 27/12/2018 at 12:36 PM, SSA Emily Prentiss said:

And my list of U.Os continues. I know this one may cause people to wonder if I'm not insane, but whatever, it's been a while since I've wanted to get this off my chest. Here it is :

3. I know many people think that JJ is the epitome of empathy, but I disagree wholeheartedly. I don't think JJ and the word "empathy" should ever be placed in the same sentence. Well except if it's to say something like : "JJ can't express sincere empathy to save her life." That's about it.

I have very rarely, if ever, bought into her so called empathy towards the victims or even her own co-workers. I bought it in spades with Elle, with Reid, with Emily, with stoic Hotch. I even bought it with arrogant, full of himself, narcissist playa Morgan and over the top, self-centered, juvenile drama queen Garcia (two characters I barely tolerate). But JJ ? Nah. Never. And the more they shove her perfect sanctity to my face, the more I keep thinking : "Fake! Fake! Fake!" Yes I'm sorry but to me, Jennifer Saint Mary Sue Super Ninja Wannabe Kung Fu Barbie Jareau always seems to be sporting a mask. Which makes her appear cold most of the times. Sometimes when I look at her, I can't help but wonder : "If I pricked her really hard with a needle, would there be any blood ?"

If the actress really wants her portrayal of empathy to be believable, she should really buy some clues from her acting partners. Espacially from PB and MGG.

Also, she's written like Perfect Snowhite, but there's something very irritating about this character that screams "Look at how superior I am. I don't even belong on the same planet as the rest of you mortals. I'm only tolerating your presence because... well, you know... I am that good of a person." Ughh !

Morlock · March 2, 2019

* Garcia has no business being part of a crime fighting team. I also don't understand what is so special about what she does either. Most of the time it seems all she is doing is narrowing down addresses and where someone spent some money. Hardly a genius crime fighter.

* The ep where Garcia was all upset about the criminal getting the death sentence was ridiculous. Given all the crimes she has seen I would have hoped she learned something. I guess not.

* Garcia crushing on Derek were always very gross and unprofessional. The team has to wait a few minutes for Garcia and Derek to talk shit before getting on with finding the killer.

* For a show called Criminal Minds these people often don't come across as masterminds. There are a couple of exceptions but for the most part they are all pretty ordinary and probably would do better in Police uniform walking a beat.

* The show has gone on for way too long.

* JJ professing her love for Reid was a weak angle even for the situation and the two are mismatched anyway. I don't think Reid can handle games like that one. He would find it hard enough to deal with a woman liking him who was straight up honest to his face rather than what JJ did and then denying it later.

CoyoteBlue · March 3, 2019

21 hours ago, Morlock said:

* Garcia has no business being part of a crime fighting team. I also don't understand what is so special about what she does either. Most of the time it seems all she is doing is narrowing down addresses and where someone spent some money. Hardly a genius crime fighter.

Eh, she's actually kinda the opposite in that she finds out stuff that really should not be possible. I highly doubt there is some master data repository that contains left-handed dog owners who had some kind of menial job 20 years ago, and yet Garcia will just type those things into a quasi-DB-query and BAM! Names spit out. But hey, it's TV; there are lots of shortcuts like that to keep things moving (e.g. all of CSI :)).

I have a weakness for the techie support staff who pull together info, but I prefer grownups like Mouse from Chicago PD. I don't get the fetishistic child-like girls thing with Abby from NCIS and Garcia - somehow I think the rationale goes "We need something light and pure and good to offset the demons of their job! Let's give the whole team a Manic Pixie Dream Girl!"

Just... no.

21 hours ago, Morlock said:

* The ep where Garcia was all upset about the criminal getting the death sentence was ridiculous. Given all the crimes she has seen I would have hoped she learned something. I guess not.

Ugh! It's the MPDG thing - Garcia just gets more and more childish when faced with "bad stuff" to the point where she practically devolves into baby talk. Like that time when she had to "dig up dirt" on an entire small town and she practically had a breakdown over finding out people's dirty laundry. Not the serial killer stuff, just that the mayor had an affair or Bob the accountant had been embezzling for years! Ooooh! She can't stand it! It's soooo horrible! Bitch, those aren't your friends and family who betrayed you personally; they're total strangers with mildly assholish histories. Relax.

Morlock · March 3, 2019

43 minutes ago, CoyoteBlue said:

Eh, she's actually kinda the opposite in that she finds out stuff that really should not be possible. I highly doubt there is some master data repository that contains left-handed dog owners who had some kind of menial job 20 years ago, and yet Garcia will just type those things into a quasi-DB-query and BAM! Names spit out. But hey, it's TV; there are lots of shortcuts like that to keep things moving (e.g. all of CSI :)).

I have a weakness for the techie support staff who pull together info, but I prefer grownups like Mouse from Chicago PD. I don't get the fetishistic child-like girls thing with Abby from NCIS and Garcia - somehow I think the rationale goes "We need something light and pure and good to offset the demons of their job! Let's give the whole team a Manic Pixie Dream Girl!"

Just... no.

Ugh! It's the MPDG thing - Garcia just gets more and more childish when faced with "bad stuff" to the point where she practically devolves into baby talk. Like that time when she had to "dig up dirt" on an entire small town and she practically had a breakdown over finding out people's dirty laundry. Not the serial killer stuff, just that the mayor had an affair or Bob the accountant had been embezzling for years! Ooooh! She can't stand it! It's soooo horrible! Bitch, those aren't your friends and family who betrayed you personally; they're total strangers with mildly assholish histories. Relax.

You said it better than me but that is what I was getting at. It's like she googles left handed dog owner clubs in such and such area. And from there she will just begin narrowing down possible suspects with the help of the crime team.

Yep that too! She has been doing this for a while now and she still responds to it all as a rookie. Does she get no support or training to deal with this stuff or did they really just throw her down in the chair and leave her there?

SSA Emily Prentiss · March 5, 2019

Even though I know what Abby looks like from the cast pics I've seen, I've never actually watched NCIS, so I can't tell what that character acts like. However, after watching Garcia for 10 whole seasons, I simply find it hard to believe that there is any other character on any other show who could be as ridiculous as her. Nope, that just can't exist. And I'm not even talking about her non sensical outfits, I could deal with that (though the cat ears at work are a really tough pill to swallow for me). My first favorite female TV character was Mary Frances "Frankie" Frame on soap opera Another World, and she wore the most hideous outfits ever seen on a Daytime heroïne, and she was an excentric character too, yet I loved her to pieces.

It's Garcia's general immaturity and juvenile attitude and reactions that I find more mind boggling and out of place for a show like CM. How she got admitted in the FBI in the first place is a mystery to me. And what's even more... intriguing (for lack of a better word) is that she hasn't grown one bit after 14 years. She was a 20+ year old immature brat when she started at the BAU, and now, after 14 years of witnessing human beings' misery and suffering, she's a 40+ year old immature brat. Can you believe it ?

I'd lie if I said I've never liked Garcia at any moment of the show. There are moments when I find her very endearing. But overall, Penelope Garcia is the epitome of ridiculousness.

As for Morgan & Garcia, they were the epitome of gross.

Morlock · March 7, 2019

On 3/6/2019 at 10:54 AM, SSA Emily Prentiss said:

Even though I know what Abby looks like from the cast pics I've seen, I've never actually watched NCIS, so I can't tell what that character acts like. However, after watching Garcia for 10 whole seasons, I simply find it hard to believe that there is any other character on any other show who could be as ridiculous as her. Nope, that just can't exist. And I'm not even talking about her non sensical outfits, I could deal with that (though the cat ears at work are a really tough pill to swallow for me). My first favorite female TV character was Mary Frances "Frankie" Frame on soap opera Another World, and she wore the most hideous outfits ever seen on a Daytime heroïne, and she was an excentric character too, yet I loved her to pieces.

It's Garcia's general immaturity and juvenile attitude and reactions that I find more mind boggling and out of place for a show like CM. How she got admitted in the FBI in the first place is a mystery to me. And what's even more... intriguing (for lack of a better word) is that she hasn't grown one bit after 14 years. She was a 20+ year old immature brat when she started at the BAU, and now, after 14 years of witnessing human beings' misery and suffering, she's a 40+ year old immature brat. Can you believe it ?

I'd lie if I said I've never liked Garcia at any moment of the show. There are moments when I find her very endearing. But overall, Penelope Garcia is the epitome of ridiculousness.

As for Morgan & Garcia, they were the epitome of gross.

Abby was realistic in comparison to Garcia and quite professional. She had her quirks but wasn't annoying and didn't flirt at all let alone do it in a 8 year old girl kind of way.

I know I will cop some flak for this but the things Garcia wears are not flattering for her overweight body. She is going for some kind of babydoll/vintage pin up look and it does not work on her. The shoes she wears are ridiculous as well.

I think she was admitted to the FBI because she was a hacker who got busted! She hasn't grown up which is something that effected the Abby character as well. They both are like little girls in their own way. Although Abby wasn't a brat.

Where Garcia really lost me was the ep where she got all upset about a killer getting the death sentence. She went to visit him and from memory I think he rejected her visit. Like you say she has witnessed so much suffering and she cares about the killer? She also hasn't developed any resilience to all the crimes she has dealt with. She is still like a rookie the way she responds.

Her and Morgan were gross too, I agree.

BookWoman56 · March 7, 2019

At this point I have several UOs about the show.

First, I don't mind at all that it's ending. It's more than run its course, and these actors need to move on to other roles. I haven't watched enough of the last few seasons to have a good sense of how the two newest profilers fit into the team, but in the episodes I have seen, they all seemed to work together reasonably well. It's just that the writers are scraping the bottom of the barrel and have been for several seasons. The whole "Reid gets set up and goes to prison" storyline was ludicrous from the start.

I don't mind that Morgan and Hotch have both left. I never particularly liked Morgan and hated the interaction between him and Garcia, so good riddance and wish it had happened several seasons before it did. As for Hotch, for a long time prior to his departure, it felt as if he was there only to tell the team to get ready to get on plane. I don't care that TG was fired or if he was goaded into a physically violent response to someone else. At any workplace, kicking another employee is grounds for termination, no matter what the provocation. I know there have probably been other actors on other shows who did much worse and kept their jobs, but that's generally when a show is centered around one lead role and the show would crash and burn without that lead role. With CM, it was clear as soon as Gideon left that there really was no one person in the cast who couldn't be replaced if necessary.

With Garcia, to me it's not whether she's wearing vintage or baby-doll clothing, or whether she's overweight. My objection is to the fact that so often her clothes look unprofessional and very casual, with a lot of cleavage, in a setting that is known for insisting on/strongly encouraging very conservative attire. I could more easily believe in a 15-year-old IT genius wearing jeans and a hoodie than I can believe that the FBI would be okay with someone showing up to work looking like she's headed for a nightclub. If she wants to dress that way out of the office, fine; nothing inherently wrong with her dressing the way she wants to. However, my biggest issue with her is twofold: She's been with the BAU for umpteen years now and still freaks out over crime scene photos, which, seriously, if she can't handle those images, she needs to find another job. Secondly, why is it necessary to spend so much time telling everyone how fucking brilliant she was to find this critical piece of data, instead of just giving the team the data? The audience has already heard the team request that she track down all males in the target city who are age 30-40, left-handed, drive a truck, hate their mothers, and used to work part-time at a local store that has since gone out of business. So she doesn't need to spell out all the steps she took to find this data, especially when anybody with half a brain knows there's no way that info would be digitized anyway. And yet, every single time, it's like she's essentially screaming, "Wow, look what I did with my magic computer. You guys would be so fucked without me!" all while the team needs the damn info asap so they can rescue the next victim before the unsub decides to do the kill.

Finally, my lack of interest in most of the last few seasons has little to do with the new cast members and a lot to do with the team having just gotten too big. The writers couldn't really give any one team member adequate screen time, unless it happened to be one of those "character ABC-centric" episodes, which tended to reduce the rest of the cast to more or less just stage props. But that wasn't a new problem; even back in seasons 4-6 or so, there'd be episodes where one character, such as Reid, would be given a couple of lines in the beginning of the episode and then disappear. So I just don't think the writers were really adept at dealing with an ensemble cast, and perhaps would have done better with a show where there were only one or two major leads and everybody else was just a minor player.

Lalaland · March 8, 2019

20 hours ago, BookWoman56 said:

I don't mind that Morgan and Hotch have both left. I never particularly liked Morgan and hated the interaction between him and Garcia, so good riddance and wish it had happened several seasons before it did. As for Hotch, for a long time prior to his departure, it felt as if he was there only to tell the team to get ready to get on plane. I don't care that TG was fired or if he was goaded into a physically violent response to someone else. At any workplace, kicking another employee is grounds for termination, no matter what the provocation. I know there have probably been other actors on other shows who did much worse and kept their jobs, but that's generally when a show is centered around one lead role and the show would crash and burn without that lead role. With CM, it was clear as soon as Gideon left that there really was no one person in the cast who couldn't be replaced if necessary.

One could argue that the show which was already in poor health prior to Morgan and Hotch leaving, has had its impending death hastened somewhat by their absense. The rapid and significant decline in viewship over the last few seasons and the unwaning popularity of both characters (and actors), including the calls for the return of both (however unlikely that might be) for the final season, would seem to suggest they were pretty important to the series, irreplaceable even?. I have said this many many times. The writing was so bad in the last few seasons of Hotch and Morgan, that had it not been for the solid team of actors pulling it through, though visibly struggling at times, then I believe this show would have folded 4 seasons back.

I agree with your comment about the last few seasons had Hotch nothing more than window dressing. Pretty shameful treatment of a pinacle character and a subject of much frustration, I can tell you. It certainly seemed like the writers at that time just did not know what to do with the character, not so much the rest either. Shameful.

As for the Morgan interactions with Garcia, again, thats on the writers.

Its much easier to write fluffy garbage like that or write a scene that has nothing more than blowing up things, than to actually come up with proper dialogue. The writers for the last 4/5 seasons have been way below par and how any of them got a gig on a show like CM, is questionable to say the least.

betadud · February 19, 2020

jason’s face was really annoying to look at and his character was awkward at times.

iRarelyWatchTV36 · February 20, 2020

(since a lot of people seemed to like Max, I think this will be somewhat unpopular.............)

EM and the rest of TPB than can f* right off. That "I love you" from JJ to Reid did nothing but bait us 'Jeid' fanon shippers. I figured that was all it would be, and I was right.

To me it came off as taunting. "Haha. Look at what you never had - and never will - even though it could [should] have been possible years and years ago (before JJ/Will happened)."

I know its not reasonable or fair, but that whole "I've always loved you" should never have been brought up at the end of S14. There was no reason for it. We knew they 'loved' each other as dear friends. But to make it more, even though never attainable, was a pre-stain on the series' final short run - and for me, a stain on its overall run.

jmo

Edited February 20, 2020 by iRarelyWatchTV36

roamyn · February 20, 2020

3 hours ago, iRarelyWatchTV36 said:

(since a lot of people seemed to like Max, I think this will be somewhat unpopular.............)

EM and the rest of TPB than can f* right off. That "I love you" from JJ to Reid did nothing but bait us 'Jeid' fanon shippers. I figured that was all it would be, and I was right.

To me it came off as taunting. "Haha. Look at what you never had - and never will - even though it could [should] have been possible years and years ago (before JJ/Will happened)."

I know its not reasonable or fair, but that whole "I've always loved you" should never have been brought up at the end of S14. There was no reason for it. We knew they 'loved' each other as dear friends. But to make it more, even though never attainable, was a pre-stain on the series' final short run - and for me, a stain on its overall run.

jmo

I dislike breaking up Will & JJ, so I have no problem with the outcome of all that. But the way it was done was BS. There was no reason to even go there.

Lebanna · February 20, 2020

I have actually sold multiple people on the idea of watching this show by going ‘and they’d never have any of the team in love with each other romantically, because it’s so much better than that kind of soapy show’.

So yeah. Totally overestimated this thing. And the idea that JJ had always been secretly in love with Reid, so there was no time to go back to where that wasn’t going on.

That love declaration actually ruined the whole show for me as far as the characters were concerned. And I loved the their platonic friendship (after that one date).

It was just so... tacky.

atlantaloves · February 20, 2020

Is this the last season, because it needs to be, it is so bad. I can't deal with all the stupid stupid personal stories. I hate this show now.

Chaos Theory · February 20, 2020

I think the whole Jj/Reid thing could have been done well. I understand what they were trying to say. The issue for me is neither JJ or Reid actually used the words I needed to hear. And it’s not the whole “show not tell” thing. Some words do need to be spoken. JJ telling Reid that she did love him and probably always did was half a conversation. They never actually had the other half.

You know they were both adults. JJ had a husband who she also loved and wasn’t about to walk away from. They both made their choices. They were adults who could in fact work together and not jump each other’s bones. And isn’t it great JJ has a husband who trusts her to not cheat on him? Isn’t it great that JJ isn’t the cheating kind? Isn’t it great that Reid actually pea understand all this?

You know that conversation.

Hell they all have had stranger conversations walking around dead bodies or witnesses houses.

Annber03 · February 20, 2020

Meh, I'm a JJ/Reid shipper as well and I'm okay with how they handled all of that stuff this past season or so. I figured the chances of anything ever actually happening between them was a pretty long shot anyway, given she's married and all, but I did appreciate the show taking a moment to acknowledge that yes, there were feelings between them, always would be, but they became one of those "what could've been" types of stories. There's a bittersweet poignancy to that that I kinda like, actually.

Besides, I'd always believed that if the show ever was going to go there and touch on the possibility of any team members being together, if not actually putting them together, it wouldn't be until a) one or both of the team members in question either left the show, or b) the final season. And sure enough, when Emily left back in season 7 (and we fans thought that was it for her at the time), we had that little "It's a date" moment between her and Hotch, as a nod to the Hotch/Prentiss shippers. Then when Morgan left he and Garcia had their little moment together, and Vangsness talked in interviews afterwards about that moment being her way of dealing with her deeper feelings for him. Now, in this series finale, she and Luke have the potential for something. And JJ and Reid got an opportunity to admit there was something deeper there between them.

Plus, since JJ and Reid had their date in the first season, it just felt fitting that the final one would touch on how they'd changed since then, both as people and in terms of their feelings for each other, and address that. Bringing things full circle, as it were.

Sure, it would've been nice to see them get together at some point on the show, but I'm personally fine with how it all played out. I figure there's always fanfic if I want to continue that story in my own way, after all :D.

iRarelyWatchTV36 · February 22, 2020

On 2/20/2020 at 1:43 PM, Lebanna said:

And the idea that JJ had always been secretly in love with Reid, so there was no time to go back to where that wasn’t going on.

That love declaration actually ruined the whole show for me as far as the characters were concerned. And I loved the their platonic friendship (after that one date).

It was just so... tacky.

That's what I'm trying to say.

They never should have brought it up, because it would never get the full resolution. So, she admits to have always loved him, but "I'm also married (w/ kids - who you just happen to the godfather of) to a man who I also love and oh, now you are in love with someone else now too. Everybody wins!"

Its just so f*ed up and never really dealt with, not in the way it needed to have been.

Edited February 22, 2020 by iRarelyWatchTV36

Danielg342 · February 22, 2020

On 2/20/2020 at 4:21 PM, Chaos Theory said:

I think the whole Jj/Reid thing could have been done well. I understand what they were trying to say. The issue for me is neither JJ or Reid actually used the words I needed to hear. And it’s not the whole “show not tell” thing. Some words do need to be spoken. JJ telling Reid that she did love him and probably always did was half a conversation. They never actually had the other half.

First of all, the concept of "show, don't tell" simply means that when a writer is writing their story, they should describe the events as they unfold as well as how the characters respond and react to the event as its happening, as opposed to describing the event only via exposition.

So, Reid and JJ talking about their feelings and coming to some kind of conclusion about those feelings is still "showing" because we as viewers still get to see the conversation and how the characters react to it in real time. It would be "telling" if, instead of a scene of JJ and Reid talking about their feelings, another character- or even JJ or Reid- talked about that conversation after the fact.

Which, in hindsight, the show did neither "showing" or "telling" in resolving the story behind JJ's declaration of love. All that happened was we saw JJ get shot, JJ get to near death, Reid pining for her and wondering "what if?", and then, after JJ got better, Reid's mother telling him to move on. The show kind of never really did resolve it.

I'm with @iRarelyWatchTV36 in that this storyline should never have been introduced at all. At the very most it should have been something the two of them could have resolved with a simple conversation on the plane- it should never have been made a "big deal" since it was clear the writers wouldn't go anywhere with it.

I do think, ideally, a better resolution to this "love story" would be JJ introducing Reid to Max. It would have been a way to maintain "the status quo" between JJ and Reid while ensuring that something meaningful actually happens as a result of this storyline. Having JJ "declare her love for Reid" only for the show to have that amount to nothing was just pointless.

On 3/6/2019 at 11:03 PM, BookWoman56 said:

So I just don't think the writers were really adept at dealing with an ensemble cast, and perhaps would have done better with a show where there were only one or two major leads and everybody else was just a minor player.

This is an interesting observation and there's something to it. The ensemble only really made sense if the different team members all brought different perspectives to profiling that would allow them to have proper disagreements as well as have different team members have more organic insights that assist in the hunt for the killer. The show initially tried that by having Morgan be the "obsessional crimes expert" and they kind of went back to it when Edward Allen Bernero fit the characters into different "personality" roles (i.e., Hotch was the leader, Rossi was the team mentor, Morgan was the skeptic, Reid was the encyclopedia, Garcia was the tech expert, JJ handled the media and Prentiss...I guess she was the "soul"? She's a bit more difficult to pin down here), but, by and large, you never got the sense that, if one team member was missing that the team wouldn't be that worse off.

No one, truly, was "irreplaceable". Which I think helped the show in the long run but it had the effect of essentially turning the main characters into robots that, after a while, you wonder why you cared about them.

I'm not quite sure what they should have done differently. I think the easiest thing they could have done was have every team member have a specific role- i.e., one person deals with the local detective, one person deals with the crime scene examiners, one person deals with the victims' families and interviews witnesses, one person interrogates the criminals, one person deals with the technical side of things and one person does the medical examination (why the BAU never hired a ME is beyond me). This would at least give each character a defined role in the case and ensure some importance for each of the characters.

idiotwaltz · February 22, 2020

Speaking of showing not telling, I hate how in the finale, Luke gave the whole, “We’re family” speech. IIRC in the last few seasons, a couple of different characters had said it out loud as well.

I get that the BAU is a family. They’ve always been a family. Anyone who has been watching this show for more than 3 episodes will know. You don’t need to keep ramming it down our throats, writers.

This show used to be a lot better at subtlety.

And while I’m being completely honest, I think the BAU hangs out together way too often. The group-bonding scenes used to feel organic in the earlier seasons, e.g. the Charlie Chaplin movie night and Superbowl party or what it was in The Big Game. Now it just seems sad none of these people seem to have friends outside of work.

Edited February 22, 2020 by idiotwaltz

illdoc · February 22, 2020

6 hours ago, idiotwaltz said:

Now it just seems sad none of these people seem to have friends outside of work.

Especially obvious at Rossi's wedding---the entire guest list/wedding party seemed to be the CM group, Gail and Gail's daughter! I don't even remember if there were any "plus ones" (Matt's & JJ's spouses, for example. Or Rossi's daughter/grandchild. Anyone else, other than the regulars).

jls1792 · February 22, 2020

4 hours ago, illdoc said:

Especially obvious at Rossi's wedding---the entire guest list/wedding party seemed to be the CM group, Gail and Gail's daughter! I don't even remember if there were any "plus ones" (Matt's & JJ's spouses, for example. Or Rossi's daughter/grandchild. Anyone else, other than the regulars).

Rossi’s daughter was at the wedding and so were Will and Kristy. But other than that, it mostly was just the BAU. Oh and Johnny Mathis. I can see Rossi being fine just having the BAU and their significant others, his daughter, and maybe another friend or two, but Krystall only had her daughter. Does Krystall have no friends or other family? It wasn’t a last minute wedding either because in 14x13, they mentioned the wedding being in a few weeks, and Rossi proposed in 14x08.

It was kind of weird because they rented out that hall when they could have just had it at Rossi’s house

trudysmom · March 11, 2020

I just started watching CM because a friend from work is seriously addicted to it and I was intrigued by her passion. She is up to season 5 I think, I'm still muddling through S1, mainly because I like Mandy Patinkin. Watching an episode today I realized that (keep in mind, I've only seen about dozen episodes) the only really attractive people are the BAU team. Ordinary people are just that, ordinary in the extreme. I get that often the people they are dealing with are going through a traumatic event so they may not give their appearance much thought. But it looks like they almost went out of their way to make sure the Team are the only ones with perfect makeup and hair, nice clothes, and perfect teeth.

From what I've read here the show starts to decline after S5, much like my favorite Supernatural which started coincidentally, the same year. Maybe the moral here is to do a Seinfeld and know that the best time to quit a show is when it's still on top. Of course that finale...blech.

LucyEth · March 21, 2020

I only recently started watching, so playing catch up and have a long way to go. I really don't like this Will with JJ, he seems creepy and odd. I think the character could have done much better.

FormerMod-a1 · March 22, 2020

I never liked Will and JJ together either.

Mysteyman · March 27, 2020

Well, I always liked how the relationship between JJ and Will slowly evolved.

It was something the show took its time with, which I appreciated

mamadrama · April 1, 2020

Not sure if this is a popular opinion or not, but I had trouble liking Will at all because the actor always looked high to me. It was mostly in his eyes. I started thinking that's just the way the dude looked, but then I saw him in other things and he looked perfectly fine.

It's a little thing, but it bugs me.

DisplayyName · April 22, 2020

They ruined everything with the Reid/JJ crap and I would be sad about it if I was still invested in the show. I can only imagine how sad those fans are who loved the show til the end.

Chaos Theory · August 15, 2020

On 3/11/2020 at 6:31 PM, trudysmom said:

From what I've read here the show starts to decline after S5, much like my favorite Supernatural which started coincidentally, the same year. Maybe the moral here is to do a Seinfeld and know that the best time to quit a show is when it's still on top. Of course that finale...blech.

Season 5 is when the show started playing games with the cast. Before when a cast member left they did so because they were unhappy. With season 5 the show outright fired two female cast members due to budget cuts and hired a cheaper replacement. That did not sit well with most (ie the non JJ haters) people. Although the show did have several good replacements for Paget Brewster (Emily) when she left for a few seasons. And if you watch the show for Hotch you are not going to like the show after he leaves (I forget what season that is). Ultimately though my opinion is that the only real bad season is the last one although I do hate the Reid in prison storyline. Mainly because too much focus on Reid is never my cup of tea and most Reid driven episodes bore me.

dariajade · September 13, 2020

I know I'm late to this but here are some of my not so Unpopular Opinions

+ Garcia has gone the way of NCIS Abby 40+ woman, acting and dressing like a teenager with magical hacker powers. Hate it. I also don't like the fact that she manipulates Reid into going on a case during leave after Maeve dies. IRL she would probably have been fired - playing online video game on work computer, keeping cases open without authorization, hacking...etc.

+ Hate the Maeve storyline as well as the Prison storyline, they were pointless and unnecessary. I also don't like the Reid teaching plotline, I always thought that Reid's choice to join the FBI to actively use his knowledge to help people directly, was him escaping the traditional academic/research paths laid out before him, wanting more.

+ I miss the early Hotch & Spencer relationship, I saw Hotch as more of a mentor than Gideon who was a manipulative & mercurial egotist. I sometimes wished that we could of seen Gideon again years later having not healed from his multiple breakdowns and turned unsub.

+ I don't like Morgan or the fact that he's supposedly Reid best friend, they have nothing in common beyond the job. Immature Jock Bully. I also don't like the fact that Morgan didn't at least anonymously report Carl Budford once he was in college or on the police force.

+ I don't like JJ & I don't really see the relationship between her and Reid as being as deep and strong as they would have us believe, JJ seemed to look down on Reid a lot and if Reid was allowed to use his intelligence properly he would of realized that and not blindly trusted her - they should of stayed work friends only.

+ Hated the fact that Gideon engineered a date between JJ & Reid, which is highly unprofessional but idiotic since outside the fact that I don't see them as compatible, the relationship couldn't have gone anywhere due to FBI fraternization rules

+ If they wanted Hotch to become a single dad and explore that, why couldn't they have just had Haley die in a car accident or something, we already had the Unsub targeting Profiler's loved ones storyline, with Frank and Gideon.

+ Hated the fact that the team seemed to be team William Reid; abandoning his son to mentally ill wife, moving something like 20 minutes away and cyber stalking his son is not ok

+ I didn't like the fact that nobody had any real social life out of the job, that wasn't shopping or dating, and whilst I didn't necessarily want the show to show it, a throwaway line here and there about going to a museum/gallery exhibit or concert or golfing or something with friend/s shouldn't have been outside the writers capabilities.

+ Thought there should of only been a proper PTSD storyline with actual effective therapy, instead of a drug addiction after Hankle, and it would of contrasted nicely with Elle storyline where she broke & Reid healed after suffering trauma.

+ I wished that Reid left the team and later on joined Beyond Borders team after serving in another department for a while, such as on Josh Kramer organised crime team or a missing person team or even a cold case team {Yes I'm a fan of Without A Trace & Cold Case they were good shows}, it would of allowed him to grow beyond the old team/safety net.

+ They never should of gotten rid of the Media Liaison role, and the team should of consisted only a team leader, second, junior, media liaison & tech support at Quantico as needed, five people max, Rossi role should of been as guest star/consultant only, he was too old to be a active agent again, though I do like Rossi, more so for the fact that it gave Hotch someone to talk to that wasn't his subordinate and he had more in common with.

+ I wish they had found out and hunted that truck stop killer with the tattoo they hinted at but we never saw again.

+ I didn't mind JLH, but then I was a fan of the first three seasons of Ghost Whisperer, and it was nice to see her in something different. I didn't mind her husband either but the niece/daughter should of been shown less.

+ I didn't mind Matt as I liked him on Beyond Borders, just wished they could of given us a few more seasons of Beyond Borders, it was 10 times better than that other spinoff that I forgotten the name of.

+ I don't really remember Stephan Walker, and I disliked Ashley Seaver and Jordan Todd, particularly Seaver who as a cadet should of been no where near the BAU especially since she was not a genius like Reid.

Edited September 13, 2020 by dariajade

criminalminds123 · March 9, 2021

Okay so here we go

Firstly as far as ı can see most of the people dont like jj. Yeah ı dont too but there is a reason. She used to be cute and fancy then she became an agent and when ı heard that ı did say go girl ill probably like her being an agent but i didnt she becam so arrogant and weird. Most of her words are about her being a mother yeah okay sis but calm down the other reason is when prentiss died and reid cried about it. after reid learn the truth of course he was going to mad what were you thinkin?? she said that he wasnt good at profiling but girl come on ım pretty sure that if she didnt knew that prentiss was still alive she would do worse than reid. he cried for her and never thought about her being alive ı mean who think that. the other reason why did jj know about prentiss. That should be top secret that means only Hotch. WEIRD. the other reason. after all 14 season later girl seriously ıve always loved you. stop. ok maybe Henry wasnt expected but what about Michael?? If you love reid then do not have sex with Will. After she got shot ,in the hospital, she told reid that she was telling the truth which means she loves reid then she kiss will ı mean girl are you serious that was mean. He was already had a feeling for you and you used it. and tbh ıve never seen red and jj as a bff.

second unpopular opinion is derek+garcia< Luke+garcia. I mean dont come at me but luke and garcia uuhhh<<<33333 they were so cute. Tbh in the earliest seasons of cm derek and garcia was cute too but after that they become sluppy and weird. and ı think luke was very good at replacing derek ı never thought about derek lol

third.. spencie and cat ohh god. the kiss.... ı mean yeah ı liked maeve and max but cat.. she is gorgeous.. ok spencie and cat's relationship is the most toxic relationship in the cm but they are so cute together but they have to forget about the fact that cat kidnapped reids mom and his ''future'' girlfriends family and pretend to be pregnant of his baby but whatever they are cute..

4) ı love prentiss yeah ı hated her at first bc she was beng annoying but she is one of my favorites rn. and seaver yeah ı hate that girl and ım sure this isnt unpopular.

Couks 16 · March 31, 2021

Here are my UOs

1. I hate Rossi with a passion and think he is mediocre at best character. He comes of as flashy and fake. And I cringe every time he comforts a co worker. He is not the one who saves them. His stale tidbit advice and pasta parties and wise old man is old and cliche. He contributes to why the later seasons are unwatchable.

2. I love both Gideon and Elle. I think both of them had interesting relationships with the team. They are my two favourite characters.

3. You all need to stop being acting like your favourite characters are the best and can do no wrong. Reid has had a lot of screen time and his prison arc hogged up S12. I like Hotch but he has done stuff I don't agree with. I like Elle but she was totally out of line for killing the rapist. I like Prentiss but I didn't always like her. I like Reid to but he is not my favourite character.

4. S1 is my favourite and S7 and 10 are my least favourite

Edited March 31, 2021 by Couks 16
Because it is point less

Mislav · March 31, 2021

That's a yikes from me.

blackwidowxx · April 4, 2021

Here are my unpopular opinions.

1. That one is obviously not very unpopular around here which is a surprise to me, I thought people liked JJ and I was the only one who dislike her. I really dislike her with passion. She was alright the first seasons, but after becoming a profiler, she was so annoying and robotic with no emotions at all, I don't know if it was the writing or the actress herself, I haven't really seen AJ Cook in anything else and I can't give opinion on that. I also hated that episode where she was abducted then she cried to Reid about losing her baby. I just did not feel sympathy for her at all.

2. I see Will has his fans. Not me though. The dude was just boring to me. I couldn't stand him. I did not care about their marriage.

3. I absolutely hated the JJ/Reid storyline. I did not make sense to me, no chemistry or anything between them. They were better as friends. I understand by season 14/15 the writers did not have new ideas but no thank you.

Also, I saw their fight over Emily's death was discussed here. I want to comment on that one. I understood both points honestly. I understood him being angry over being lied to by a friend, but I also understood that she was in a bad position.

4. Same with Reid/Max. Sorry but to me Max was as boring as JJ. Not chemistry with Reid at all. It did seem forced then was overshadowed by his storyline with Cat Adams and rightfully so. I loved him with Cat but I'll get to that too. That scene where Reid finds out Max knew all along and took part in the plan with Cat was like so bad, terrible, at least to me. I hated it. Just one of the worst.

6. Now to Cat Adams :Boy oh boy. MGG and Aubrey Plaza got so much chemistry together! I loved absolutely everything about that storyline. Part of me wish Aubrey was brought in a different way, so Reid could end up with her, but Cat Adams was perfect too. She was bringing out the bad out of Reid which to me was very hot.

7. As for Reid/Maeve : I know some people loved it and others hated it. I personally think it had it's ups and downs. I loved the idea of love so pure and innocent. Love only based on talking on the phone. It was beautiful. The downs though: Her death. The team was able to stop serial killers time after time but not this girl stalker. They all stood there allowing her to get killed and nobody didn't do anything to save her. It did not sit well with me and also another down was Maeve not allowing Reid to help her before even it got to that part.

8. Reid being hurt time after time by the writers: I get some people hating that but I did not. I like some drama on TV and I think MGG did a great job with everything he was given unlike others on the show I did not feel sympathy for (I will get to that too) It was so well played.

9. I loved Ashley Seaver! I know, I know people have different opinions on her. The truth is Rachel Nichols was in a tough position when she joined because of the JJ/Emily thing plus she was given a bad storyline, but still I thought she was cool. I liked way way more than JJ and I wish she stayed more and was given a better storylines to work with. She would have been a better love interest for Reid too, better than JJ, they had chemistry.

10. Garcia/Morgan: I did not hate their relationship as much as others did, I did not care about it tbh. Morgan was hit or miss to me.

Miss: All the episodes about his rape, about his girlfriend, the ones where he replaced Hotch as the team leader. No just no. Just like JJ, I did not feel sympathy for him.

Hit : His friendship with Reid was nicely done. And so was the one with Emily

As for Garcia. The ups of her characters were: Her being good hearted and caring about everyone. Her being in the hospital for Hotch and Reid and her saving Reid.

Downs: That awful storyline how she got to the FBI, her ex boyfriend, the bad Garcia with the black hair. Just terrible. Also her visiting the man she stopped from killing Reid. WTF was that? I hated it.

11. I love love David Rossi! I know some people liked him more at the start when he was a loner but I feel the exact opposite way. To me he was at his best when he warmed up and became dad like Rossi. I loved him always checking on Hotch, I loved him helping Seaver and Jordan (who I also love btw, it's a shame she did not stay) I loved him helping Reid deal with his Maeve grief when no one else did, not even JJ.

The only thing I hated which is not unpopular I guess was his relationship with Strauss. It was bad.

12. The Hotch/Hayley marriage and Hotch/Beth: I don't blame Hayley nor hate her for divorcing Hotch. He was always more devoted to BAU than he was to his marriage and son. I am actually surprised she married him in a first place.

As for Beth, she was kinda just there. Did not like her or hate her.

13. Hotch was a better section chief than Emily. Yes he was. Sorry to Emily fans but no. I did not like Emily much. She was okay before she left then came back to leave again then was back again as chief. I know it wasn't her fault but it was hard to like her much.

That fake death storyline was the worst. The worst.

14. I did not like Tara, Luke and Matt. Nope. Not even a little bit. All were super boring to me and did not bring anything to the show.

The best new person to join the BAU is Blake, she was amazing.

15. I did not like Elle. I mean yes I guess everyone might act this bitchy if they get attacked in their home, but it was a no to me. I never wanted her to return. If anyone had to return that was Blake,

Couks 16 · April 6, 2021

On 4/4/2021 at 7:15 PM, blackwidowxx said:

Here are my unpopular opinions.

1. That one is obviously not very unpopular around here which is a surprise to me, I thought people liked JJ and I was the only one who dislike her. I really dislike her with passion. She was alright the first seasons, but after becoming a profiler, she was so annoying and robotic with no emotions at all, I don't know if it was the writing or the actress herself, I haven't really seen AJ Cook in anything else and I can't give opinion on that. I also hated that episode where she was abducted then she cried to Reid about losing her baby. I just did not feel sympathy for her at all.

2. I see Will has his fans. Not me though. The dude was just boring to me. I couldn't stand him. I did not care about their marriage.

3. I absolutely hated the JJ/Reid storyline. I did not make sense to me, no chemistry or anything between them. They were better as friends. I understand by season 14/15 the writers did not have new ideas but no thank you.

Also, I saw their fight over Emily's death was discussed here. I want to comment on that one. I understood both points honestly. I understood him being angry over being lied to by a friend, but I also understood that she was in a bad position.

4. Same with Reid/Max. Sorry but to me Max was as boring as JJ. Not chemistry with Reid at all. It did seem forced then was overshadowed by his storyline with Cat Adams and rightfully so. I loved him with Cat but I'll get to that too. That scene where Reid finds out Max knew all along and took part in the plan with Cat was like so bad, terrible, at least to me. I hated it. Just one of the worst.

6. Now to Cat Adams :Boy oh boy. MGG and Aubrey Plaza got so much chemistry together! I loved absolutely everything about that storyline. Part of me wish Aubrey was brought in a different way, so Reid could end up with her, but Cat Adams was perfect too. She was bringing out the bad out of Reid which to me was very hot.

7. As for Reid/Maeve : I know some people loved it and others hated it. I personally think it had it's ups and downs. I loved the idea of love so pure and innocent. Love only based on talking on the phone. It was beautiful. The downs though: Her death. The team was able to stop serial killers time after time but not this girl stalker. They all stood there allowing her to get killed and nobody didn't do anything to save her. It did not sit well with me and also another down was Maeve not allowing Reid to help her before even it got to that part.

8. Reid being hurt time after time by the writers: I get some people hating that but I did not. I like some drama on TV and I think MGG did a great job with everything he was given unlike others on the show I did not feel sympathy for (I will get to that too) It was so well played.

9. I loved Ashley Seaver! I know, I know people have different opinions on her. The truth is Rachel Nichols was in a tough position when she joined because of the JJ/Emily thing plus she was given a bad storyline, but still I thought she was cool. I liked way way more than JJ and I wish she stayed more and was given a better storylines to work with. She would have been a better love interest for Reid too, better than JJ, they had chemistry.

10. Garcia/Morgan: I did not hate their relationship as much as others did, I did not care about it tbh. Morgan was hit or miss to me.

Miss: All the episodes about his rape, about his girlfriend, the ones where he replaced Hotch as the team leader. No just no. Just like JJ, I did not feel sympathy for him.

Hit : His friendship with Reid was nicely done. And so was the one with Emily

As for Garcia. The ups of her characters were: Her being good hearted and caring about everyone. Her being in the hospital for Hotch and Reid and her saving Reid.

Downs: That awful storyline how she got to the FBI, her ex boyfriend, the bad Garcia with the black hair. Just terrible. Also her visiting the man she stopped from killing Reid. WTF was that? I hated it.

11. I love love David Rossi! I know some people liked him more at the start when he was a loner but I feel the exact opposite way. To me he was at his best when he warmed up and became dad like Rossi. I loved him always checking on Hotch, I loved him helping Seaver and Jordan (who I also love btw, it's a shame she did not stay) I loved him helping Reid deal with his Maeve grief when no one else did, not even JJ.

The only thing I hated which is not unpopular I guess was his relationship with Strauss. It was bad.

12. The Hotch/Hayley marriage and Hotch/Beth: I don't blame Hayley nor hate her for divorcing Hotch. He was always more devoted to BAU than he was to his marriage and son. I am actually surprised she married him in a first place.

As for Beth, she was kinda just there. Did not like her or hate her.

13. Hotch was a better section chief than Emily. Yes he was. Sorry to Emily fans but no. I did not like Emily much. She was okay before she left then came back to leave again then was back again as chief. I know it wasn't her fault but it was hard to like her much.

That fake death storyline was the worst. The worst.

14. I did not like Tara, Luke and Matt. Nope. Not even a little bit. All were super boring to me and did not bring anything to the show.

The best new person to join the BAU is Blake, she was amazing.

15. I did not like Elle. I mean yes I guess everyone might act this bitchy if they get attacked in their home, but it was a no to me. I never wanted her to return. If anyone had to return that was Blake,

I really can't stand Rossi I feel like he is fake and he has mediocre acting. I like nothing about him

hypnotoad · April 11, 2021

I don't know how unpopular all of my opinions will be but here goes (in no particular order):

While I did like Rossi, I still think Gideon is a far more compelling character. Even Rossi at the beginning (when he was far less rah rah team) wasn't as interesting as Gideon. Now would Gideon have retained these properties as the writing got worse and worse? Who knows but for the 2 seasons he was around, I did enjoy Gideon.

I did not like Elle at all. I was thrilled to see her go. The actress just never ever drew me in.

Seasons 1-5 I think are the best of the show, but I still enjoy much of 6-8. Then things really start downhill for me. I have yet to actually have completed the entire show. I will someday but it's going to be tough. I finally managed to finish Supernatural - so I know I can do it!

I generally liked original recipe JJ or more specifically I liked her role on the team. I don't think the actress is great but JJ as the media liaison worked for me. It distinguished her from the rest and gave her a very specific part in the team dynamics. JJ part 2 was just another profiler. Also her turning into the terminator was ridiculous. Sorry I just can't with that. Also I cannot stand Will - he is so whiny!

I love Emily. She's easily my favorite character. I don't know that I loved the super spy thing but overall I like the character. Probably a lot of that is because of Paget Brewster who I think is a good actress. While I disliked the episode about her friend and the exorcism - I thought the scenes about Emily's abortion were very strong. I also enjoyed her interaction with her mother and thought Kate Jackson was an inspired choice to play the role. I liked her interaction with the cop in New York when she gets him Mets tickets. Scenes like that draw me to Emily.

I also like Reid though I hated the drug abuse storyline. It really never seemed to go anywhere which come to think of it is often an issue for Reid storylines. I mean the Maeve thing was absolute garbage and ridiculous as far as I am concerned. I just felt as time went on, the writers often seemed to forget Reid was a genius and they also seemed to forget he was a grown ass adult. Regardless, I do like Reid's relationship with Gideon, Hotch and Emily.

I could have done without Morgan most of the time. I despised the whole story of him taking over the team for Hotch. I just recently saw the episode where the guy is remembering his serial killer father and Hotch goes into a house with the guy with no weapon or vest etc. I'm not saying Hotch should have done that but Morgan's response was ridiculous as in so hypocritical: (paraphrasing) 'he went in there in a way we should never get involved!' Whatever Mr driving a bomb rigged ambulance through NYC. Whatever Mr kick down doors and not know what's on the other side. Furthermore, I'm supposed to believe anyone at the FBI thinks Morgan has leadership qualities? Sorry but Morgan shouldn't even be employed by the FBI considering the ridiculous ongoing Garcia crap. Pffft.

Garcia is the worst. Now I may have found her quirkiness somewhat charming at the beginning but as it went on that faded fast. She too shouldn't be employed at the FBI for the very same reason I stated for Morgan. She is a grown ass woman and she is written 9 years and beyond into the show like a teenager.

i liked Hotch a lot too. Frankly I wish the writers hadn't given him so many cliche type storylines. The marriage ending, the ex spouse killed by enemy, the troubled relationship with his father, the troubled relationship with troubled brother. Sigh. ZZZZzzzz. I think it would have been more interesting if his marriage actually worked despite his job. I didn't mind Beth all that much.

I think the thing that brought this show down besides the cast turnover is the writing. The show stopped writing profiling and just relied on the magic search engine Garcia used. The show started spending far too much time with the unsub and not enough with the profilers doing their job. I see there is talk of bringing the show back again on streaming. If the same show runner and writers that had been producing the show in the last how many seasons are returning, I don't think I'll be watching. Because it will be the same old thing of focusing on the unsub not the profilers and then Garcia finding the unsub with her magic search engine and then JJ kicking the unsubs ass. I'm not suggesting focus on the profilers as in personal lives, I mean focus on them you know ... profiling.

blackwidowxx · April 12, 2021

7 hours ago, hypnotoad said:

I don't know how unpopular all of my opinions will be but here goes (in no particular order):

While I did like Rossi, I still think Gideon is a far more compelling character. Even Rossi at the beginning (when he was far less rah rah team) wasn't as interesting as Gideon. Now would Gideon have retained these properties as the writing got worse and worse? Who knows but for the 2 seasons he was around, I did enjoy Gideon.

I did not like Elle at all. I was thrilled to see her go. The actress just never ever drew me in.

Seasons 1-5 I think are the best of the show, but I still enjoy much of 6-8. Then things really start downhill for me. I have yet to actually have completed the entire show. I will someday but it's going to be tough. I finally managed to finish Supernatural - so I know I can do it!

I generally liked original recipe JJ or more specifically I liked her role on the team. I don't think the actress is great but JJ as the media liaison worked for me. It distinguished her from the rest and gave her a very specific part in the team dynamics. JJ part 2 was just another profiler. Also her turning into the terminator was ridiculous. Sorry I just can't with that. Also I cannot stand Will - he is so whiny!

I love Emily. She's easily my favorite character. I don't know that I loved the super spy thing but overall I like the character. Probably a lot of that is because of Paget Brewster who I think is a good actress. While I disliked the episode about her friend and the exorcism - I thought the scenes about Emily's abortion were very strong. I also enjoyed her interaction with her mother and thought Kate Jackson was an inspired choice to play the role. I liked her interaction with the cop in New York when she gets him Mets tickets. Scenes like that draw me to Emily.

I also like Reid though I hated the drug abuse storyline. It really never seemed to go anywhere which come to think of it is often an issue for Reid storylines. I mean the Maeve thing was absolute garbage and ridiculous as far as I am concerned. I just felt as time went on, the writers often seemed to forget Reid was a genius and they also seemed to forget he was a grown ass adult. Regardless, I do like Reid's relationship with Gideon, Hotch and Emily.

I could have done without Morgan most of the time. I despised the whole story of him taking over the team for Hotch. I just recently saw the episode where the guy is remembering his serial killer father and Hotch goes into a house with the guy with no weapon or vest etc. I'm not saying Hotch should have done that but Morgan's response was ridiculous as in so hypocritical: (paraphrasing) 'he went in there in a way we should never get involved!' Whatever Mr driving a bomb rigged ambulance through NYC. Whatever Mr kick down doors and not know what's on the other side. Furthermore, I'm supposed to believe anyone at the FBI thinks Morgan has leadership qualities? Sorry but Morgan shouldn't even be employed by the FBI considering the ridiculous ongoing Garcia crap. Pffft.

Garcia is the worst. Now I may have found her quirkiness somewhat charming at the beginning but as it went on that faded fast. She too shouldn't be employed at the FBI for the very same reason I stated for Morgan. She is a grown ass woman and she is written 9 years and beyond into the show like a teenager.

i liked Hotch a lot too. Frankly I wish the writers hadn't given him so many cliche type storylines. The marriage ending, the ex spouse killed by enemy, the troubled relationship with his father, the troubled relationship with troubled brother. Sigh. ZZZZzzzz. I think it would have been more interesting if his marriage actually worked despite his job. I didn't mind Beth all that much.

I think the thing that brought this show down besides the cast turnover is the writing. The show stopped writing profiling and just relied on the magic search engine Garcia used. The show started spending far too much time with the unsub and not enough with the profilers doing their job. I see there is talk of bringing the show back again on streaming. If the same show runner and writers that had been producing the show in the last how many seasons are returning, I don't think I'll be watching. Because it will be the same old thing of focusing on the unsub not the profilers and then Garcia finding the unsub with her magic search engine and then JJ kicking the unsubs ass. I'm not suggesting focus on the profilers as in personal lives, I mean focus on them you know ... profiling.

It was a pattern with Reid. He got over his drug addiction and Maeve's death pretty fast then both were both randomly mentioned again when the writers fell like it. Same with the JJ love storyline. Randomly they remembered they went to a date in season 1 and they must be loving each other ever since then. MGG should have been given better storylines but I like I said he did a great job with what he had. I thought the episode when his mom was living with him was one of the best episodes.

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