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brabbel123Finally, Gubler's off his crutches, and he gets to shine again...
First of all, 4 weeks without CM is way too long, and from what I gathered we'll get treated to another break in 2 weeks... Ahem, talk about keeping a regular schedule...
Okay, back to this week's episode:
Let's summarize it with one phrase: Reid's back. Finally. His putting together clues to form a cruel picture, his confronting the unsub's father, his compassion with the unsub and the way he handled her arrest... That's Reid as we all know and love him. And it brings home just how much he grew up throughout those 4 and half seasons so far. I thought that the allusions to Gideon and chess were quite a nice reminder of his journey up until now. And I simply adored the way that boy in the park practically glowed with joy when Reid joined him at the chess set at the end.
The unsub reminded me of a scene from "Conflicted" where Reid again argued the unfairness of arresting a victim and leaving the person responsible to walk free. Reid's empathy's what's so endearing about him. Not that the other characters don't show such empathy, just think of Hotch in "Ashes and Dust". But Reid's not afraid to get involved in his cases, he's showing how much they affect him and throwing everything he's got into solving them. In a way he's some kind of mirror because he manages to throw back to the viewer how society shapes its own victims and criminals. He puts a human spin to the unsub's actions, to him the unsub's a person who was driven to his crimes by what happened to himself. But Reid walks the fine line between empathizing and not losing himself in the unsub. A line which he overstepped so far just once in "Elephant's Memory" (though I still think he was right in pointing out to the teachers and officers what threw Owen over the edge...). I guess it shows how close ingenuity and madness really are - something Reid's been afraid of since the beginning.
A minor negative aspect of the episode is the way everything's back to business as usual. Hotch's in charge, there's no hint to what he's been through... I know I shouldn't count on TPTB to drag out that plotthread (especially considering the way they mishandled Reid's addiction), but right now I feel a bit cheated. It's been just 2 episodes, and apart from his looking a bit peeked in "Retaliation" he's his usual calm and collected self. I don't want him to fall to pieces, but Foyet and his losing Haley and now being a single-parent should have a major effect on everything. I'd really have wished for his stepping down as Unit Chief and just remaining part of the team. The setup for that kind of shakeup was there, Morgan did a marvelous job (although I missed his banter with Garcia), so it would have been natural to make this solution a permanent one. And I guess no one could blame Hotch for such a decision (as long as he still stays with the team, mind you *g*). Well, I'll reserve judgment on this for later - but I'll be seriously pissed off if there's no follow-up of any kind to the events of "100".
Other short thoughts:
* Riker as a pedophile - doesn't work for me, although I thought Reid's confronting him (while a bit too much guesswork for me) was one of Reid's best scenes ever.
* The "lightening"-room... what a sick bastard, to destroy his own daughter's life and mind just a bit more, only to cover up his raping her.
* The makeup and costumes of the victims/dolls... the episode itself might not have been as creepy as the promo had suggested, the setting itself freaked me out quite a bit. Superbly done.
* Was anyone else reminded of Misery with the unsub?
* Garcia with red hair... Honestly, I hope she'll switch back quite soon.
I realize Reid's never going to shine in action-oriented episodes. But his episodes tend to repeat themselves a little at some point - which is major negative aspect of this episode. Apart from Reid's having grown up and comfortable with himself the plot wasn't something I haven't seen before and therefore left me a bit uninvested in the proceedings. Reid's figuring out what makes the unsubs tick, makes us/the team empathize with them, confronts either the abusers or society as a whole and manages to talk the unsub out of comitting any further violence in his usual caring way. As I said before, I love Reid to bits. And so far I love all his episodes, but in the future I'd like to see more in the lines of "Sex, Birth, Death" or even "Memoriam" where he either fails to save someone and/or draws the wrong conclusions...
Final rating: 8/10
First of all, 4 weeks without CM is way too long, and from what I gathered we'll get treated to another break in 2 weeks... Ahem, talk about keeping a regular schedule...
Okay, back to this week's episode:
Let's summarize it with one phrase: Reid's back. Finally. His putting together clues to form a cruel picture, his confronting the unsub's father, his compassion with the unsub and the way he handled her arrest... That's Reid as we all know and love him. And it brings home just how much he grew up throughout those 4 and half seasons so far. I thought that the allusions to Gideon and chess were quite a nice reminder of his journey up until now. And I simply adored the way that boy in the park practically glowed with joy when Reid joined him at the chess set at the end.
The unsub reminded me of a scene from "Conflicted" where Reid again argued the unfairness of arresting a victim and leaving the person responsible to walk free. Reid's empathy's what's so endearing about him. Not that the other characters don't show such empathy, just think of Hotch in "Ashes and Dust". But Reid's not afraid to get involved in his cases, he's showing how much they affect him and throwing everything he's got into solving them. In a way he's some kind of mirror because he manages to throw back to the viewer how society shapes its own victims and criminals. He puts a human spin to the unsub's actions, to him the unsub's a person who was driven to his crimes by what happened to himself. But Reid walks the fine line between empathizing and not losing himself in the unsub. A line which he overstepped so far just once in "Elephant's Memory" (though I still think he was right in pointing out to the teachers and officers what threw Owen over the edge...). I guess it shows how close ingenuity and madness really are - something Reid's been afraid of since the beginning.
A minor negative aspect of the episode is the way everything's back to business as usual. Hotch's in charge, there's no hint to what he's been through... I know I shouldn't count on TPTB to drag out that plotthread (especially considering the way they mishandled Reid's addiction), but right now I feel a bit cheated. It's been just 2 episodes, and apart from his looking a bit peeked in "Retaliation" he's his usual calm and collected self. I don't want him to fall to pieces, but Foyet and his losing Haley and now being a single-parent should have a major effect on everything. I'd really have wished for his stepping down as Unit Chief and just remaining part of the team. The setup for that kind of shakeup was there, Morgan did a marvelous job (although I missed his banter with Garcia), so it would have been natural to make this solution a permanent one. And I guess no one could blame Hotch for such a decision (as long as he still stays with the team, mind you *g*). Well, I'll reserve judgment on this for later - but I'll be seriously pissed off if there's no follow-up of any kind to the events of "100".
Other short thoughts:
* Riker as a pedophile - doesn't work for me, although I thought Reid's confronting him (while a bit too much guesswork for me) was one of Reid's best scenes ever.
* The "lightening"-room... what a sick bastard, to destroy his own daughter's life and mind just a bit more, only to cover up his raping her.
* The makeup and costumes of the victims/dolls... the episode itself might not have been as creepy as the promo had suggested, the setting itself freaked me out quite a bit. Superbly done.
* Was anyone else reminded of Misery with the unsub?
* Garcia with red hair... Honestly, I hope she'll switch back quite soon.
I realize Reid's never going to shine in action-oriented episodes. But his episodes tend to repeat themselves a little at some point - which is major negative aspect of this episode. Apart from Reid's having grown up and comfortable with himself the plot wasn't something I haven't seen before and therefore left me a bit uninvested in the proceedings. Reid's figuring out what makes the unsubs tick, makes us/the team empathize with them, confronts either the abusers or society as a whole and manages to talk the unsub out of comitting any further violence in his usual caring way. As I said before, I love Reid to bits. And so far I love all his episodes, but in the future I'd like to see more in the lines of "Sex, Birth, Death" or even "Memoriam" where he either fails to save someone and/or draws the wrong conclusions...
Final rating: 8/10
