What's on my mind about "Criminal Minds"
Yes, I am at (a relatively drama-free for once) Dragon*Con right now. I'm just not doing anything con-related right now and I wanted to put this out there before the new TV season starts (yes, for some shows it already has, whatever). A certain favorite TV show lately, well, it's like watching an old friend well on their way to great things devolve into a petty crook.
Let's face it- the average TV show has a five year shelf life at best. The mere fact that a show is still being produced doesn't mean it's still good. I feel that this has started to manifest itself in "Criminal Minds", and would like to express my thoughts on the matter. And please note that when I mention other fans of the show, I do in fact mean other fans- I lurk in at least two CM message boards so I see what other fans are actually saying sometimes- not just stating my own opinions and claiming there are others who agree with me (can you tell I've had trouble with people making that assumption)?
As I mentioned before, I discovered the show through Shadow. At the time, it was already in its third season (I think Joe Mantegna's Agent Rossi character had just replaced Mandy Patinkin's Agent Gideon at that point, or it was the last episode before Rossi joined but after Gideon had left) but she (ultimately we) mainly watched the reruns on ION, so it didn't take long to get caught up. Many fans will agree that the show really started hitting its stride around that point, and save for a few die hard fans of Gideon the cast at that point was the "dream team". Cast was good, plots were good, execution was good- to the point where, according to some forums posts I've seen- even people who don't normally like crime dramas/police procedurals/whatever other names there are for the genre admitted to liking the show.
However, not that seasons 1-4 didn't have bad episodes, but after the thirteenth episode (go figure) of the fifth season (that's the one entitled "Risky Business"), something seemed to change and not for the better. The subsequent episodes of the season just didn't resonate with me- not even the backdoor pilot for the (ultimately short-lived) spin-off or the one Matthew Gray Gubler (who usually only plays Dr. Reid) directed (and I think that's the only reason everyone likes/claims to like that episode so much- not that I think he's a bad director (even Peter Freakin' Jackson couldn't save a crappy script), but I digress). Still, I didn't think it was a big deal at the time. Like I said, every season had its bad episodes, these and a couple from slightly earlier in the season just happened to be season 5's was all.
Then the higher-ups made a huge mistake: they fired AJ Cook (who played Agent Jareau, usually called JJ) and planned to reduce the screentime of Agent Prentiss (there's conflicting information out there as to whether this was actually before Paget Brewster decided to film a pilot for a show that ultimately wasn't picked up- I don't know who to believe any more), supposedly for budget reasons. Then Prentiss was written out of the show in an arc that just strained credibility, and this poor man's Clarice Starling replaced both characters. Worse, there was just short of a romance between this new character and Reid (which had it gone farther would have come off as rather forced, especially since she was actually rather rude to him on at least one occasion). Speaking of Reid, they started this "migraines/might be literally losing his mind" arc with him- almost as if they anticipated Gubler leaving the show (never mind that his contract wasn't up at the time) and dropped it like a white hot coal. In the end, the poor man's Clarice Starling (and that's the most polite way to describe her) was fired over the following summer, and Cook and Brewster were brought back. It did seem that Thomas Gibson (Agent Hotchner, usually called Hotch), whose contract had expired, wouldn't return but he did ultimately re-sign. OK, the Dream Team's back, season 7 should totally make up for the fail that was season 6, right?
Unfortunately, that wasn't enough. The executive producer had quit in the meantime- replaced by a writer who's been there since the beginning but has always been one of the inferior ones. Also, it became even more obvious what the problem was with those later season 5 episodes- most of the writers from earlier seasons had been fired and replaced. The current writers and executive producer just don't seem to really "get" the show or its characters. First, they made JJ a regular profiler instead of the media specialist. Which would be fine, except they also apparently made her the new "muggle" identity of Kara Zor-El. And what did the writers do with Hotch now that they nearly lost him? Thrust him into a contrived, sickening-sweet romance with an annoying, cloying chick (who may or may not be a self-insert of the new- female- executive producer)- the kind of stuff you see in bad fanfics stereotypically written by hormonal 13 year old fangirls. (Anyone who knows me knows that I'm a hopeless romantic, so if I say something's sickening and contrived, it must be really bad. I should also mention that, while I do sometimes read fanfics or look at fanart featuring Hotch/Prentiss or even Hotch/Reid or Hotch/Rossi- not to mention the few fics and pics that actually show Hotch/Haley in a positive light, I'm not passionate about any of those pairings so don't even start with that old "you're just upset your pairing didn't happen" excuse.) I swear, the only reason the season finale wedding (because apparently this past season every show on CBS had to end with a wedding) was JJ and William (the guy many fans had assumed she'd already married "off camera" in a small city hall ceremony or something- the father of her child when they decided to write in AJ Cook's real-life pregnancy) instead of Hotch and this new perfect Mary Sue love interest was because someone somehow managed to get Ms. Current Executive Producer to rein it in a bit. Which, given that JJ's relationship seemed to be headed in the opposite direction earlier in the season just made the wedding (and the convenient harrowing situation Will ended up in which led to his proposal) really seem tacked on. Oh yeah, and they broke up Garcia (the tech analyst with- ahem- "more to love" and an eclectic fashion sense) and her boyfriend of four years and had him move on a little too quickly. When not wasting time shoving everyone's romantic issues down the viewers' throats, the show has just become a big "let's see just how creepy and/or violent we can be this week" thing and show the baddie at the beginning 99% percent of the time (used to be more like 20% percent of the time- the term "unsub" they say so often on the show is supposed to be a portmanteau of "unknown subject"- and then usually because the unsub was played by a "very special guest star" like Tim Curry, Mitch Pileggi, or Alex O'Loughlin). No, the prank war between Reid and Agent Morgan that one episode was not "awesome"- that type of thing doesn't belong on this type of show. No, the flashback episode towards the end of the season, which actually covered a timeframe during the show's earlier seasons wasn't a "return to form" and the make-up/costuming department did a crap job trying to make everyone look like they did just two years ago. With all that mess (plus some more stuff I'll touch on momentarily, this paragraph is getting too long), is it any wonder many fans thought (if not hoped) season 7 would be CM's last. No such luck, it got renewed.
Which brings me to the stuff I said I'd touch on "momentarily". First of all, Paget Brewster decided to leave permanently after this season (whether she even wanted to come back in the first place is again subject of much debate and conflicting information). Having already done a "big exit" for Prentiss, this time she left with little fanfare (though it was no less contrived than her "big exit"). Many fans thought maybe it would be best if she wasn't replaced or that for budget reasons they wouldn't hire someone else anyway. They did replace her, though- with a character whose area of expertise was previously one of Reid's many such areas (and knows him but there is and will never be anything romantic between them) played by an actress they're paying seven figures. And this new character will already be present in the season premiere (but of course we've been reassured she won't automatically be getting along with the rest of the team)- never mind that neither Prentiss nor Rossi joined right away when their predecessors departed. Now several of those same people who would've been fine if Prentiss wasn't replaced think this bit of casting news is "awesome" or that anyone not thrilled should just "give the new character a chance", some even going so far as to say she may even be just what the show needs. What's actually going to happen is a lot of people will likely watch out of curiosity (thus a ratings boon), but no guarantees they'll stick around.
Wow, I haven't even touched on what the character of Reid has become. Starting in the aforementioned later season 5 episodes, Reid began to really devolve. In season 6 there was that headache storyline mentioned earlier. As of the end of season 7, he's become little more than a babbling savant. It's painfully obvious the current writers and executive producer do not care for the Reid character at all- even the episode where the team forgot his 30th birthday (which their previous selves would not have) just screamed "here, here's your Reid episode, STFU Reid fans!" Also, during Matthew Gubler's contract negotiations (this summer, he was in the same situation as Thomas Gibson had been last year), Ms. Current Excutive Producer said stuff about how Gubler loved "his Reid", making it clear she (and quite possibly her colleagues) want to keep Gubler around but really don't care for his character (other than to use the character's popularity to attract people to the new character). Thing is, that season 5 episode I mentioned earlier was just the first episode he directed, and the most recent such episode was nominated for an Emmy this year. The way his character was treated, I wouldn't have blamed Gubler if he walked. But no, they managed to rope him into a new two-year contract (hopefully only one of those years will be necessary)- again, apparently solely because they wanted to keep him on as a director. And what's in store for Reid next season? A love interest- yep, it's the Hotch situation from last year all over again. Even Gubler thought this was "dubious". Proving all the more just how little the writers care for Reid, despite his feelings on the matter they gave Gubler control of this development. Oh yeah, the most recent information is that this new relationship is solely over the phone- the girlfriend hasn't even been properly cast, and they're revisting the headache storyline as little more than an excuse to bring them together. Speaking of all that, Hotch's Mary Sue girlfriend is being reduced to a Skype relationship due to the actress playing the Mary Sue taking on another role elsewhere, and three freakin' episode are being devoted to that development (vs. a team member's departure, mind you). I can only hope the writers/executive producer don't still somehow manage to work in a quick, secret marriage and a pregnancy.
Okay, done rambling. I won't be watching or following this coming season at all, and if I'm watching ION or A&E and Jeanne Tripplehorn appears in the credits or cold open, I'll know to change the channel (Shadow's not likely to mind; she hasn't been following the new developments as closely as I have but hasn't liked what I've been telling her- and I reiterate that she's not my yes-girl). Not that I blame Jeanne Tripplehorn- it's not her fault the show became a soap opera, but unfortunately her presence would indicate the show had reached that point. Dare I hope CBS just lets the show die with the microscopic amount of dignity it has left? Either way, as far as the DC series is concerned, the aforementioned episode "Risky Business" was indeed the last- none of the subsequent episodes or anything about them exist at all. And- slight spoiler- the Reid pairing in that series is most certainly not just over the phone. Project BAU will just be the Dream Team- neither new agents nor new love interests are getting dolls made of them (though sad irony that Paget Brewster announced her departure the day I received the base doll for Prentiss). And I only made- and will ever make- Miis of the Dream Team to join in or cheer me and others who download them on in certain games.
All that said, I've got a con to get back to and an event in 45 minutes. But I might try to work in another at-con (yet not con-related) post (on another subject entirely)- we'll see.
Let's face it- the average TV show has a five year shelf life at best. The mere fact that a show is still being produced doesn't mean it's still good. I feel that this has started to manifest itself in "Criminal Minds", and would like to express my thoughts on the matter. And please note that when I mention other fans of the show, I do in fact mean other fans- I lurk in at least two CM message boards so I see what other fans are actually saying sometimes- not just stating my own opinions and claiming there are others who agree with me (can you tell I've had trouble with people making that assumption)?
As I mentioned before, I discovered the show through Shadow. At the time, it was already in its third season (I think Joe Mantegna's Agent Rossi character had just replaced Mandy Patinkin's Agent Gideon at that point, or it was the last episode before Rossi joined but after Gideon had left) but she (ultimately we) mainly watched the reruns on ION, so it didn't take long to get caught up. Many fans will agree that the show really started hitting its stride around that point, and save for a few die hard fans of Gideon the cast at that point was the "dream team". Cast was good, plots were good, execution was good- to the point where, according to some forums posts I've seen- even people who don't normally like crime dramas/police procedurals/whatever other names there are for the genre admitted to liking the show.
However, not that seasons 1-4 didn't have bad episodes, but after the thirteenth episode (go figure) of the fifth season (that's the one entitled "Risky Business"), something seemed to change and not for the better. The subsequent episodes of the season just didn't resonate with me- not even the backdoor pilot for the (ultimately short-lived) spin-off or the one Matthew Gray Gubler (who usually only plays Dr. Reid) directed (and I think that's the only reason everyone likes/claims to like that episode so much- not that I think he's a bad director (even Peter Freakin' Jackson couldn't save a crappy script), but I digress). Still, I didn't think it was a big deal at the time. Like I said, every season had its bad episodes, these and a couple from slightly earlier in the season just happened to be season 5's was all.
Then the higher-ups made a huge mistake: they fired AJ Cook (who played Agent Jareau, usually called JJ) and planned to reduce the screentime of Agent Prentiss (there's conflicting information out there as to whether this was actually before Paget Brewster decided to film a pilot for a show that ultimately wasn't picked up- I don't know who to believe any more), supposedly for budget reasons. Then Prentiss was written out of the show in an arc that just strained credibility, and this poor man's Clarice Starling replaced both characters. Worse, there was just short of a romance between this new character and Reid (which had it gone farther would have come off as rather forced, especially since she was actually rather rude to him on at least one occasion). Speaking of Reid, they started this "migraines/might be literally losing his mind" arc with him- almost as if they anticipated Gubler leaving the show (never mind that his contract wasn't up at the time) and dropped it like a white hot coal. In the end, the poor man's Clarice Starling (and that's the most polite way to describe her) was fired over the following summer, and Cook and Brewster were brought back. It did seem that Thomas Gibson (Agent Hotchner, usually called Hotch), whose contract had expired, wouldn't return but he did ultimately re-sign. OK, the Dream Team's back, season 7 should totally make up for the fail that was season 6, right?
Unfortunately, that wasn't enough. The executive producer had quit in the meantime- replaced by a writer who's been there since the beginning but has always been one of the inferior ones. Also, it became even more obvious what the problem was with those later season 5 episodes- most of the writers from earlier seasons had been fired and replaced. The current writers and executive producer just don't seem to really "get" the show or its characters. First, they made JJ a regular profiler instead of the media specialist. Which would be fine, except they also apparently made her the new "muggle" identity of Kara Zor-El. And what did the writers do with Hotch now that they nearly lost him? Thrust him into a contrived, sickening-sweet romance with an annoying, cloying chick (who may or may not be a self-insert of the new- female- executive producer)- the kind of stuff you see in bad fanfics stereotypically written by hormonal 13 year old fangirls. (Anyone who knows me knows that I'm a hopeless romantic, so if I say something's sickening and contrived, it must be really bad. I should also mention that, while I do sometimes read fanfics or look at fanart featuring Hotch/Prentiss or even Hotch/Reid or Hotch/Rossi- not to mention the few fics and pics that actually show Hotch/Haley in a positive light, I'm not passionate about any of those pairings so don't even start with that old "you're just upset your pairing didn't happen" excuse.) I swear, the only reason the season finale wedding (because apparently this past season every show on CBS had to end with a wedding) was JJ and William (the guy many fans had assumed she'd already married "off camera" in a small city hall ceremony or something- the father of her child when they decided to write in AJ Cook's real-life pregnancy) instead of Hotch and this new perfect Mary Sue love interest was because someone somehow managed to get Ms. Current Executive Producer to rein it in a bit. Which, given that JJ's relationship seemed to be headed in the opposite direction earlier in the season just made the wedding (and the convenient harrowing situation Will ended up in which led to his proposal) really seem tacked on. Oh yeah, and they broke up Garcia (the tech analyst with- ahem- "more to love" and an eclectic fashion sense) and her boyfriend of four years and had him move on a little too quickly. When not wasting time shoving everyone's romantic issues down the viewers' throats, the show has just become a big "let's see just how creepy and/or violent we can be this week" thing and show the baddie at the beginning 99% percent of the time (used to be more like 20% percent of the time- the term "unsub" they say so often on the show is supposed to be a portmanteau of "unknown subject"- and then usually because the unsub was played by a "very special guest star" like Tim Curry, Mitch Pileggi, or Alex O'Loughlin). No, the prank war between Reid and Agent Morgan that one episode was not "awesome"- that type of thing doesn't belong on this type of show. No, the flashback episode towards the end of the season, which actually covered a timeframe during the show's earlier seasons wasn't a "return to form" and the make-up/costuming department did a crap job trying to make everyone look like they did just two years ago. With all that mess (plus some more stuff I'll touch on momentarily, this paragraph is getting too long), is it any wonder many fans thought (if not hoped) season 7 would be CM's last. No such luck, it got renewed.
Which brings me to the stuff I said I'd touch on "momentarily". First of all, Paget Brewster decided to leave permanently after this season (whether she even wanted to come back in the first place is again subject of much debate and conflicting information). Having already done a "big exit" for Prentiss, this time she left with little fanfare (though it was no less contrived than her "big exit"). Many fans thought maybe it would be best if she wasn't replaced or that for budget reasons they wouldn't hire someone else anyway. They did replace her, though- with a character whose area of expertise was previously one of Reid's many such areas (and knows him but there is and will never be anything romantic between them) played by an actress they're paying seven figures. And this new character will already be present in the season premiere (but of course we've been reassured she won't automatically be getting along with the rest of the team)- never mind that neither Prentiss nor Rossi joined right away when their predecessors departed. Now several of those same people who would've been fine if Prentiss wasn't replaced think this bit of casting news is "awesome" or that anyone not thrilled should just "give the new character a chance", some even going so far as to say she may even be just what the show needs. What's actually going to happen is a lot of people will likely watch out of curiosity (thus a ratings boon), but no guarantees they'll stick around.
Wow, I haven't even touched on what the character of Reid has become. Starting in the aforementioned later season 5 episodes, Reid began to really devolve. In season 6 there was that headache storyline mentioned earlier. As of the end of season 7, he's become little more than a babbling savant. It's painfully obvious the current writers and executive producer do not care for the Reid character at all- even the episode where the team forgot his 30th birthday (which their previous selves would not have) just screamed "here, here's your Reid episode, STFU Reid fans!" Also, during Matthew Gubler's contract negotiations (this summer, he was in the same situation as Thomas Gibson had been last year), Ms. Current Excutive Producer said stuff about how Gubler loved "his Reid", making it clear she (and quite possibly her colleagues) want to keep Gubler around but really don't care for his character (other than to use the character's popularity to attract people to the new character). Thing is, that season 5 episode I mentioned earlier was just the first episode he directed, and the most recent such episode was nominated for an Emmy this year. The way his character was treated, I wouldn't have blamed Gubler if he walked. But no, they managed to rope him into a new two-year contract (hopefully only one of those years will be necessary)- again, apparently solely because they wanted to keep him on as a director. And what's in store for Reid next season? A love interest- yep, it's the Hotch situation from last year all over again. Even Gubler thought this was "dubious". Proving all the more just how little the writers care for Reid, despite his feelings on the matter they gave Gubler control of this development. Oh yeah, the most recent information is that this new relationship is solely over the phone- the girlfriend hasn't even been properly cast, and they're revisting the headache storyline as little more than an excuse to bring them together. Speaking of all that, Hotch's Mary Sue girlfriend is being reduced to a Skype relationship due to the actress playing the Mary Sue taking on another role elsewhere, and three freakin' episode are being devoted to that development (vs. a team member's departure, mind you). I can only hope the writers/executive producer don't still somehow manage to work in a quick, secret marriage and a pregnancy.
Okay, done rambling. I won't be watching or following this coming season at all, and if I'm watching ION or A&E and Jeanne Tripplehorn appears in the credits or cold open, I'll know to change the channel (Shadow's not likely to mind; she hasn't been following the new developments as closely as I have but hasn't liked what I've been telling her- and I reiterate that she's not my yes-girl). Not that I blame Jeanne Tripplehorn- it's not her fault the show became a soap opera, but unfortunately her presence would indicate the show had reached that point. Dare I hope CBS just lets the show die with the microscopic amount of dignity it has left? Either way, as far as the DC series is concerned, the aforementioned episode "Risky Business" was indeed the last- none of the subsequent episodes or anything about them exist at all. And- slight spoiler- the Reid pairing in that series is most certainly not just over the phone. Project BAU will just be the Dream Team- neither new agents nor new love interests are getting dolls made of them (though sad irony that Paget Brewster announced her departure the day I received the base doll for Prentiss). And I only made- and will ever make- Miis of the Dream Team to join in or cheer me and others who download them on in certain games.
All that said, I've got a con to get back to and an event in 45 minutes. But I might try to work in another at-con (yet not con-related) post (on another subject entirely)- we'll see.