Criminal Minds: Season Two

One of the most famous law enforcement organizations in the world is the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the FBI. Their professionalism and determination has made them perfect as the subject for countless films and television series. From the film ‘The FBI Story’ with James Stuart in 1959 to the television series ‘The FBI" that made Efrem Zimbalist Jr. a household name in the sixties and seventies, this organization has brought drama to American homes for decades. Of all the myriad of functions the FBI performs the one that has captured the imagination of the American public is their specialized unit that tracks down serial killers, bringing them to justice. Based in Quantico, Virginia the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU) solves these heinous crimes by profiling the killer, getting into their heads to be able to apprehend him. When local enforcement is faced with such a murderer they request of the assistance of the BAU. This highly specialized team flies in to save the day. The popular CBS series ‘Criminal Minds’ not only looks at this group but shows the affect that deviling into such psychologically damaged minds has one the human beings tracking them. The true strength of this series is that fact that it doesn’t limit its focus on the crime and how it is solved. The series considers the sometimes tragic toil the job has on the officers. The writing, direction and acting on this show is head and shoulders above most of the competing series. This is not your usual car chase and ‘shoot ‘em up’ show, it is an intellectual and psychological thriller that grabs the audience.

The leader of the team is Supervisory Special Agent Aaron "Hotch" Hotchner (Thomas Gibson). On the job he appears to be all business. He comes off as aloof and dispassionate but he cares about the victims. He has a loving and understanding wife and children but tries to always keep work away from them. His former mentor, Supervisory Special Agent Jason Gideon (Mandy Patinkin) is a deep and concerned person. He is extremely well read, an amateur chef and is also the best in his field. The main reason for this is his vast empathy. He can not only get into the head of the worse serial killer but always care about the victims. Their best field agent and field leader is Senior Special Agent Derek Morgan (Shemar Moore). As an expert in several martial arts he is a formidable adversary. Physically Special Agent Dr. Spencer Reid (Matthew Gray Gubler) may look like some geek college student. Actually he is a genius with a photographic memory, able to read at light speed. He can look at any crime scene and instantly deduce what has happened and why. The pubic face of the BAU is Special Agent Jennifer "JJ" Jareau (A.J. Cook). She is quick witted and able to deal with the media frenzy that usually surrounds their high profile cases. One member of the team is usually behind the scenes, Audio/Visual Technician Penelope Garcia (Kirsten Vangsness). She is the hacker’s hacker able to ply information out of any computer data base.

At the start of season two Special Agent Elle Greenaway (Lola Glaudini) is still trying to cope with a recent attack by an ‘unsub’ (unknown suspect). The encounter left her near death and her return to work is not easy. She seals her fate by murdering a suspect who got off on a legal technicality and making it look like a justifiable shoot. When Hotchner forces her to resign she is replaced by Special Agent Emily Prentiss (Paget Brewster). She not only has the usual difficulties in fitting in as a replacement of such a tight knit group there are initial doubts of how she got the highly prized assignment. As the daughter of a high level ambassador some feel that strings were pulled. Prentiss has to work exceptionally hard to prove herself as a real profiler. Most of the stories are almost directly from modern headlines. In fact one episode was so close to reality that it was postponed. In the episode ‘Lessons Learned’ Gideon, Reid and Prentiss go to Guantanamo Bay to interrogate a prison. They have to get into his head in order to avert a potentially devastating terrorist attack. In ‘No Way Out’ Gideon meets his match in a serial Killer named Frank (Keith Carradine). He has been actively killing women for over twenty years and finally eludes capture only to return to target Gideon in the season final cliff hanger. In another episode the team has to find a killer that has kidnapped three teenage girls. The ‘unsub’ makes a very unusual promise. Two of the girls must decide to kill the third. It really doesn’t matter to the killer who lives and who dies.

Many television series loose something when they have to go through a major change such as main character leaving. Not only does ‘Criminal Minds’ survive it flourished. Since the show is primarily character based the change in cast worked. This season also gave the audience more back story details for the main characters. In one we discover a secret in Morgan’s past; that he was molested by a trusted coach. Spencer is taken hostage by a deranged kill and addicted to drugs. Much of this season is him fighting this and his persisting fears that like his mother he will be afflicted with a mental illness. The first part of the season Greenway has to find a way to get over her near death and seeks revenge against a killer that will get away with his crimes. This aspect of telling the story makes this series transcend the usual ‘catch the killer’ format and makes it into something that the audience can emotionally identify with.

The cast here is simply put incredible. Mandy Patinkin, as always, gives a stellar performance in every episode. He makes Gideon into a real person; flawed but still able to give his all to his job. Unfortunately, this will be his last season on the series. Thomas Gibson portrays Hotchner with amazing pathos. There is sadness about his character that seems to stem from the almost overwhelming responsibility of his position. He has to command his former mentor but is always open to his suggestions and expertise. He also has to manage a group of very talented people under the most stressful of situations. The role of Dr. Reid is a lot more complex this season but Matthew Gray Gubler is an actor up to the challenge. He takes his character on a dark journey that brings him beyond the boy genius position. It is not easy for an actor to enter a popular series mid season but Paget Brewster does it very well. She appears to use her real life position as the new kid to help her nail the role.

As always Paramount brings a great series to DVD with the care it deserves. Consider this is a series from last season the technical specifications are excellent. The video is anamorphic 1.78:1 with realistic color balance and excellent contrast. The Dolby 5.1 audio gives a natural sound field with very good channel separation. There are also a nice amount of extras to expand your enjoyment. ‘Profilers, Profiled’ gives a look at the characters and how they are developed. The featurette "Behavioral Science: Real Life Criminal Minds’ takes you behind the scenes with the real FBI BAU. Kirsten Vangsness is the focus of a special feature all her own. She has been a part of the series from the start but only this season was she added to the regular cast and group photo. There are also some bloopers and deleted scenes jut to round things off. This is one of the best shows out there and one you will want to add to your collection.

Posted 09/14/07