Image taken from the Criminal Minds official Twitter.
Apologies for taking an extra day to myself, I was very busy writing a Throwback Thursday article this week. Overall, this episode was very well presented. Félix EnrÃquez Alcalá did a fantastic job directing this, and Sharon Lee Watson wrote it pretty well. Hotch in casual clothing needs to happen more. And Reid found a love interest! This episode really had it all. Let's get right to the review!
The episode opens with a creepy, ominous, dark setting and there's a woman going home. If I had to guess, she probably won't make it home. She's the wife of a congresswoman, ooh! I'm not a fan of politics, but I admire when the BAU has to get involved with situations like these. Transition to the roundtable, and Garcia informs us that was the last known sighting of this woman. See, what did I tell you? Anyone shown in the first few minutes of an episode of Criminal Minds will most likely not arrive at their destination. Out walks Hotch, and OH, he's not wearing a suit! That's a rare, but lovely sight! Now they're wondering who the real target was: the wife or the husband. On another note, Reid's hair is in a weird place right now. It's getting shorter, but at the same time it's still messy and thick. Interesting. Rossi says that they have to assume it's a kidnapping until proven otherwise; yikes.
The congressman, who I seem to recognize...from somewhere, goes to meet with Hotch is his office. Hotch tries to reassure him that there might not have been foul play. The husband tells him that she is a lovely woman, but him, on the other hand, is not well liked in this city. Well, then. The husband suggests that they have an "equal opportunity offender". Wow, he could be a profiler! Hotch tells him that they're on an information lockdown, that they're not informing the media about this and it is better that way. This is a cool episode so far. Oh, just as I said that a news station is reporting about the case. Uh oh. JJ comes over to Hotch, and I must say I enjoy the work that these two do, and shows him the voicemail the wife left before she was taken. Oh dear, it doesn't sound good. Theme song, play us out!
Opening Quote:
Spoken by Spencer Reid - "The truth is rarely pure and never simple." - Oscar Wilde
Aw, I love it when Garcia analyzes video feeds! And hey, was that Anderson? Yes, it was. Anyway, this congressman has a bunch a committees he sits on. There could be a political influence based on his opinions on certain bills that caused this. Interesting, but again, I don't really get politics. The team notes that nothing was strange or off about the husband's behaviour, so they might rule him out. That's a relief. Oh, Organized Crime thinks it could be the work of a Russian mob. Honour Among Thieves 2.0, anyone? I didn't really like that episode, though. We get a hilarious comment from Rossi, talking to the head from the Organized Crime unit, who just so happened to be the same agent from Penelope (3x09). "You need somebody for an unsavoury job, this is who you call." "1-800-THUG." "Yeah, pretty much." Amazing! "You're welcome to join us as long as you don't jeopardize our case." I'm pretty sure that's the last thing the BAU will do. I really like the feel of this episode so far. The captions that appear on screen, giving you the time of day and how much time has passed since the kidnapping. It really makes you feel like you're watching a classic episode of the show.
Now, Reid is entering some building. He's looking for someone named "Loker". She goes to shake his hand, but Reid doesn't really shake hands. Haha. Whoa, this agent has her work under her Murphy bed. That's pretty neat! And they're speaking Russian together, aw. "There's a lot of down time in surveillance, so I hope you brought something to read." Oh honey, you bet your bottom dollar Spencer Reid has reading material with him. Ouch, Reid spoiled the book for her! She doesn't seem like the nicest woman, but she could be a good fit for Reid, who knows! Aw, the husband is crying, and of course Rossi is here to console him. "Well, try not to beat yourself up too much." What a darling Rossi is. Jeez, A.J. Cook is pregnant here, but she hardly looks it! Of course I have to mention that I love her spending time with the families. The husband father, Paul, also looks very familiar...Hm. I am not okay with Reid looking out windows, ever since Demons (9x24). But there was a very nice shot of him holding up the headphones. They're observing the mob's cleaning woman. Strange. The members come home and start yelling at her, aw. Reid "This is really good coffee, by the way. Coffee's a language in itself." "Who said that, Dickens?" "Jackie Chan." I agree. And it's nice to see that this woman isn't a crazy super genius. Some intelligence would definitely be necessary for a viable partner for Reid, but someone overly confident about it would be a no-no.
Back at the BAU, they're trying to figure out more details about this case. Garcia, though she apologizes, interrupts, and exclaims that there's a reporter in the lobby who says she has important information about the case. She comes "bearing gifts", ooh. She's interfering with the investigation, but she wants an exclusive interview with the husband. The video of the wife that the reporter brought is quite frightening. Although, this reminds a bit of the episode Broken Mirror (1x05). I really enjoyed that one. It's a ransom demand, so of course it's an intense matter here. Now the congressman and his family watch the video. This is disconcerting. Now the husband is starting to lose it. Things aren't adding up. The husband doesn't know what to do, but fear not, Hotch does. A press conference! A genius plan, Hotch. Morgan and JJ are the faces of the conference, excellent. You all already know my opinion of JJ as a liaison, and there has not been enough screen time of Morgan in recent episodes. This is very good. Now the husband is having his interview with the reporter. Something seems very fishy about her. Back with Loker and Reid, Garcia lets him know that Taras is a "very horrible meanie". They then realize that Ivan, the bartender of a strip club, is pulling some strings. Icky.
Meanwhile, Morgan and Hotch are prepping the husband in case a phone call is made from the kidnappers. The caller's name is Victor. The wife gets on the phone, but they have to make sure it's her. He asks her a personal question, i.e. what park did they talk a walk in after their first date. They went to Rock Creek Park, oh. Morgan suggests that they've been played? I certainly hope not! Morgan tries to call Garcia, but he can't reach her. So, he goes into her office. This is adorable! I just want to see them get together, so badly. And now he's alone in her office. In walks Garcia, aw, they're so cute. HE GIVES HER A CUTE KISS ON THE CHEEK! Man, I can't take it. Now they're interrogating Paul, he's too sketchy to be involved, right? And the mother is refusing to speak ill of him. Alright, then. JJ and Morgan are really trying to provoke Paul. He finally tells them that his brother bailed him out, but he's not the man they think he is. Interesting. A family so tight-knit one minute, but ready to throw them under the bus the next minute. Alas, Garcia has found an address. The place seems quiet...almost too quiet. Hotch opens the gift left for them. First it's an earring, then it's an ear. Gross!
The congressman's intern shows up. Former intern, that is. Oh, this suddenly turned into a romance-gone-wrong. I wasn't really expecting that. It kind of puts a damper on this episode. And we were doing so well. Reid and Loker are hearing more about the mob next door (haha, the title of this review). Reid is envisioning the entire thing. And it's getting abusive now, so this is not easy to watch. Reid wants to stop this, but Loker is adamant that it will ruin the case. Morgan, JJ, and Kate are discussing what they were told from the intern and congressman. "I found a smoking gun, or at least the stuff that goes into the gun to make it smoke." Very cute, Garcia. The BAU thinks the congressman pulled off this whole thing. He claims he's just scared of the intern. "I love him, but I also know his weaknesses.", said the intern. See what I mean about their raunchy romance putting a damper in the case? This kind of stuff takes away from the hard-hitting profiling we were getting just a few minutes ago. Hey, at least the congressman is profiling himself. He's a depute narcissist. He just wants his wife back at this point. I don't blame him; this whole thing is getting out of hand. It looks as though they're about to hurt the cleaning woman. Reid has finally had enough, so he starts running after her.
It turns out that the cleaning woman and the mob guy are a couple. And the unsub is a woman. Oh wow. That was a plot twist. They think it could be the mother, who trained her son to be an assassin. Hotch and Rossi go to interrogate her, all the while smiling and smirking at each other watching her unfold. I really love when these two men work together. This is without a doubt the best scene of the episode. They're smiling so cutely while asking her these tough questions. I'm really liking this. They make sure the mother puts an end to this. Thank goodness the wife is okay. "Call me a softie, but this whole thing is turning me into mush." Garcia is just the cutest. Rossi reminds us that this guy could end being the president some day. Oh man. Moreover, Reid and Loker are packing things up. Reid asks her for coffee in Russian, and then he shakes her hand, AWWWW! It's a date! She is pretty great. Transition to the mother in jail and her son meeting her. OH MY WORD, it turns out he was in on it the whole time! Yikes, this guy is sleazy to the max.
Final Thoughts:
If I had to rate this episode, I'd give it a solid B-. It did feel like an old episode, with the pacing of events to follow the unsubs instead of Garcia practically solving it for them. The captions on screen were a nice touch as well. However, the whole storyline with the intern didn't even need to be there. In fact, I think the episode would've been significantly better without it. But they needed us to think she was involved somehow. It was still a decent enough episode, and I'm glad Reid found a companion for this time being. It's too bad that one day she'll be killed, unless she's forgotten about first.
What did YOU think of Rock Creek Park? Are you annoyed that we have yet another week off until we get to see Beyond Borders, the first episode of the possible spinoff? Please be sure to leave a comment down below!
