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marguerite_kruxCriminal Minds 4 x 06
The Instincts
Nightmare at the end of the hall.
The episode opens with tense and trippy music, which should’ve been my first clue that this was, in fact, a dream sequence. But I was too caught up in the squeefulness of Hotch and Emily with their guns out. I admit it, I have a fetish… Oh, and Reid was there too. I’d begrudge him his presence in this scene but since it’s his dream, I guess he has to be there.
My ship Mulder-and-Scully around, bursting through doors, flashlights at the ready. I wonder how much training you have to do to be this precisely co-ordinated and in tune with each other’s movements, capable of searching a whole building with barely a spoken word. 
I’d totally be tripping over my partner or facing the wrong direction. ‘Which way are we going? Did we check this one already? Should we go back in that direction or-? Whoops! Crap, I’m sorry, didn’t see you there…’
Yet another shot of Em and Hotch checking out a room together- because Reid’s subconscious has noticed how they’re perpetually joined at the hip these days- while he wanders off on his lonesome. 
The door looming large, the central lighting on Reid while everywhere else is cloaked in shadows…it’s all so obvious in hindsight. The door represents a blocked memory in his mind, something he’s suppressed because the trauma is too much to handle.
He discovers a basement…and somehow misses the sneaker-clad feet attached to legs that disappear behind a washing machine. Denial will get you every time. Emily breaks the bad news, apologizing to him as she identifies the body of the kid they were evidently searching for. I wonder if this is symbolic of their relationship- they may not have the warm and fuzziest of bonds, but she can always be relied on to give him the cold hard truth, not to sugarcoat reality even when the other longtime members of his team might beat around the bush or let things alone too long because they feel uncomfortable trying to discuss issues with him. Emily shines the light on dark hidden places.
A noise startles him and that’s where things take a turn for the weird. Not only is there a baby crawling around the crime scene, it’s apparently JJ’s little munchkin, which unless we’ve done a time-flash forward, isn’t physically possible. Unless it’s a mutant baby with super-powers. AHA, I’ve stumbled upon the writers’ master plan!
Rossi’s voice penetrates Reid’s subconscious before he has a full-on meltdown, finally yanking him back to plain ol’ reality- and I wish, oh how I wish that he’d been mumbling JJ’s name out loud because I’d love to see them rag on him about it. >:D
Emily and Hotch! Sitting together on the jet YET AGAIN! One time’s accident, twice is coincidence, three times’ magnetically-drawn-together, irresistible-irrefutable-destined-love territory. *glees* According to my Shipper Handbook of Subjective Reality, that is.
Morgan, who is forced to perch on a cupboard either as the set design people are feeling stingy or because Reid and Rossi are refusing to share (!), offers some dream analysis. 
Hotch backs him up, surprisingly, I wouldn’t have pegged him as a believer in that kind of New Age-y soft para-science. But wait- I think he’s gently teasing Reid, because seriously, people in his team get held hostage and beat up on a regular basis and he doesn’t suggest taking them off a case, so he ain’t gonna start here over a simple dream. Hotch has this incredibly subtle sense of humor that I’m starting to think he expresses on a regular basis but I just haven’t caught onto it before now. Hmm. Disturbing. No, no, I prefer the idea that Emily’s teasing inspired him to do the same, her mockery is infectious! She’s softening his all-business demeanor, aww!
Room of no escape.
A kid is hiding in a closet, but reluctantly takes the unsub’s proffered hand and climbs into bed. A pillow ominously descends through the air but is merely used to cushion the unsub, who lies down next to the child. 
Just when I’m thinking it couldn’t get any squickier, an arm tenderly, terrifyingly, wraps around the kid and I’m left feeling very very nauseous. See, show, see how frightening and gripping you can be, without resorting to mutilated corpses or hacked up body parts? A simple sequence which wouldn’t be out of place in a normal home with a loving parent and child takes on such menacing undertones when placed in a different context. Such as that of HOMICIDAL PSYCHO AND INNOCENT KID AT THEIR MERCY. *shudders*
‘Who speaks to the instincts speaks to the deepest in mankind and finds the readiest response.’
Victim’s home.
JJ and Hotch get to interview the parents, lucky them. Oh, but look! Blonde lady chick is a metaphor for JJ. 
They have a striking resemblance, even the same wardrobe- just to make sure that everyone in the audience picks up on the correlation. Since she’s about to be a mom, it’s the perfect time to work in some angst about missing kids and the perils of motherhood.
I love how this show uses actors that are well-known or at least vaguely recognizable from other shows. It’s always fun to play the game of ‘spot the familiar face!’ A chance to one-up your viewing buddies, impress them with the wide range of your tv experience. *nods wisely* The mother played a charismatic brothel madam with a hidden evil manipulativeness in Shark, miles away from this sympathetic role of grief-stricken mother. She is pretty cool. I love her brittle poise, how she’s refusing to shed tears or react emotionally, she’s dead calm and business-like. Dignified. I wish more tv families of victims/patients were like her, it’d be easier on my blood pressure.
The husband…he annoys me whenever he pops up, and I know it’s superficial but his eyes are too close together. I can barely focus on what he’s saying because it bugs me so much. But that’s okay, I’m not missing out on much because his role is all about condescending to and about his wife, then later, the bluster and pomp and abusing the feds that are here to try and save his kid.
I think it’s interesting he considered a 5 year old capable of walking to a friend’s place alone. I didn’t walk anywhere alone til I was about 11 or 12. And now I'm a total chicken with no sense of adventure, who won’t go anywhere unfamiliar for fear of getting lost and never returning home, and a pathological fear of change and trying new things. Maybe my parents sheltered me a little too long.
Crime Scene of Sucky Preservation.
Rossi: Not exactly a well-preserved scene.
Emily [disdainfully]: It’s the crime scene investigators. They all want to play cop instead of just being scientists and they end up trampling on everything.
SNARKINESS FTW! Emily oozes sheer superiority and contempt for the lower life forms that dare to encroach on her territory! This is an observation I have made myself, that CSIs are apparently omnipotent and reign supreme in their beyond-genius widely-qualified multi-tasking abilities that allow them to examine evidence, interrogate suspects and break into houses with guns and arrest people. Ever heard of separation of powers? [In a different context, okay, but it's still applicable!] And Emily just tramples over the ego of that rep and puts them in their proper place which is to serve her and her quest for justice and to stay out of her frakking way or else. I wish there’d been a tech or two lingering around for her to beat up. Watching alpha!Emily in action? Would be so damn hot. *wriggles*
Random shots of prettiness. There's been a theme of shooting Em against the sky these past few eps. I like it. The contrast between her darkness and the light sky is cool, she kinda just POPS. In the Tyra Banks definition, that is.
Victim’s residence.
I’m not in love with Hotch’s tie. I mean, it’s okay when he’s wearing it to co-ordinate with Emily because that’s cute and squeeful and such a dorky couple thing to do, but otherwise? The polka dots and stripes contrast pains me. PAINS ME, I SAY. Remember how fans campaigned to buy Scully her own desk? Maybe we should fundraise to expand Hotch’s tie collection. :P
Plotwise, judging by the location of the dump site, isolated but not middle-of-nowhere, and the clothing of the last victim, Em and Rossi speculate that the unsub is so attached to the dead kid’s body [wow, does that sound wrong] that he’d turn up for a funeral. Hotch gets the okay to open the funeral to the public from the ever so obliging Detective Ashby, who could give the jackass from the last ep a few lessons on respecting the chain of command and showing courtesy to one’s superiors.
Meanwhile, he asks Close-Eyed Guy to attend the funeral with his wife, and receives unhesitating agreement. ‘I think you should talk to Amy about it,’ Hotch cautions. ‘If there is any way I can possibly treat my wife like she and her fragile mental state don’t matter, under the guise of being a concerned if negligent parent and crappy husband, there’s nothing to discuss,’ he responds. 
Hotch fixes him with an intense concerned gaze, telling him, ‘I understand but please, discuss it with her’. Hotch the Marriage Counselor! Who’da thunk it? Well, I guess you don’t need to exemplify something in order to have good advice on it. Or a valid opinion. Like I might say I think Britney’s ‘Womanizer’ single is utter trash and that she lacks class or talent and is undeserving of fame and fortune. Just because I myself don’t have a few number 1 hits to my name nor a few millions to cement my privileged status doesn’t mean my assessment of her is wrong. Right? Hotch may not be in a mature healthy adult relationship- at least til his romance with Emily is confirmed- but that doesn’t mean he can’t offer a few tips on how to avoid pitfalls in the road to marital bliss. Communication is one of the basics that even I, perennial singleton that I am, know is important for any relationship to prosper.
God, this guy irritates me. His wife is stressing out- okay, it’s barely visible and well contained but any human being with the slightest trace of empathy could understand that there is immense strain in being forced to maintain her composure while talking to the monster that took her child, doing her best to act pleasantly to keep them talking so the feds can track the call…and he needs JJ’s none-too-subtle prodding before it occurs to him that maybe his place is with his wife. Hopefully to comfort and not to badger about attending funerals, though with his level of tact and sensitivity, I wouldn’t be surprised if he springs that demand on her right now.
Basement nightmare 2.0.
Trippy dream music heralds Reid’s new nightmare. My interest level wanes significantly since neither Em nor Hotch accompany Reid in his nocturnal sojourn to the basement of dead kids. I doubt there’s any significance between Rossi and Morgan being tagged this time, except for the slashers of this rare pairing out there. Perhaps JJ and Garcia will feature in his next dream.
The addition of leeches, however, is strange and startling. What do leeches signify in dream analysis, I wonder? I bet Reid fans are screaming with anguish at the fact that his chest is unveiled onscreen- after he manfully rips it open [the effect somewhat ruined by his helpless screaming]- but there is no chance for ogling as leeches abound, marring his dreamy physique. Hateful! I, otoh, don’t really care because ogling Reid makes me feel like a cradle-snatcher. I know, he’s about, what, 27 and I’m only 20 but…he’s so innocent and vulnerable, it’s like he’s programmed to make you want to protect and nurture him, and thinking about him in other ways feels like mental rape. *shudders* This is my hang-up, though, I’m not judging anyone else for the R-rated Reid-centric fics I’m sure exist somewhere on the internet. :D
[Speaking of Reid fics, there is this fantastic PG fic of him and JJ at Comicon- The Payoff ]
So, he wakes up screaming bloody murder and for some reason, Close-Eyed Guy takes offense at being woken up by this ruckus in the middle of the night, predictably reacting like a jackass with no sensitivity or understanding whatsoever. ‘YOU’RE THE FBI!’ he shrieks, like it doesn’t make sense that people who work in their field, dealing with horrific crimes and the most inhuman psychos out there, would naturally get bad dreams. He’s freaking out over his son being taken; imagine them handling hundreds of similar cases, FFS. That’s going to take its toll on their psyche and you’d think he could cut them a little slack, but no. 
Reid’s still breaking down [albeit quietly] and all he can do is rant and fume over losing a few minutes of sleep. Ugh.
Amy, otoh, is awesome, as I have come to expect from her. ‘Are you okay?’ she asks Reid quietly. That guy so does not deserve her sharing his bed. Even suffering through the loss of her child, she can still reach out and offer some small measure of comfort to an agent in distress. *squishes*
And hey, Morgan is quite the soothing influence! He packs off the parents to bed, then sits by and does his best to reassure Reid. It doesn’t work, but his non-judgmental attitude and tangible support is nice to witness. I love team friendships. They only come second to ships in terms of effectively hooking me into a show. [And why BSG hurts me so bad]
Surprisingly, I’m not pissed off by Reid’s angst. It bugged me in Minimal Loss, mainly because Emily got bashed up for him and he’s all woe is me, even though the ONE THING SHE ASKED was that he not blame himself. But here, I’m feeling more affection than I ever have for Reid before. He does tormented anguish very well, I must say. I entertained the idea of yet another let’s frak with Reid’s mental health ep with dubious uncertainty, but so far, he’s pulling it off great. Knowing what’s coming up later, I only hope that Emily’s backstory is this level of awesome. And if she turns out to have been a battered housewife forced to flee an abusive husband and joining the FBI for safety, I will shoot the writers. Look at how wonderful an ep exploring a character’s past can be, without resorting to cheap ex-love-interest gimmicks!
Briefing room.
Rossi and Prentiss give the profile this time. 
A man, late twenties, early thirties, middle class background, drives a 4 wheel drive, wants to distance himself from the crime, feels remorse and is compelled to visit the bodies. It’s a shame they’ve got everything right but the unsub’s sex, which is kind of the main criteria everyone’s focused on, ie. evildoer MALE types, not the ladies. On what grounds did they disqualify women from contention? It’s not like their usual crimes where the MO points to a reasonably fit man, because nature saw fit to give them increased strength [not to mention the ability to lose weight easier than women *pouts*]. I could probably kidnap a 5-year old kid, easy. Although…my ten year old cousin can beat me at arm wrestling, so maybe I shouldn’t be so cocky.
Boy’s bedroom.
Reid squints thoughtfully at the walls of the kid’s wall like he’s going to find a clue that will crack this case wide open amongst the colorful posters and toys. I’m just disturbed this kid [I should really learn his name, shouldn’t I?] apparently colors in the sky as pink. I mean, my friends and I all colored in blue clouds on white backgrounds because it was less time-consuming than coloring in a vast blue expanse. But what self-respecting boy shades his sky in PINK? Well, he’s got a basketball hoop on the back of his door so at least he’s got something more masculine going for him. 
Morgan comes in to gently chivvy Reid along but he takes opportunity to launch into a non-sequitur on how they’re only going to find the kid when his body’s dumped. His response is so immediate, it betrays the fact that he’s patently desperate for someone to act as his sounding-board and you get the feeling he probably would’ve stood around in that room all day, looking earnest and troubled til someone came along and he could unburden his angst upon them. All good and well, for I know how it is just sitting around and waiting for someone to notice you’re upset so you can spill your guts on what’s upsetting you, except I totally lose some goodwill towards him when he bristles at Morgan’s well-meaning advice that maybe he’d be better served by taking a break and letting this case go, since he keeps dreaming about murdered kids and it’s interfering with his ability to act professionally and god knows the team can’t take another member flaking out on them with mental health issues. [ELLE! GIDEON!]
He punk-asses his way out of the room, shoving Morgan aside with that enormous chip on his shoulder. Brat. Morgan could bench-press twice your weight, you might wanna show him some respect. And I don’t care how many times you shout ‘defensive mechanism’ at me, that kind of behavior is not cool. Picking on someone when you KNOW they're not going to defend themselves is just pathetic. I'm not saying that Reid's issues don't explain his behavior, but that he should be better than this.
Outpouring of grief at a funeral.
Oh, god, save me from the horror of Hotch’s polka-dot ties. 
I don’t know why I never noticed them before but UGH, they’re ghastly. Well, if it’s a case of ‘date me, date my polka-dots’, I suppose Em will have to grit her teeth and soldier on. Once they’re moved in together, she can arrange some sort of accident...
...like puppy-sitting for Reid and ‘accidentally’ letting the mutt rip ‘em to shreds.
[and heh, who's thinking what I'm thinking in that last pic?]
All of a sudden, the Music of Suspense kicks in as Amy’s sixth sense blazes to life. 
‘He’s here,’ she tells Hotch all wild-eyed and intense. A mother always knows…when the sick monster that steals and murders kids is nearby. Yah. Comes standard issue on the latest models. They’re still working on fine-tuning one that can sense useful info like sex and age and hair color, occupation, fashion sense and reading preferences, etc. Can’t make it too easy, you know, the cops have to earn their salary.
Reid starts tripping out, seeing the casket open and a kid- either the actual dead kid or the soon to be ID’d Riley Jenkins?- sits up to plaintively ask for help. At this point, I wanna get him drug tested. I mean, Hotch made a crack about getting GARCIA drug tested, when she wasn’t even at her bubbliest highpoint, why not test the team member with an actual history of drug abuse, huh?
Mama!Reid makes her first appearance this ep, chastising him, ‘Spencer. Pay attention’. Aww! She’s just so damn good, this actress! People who have never seen the show before could watch this scene and get that she’s his mother straightaway because her tone says it all. It is infused with maternal authority!
Little Spence is SO GODDAMN CUTE! *squishes him* Adorable little duckling, aww!
Morgan, being more forgiving than I, is still standing at Reid’s side [ship?] and quietly asks him what’s going on. Too bad he doesn’t ask Reid why he looks like he’s seen a ghost. ‘I’ve been here before,’ reveals a shaken Reid, an enigmatic statement that doesn’t explain why he looks as shattered as if he suddenly couldn’t remember all the elements of the periodic table or what pi is to a thousand places.
Finally, we get to see Emily- who’s eyeing a guy recording the casket on his mobile phone. I thought they said to look out for anyone more interested in the parents of the recent abductee rather than the service itself, but hey, profiling is nothing if not flexible and contradictory. The guy behind her is distracting me from the pretty- his jaw is too unreal to be true. Who has that kind of jaw outside of Halloween masks? Or like, Mr Potato Head? I must live a sheltered life indeed, to be so helplessly drawn to it, but…whoa.
Rossi and Emily casually mosey on down to the pervert, although he is way too easy if recording a closed casket is enough to get him off. I mean, wouldn’t flipping through a K-mart catalogue or watching little kids walking down the street be more stimulating than- a dead kid you can’t even see? Unless he’s a death fetishist. This I learnt from X-files. *nods wisely*
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(no subject)
Date: 2009-05-05 06:40 am (UTC)That made me lol - I occasionally think the same thing about Reid.
(no subject)
Date: 2009-08-17 01:23 am (UTC)Gonna snag it (: