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(S02E11) I don't want to call this the best Criminal Minds episode ever. There's only been 33 episodes thus far, so who knows what's in store. I'd like to say it was the best. But how about this instead:

This was far and away my personal favorite Criminal Minds episode yet. I can't say a bad thing about it.

It prominently featured Reid, had a great and well thought out case, and it marked the reunion of Anton Yelchin and Paget Brewster. Yelchin... man, this kid can act. Checking out his IMDb page, and I'm ticked that I missed an episode of Law and Order: Criminal Intent that he guested in a few months ago. If he turned in half the performance he had here then it would have certainly been worth watching.

(S02E10) Great episode. It felt a little bit generic (most crime dramas have already had the "terrorist" episode by now), but Criminal Minds still managed to put it's own twist on the story.

This was the first episode where we got to see what Agent Prentiss is all about. She's good. Very good. She seems to have an almost Dr. Reid level of knowledge. Not to mention literacy and fluency in most forms of Arabic. I love Paget Brewster, but it still feels like she's acting in the role of Beth Huffstodt, you know? I'm sure she'll adjust her acting style for this part. But right now I'm agreeing with what a few commenters said about her last week. She needs to tone it down a little. She's still a bit too enthused.

(S02E09) I was really looking forward to this episode because it introduced Paget Brewster's new character Agent Emily Prentiss. But she was barely in it! We got an introduction and she showed up at the end of the episode, but she had no involvement with the case at all. I guess we'll have to wait until next week to see what she's made of. She's got skills, that much we know. At the end of the episode, she impressed Hotch by profiling a case that had just been delivered to him. She knows what she's talking about. Here's the only thing I don't get. She claims her two parents (they're both US diplomats) didn't pull any strings to get her on the BAU team. But if that is indeed the case, then how come neither Hotch nor Gideon were notified of her appointment to the team? It doesn't make sense unless she got the job through unconventional means right? Regardless, she does belong and I'm looking forward to see if I like her better than Elle.

(S02E08) I feel like a traitor for saying this because I really did like her character, but I'm loving the show with Elle no longer around. Am I crazy or is it a lot better? JJ and Garcia are both getting move involved with the cases as a result and the overall tone of the show is lot more upbeat. Even jovial at some points. Despite the grim circumstances of this episode (a serial bomber), there was a lot of joking around. I liked it.

Morgan and Gideon had a laugh at the expense of Reid ("Ever talk to someone who wants to continually show you he's smarter than you?") and there were tons more sexual innuendos between Morgan and Garcia than usual. The phone conversations between those two are always funny, so the more the better. I'm just really digging the direction the show is taking and I hope it keeps up once Paget Brewster joins the cast in next week's episode.

(S02E06) So long Agent Greenaway. Elle is no longer employed with the Behavioral Analysis Unit. It was kind of slow though, wasn't it? I was hoping for a more, I don't know, intriguing or exciting close to Elle's story. Maybe she admits to killing in cold blood or does something to partially redeem herself? Nope. Instead, she blew off work, skipped a psych evaluation, and went to visit her father's grave. Lots of soul searching I guess. She was close to her father though. If you remember the season premiere, she spoke with him in her dream.

But at the end of the episode, it was clear her head was no longer in the game. I'm not sure that Hotch fired her but there was some sort of understanding between them. He didn't want her on the team anymore and she didn't want to be there. So she handed in her gun and badge. I wasn't a big fan of her attitude though. I didn't like that she felt as though the team wasn't behind her (not true) and the crack about Hotch never smiling (also not true) was just mean-spirited even though she delivered it sarcastically. I was initially against Lola Glaudini leaving the show and I'm not sure if the writers did it on purpose, but I feel good about it now. I'm looking forward to what Paget Brewster can bring to the table. Alrighty, on to the rest of the episode.

(S02E03) Numerous times when I've written about this show in the past I've stated that it's nothing special. It's just consistently good (I love it for that reason) and this episode was a prime example. The story wasn't all that intricate and most people with half a wit of sense probably figured out what the big twist was about ten minutes before it was revealed. I thought about that for a second though. Tons of episodes in the first season of Criminal Minds followed a similar formula. Well not really a formula, but a loose storyline with a predictable twist that just about anybody can deduce. But do you change the channel after you crack it? No! You still watch the last ten or fifteen minutes to get that satisfaction of being right. That's what Criminal Minds is. It's the ultimate "HA! I knew it!" show.

(S02E02) I have to admit... this episode was a bit of a letdown. I just figured that they'd keep the pace going for at least a couple episodes, especially after such a big return last week. Not the case. We're back into the normal swing, and as much as I love this show, I wanted more. I was hoping we'd get some story on the repercussions of what The Fisher King did. I've read a few things though, and I think we're going to get them, but not in the way that many people would expect.

(S02E01) I really like this show and I think CBS was smart to give it a second season. It's nothing special, just remarkably consistent in the sense that at the end of the episode I always feel satisfied. Like I didn't waste my time by watching the whole hour. Unlike say any of the three Law and Order series. I've always found those shows to be a crap shoot. Sometimes they're good (really good), but more often than not... they're crap. With Criminal Minds, I dunno... it's like Won-Ton soup. You just can't go wrong.

(S01E22) Not gonna lie. Kind of disappointing. I thought last week's episode (the one with the mole) was way better, and this had a cliffhanger! This does, however, wrap up the first season of Criminal Minds. Twenty-two episodes have come and gone, but the way they left it off... I'm not all that excited about what happens next. I mean I want know, but I'm not on the edge of my seat.

Everyone has been working hard at the BAU, so it's vacation time. The whole team takes two weeks off except JJ and Garcia. Morgan and Elle head south to Jamaica and Hotch is spending time with his family. Gideon retreats to his cabin in the woods while Reid visits his mother (she's schizophrenic... I don't think we knew that). So everyone is relaxing until The Fisher King shows up [insert sinister laughter here].

(S01E21) Best episode of the season. Absolutely spectacular. It's funny, too. Just a couple of days ago, a friend of mine and I were talking about how this show hadn't done a "mole" episode yet. Every FBI/CIA/spy show has one of those episodes when they have to root out a traitor in their own ranks, and this show hadn't done one yet. Well, we got it and it was great. Well written, logical twists. It made you think and I like it when shows do that.

Of course, being network television, you didn't have to think too hard. Even a casual TV viewer should have been able to pick the CIA Operations Director (Bruno?) right from the get-go. But the writers threw in a twist right at the end to throw you off and that was a nice touch because I feel like other shows wouldn't have taken the time to do that.

(S01E20) Another entertaining episode. I think I've said it before: this isn't the best show on TV, but it always holds my attention for the full hour. I was disappointed that the storyline from last week involving Hotch's personal life was dropped, but I'm still pretty sure that it will play a big role in the final episodes.

This episode was a little different though. The team was called in to find a serial killer on the run. The odd thing about it was that the local authorities knew who the guy was. Usually the BAU team is brought in when nothing is known other than people are being murdered. It was a nice change of pace and it allowed the teams to pair up and address different parts of the case.

(S01E19) This wasn't the most engaging episode, but I really liked what it set up for the remainder of the season. I may be reading into it too much but I think we have a lot in store for Hotch before the season finale.

Before I get to that, may as well talk about the case a little. The team had to go to Mexico to help hunt down a rapist/murderer that the local authorities were convinced didn't even exist. But it worked out just fine because everyone they ran into from the lowliest village peasant to the District Attorney General was bi-lingual. That always makes it easy when you're trying to find a man dressed like a woman in a foreign country.

Wow, I loved this episode. It didn't even feel like I was watching Criminal Minds. It was more like some kind of pseudo-Melrose Place with lots of FBI agents.

This was the second time this season an episode has prominently featured Dr. Reid in the storyline. He's by far the most interesting character in the show and I hope this trend of making him the focus continues. This guy is the king of the nerds right now. He works for the FBI and he gets to make out with hot, young Hollywood starlets. I'd like to shake his hand.

Wow, talk about an episode that makes you question your own beliefs. Hands downs, this was the best (and most thought provoking) cases that the BAU team has handled this entire season.

The team is brought in after an NYC serial killer has claimed three victims but problems arise when no connection between the deceased is found. Is he just killing people at random with no real pre-meditation? Gideon compared him to the Zodiac Killer, who had no pattern to his murders and wasn't caught for almost thirty years. Now that's just plain ol' scary when you think about it.

I really like this show but I've been thinking about it. It's not that great. It's not bad either. It's just consistently entertaining. A good way to relax for an hour and just let the glow of the TV wash over you.

I don't think the acting is that great either. None of the performances stand out for me but as an ensemble - it's one of the best on TV. The whole team works so well together. I guess what I'm trying to say is that Criminal Minds is the best mediocre show out there and I love it for that sole reason.