Criminal Minds Reboot Might End Up Being Better Than the Original
When you ask Criminal Minds fans how they feel about the series reboot slated to premier Thanksgiving Day, the word most often used is "excited."
I too am excited, and that excitement is more or less twofold. From a psychological perspective, I'm enjoying what people have to say before they've watched the premiere and I'm also curious to hear their thoughts post-premiere.
One of the things folks are most excited about is that Criminal Minds: Evolution will not be tied to a major network. This means the show's producers are able to go further and dig deeper than when the original CM aired on CBS.
I do want to mention though, there are a lot of people who say they will not be watching because they don't want to pay to stream it.
Fans who are already paying for Netflix and/or Hulu have no desire to sign up for Disney+ or Paramount+ as well.
But I digress…
With most of the restrictions removed from both the language and the visual narrative, writers have virtual open-ended autonomy to explore human depravity. I wouldn't expect the scenes to be too gory, but the script itself and the language used can now be more graphic. It's often what we don't see that makes us feel the most uncomfortable.
Fans seem especially excited about Penelope returning. Smart, quirky, and easy on the eyes without even trying, Penelope is the glue that holds together the BAU. (BAU glue if you will.) When Rossi asks her in the series' trailer if she needs to use his login/password, the withering gaze she hits him with is an instant reminder of just how badass she is. No words needed. Just a look.
Something Penelope does say in the trailer resonated with me. The original series ended with the unit basically agreeing to never ask her back unless it was absolutely necessary. Of course, she returns, then comments how strange it is that one can so effortlessly fall back into a job such as hers. Boy, do I get that.
I never made a truly conscious decision to stop writing true crime. I guess I've just always wanted to learn something new and try different things. When asked to serve as a consultant for a popular true crime documentary series, I agreed without giving it too much thought. It was that easy. I think I understand what Penelope meant. Now if I can just learn how to do that withering gaze of hers.