Best Criminal Minds Episodes: Criminal Minds is one of the best mystery-solving television series that you can watch right now. The critically acclaimed multi-award-winning police procedural series began in 2005 and concluded its fifteen seasons run in February 2020. Criminal Minds follows a group of criminal profilers working at the Behavioral Analysis Unit of the FBI. The profiling team uses behavioral analysis to investigate crimes and find the perpetrators.
The sequence has a complete of 324 episodes with a brand new case in each episode. So for many who haven’t watched the present but, there may be plenty of catching as much as do! However in case you have began the present from the center, you possibly can end the sequence and return to the beginning with out worrying about continuity. Nonetheless, if you’re the type of viewer who needs to look at the most effective episodes of the lot, you’ll undoubtedly like this checklist of the most effective episodes of Prison Minds.
Amplification (S4E24)
“Amplification” is a Season 4 Criminal Minds episode and features a terrorist and serial killer by the identify of Chad Brown. The unsub on this episode needed to do one factor — he needed to indicate the folks of America how weak the county was to a terrorist assault, and to do that, he turned a homegrown terrorist who carried out an anthrax assault. What hits residence right here is that Reid is contaminated with anthrax and tries to assist discover the true unsub from quarantine earlier than he dies. Fortunately, there was an antidote.
True Genius (S7E11)
“True Genius” is a Reid-centric Criminal Minds episode. This has the BAU head to San Francisco after they imagine that the Zodiac Killer may need returned years later. In fact, this wasn’t the true Zodiac Killer, however as a substitute, a toddler prodigy named Caleb, who was fascinated with the unique murders the police by no means solved. As a prodigy, this put him in Reid’s wheelhouse, and the episode had him working laborious to recapture the arrogance he misplaced when he believes he hasn’t lived as much as his personal expectations in life.
Zugzwang (S8E12)
“Zugzwang” is a Season 8 episode and is a large Reid episode as a stalker abducts his girlfriend, and it’s as much as the BAU crew to search out and save her earlier than it’s too late. The unsub right here was very twisted, because it was a lady named Diane, performed by Buffy the Vampire Slayer actress Michelle Trachtenberg. Diane was somebody that broken Reid greater than virtually anybody when she killed herself and Reid’s girlfriend Maeve on the identical time, leaving him damaged for many of the remainder of the season.
Date Evening (S15E6)
Date Evening is without doubt one of the greatest episodes of the ultimate season of Prison Minds. This episode brings again one of the memorable unsubs for her third season in Cat Adams, performed by Aubrey Plaza. She first appeared as a hitwoman that Reid helped convey down. She returned when she arrange an elaborate plan to border Reid and ship him to jail. This episode has her getting ready for her execution, however she has yet another transfer, as she calls for one date with Reid earlier than she dies and has his girlfriend’s father and sister kidnapped to drive this to occur.
Believer (S13E22)
In Season 13, the episode “Believer” was the season finale and the 299th episode of Prison Minds. The unsub right here is known as The Strangler, somebody a former profiler believes the crew missed and had been monitoring since he give up the FBI. The Strangler is the serial killer and cult chief who focused Reid alongside along with his followers, a spin-off group from Benjamin Cyrus’ outdated cult that the BAU helped convey down a decade earlier. Reid has to decide on between serving to a double agent within the group or doing nothing and permitting Garcia to die.
Mosley Lane (S5E16)
One facet of crime dramas that may flip folks off is plenty of the instances contain kids. A point in Criminal Minds’ favor is that it at all times handles these tales delicately, simply because the writers did with “Mosley Lane.”
The episode noticed JJ visited by the mom of a lacking little one when a brand new, and really related case, turned public information. JJ realized that there was a definite chance that the lady’s son was nonetheless being held. The storyline concerned a number of youngsters being raised as a “household” by their kidnappers. It was one about hope for the households of lacking folks.
Mr. Scratch (S10E21)
Whereas Prison Minds sometimes explores the psychology of serial killers, this episode went deeper into the ability of suggestion. Three totally different “killers” had been all motivated to commit the acts on account of another person.
The Criminal Minds villain, who became known as Mr. Scratch, would go on to focus on the group of FBI detectives, showing in three extra seasons of the present. This specific episode set his escape, in addition to the escape of much more serial killers, in movement for an extended story arc.
Entropy (S11E11)
Spencer Reid tends to be the topic of hostage conditions lots, however that’s probably as a result of he’s a fan favourite, and he’s the character probably to speak his manner out of a state of affairs. In “Entropy,” he needed to do greater than that; he needed to outsmart an murderer.
The episode started permitting followers to suppose Reid was on a blind date. In actuality, he was pretending to be a consumer of an murderer, making an attempt to catch her. Aubrey Plaza because the “Black Widow” murderer was an ideal visitor star, and one whose mind was a match for Reid.
The Tall Man (S14E5)
It’s at all times attention-grabbing when an episode is much less concerning the case at hand and extra about delving into the backstory of a important character. On this case, it’s JJ.
When two folks go lacking within the woods, and a 3rd is discovered, the crew investigates a small city ghost story. With a purpose to higher assist with the case, JJ goes residence to her personal small city the place her huge sister died when she was 11. That facet of JJ’s previous was explored early within the sequence, however this episode supplied extra particulars, fleshing out the character a bit for the followers.
Lauren (S6E18)
This episode was purported to be the start of the tip for Emily Prentiss. Revealing her job earlier than she joined the BAU, the episode was the type of adrenaline-fueled experience that almost all crime dramas solely dream of reaching.
In it, the crew has to band collectively when Prentiss goes lacking. As they understand she’s monitoring a harmful enemy from her time undercover as a lady named Lauren, additionally they understand how little they learn about her previous. A few of the crew offers with it higher than others. Although this mission was purported to culminate in her demise, fan outrage noticed it as a fakeout later within the sequence. It didn’t reduce the emotional punch.
The Replicator (S8E24)
The primary villain of the eighth season of Prison Minds was none aside from Mark Hamill who portrayed John Curtis, often known as The Replicator. He was an attention-grabbing villain since he was a former FBI particular agent with a genius-level IQ who changed into a serial killer. In season 8, he began to create copycat crimes of instances the BAU solved previously.
There have been few deaths of the primary Prison Minds characters, however that modified within the episode “The Replicator” when Curtis killed BAU Part Chief Erin Strauss as revenge when he was left to take the blame on an older case. This season finale featured an enormous loss, an ideal climactic scene, and it was an ideal goodbye for the season.
Minimal Loss (S4E3)
“Minimal Loss” was simply the third episode of the fourth season of Prison Minds, nevertheless it ended up being essential, and it even performed an enormous position in arguably among the finest episodes of the whole sequence with “300” over 10 years later. The episode pulled its inspiration from the 1993 Waco standoff with David Koresh.
Luke Perry starred within the episode as Benjamin Cyrus, the chief of a cult who goes on the defensive when the FBI is available in to analyze claims of kid abuse on the compound. The episode noticed Prentiss and Reid captured contained in the compound when a gun battle begins between legislation enforcement and the cult members, and the tip is twisted when the victims take the aspect of Cyrus within the battle.
Mayhem (S4E1)
“Mayhem” is the season 4 premiere because the BAU investigates the bombing of an SUV in New York Metropolis that was carrying a member of the crew. This explosion occurred within the season 3 finale, so it had lots to reside as much as since followers needed to wait until season 4 to study if somebody they beloved died. It lived as much as expectations, and no extra.
This episode was not a lot of a search and rescue because it was a nail-biting thriller, with Hotch and NY particular agent Kate Joiner compelled to maintain first responders away after they had been injured within the bombing as a result of the attackers focused first responders. This additionally began a degree of rigidity between Hotch and Derek that opened the season on a really excessive be aware.
Penelope (S3E9)
“Penelope” was a tough watch as a result of probably probably the most beloved character on Prison Minds, Garcia, fought for her life after she was the goal of the brand new unsub. It was unhappy and horrifying since she was the one who sees the great in folks, and it was her happiness at going out on a date solely to finish up shot by a serial killer that damage her virtually as a lot because the accidents that nearly took her life. Everybody who watches Prison Minds is aware of the shut brother-sister styled relationship between Derek and Garcia, so watching him attempt to include his fury as he hunted down the unsub was nice.
Broken (S3E14)
“Broken” is a Rossi-centric episode and follows him as he units out to lastly clear up a case that haunted him for 20 years. Somebody killed a pair, leaving their three kids with out dad and mom, and the homicide went unsolved for 20 years. By means of the years, Rossi continued to examine in on the children and made positive that they had all the pieces they wanted.
It was the remorse from this unsolved case that introduced Rossi again to the BAU to start with. On this episode, the crew is known as in to analyze the same case, and Rossi finally will get a result in his chilly case. He then sadly learns his years of help has repeatedly reminded the children of their dad and mom’ unsolved homicide. In a very touching second, Rossi lastly captures the killer and lets the children know to allow them to lastly have closure.
300 (S14E1)
10 years after the BAU stopped a cult chief named Benjamin Cyrus, his followers returned for revenge within the three hundredth Prison Minds episode. They now adopted a brand new cult chief named Benjamin David Merna who restarted it with certainly one of Cyrus’ wives. He was often known as The Strangler—a serial killer with 299 victims.
On this episode, The Believers kidnap Reid and Garcia, and that is made even worse when the cult truly has members inside the FBI. The plan was for Reid to be the three hundredth sufferer to make some extent. As a three hundredth episode, this had all of it, from callbacks to the earlier 299 episodes to a thriller that had its origins over 10 years earlier than.
Revelations (S2E15)
Spencer Reid is without doubt one of the most attention-grabbing characters on Prison Minds, an excellent younger man who has bother coping with his personal insecurities and whose personal mom is institutionalized for paranoid schizophrenia. A lot of his neuroses are explored in “Revelations” in season 2 when he’s captured by split-personality serial killer Tobias Hankel.
The BAU frantically tries to search out Reid when a reside feed of Hankel abusing the agent airs. In the meantime, Reid is drugged and is flashing again to his childhood. This episode noticed Reid compelled to kill his captor, realizing that contained in the a number of personalities was somebody who wanted assist and this modified him for a very long time.
The Fisher King (S2E1)
The Fisher King was a two-part case, the season finale of season 1 and the season premiere of season 2. The case surrounded a man named Randall Garner who was badly burned in a hearth that took virtually his complete household and ended up institutionalized on the identical asylum that housed Reid’s mom Diana. Regardless of his clear psychological sickness, he was launched and set his sights on Reid and his companions within the BAU. By means of season 1, he stalks the BAU members after which begins to torment them. This ends with him taking pictures Elle as a season-ending cliffhanger. Elle lives, and it’s Reid who lastly finds Garner, who can solely watch because the killer blows himself up.
100 (S5E9)
Essentially the most demented, harmful, and hated villain in Prison Minds historical past is definitely The Reaper. Portrayed by C. Thomas Howell, had killed 20 folks and was the unsub on the first-ever case that Hotch labored as a BAU senior. No leads got here, and The Reaper stopped killing. 11 years later, the lead investigator within the case known as Hotch and mentioned that he was dying and believed The Reaper would begin killing once more. It was true.
By means of season 4 and 5, The Reaper made Hotch’s life a dwelling hell. This began in “Omnivore” and launched one of many greatest and greatest instances in Prison Minds historical past. It resulted in “100” and resulted in one of the horrifying moments within the present’s historical past when the crew needed to reply for Hotch killing The Reaper after he murdered his ex-wife Haley.
Masterpiece (S4E8)
Jason Alexander turned in one of the chilling and despicable villains in Prison Minds historical past. He was Henry Grace, a narcissistic serial killer who believed he was born to be a grasp killer. Rossi captured his brother William, one other serial killer, and this ruined Henry’s life, which made Rossi somebody he needed to destroy and “Masterpiece” gave him the prospect.
He admits to killing seven lacking girls the BAU had been searching and that there have been 5 others, together with three kids, that might die in the event that they did not discover them and one would die each two hours in the event that they did not. The thrilling conclusion noticed Rossi interrogating Henry and listening to in horror that his complete BAU crew died in a lure Henry laid. Nonetheless, the twist was they knew what he was doing and saved everybody with no casualties, and Rossi chillingly tells Henry he shall be there after they execute him for the opposite murders.
