Joys of Procedural Dramas

So, I’m really into…watching…uh, police procedural dramas. Right? I think this is something that umm, I learned… not learned, but I developed a taste for, uh, because of, uh, my grandfather and my dad. Cause we used to watch shows, umm, like NYPD Blue and Law and Order, umm as a family. That was our, we would all sit down to dinner and then we would turn on the tv and we’d all watch and we’d talk about it and, umm, it would provoke conversations during dinner, uh. But it was something that we all enjoyed watching, and commenting on, and talking about.

And, so now I find myself watching shows, umm, things like Blue Bloods, and, uh, NCIS…SSSSes all of them, uh, and the CSI,  uh, Franchise as well, and I…the thing that I love about it…is. Ooo! Criminal Minds too. Oh my gosh!  Criminal Minds fan. And…the thing I love about it is the different dynamics that the different teams have. And I always think, uh, you know, cause as an actor you’re always like “oh what type of a show would I want to be on?” and “What would I wanna do?” I would, I would love to be part of a team like that. Like a team-focused show. Because I think…I just find it so interesting. All of the different shows have different team dynamics, but each one is so interesting. Like I just…I don’t know what it is about them that just draws me in. Cause then I wanna see…I watch them more for all of the different team dynamics and how they interact with each other and, and how the relationships change and build and…you know. It’s just interesting. And to see like the little side interactions that get picked up on by…and I don’t know if those are written in, I don’t know if it’s things that develop naturally. I don’t know, but I find it super entertaining. And I love to tear it apart and…umm…sorry the cat’s doing weird things…umm. But I like to tear it apart and analyze it and, so I re-watch thin…I’m a huge re-watcher. Like I will watch things 12 times to look at different pieces of it. My parents know this. But, yeah, I just, I love it and I, I love to watch those. But then, the problem with that is that I then get sucked in and like watch, binge-watch even when I should be sleeping. Problem. So, that’s probably what I’m gonna do right now. Is I’m gonna go watch some more NCIS: Los Angeles, because that’s the show I’m hooked on right now. So, have a good day, umm, and I will see you all tomorrow.

Criminal Minds Season 2

Transcript of Video

So, Criminal Minds Season 2. Umm, they basically continue to do what they did in Season 1. Uh, except the writers kind of hit their stride. It’s, you know, everything that happened in Season 1 takes off running in Season 2. Umm, like I said, uh, before, we ended with a cliff hanger in Season 1 and Season 2 picks right up. Umm, you have, umm,  the conclusion of Elle getting shot, and she turns out fine, she, she’s saved, and she’s good to go, and they end up saving the girl, and everything’s fine, umm, and we move on!

But, um, it’s a great season, uh. The thing,  neat thing about Season 2 of Criminal Minds is that we get a chance to look deeper at each of the characters. Umm, there’s so many great episodes. And in each episode sort of takes a look at one of the characters. Umm. It’s, there’s focuses on, on everybody’s past. And, and uh, you, you delve into, uh, everybody, you learn a little bit more.

We do have, umm, there’s some turnover.  Uhh, The character of Elle does end up leaving, uh, the show after I think season… episode 6. Umm, so after her getting shot, she, uh, has a reaction to a case, umm,  where there’s, uh, a rapist, who, umm, is going after women in their own home and since she was shot in her own house, she reacts to that and she, umm, ends up killing the guy? Uh, Which the audience knows, but, umm, the team doesn’t know. So there’s this whole concept of, you know, are you guilty if no one else knows that you are? And taking your word over somebody else’s? It’s an interesting look at guilt and, umm, you know, can you live with what you’ve done, um, based on your reasoning and, and can you reason away something like that? And, uh, Hotch figures it out and basically calls her out and says, you know, here are your choices. She, uh, chooses to leave the BAU, um, and the FBI. And, uh, and so then we get the entrance of, uh, Emily Prentiss and, she uh,  she’s a great character. She’s a great addition to the team. Umm, it’s a new dynamic with a new character, that’s always neat. Umm, so Emily comes in and she starts off running. Uh, she’s kind of a neat character. She’s the daughter of, um, an Ambassador, so she’s grown up in another country, she, she knows some other languages. Umm, and uh, so she’s able to do some translation right away, which is a really interesting aspect to her character. She, umm, she’s able to, to profile different, people from different cultures, because she has learned those different cultures because of being an Ambassador…s, umm, daughter. And, uh, so yeah, so that’s, you know, with the introduction of Emily, it’s kind of a neat, new dynamic to the team. Umm, and she’s, she’s a firecracker, so it’s kind of fun. Uh, she’s a fun addition. It was a good, a good change. A sad loss cause Elle was a great character, but, um, but a good change there.

Umm, another really great episode is, uh, one that focuses on, on Derek Morgan. Umm, It’s called “Profiler, Profiled”. Where the team HAS to come in and, and profile Derek cause he ends up being the, umm, suspect in a murder case. And, uh, it turns out that, umm, he was abused in his childhood. Umm, and he, you know, it’s something he’s kept secret, and he didn’t want anyone to find out, he wasn’t comfortable sharing. And, and um, they have to find out and they delve into because the man who abused him is killing people who are, children who are trying to help him. And uh, it’s, it’s a powerful, powerful episode, and a great character study of Derek, and a great, umm, look at the team’s dynamic. You see them all really come together as the family, as a family unit. Umm, They’re supporting of each other and, and their pain for him, and, and, their yearning to help him, and, and, fear for him, and, and his reluctance to let them help. But then at the same time, you know, when he does break down, uh, he has the support and the love from them. So it’s kind of a neat thing there. Umm.

Another, uh, there’s a two part episode with Reid, where, uh, uh, umm. It’s called, the first one is “The Big Game” and then the second one is “Revelations”. Which is a beautiful, uh beautiful, beautiful set of episodes. Uh, Reid is kidnapped by umm, an unsub and he’s tortured and, uh, both mentally and physically. And he’s, uh, given Dilaudid which causes him to have an issue with addiction, umm, which plays out through some following episodes. But it’s just, augh, it’s heartbreaking to watch. And again, it’s that team dynamic of, of watching this, this team come together and, and, you know, be horrified at the fact that they’ve possibly lost one of their team mates, and, you know, trying to find him, and trying to mentally send out vibes to support him and keep alive and keep him strong. Cause the, umm, they’re able to see, umm. The character is, uh, the unsub is keeping him and videoing him and sending it to them wirelessly. So, you know, they’re able to see what’s going on and, everything that they’re doing to him, and, and it’s just so painful. And, they can’t help him and they’re trying to get to him and figure out where he is and he’s sending them clues without giving it away. And it’s just, augh! It’s a great, it’s a great episode and set of episodes, and it’s, it’s just so hard to watch, but it’s so fantastic. Umm, so, it’s a neat, it’s a neat set up for that.

Umm, and then of course there’s, uh, the end of the season, which…. The great thing about Criminal Minds is they’ll have something happen, umm, in one episode and then that, they don’t let you forget it. They’ll carry things throughout all of the seasons. They, once they introduce something, it, it will come back, they don’t, umm,  it’s not a one episode one off. Umm, you know,  if they introduce a character, you’ll see that character possibly again. If you, umm, you know, if you have something happen to one of the team members it will return and it’ll affect the way that they do their job throughout the rest of the series. You know, it’s, it’s this great. The writers are fantastic! I can’t get over, umm, how crazy they are, cause they, it’s all so ridiculous that it, I don’t, I don’t even know, it just drives me nuts, but umm, how amazing it is. 

But, so, you have an episode in the begi, in the early part of the season where Gideon is pretty much going head to head with, uh, this serial killer in an episode called “No Way Out”. And his name is Frank. And, uh, Gideon, Gideon is, can’t believe this guy, he, this is the craziest thing ever. And, umm, at the end of the series Frank comes back, cause Frank got away. They weren’t able to capture him. And, uh, so Frank comes back at the end of the season, and starts trying to kill off, umm, people that the team has saved, that we’ve seen throughout the first two seasons. And, and it’s just horrifying and it finally breaks Gideon. And, you know, at the end of the season Frank commits suicide and , and um, you know Gideon is just, is shattered and we don’t know what’s going to happen. And that’s where the season ends. And it was like this…It’s not so much a cliffhanger in this, in this season, but, oh, it’s just like a total degradation of everything that, you know this, the leader that we’ve seen through these two seasons and the whole team just kind of is like; “whoa, we don’t know what to do, and we don’t know where to go”. And, oh my gosh, I mean, it’s just, it’s this huge, blaugh moment.  Umm, but yeah, it’s a great season. Season 2 is fantastic and it just leads off into the rest of the series. Because you now have, um, you know, new blood with Emily Prentiss. You have, umm, you know, great, these great, uh insights into these characters and you’ve grown to love them even more. And it, it just takes off from there. So that’s it on that. Enjoy! See ya later!

Review Criminal Minds Season 1

Transcript of Video

I’ve just re-watched Criminal Minds Season 1, which, I love this show, um, I love everything about it. So this is gonna be kind of a rave vs. umm, anything critical really to say about the show. Umm. I think that, uh,  most television shows, what they try to do in their first season is really establish their show. It’s, uh, their introduction to their audience, what their planning to do for their…uh, their concept. What, umm, all their characters are about and sort of just set up their, umm, their main concept. What they’re going to do show to show, what they’re going to do season to season. Sort of give you,…get you hooked and get you entrapped into what they’re doing. I think what Criminal Minds did really well with their first season is, umm, that they sucked you in right away and they did all of those things within like the first episode. You, you knew exactly what it was about, you knew exactly the relationships between all of these great characters. Um, You got to learn a little bit about each of the characters, even in that first show. You knew exactly who did what: umm, You knew that Reid was this great genius, crazy genius. You knew that Gideon was kind of  the leader of the team, but that he was getting tired and, and umm, had dealt with a lot and had seen a lot in his career. You knew that Hotch was kind of the one who held everybody together. Umm. JJ is uh, not introduced in the first episode I don’t think, umm, but you, when you see her later her role is introduced right away and you know who she is. Umm, Elle is the, is the newbie and the only girl, and she deals with sex crimes, and, and her, umm, she’s a go-getter, and, and impatient, and she wants to, to get in there and, and do things and get them done, and umm, you know, all of those things. And, and Derek is kind of the, he’s the, he’s obsessional crimes? But he also is the more psychological one? I think. Umm, he kind of puts himself in the place of the criminal. Umm, he sort of is, is the actor outer, if you would say. Umm. He, he goes in and puts himself in the place of the criminal, and, and figures out how they get in and how they were able to pull in off, um, physically, um, he, he’s the one who really gets in there and does it. Umm, He’s also the first one through the door, uh, when they’re breaking in to, to get the person, you know, at the end, when they’re catching the criminal. He’s the, he’s the physical one, he’s the one who’s in there getting them and pulling his gun and fighting and all of that. So…

You kind of get to see that right at the beginning and umm, all of their roles are set, and you know you have Garcia, uh, a couple episodes in. Even though she’s not umm, in the Main Titles, umm, until Season 2, but, uh, she’s always under the, umm, “Also Starring” in the, in the titles. Umm, Kirsten Vangsness, who is fantastic, she’s an amazing actress, and, uh, definitely, definitely a great character. Umm, and You know, which is why they kept  her on and brought, kept bringing her back I think. Umm, but the, the thing that I love about procedural crime shows and again, that Criminal Minds does really well, especially in this first season, is, um, that they… While they’re you know, you have your “Crime of the”…”Crime of the Week”: Umm, this is you know, every, every episode you’re dealing with one criminal. You have something going on that they need to solve and they have to figure out this problem. Umm. You also have the continuing story lines of the relationships between these characters that you’ve come to get to know and get to love and… Criminal Minds uh, they, they create this family unit, umm. Because the BAU is such a specialized unit in the FBI that you kind of learn about through this show. Umm, and they, from the get go, from episode 1, um, you, you see that they, they really care about each other and that they, they know all of their roles, but they also know each other. And they learn how to, they’re profilers, so you know, you profile each other. They kind of have this rule, umm, that you learn about throughout the season that they don’t really profile each other, but at the same time they do. Umm, they kind, they have each other’s backs, and when something’s wrong they know, and they check in with each other, and they, they keep each other safe and they keep each other healthy, and they, you know, they’re just there for each other to, to back each other up and when something’s bugging someone they, you know whoever is best suited to help them deal with it, helps them deal with it. Umm, it’s kind of a great family unit and I think that that’s something that’s really, really important and really, really neat about those crime dramas. And it’s, it’s one of those really cool things that, that happens in this type of show especially, that, umm, doesn’t happen in a lot of, umm, other shows that, that are out there. And, uh, Criminal Minds is just so good at it. Even, even in this first season, umm, as they’re building their foundation of , of what their show is about, they, they have this core family unit of the team and, and you know it’s all about that. Umm.

But even in this first season where they’re, they’re creating their identity they have these great stand out episodes. And, one of the great things about going back and watching this season for the second time, or I think it’s like my fourth or fifth time, but watching it again, is, is realizing “oh my goodness, that was season one”. Some of the great episodes where, umm, you know, there are sensational storylines, of you know, revelations about characters, and, and things that just happen. Uh. The different storylines that you’re, you’re thinking “how could they have done that on television, in their first season, and, you know, been able to get away with it?” Umm, things like, there’s an episode called “Riding the Lightening”, where it’s a husband and wife serial killer who killed 12 young girls and are on death row. And so the team goes in to uh, the jail to interview them. And it’s,  it’s this great in depth look at the minds of serial killers and how they work. And it’s, it’s such a great episode that looks at, you know, guilt and, and the idea of, of serial killers and looking at them and that type of an episode and it’s, and it’s crazy good. Umm, the episode “The Fox” is a really good one. Umm, It’s kinda creepy also. There’s a serial killer who uh, basically kidnaps families in their own house. Kind of a creepy episode, but it’s done really well. Umm, “Derailed” is another really good one that’s in season one. Umm, has a really, kind of a spotlight on Elle and Reid as characters, and you learn a little bit more about each of them separately. 

Umm, and then of course, just, uh, this show does a really great job of ending their seasons with these horrible cliff hangers. Where something happens, umm, and it’s carried over, you know, into the next season where you don’t know what has happened until the season starts the next year and they’re incredibly good at it. And, umm season one, I’m gonna, watch out for spoilers, uh gonna tell you, that uh, season one starts with the episode of um, where the character of Elle is umm, shot at the very end and uh, and you don’t know if she’s alive, you don’t know if she’s dead, you don’t know what’s going on and it’s crazy and scary and… They’re dealing with a serial killer who, or this psychopath who knows everything about them and they’re, where they’re at and who they are, and , uh, knows where they’re going on vacation, it’s crazy, creepy good and, and it’s just all kind of scary. Umm, And, uh, Sorry, my comp, my webcam is being all weird. Umm, but it’s,  it’s a really good, good season. Umm. And it’s a great start to an incredible run. So, if you haven’t seen it you should check it out. And uh, yeah, that’s about it, I think that’s all I have to say. Sorry it’s been a little break in videos here, so this one’s a little longer than normal, but, talk to you later.