Poison (18 Jan. 2006)

The apparent spiking of citizens of a town in New Jersey, puts the BAU on the trail of a poisoner who may not be done.

Director:

Thomas J. Wright

Writers:

Jeff Davis (creator), Aaron Zelman

Stars:

Mandy Patinkin, Thomas Gibson, Lola Glaudini

Cast

Episode credited cast:
Mandy Patinkin	...	Jason Gideon
Thomas Gibson	...	Aaron Hotchner
Lola Glaudini	...	Elle Greenaway
Shemar Moore	...	Derek Morgan
Matthew Gray Gubler	...	Dr. Spencer Reid
A.J. Cook	...	Jennifer Jareau
Kirsten Vangsness	...	Penelope Garcia
Nestor Serrano	...	Detective Hanover
Peter Mackenzie	...	Jack Fisher
Nick Jameson	...	Edward Hill
Braeden Lemasters	...	Eric Fisher
James Bartz	...	Brian Devons
Fred Ochs	...	Doctor
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Matt T. Baker	...	Danny Wallace
Bill Doyle	...	Uniform Cop

Storyline

In Beachwood, NJ, Eric Fisher's recently divorced father, high-school teacher Jack Fisher, goes berserk while driving the boy back to his adulterous ex. He even hurts him under influence of rohypnol-poisoned LSD which has also affected other users. The team profiles an elaborate revenge plot by a clever social outcast with substance access.

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Plot Keywords:

lsd | beachwood new jersey | poison | titus lucretius carus quotation | abuse | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 January 2006 (Canada)

Filming Locations:

Quixote Studios Griffith Park - 4585 Electronics Place, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

CBS Paramount Network Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

42 min 42 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

Both JJ and the nurse at the ER use the term "psychosomatic" to refer to cases of food poisoning that might not be real. The term they should have used was "psychogenic," which is often confused with "psychosomatic." The term "psychogenic" is interchangeable with "functional," which means that the patient believes that signs and symptoms are genuine, but the affected anatomy and/or physiology are "functioning" normally. Colloquially, most people refer to this type of illness as "being all in your head." The term "psychosomatic" refers to signs and symptoms of illness that may have had their origin in psychological trauma or belief of some sort but then begin to manifest as true physical signs of illness or disease.

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Quotes

Jason Gideon: Confucius warned us "Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves."

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Soundtracks

"Wishful Thinking"
by Wilco

User Reviews

Not bad

Now this episode of "Criminal Minds" I actually enjoyed. It wasn't extremely gripping or thought-provoking like some other television shows, but I found myself interested enough and it followed along nicely.

It started by showing the tragic consequences of one man's hallucination. Several others had similar symptoms and testing showed they had all been poisoned. There was no threatening letter or ransom letter. The F.B.I. profilers were called in to try and determine the motive and criminal.

I actually found this episode had some nice scenes. The plot went along nicely enough, it felt less stereotypical and preachy than the other episodes I have seen. I also noticed that there was some nice editing (well, jump-cuts used appropriately, which always make me feel cheerful, although they did start to overuse them towards the end) and music, which generally made it all more exciting. Unfortunately, the criminal himself didn't seem particularly interesting nor believable - typical motive which they figured out, but his character just didn't seem to ring true. Having said that, I don't know any psychopathic revenge poisoners, so I'm probably not the best person to judge.

Overall, quite a good episode.