- After being inactive for 10 years, Hotch's first BAU case, an elusive serial killer known as the Reaper, starts killing again.
- The BAU is assigned to work on an old case, which was Hotch's first as lead investigator for the BAU, namely that of the Boston Reaper. The case was originally closed ten years ago by Tom Shaunessy, the lead Boston police detective working on the case. When the case officially closed, the killings stopped. With Shaunessy now on his deathbed, he discloses to Hotch the reasons for closing the case. After Shaunessy's death, the killings once again begin. Hotch is taking this case personally as, although he had thought and worked on his own on the case in the intervening years, he feels he could have stopped the Reaper during this time which may have prevented these recent deaths. Beyond the random persons chosen as the murder victims, the one person who may be in danger as a target of the Reaper is George Foyet, the only known person who survived the Reaper's murder attempt ten years earlier. One other person who may provide a symbiotic benefit to the BAU in finding the Reaper this time is Ray Colson, a reporter who wrote an official biography on the Reaper.—Huggo
- On his dying night, Hotch's old superior, Tom Shaunessy, confesses to him that he made a secret agreement with an elusive, unidentified serial killer operating in Boston known as the Reaper, that the authorities would call off their manhunt for him in exchange for him to stop killing until one of them died. The same night, Shaunessy dies, and the Reaper claims two more victims. Hotch then gathers the team and heads to Boston to catch him once and for all.—J. Rieper
- A sweater-clad Hotch (so you know he's off duty) visits an old colleague in South Boston. The man, Tom Shaunessy, is dying. He has summoned Hotch to his death bed to share some disturbing news. Ten years ago, Tom made a deal with a serial killer called the Reaper: Stop hunting humans and well stop hunting you. Unfortunately, the contract will expire when Tom does. Sure enough, Tom doesn't last through the night -- and the Reaper immediately reappears, brutally murdering a young couple.
The team quickly boards the private jet to Boston. They arrive on the crime scene to find Sergeant Mike O'Mara tell the press that the unsub is a copycat killer. "It's not a copycat, Mike," Hotch explains. He then notices that the young male victim is wearing eyeglasses despite the fact that his driver's license reads "no corrective lenses needed." So to whom do the glasses belong? Hotch recalls that the only person to survive a Reaper attack -- a man named George Foyet -- had similar frames go missing in 1998. "Foyet could be in danger," Hotch surmises.
Outside the police station, Hotch discovers a reporter named Roy Colson sniffing around the case. "The minute I have something I can say, I'll call you," Hotch assures the nosy news gatherer. The Reaper, in the meantime, isn't wasting any time. Dressed as a cop, the masked man pulls over an elderly couple on the side of a road. STAB and SHOOT. Two more dead bodies to add to the list. Hotch isn't going to like this. Indeed, the team arrives on the scene sometime later to find the Reaper's symbol -- an eye -- painted in blood on the hood of the car. Hotch also discovers a family photo with the message "Fate?" "It's for us," Hotch says. "He's saying it's not fate. He's saying we had 10 years to save them and that these latest ones are on us." Hotch then admits that hes been profiling the case alone over the last 10 years.
Back at police headquarters, Hotch starts talking. "Unlike most serial killers, an omnivore doesn't target a specific type," he explains. "He is essentially a predator who will kill anyone." In other words, the unsub isn't so much interested in killing as demonstrating his power to the police and public. That said, the killer does pay more attention to his younger, female victims. And by "pay more attention" we mean murder more brutally. Hotch suggests the officers look into sex offender cases against teenage girls over the last 10 years.
Garcia then calls with perplexing news: George Foyet has gone "off the grid." Fortunately, Hotch knows that reporter Roy interviewed Foyet extensively for a book about the Reaper. The journalist agrees to give up the location of Foyet. Seconds later, Rossi and Hotch confront the man, who claims to have multiple addresses in an effort to steer clear of the Reaper. "I knew it wasnt copycat!" Foyet says. Foyet then refuses to submit to police protection. "You can't protect me," he says. "Nobody can."
And Foyet might be right. Hotch is relaxing in his hotel room when the phone rings. It's the Reaper! "If you stop hunting me, I'll stop hunting them," the unsub growls. Barks Hotch: "I don't make deals. I'm the guy that hunts guys like you!" Seconds later, the Reaper boards a city bus and massacres everyone on board. It seems the Reaper doesn't like being yelled at by the BAU. Hotch and Rossi arrive on the scene to find a series of numbers written in blood on the bus windows as well as the words "No deal." Hotch is devastated. Roy arrives on the scene to some reporting. He mentions that Foyet requested to see him. This piece of info doesn't seem to bother Hotch, but it's just random enough to make us wonder.
Back at police headquarters, Spencer examines photos of the numbers on the bus. He quickly deduces that they match the apartment addresses of George Foyet! The team heads out, sirens blaring. Derek enters a dark apartment and is tackled by the masked unsub! Derek bangs his head on the ground and passes out. Sometime later, Hotch arrives. The Reaper has taken Derek's credentials and left behind a bullet. "He's just trying to get into your head," Emily says. O'Mara wasn't so lucky. His bloody corpse is wheeled out on a stretcher.
Hotch decides to do a search on Foyet's various aliases. At the same time, Garcia uncovers a rather disturbing pattern: Foyet's aliases worked as substitute teachers at local high schools -- a.k.a. teenage-girl hotbeds. A few were even fired for inappropriate sexual behavior! Turns out Foyet inflicted the wounds on himself 10 years ago, then called EMS as if he were the victim. "Because the severity of his wounds, we never considered him as a suspect," Hotch explains. "It put him at the core of the investigation. Everything we had came from him!" Foyet is the Reaper!
Hotch suddenly remembers that Roy was going to see Foyet (a-ha!). Garcia performs a trace on the reporter's cell phone and gets an address a few miles away. Hotch and Rossi, guns drawn, surround the house. Inside, Foyet holds a gun to Roy's face, demanding the reporter write the "true story." "I beat them and I want everybody to know that," Foyet says. Suddenly, Hotch BURSTS into the room. The killer lowers his gun and allows Derek to cuff him. "Im going to be more famous than you even realize!" he cries. Quips Derek: "Keep dreaming." Case closed -- or is it?
The team is barely back in Baltimore when J.J. bursts into Hotch's office. "Foyet has escaped!" she says. Turns out the baddie faked a convulsion and then ran from the prison infirmary. Spencer discovers that the man had schematics for every jailhouse in the state (information that might have been more valuable BEFORE the BAU left Boston). "He said he'd be more famous than we knew," Derek says. "And he was right."
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