Having one's episode to follow an instant classic like "Omnivore" must have been viewed as a no-win situation. Network shows that have 20+ episodes per year have a tight filming schedule, so multiple scripts are being written simultaneously and the episodes might even be filmed in different order than broadcast. In any case, one sympathizes with the writer and director of this otherwise worthy episode.
There is a lot to recommend this episode: great concept, excellent guest roles from some of the best supporting actors around, Michael Rooker, who's proved he's more than just Henry, and Sam Anderson, probably best known as Bernard from Lost, but a familiar face to practically everyone who watches TV. And while the word 'recommend' feels uneasy when applied to the scene that *will* linger in your mind like a similar scene in Se7en (I won't spoil it), it means the creators have achieved something memorable. Reduced to its core idea, the back-story of the arsonist is ripped straight out of real world, which makes it all the more frightening and thought-provoking. It is even voiced out by Reid at three quarters into the episode.
However, this episode is also written straight into the Criminal Minds mold that gets pretty distracting and downright insulting when forced upon the viewer the umpteenth time: Needless editing tricks, scenes of the killer shot out of focus, overlays of the events upon the BAU agents at the scene of said event, lectures given to the local police - all these could be at least used more sparingly, and in the case of the overlays, eliminated entirely, because unintentional as it may be, showing what happened earlier while simultaneously showing the agents explaining what happened is insulting the audience's intelligence. Less is more. The writers and directors need look no further than the classic episodes of this very series. This could have been a 8/10 (clichés in the story out-ruling a 9/10), now it's "just" 7/10 (still very good).
There is a lot to recommend this episode: great concept, excellent guest roles from some of the best supporting actors around, Michael Rooker, who's proved he's more than just Henry, and Sam Anderson, probably best known as Bernard from Lost, but a familiar face to practically everyone who watches TV. And while the word 'recommend' feels uneasy when applied to the scene that *will* linger in your mind like a similar scene in Se7en (I won't spoil it), it means the creators have achieved something memorable. Reduced to its core idea, the back-story of the arsonist is ripped straight out of real world, which makes it all the more frightening and thought-provoking. It is even voiced out by Reid at three quarters into the episode.
However, this episode is also written straight into the Criminal Minds mold that gets pretty distracting and downright insulting when forced upon the viewer the umpteenth time: Needless editing tricks, scenes of the killer shot out of focus, overlays of the events upon the BAU agents at the scene of said event, lectures given to the local police - all these could be at least used more sparingly, and in the case of the overlays, eliminated entirely, because unintentional as it may be, showing what happened earlier while simultaneously showing the agents explaining what happened is insulting the audience's intelligence. Less is more. The writers and directors need look no further than the classic episodes of this very series. This could have been a 8/10 (clichés in the story out-ruling a 9/10), now it's "just" 7/10 (still very good).
