Criminal Minds

(Alex O’Laughlin helped Criminal Minds make the top twenty for the week with his guest starring role in “The Big Wheel.”)

Prime-time viewership numbers compiled by Nielsen Media Research for July 13-19. Listings include the week’s ranking, with viewership for the week and season-to-date rankings in parentheses. An “X” in parentheses denotes a one-time-only presentation.

1. (X) “Major League Baseball All-Star Game,” Fox, 14.59 million viewers.

2. (2) “America’s Got Talent” (Tuesday), NBC, 13.51 million viewers.

3. (1) “America’s Got Talent” (Wednesday, 9 p.m.), NBC, 11.64 million viewers.

4. (X) “Major League Baseball All-Star Pregame,” Fox, 11.22 million viewers.

5. (6) “NCIS,” CBS, 10.45 million viewers.

6. (9) “Two and a Half Men,” CBS, 9.12 million viewers.

7. (8) “The Mentalist,” CBS, 8.37 million viewers.

8. (39) “The Big Bang Theory,” CBS, 8.23 million viewers.

9. (65) “The Bachelorette,” ABC, 8.013 million viewers.

10. (13) “CSI: Miami,” CBS, 8.012 million viewers.

11. (18) “CSI: NY,” CBS, 8.010 million viewers.

12. (54) “Wipeout,” ABC, 7.69 million viewers.

13. (6) “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” CBS, 7.67 million viewers.

14. (X) “CBS News: Remember Cronkite,” CBS, 7.64 million viewers.

15. (12) “Criminal Minds,” CBS, 7.48 million viewers.

16. (18) “America’s Got Talent” (Tuesday, 8 p.m.), NBC, 7.47 million viewers.

17. (50) “So You Think You Can Dance” (Thursday), Fox, 7.20 million viewers.

18. (37) “Law & Order: SVU,” NBC, 7.11 million viewers.

19. (50) “So You Think You Can Dance” (Wednesday), Fox, 6.95 million viewers.

20. (88) “America’s Got Talent” (Wednesday), NBC, 6.50 million viewers.

Stupid Fox. So You Think You Can Dance won the nine o’clock hour (actually I do like that show - I wish the second hour wasn’t on opposite Criminal Minds!), and second was I Survived a Japanese Game Show. Third was Criminal Minds, then Law & Order, and in fifth, Hitched or Ditched on the CW. CM has 7.6 million viewers, which I think is still respectable for a rerun.

Season four will be released on DVD on September 8, so look for that in the fall. Here’s the cover art:

Their logo is “Focus on the criminal, not the crime.”

To read a complete - and extremely thorough - recap of “Soul Mates” from TV.com, click below the cut. And to leave your thoughts about the show, just pop me a comment! What did you think of this episode?? (more…)

This is a preview for 500 Days of Summer, which co-stars Matthew Gray Gubler. Its stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel. The trailer looks awesome, and this film got a standing ovation at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. It’ll be in US theaters on July 17. If you’re missing Matthew Gray Gubler by then, check it out!

And don’t forget to tune in tonight on CBS at nine for “Normal.” This was one of my favorite episodes of season four - what makes a “normal” person turn into a killer? The team investigates the “Road Warrior,” who is targeting drivers of luxury cars.

Tonight at nine, do not miss the conclusion of last week’s episode. In “Memoriam,” Reid stays in Vegas to investigate some dreams he’s been having and which he feels are connected to the murder of a little boy, Riley Jenkins. Riley was murdered when Spenser was four, and Spenser had a dream that his father was involved. Rossi and Morgan stay behind to help Reid, who confronts his father. Exciting stuff. Tune in!

…and JJ goes into labor a bit early. Going way back to when she was pregnant! Let’s flash back to AJ Cook’s feeling on being pregnant on national TV:

It’s in full force — [my belly] just popped. I don’t want it to look like [my character] J.J.’s been hitting up the doughnut store. It’s going to be interesting. I’m kind of freaked out, because not everyone has to go through their pregnancy on national TV.

But she did it beautifully and looks amazing now.

Alex O’Laughlin in Three Rivers, to premiere this fall on CBS.

CBS put out its new schedule for the fall. I’d written about Without a Trace and Cold Case possibly being canceled, and it looks like Without a Trace was the one to get the boot. Others to go:
Eleventh Hour, The Ex List, Guiding Light, Swingtown, The Unit, Worst Week. Have some of them even been on anytime recently? Here’s a look at the new shows, courtesy of NewsOK’s TV blog.

NEW SHOWS

••“Accidentally on Purpose” (fall): Jenna Elfman stars as Billie, a single woman who finds herself “accidentally” pregnant after a one-night stand with a much younger guy, and decides to keep the baby… and the guy. Also stars Grant Show, Jon Foster, Ashley Jensen.

••“The Good Wife” (fall): Julianna Margulies stars as a wife and mother who must assume full responsibility for her family and re-enter the workforce after her husband’s very public sex and political corruption scandal lands him in jail. Also stars Chris Noth, Josh Charles, Christine Baranski.

••“NCIS: Los Angeles” (fall): This is a new drama about the high stakes world of undercover surveillance at the Office of Special Projects (OSP), a division of NCIS that is charged with apprehending dangerous and elusive criminals that pose a threat to the nation’s security. Stars Chris O’Donnell, LL Cool J, Louise Lombard.

••“Three Rivers” (fall): This new medical drama goes inside the emotionally complex lives of organ donors, the recipients and the surgeons at the preeminent transplant hospital in the country where every moment counts. However, dealing with donor families in their darkest hour and managing the fears and concerns of apprehensive recipients takes much more than just a sharp scalpel. Stars Alex O’Loughlin, Katherine Moennig, Daniel Henney, Julia Ormond.

••“Arranged Marriage” (midseason): This new series brings the tradition of arranged marriages, which is still practiced successfully by many cultures throughout the world, to the U.S., where it is virtually an inconceivable option for most single Americans.

••“The Bridge” (midseason): A drama about a tough and dedicated police officer who is voted to become the police union’s dynamic leader. Stars Aaron Douglas, Paul Popowich, Frank Cassini, Theresa Joy, Michael Murphy.

••“Miami Trauma” (midseason): This new drama is about a team of expert surgeons who work at one of the premiere trauma facilities in the country, where only patients with life threatening injuries are treated. Stars Jeremy Northam, Lana Parrilla, Elisabeth Harnois, Omar Gooding.

••“Undercover Boss” (midseason): This new reality series follows high level corporate executives as they slip anonymously into the lowest level jobs within their companies. Once undercover, they’ll get their hands dirty with the rank and file, find out what their employees really think of them and discover how smoothly their companies are really run.

CBS’s 2009-10 fall schedule
••Sunday: 6 p.m., “60 Minutes”; 7 p.m., “The Amazing Race”; 8 p.m., “Three Rivers”; 9 p.m., “Cold Case.”

••Monday: 7 p.m., “How I Met Your Mother”; 7:30 p.m., “Accidentally on Purpose”; 8 p.m., “Two and a Half Men”; 8:30 p.m., “The Big Bang Theory”; 9 p.m., “CSI: Miami.”

••Tuesday: 7 p.m., “NCIS”; 8 p.m., “NCIS: Los Angeles”; 9 p.m., “The Good Wife.”

••Wednesday: 7 p.m., “The New Adventures of Old Christine”; 7:30 p.m., “Gary Unmarried”; 8 p.m., “Criminal Minds”; 9 p.m., “CSI: NY.”

••Thursday: 7 p.m., “Survivor”; 8 p.m., “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation”; 9 p.m., “The Mentalist.”

••Friday: 7 p.m., “Ghost Whisperer”; 8 p.m., “Medium”; 9 p.m., “NUMB3RS.”

••Saturday: 7 and 8 p.m., Crimetime Saturday (encores of CBS dramas); 9 p.m., “48 Hours Mystery.”

Note: CBS’s 2010 midseason schedule includes the return of “Rules of Engagement” and the debut of “Miami Trauma,” “The Bridge,” “Arranged Marriage” and “Undercover Boss.”

****I don’t see Washington Field on here. They made the pilot but didn’t pick it up? I wonder why not.

Criminal Minds is up against some tough competition on Wednesday nights: American Idol pulled in 25.6 million viewers according to the Nielsen ratings. CM was second with 14 million viewers, up from last week by over half a million viewers. Lost was third with 8.8, and Scrubs had 5.3 million viewers. Against AI, I think CM does an outstanding job, and when AI ends, I think the numbers will be even better.

In other news, ION will be showing reruns of CM and Ghost Whisperer weeknights from 8-10, and lead into Durham County, Boston Legal, or NCIS. I don’t get ION, unfortunately - I love both CM and Ghost Whisperer. If you do, however, you can also look forward to some new dramas. Here’s a blurb on each from
MediaWeek.com:

Durham County tells the tale of a homicide detective from Toronto (Hugh Dillon) who moves his family to Durham Country to start over after his partner is killed and his wife is diagnosed with breast cancer. But the situation gets even worse when he realizes his neighbor may be a serial killer. [That sounds interesting!]

Dramas The Border and The Guard will join the prime time lineup (also expected at 10 p.m.) in 2010. The Border is a procedural drama focused on Canadian immigration and customs agents and how they deal with various border security issues. The Guard follows four Canadian Coast Guard specialists who face daily danger out on the Pacific Ocean.

This week, “Masterpiece,” guest starring Jason Alexander, will re-air on CBS at nine. How did you like it the first time? Are you looking forward to seeing it again? Does Jason Alexander transcend his old character George Costanza into a believable serial killer as well as James Van Der Beek did?

Criminal Minds was #2 in the 9:00 time slot, beaten by American Idol on Fox.

I liked this episode; I liked that it focused on Hotch without sacrificing the story about the case. Here’s what happened:

Hotch visits Boston to see Detective Shaughnessy, who was the lead detective on Hotch’s first BAU case ten years prior. Shaughnessy is on oxygen and sick. He tells Hotch that years ago, he made a deal with the Boston Reaper. He sent the BAU away and agreed to stop hunting the killer if the killer in turn stopped murdering people. And it worked. But the agreement was good as long as the detective was alive, and he was dying. The killer, he said, was watching and would begin again.

There is another Reaper murder - a couple actually - and Hotch gets the team on the case. Another couple is killed, this time by someone posing as a cop. The killer takes one thing from the victims and leaves one from another victim. The team goes over the case, focusing on the one survivor. A man was out with his younger girlfriend. She was killed and he was stabbed several times, yet lived. The team enlists the help of a journalist for the survivor’s address - this journalist has written about the case extensively and knows him. Hotch and Rossi go to see George, and you get the impression that he’s terrified of the Reaper. Yet he’s remained in Boston all of these years. Hotch gets a phone call at his hotel - it’s the Reaper, offering him the same deal as Shaughnessy. Except Hotch says he doesn’t make deals and hangs up.

Immediately after, the unsub boards a bus and kills the driver and passengers. He paints his signature, the Eye of Providence (the all seeing eye) on the bus. This devastates Hotch, who feels like it’s his fault. Next comes my favorite part of the show. Hotch gets very upset - tearing up. Rossi takes out his gun, and says Here use this then. He says that if Hotch takes on the responsibility and guilt for every crime, he’ll end up like Shaughnessy or Gideon. After this great speech, Hotch just replies, “Put your gun away. It’s a bit dramatic.” Rossi replies that his exes - all of them - thought was was very dramatic. I loved how they had a serious, dramatic speech followed by a moment of levity. It seemed very natural, and it fit Hotch’s personality perfectly. I think that Rossi is the only one who could’ve spoke to Hotch that way.

Ok, so, the team figures that the surviving victim has some significance to the killer because he had left George’s glasses at the scene of one of the new murders. My summaries sort of ramble along, don’t they? Anyway, they figure he might be in danger. The team splits up to look for him. At one location (apparently he had two or three addresses? Am I right? I had visitors over.), the team finds copious amounts of his blood. At another, Morgan is searching a house and all of a sudden a dark shape rushes him and they go through the window. It’s the Reaper, who takes Morgan’s credentials and leaves him with a bullet. He would have killed him but Morgan had been knocked out - the killer wouldn’t have had the fun of torturing him.

The team wonder why the Reaper was obsessed with George. They look into George’s girlfriend and find out she was a teaching assistant from Michigan. JJ points out that the Reaper had Shaughnessy post the ad in the Michigan paper. Emily says George’s girlfriend had only been in Boston for four weeks before she was killed. They think George lied to them about wanting to propose to her since they would have only just met. Hotch calls Garcia and asks her to look up George’s aliases. She sees that they all worked as teaching assistants. Garcia then finds one of the names was fired for sexual assault with one of his students. Hotch realizes George is the Reaper. They have Garcia triangulate Goerge’s position by tracking Roy’s incoming calls. Derek realizes the belongings left at the crime scenes all belonged to George.

The reporter meets George, who stops the pretense of being a victim. He’s mad at the reporter for not writing the story about Shaughnessy’s deal with the killer. He is going to shoot him when the team comes in. He’s arrested. Later we see the team returning to the BAU and George in jail. He cuts his arm and drinks the blood. Later, they find out he escaped. He was found vomiting blood and was taken to the infirmary where he escaped. He had plans for all the jails in the area, anticipating the day he’d be arrested.

I wonder if he’s going to pop back up in another season…that’d be interesting.

How’d you like “Omnivore” ? The title, by the way, refers to the type of killer. He didn’t discriminate when choosing victims. He killed men, women, young, old, making him an omnivore.

The brain is an amazing thing and we don’t even understand a fraction of it. One of the things that fascinates me about Criminal Minds is Spenser Reid’s extraordinary brain; he has an eidetic memory, which is also sometimes called a photographic memory. This is the ability to remember a great deal of information with a great deal of accuracy. This is how he can remember what page of what book a certain quote is on or he can remember with incredible accuracy something he saw years ago. I do not have this gift - as a mom, I forget what I went into the kitchen to get by the time I get there.

There are some people, though, who say that eidetic memories really do not exist. The amazing displays that people like Spenser Reid, played by Matthew Gray Gubler, show us are actually, they say, due to memory tricks. There is a man named S.V. Shereshevskii (he probably needed some memory tricks to remember how to spell his name. It makes my last name look easy, and I can’t tell you the number of people who misspell it). He was able to remember long lists of random words and recall them decades later. This is astounding to me. He did it by visualizing a stretch of road that he knew. He would “drop off” objects on the list along this road. When he wanted to recall them, he’d simply visualize going down the road and picking them up. While this is technically not eidetic memory, it is still an amazing use of brain power and something that I’m sure is very rare. Though maybe we could all be trained to do this if we tried. In a book called The Society of Mind, Dr. Marvin Minsky couldn’t find any scientific support for our verification of claims of eidetic memory. He called it an “unfounded myth.”

So what do you think? Does Spenser have an eidetic memory - which would be so rare as to be almost unfounded or does he use some clever tricks to remember? Either way, he’s an extraordinary character. And regardless of whether eidetic memories do exist, I find his character believable, maybe because his awkwardness offsets his brilliance.

Do you have what it takes - think you have an eidetic memory? Check out these puzzles and see.

American Idol was once again tops for last week, with ten billion people tuning in, down from thirty billion the week before. I exaggerate, but it did beat the competition handily. Here’s the rest of the top ten:

The rest of the top 10 (in millions): CSI, CBS, 17.6; Two and a Half Men, CBS, 16.1; House, Fox, 15.0; CSI: Miami, CBS, 14.6; Grey’s Anatomy, ABC, 14.4; 60 Minutes, CBS, 14.2; Criminal Minds, CBS, 13.8; Cold Case, CBS, 13.3.

(from the Baltimore Sun)

Also, TV Guide answers viewer questions each week, and here’s one for CM:

Criminal Minds’ Hotch and Prentiss have had some great scenes together this season. Is there any chance (fingers crossed) that they will become a couple? — Holly

MATT: A couple, no — but a source tells me you will see how much they care for each other as team members. That moment comes during a February March sweeps episode, when Hotch sticks his neck out for Prentiss on a case that is very personal to her. In that same hour, you’ll also get new insight into Prentiss’ romantic past, including mistakes she made as a teen.

That sounds great. We’re seeing much more of Prentiss, which I like. Now, we need some more Garcia. She has been too stuck in her office lately!

Photo from BuddyTV

This was a crazy episode. The first thing I noticed was some tension between Jordan and Prentiss…when Prentiss called Kate, the victim, a “target.” Jordan protested that she had a name. Later Rossi agreed, saying that they talked about the facts but not really the victims, and Morgan replied that they had to in order to do the job. And as it turns out, Jordan won’t be anymore. JJ is coming back! Jordan tells Hotch that he better appreciate JJ and the work she does, because it is so difficult. (And another quick one: Jordan said “7 AM in the morning.” I hate that!! AM means morning. Anyway…)

The little girl, Kate, survives because she had epilepsy. The unsubs dump her off - which leads to the revelation that it’s a family working together. It was sad when her father didn’t know any of the details that might help - Hotch told him straight out that he wasn’t going to waste his time. But he did know one thing that was crucial to her survival. The fact that she had epilepsy saved her from the family, and her father’s information helped the paramedics save her. So we find out it’s a family, and later that they were trying to find a wife for their son to carry on this depraved tradition or ritual.

As I was sitting there, I wondered if someone could take my daughter and then actually turn her into a monster. My sweet little baby would forget me and then breed more killers. Someone (Prentiss?) asked how that was possible, and Rossi replied that it was Stockholm Syndrome. And of course we know what that is, but I would have liked a little more focus to be put on it because it is really the heart of the issue. What turns a sweet little girl, like Kate, into a mother who teachers her son to kill? When Prentiss and Hotch were interrogating Kathy, they kept emphasizing her original name, telling her who she was. This woman did not break. She only gave up her husband’s location in order to see her son.

And she wanted to see her son for two reasons: one, he’s her son! Of course. But also to say “Don’t tell them about your brothers.”

This made the episode for me. This was a great way to end it because you know they’re still out there - carrying on this ritual. How many are there? Where are they? How many girls have they taken and how many families have they killed?

How did you like “Bloodline”? How does it rank with the other episodes of this season?

Note: In non-CM news, Oscar nominations are out. Check out your favorites on 451Press’s entertainment blogs.

The first thing I noticed about “Soul Mates” is that is seemed to have a different set up…at the onset, it focused on the suspect and centered on the family more than in other episodes. I liked it - maybe not as much as “Normal,” but pretty good. Oh, this was killing me all night: I knew I knew that actor! The guest star in the hot seat was Michael Boatman, who was in Spin City and Law & Order: SVU (to which I am now addicted). The other guest star, George Newbern, has been in ten thousand million shows, including CSI, CSI:NY, Ghost Whisperer, CSI:Miami, Grey’s Anatomy, Cold Case, Without a Trace - every CBS procedural, it looks like. He was the second half of the twisted duo, and he ends up taking Andrea Harris - just so he could see William again. And William leads the FBI to Steven so he could say goodbye (saving his daughter was secondary?). This was a weird relationship, wasn’t it?

Overall, I liked how the show was set-up, I liked the acting - Morgan was a prominent part of the episode. How’d you like “SoulMates” ?

Odds and Ends in the News:

This is from DetNews.com about the HBO after party for the Golden Globes. Among the beautiful guests:

A few feet away, Shemar Moore of CBS’ “Criminal Minds” bobbed his head to hip-hop beats and chatted up the likes of Los Angeles Laker Lamar Odom, Tristan Wilds of The CW’s “90210″ and Hill Harper of the Eye Network’s “CSI: NY.”

You can read the entire article here. Our guy certainly is busy, isn’t he?!

At the Party

The spin-off for NCIS is not a rumor anymore - it is a confirmed fact. CBS’s president of entertainment, Nina Tassler, confirmed that there will be a spin-off, and it will be introduced during the regular season of NCIS. The rumored spin-off for CM is off the front burner. It may be off the stove all together. We’ll see. NCIS has seen phenomenal ratings this season, gathering over 20 million in late december.

And for CSI fans, tonight is Grissom’s last night. Laurence Fishburn will take over. I actually like how they are transitioning him into the show. Tune in at nine on CBS for that.

I found this YouTube of an interview with Kirsten Vangsness. She is Kirsten and yet Garcia-ish too! She seems like an awesome person, so check her out! She wasn’t as computer savvy as her fictional counterpart but she seems just as fun. She also talks about the “human ship of gorgeousness” - guess who that is…

Tune in to see Garcia, the human ship of gorgeousness, and the rest of the team tonight at nine on CBS. “Soul Mates” is a brand new episode set in a wealthy Atlanta suburb.

Edited: Today, I found a year in review type article on PopMatters and it mentioned Kirsten. Here’s what the author said:

Nerds have become more numerous on TV in recent years, but today’s nerd not only comes with a wealth of technological skills, he or she also has tattoos, piercings, multi-colored hair, and other manifestations of nonconformity. Two of the most appealing of this crowd are Kirsten Vangsness, Garcia on Criminal Minds, and Pauley Perrette, Abby on the surprisingly hot
NCIS. Both provide needed comic relief, but also bring to their respective shows a sense of innocence missing in some of the “hardened” detectives.

Tune in to see Garcia, the human ship of gorgeousness, and the rest of the team tonight at nine on CBS. “Soul Mates” is a brand new episode set in a wealthy Atlanta suburb.

Last week’s Friday poll was about who was the best dressed CM lady. It was very close between Prentiss and JJ - but as of now, Prentiss was the winner. Or Paget. All are spectacular women, but here are some pictures of Paget that show off her style. While she’s very understated in Criminal Minds, I think she has a very fun sense of style.

Lady in red on the red carpet.

A fun outfit. I'm not sure if I like the color of the boots, but I like the style!

Sleek and stylish in jeans

I’m going to skip the poll this week because, honestly, I can’t think of any good questions! I’m blanking. If anyone wants to suggest a question for next’s week’s poll, please!

I received an email today informing me that Watching Criminal Minds has been ranked #35 (out of about 1200, so I’m happy!) among entertainment blogs in the category of Movies (I’m not sure why it’s movies) at Show Hype, which is a relatively new entertainment site. You can search for your favorite shows and movies and other entertainment news. You can also vote on stories you like. It’s a very cool site. Here’s a quote from louisgray.com: Silicon Valley Blog:

The latest “Hype” in the family aims to take the mantra of “The best stories, the biggest fans” and apply it to a world where people are more familiar with movie scripts than JavaScript, and the box office is more closely watched than the NASDAQ. ShowHype users can log in to view the most popular entertainment news, videos and blogs of the day, submit new articles or even create unique ShowHype stories for what’s sure to become a focused audience trading in the latest Hollywood dirt.

Check out ShowHype and find out even more about your favorite stars and shows.

Other good places to check out info is TV Bender, Watching Bones, or another one of 451’s great tv sites.

No surprises in the Wednesday night ratings - American Idol and Moment of Truth beat out the competition. NBC came in second with Deal or No Deal at eight, and won the ten o’clock slot with Law & Order. CBS’s not so popular season of Big Brother placed sixth in the 18-49 group, which didn’t help Criminal Minds or CSI:NY, which ran after Big Brother. Overall, CBS was fourth in the 18-49 group and third in total viewers.

CBS is airing Criminal Minds on a special night - “Identity” will be on Saturday at nine. This is the episode that features a serial killing duo. One partner kills himself, and the BAU has to find the remaining member before a victim dies. (Not one of the greatest episodes but still worth watching.)

Also, CBS has redesigned their Criminal Minds website page. There are tons of photos, episode recaps, and a section where fans can chat about different topics. One thing I notice they don’t have at the moment is Kirsten Vangsness’s blog - hopefully she’s just too busy with work!