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Showing posts with label Zach Gilford. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Zach Gilford. Show all posts

Friday, June 7, 2024

Criminal Minds: Evolution 17.1-2: The Elusive Profile


Criminal Minds: Evolution is back on Paramount Plus with the first two episodes of its new season (17, if you count the original Criminal Minds on CBS).  I saw them last night and they were excellent.

[Spoilers ahead ... ]

The story picks up two weeks after the events in the Season 16 finale.  Elias Voit, the mastermind networking serial killer from last season is in jail, but his capture has taken a toll on our heroes.  Rossi is hallucinating conversations with Voit, Emily's on a razor's edge, but the BAU is mobilized to the find the Gold Star killer, whose moniker was introduced at the end of last season.

The only thing that's clear about who and what Gold Star is, well, is that Voit is not Gold Star per se.  Or, to be more precise, he couldn't be the person who actually killed any of the victims in the first two episodes of this new season, because he was behind bars all the time.  Emily thinks Gold Star may be a killer out West, but when she says we're ready to deliver the profile, Rossi tells her no, we're not.  As always, the BAU is rent with disagreement, as well as the FBI Director wanting to get rid of them, but they manage to move forward.

As in the last season, the use of explicit language is refreshing and realistic.  I could do, though, without the explicit gore, but that's just me.  And as long we're talking about how streaming has liberated television from network prudishness, a little nudity -- for our living characters -- wouldn't be bad, either, just sayin'.

The serial killer -- in this case, Voit -- being a necessary but ever dangerous ally of law enforcement is of course something we've seen already with Hannibal Lecter.  But Zach Gilford as Voit was a great addition to the show -- even though every time I hear or write the name I think of Chicago PD -- and it's great to see him back in this new season.

Speaking of which, I'm hoping to see Spencer back before this season is over as well.

See also Criminal Minds: Evolution 16.1-16.4: Outstanding! ... 16.5: Assessment of What Could Have Happened at the End ... 16.6-16.8: Better Than Ever on Paramount Plus ... 16.9: Elias Voit and David Rossi ... 16.10: Gold Star

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Some reviews of episodes from earlier seasons:





 

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Friday, January 27, 2023

Criminal Minds: Evolution 16.6-16.8: Better Than Ever on Paramount Plus



Back with a review of the last three episodes of the revitalized Criminal Minds on Paramount Plus -- 16.6, 16.7, 16-8 -- and revitalized is exactly what we got.  These three episodes tightened all the various stories underway, including the BAU's search for Elias the master of the serial killer network, the BAU's fight with the FBI, and most of the personal stories of the BAU's team.

Zack Gilford continues to do an impressive job as the master villain Elias.  It was good to see more of him with his family, and the increasing difficulty he has of reconciling and managing that with his serial killer endeavors.  More on his family in a few paragraphs.

[Spoilers follow ... ]

Penelope's personal life is the most happy at this point.  Sleeping with Tyler the good-looking material witness, despite Emily's explicit directive not to do that, was a good move on Penelope's part.  In a funny scene that typifies that more realistic portrayal of the Criminal Minds characters on Paramount Plus, Luke and Tara quickly realize that Penelope's good mood stems from her "getting some".  Of course they would realize what's come over Penelope -- after all, they're profilers, right?  The language has also become more realistic on Criminal Minds on Paramount Plus, and this adds spice to the stories told.  All that's missing in this new Criminal Minds for it to be in full R-rated territory is a little nudity.  But we don't get that much of that in any kind of television these days.

The other personal stories are not as happy, but it was good to see that A. J's husband's cancer is not getting worse.  Tara's pushing her significant other to help the BAU on a crucial case resulted in the two breaking up.   Personal relationships have always been a challenge for the BAU and its seven days a week, 24 hours a day schedule.

But the BAU is getting a boost from FBI Deputy Director Doug Bailey, who is turning out to be an important ally and champion of the BAU.  I expect he'll be playing a permanent role in the series as it moves into the next season.

I'll conclude with one important part of the narrative I didn't quite get -- indeed, it's the dramatic, cliff-hanging conclusion of 16.8, with Rossi knocking on Elias's door in Seattle, and his wife opening it, shortly after we see Elias calling her and telling her he'll be home in a few hours.   A little earlier, Penelope told Rossi that he would have a huge number of homes to search.  What's the likelihood that Rossi would get so lucky so quickly?  Or, for that matter, that Rossi would get to that house when Elias was due to return so soon?

I'm very much looking forward to seeing how that plays out in the concluding two episodes of this season, and I'll be back here with a review.

See also Criminal Minds: Evolution 16.1-16.4: Outstanding! ... 16.5: Assessment of What Could Have Happened at the End

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Some reviews of episodes from earlier seasons:





 

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Monday, December 12, 2022

Criminal Minds: Evolution 16.1-16.4; Outstanding!



So, I saw the first episode of Criminal Minds: Evolution aka Criminal Minds Season 16 on CBS and thought it was ok.  Last night I watched the next three episodes (16.2-16.4) and thought they were superb. So much so that I think this could be the best season of Criminal Minds in its long run.

Before I tell you why, let me give some personal history.  My wife and I were devoted fans of Criminal Minds for most of its run on CBS.  We stopped watching sometime in the 14th season.  We missed Hotch after his sudden departure at the beginning of the 13th season (since I have no direct knowledge of the incident that triggered his leaving, I won't comment on whether ABC/CBS were right to terminate Thomas Gibson's contract).  But, in addition to that, we were just getting tired of the series.

Now to season 16 [and there will be spoilers ahead ...]

As I said, we thought the first episode was ok.  Not good enough for us to rush over to Paramount+ and watch the second and ensuing episodes.  But I thought I'd give them a try last night, and ... wow -- I was glued to the screen for three hours.

Here are some of the reasons:

  • The idea of a master serial killer, who puts together a network of serial killers, so he can get his kicks vicariously, since he's stuck in his house with his family in the COVID lockdown, is brilliant.  This is probably the most creative integration of the pandemic and its effects into a ongoing television series that I've seen.  It's also good to see Zach Gilford from Friday Night Lights in the role -- he's perfect for the part of Elias Volt (a suitably electrifying name), a loving husband and father, who knows how to put together and run a digital network, and has a very dark and dangerous side..
  • On the subject of acting, the returning characters are all good to excellent.  A. J. Cook gets better and better as Jennifer every year, and she is outstanding in Evolution.  She and Kirsten Vangsness as Penelope are the only characters to have been on the show in one way or another every season, and Penelope is in fine form in this new season, too.  It was also good to Joe Mantegna back as Rossi.  I did miss Matthew Gray Gubler as Spencer, though, and I hope he makes a surprise reappearance before the end of this season.
  • The specific stories involving the master unsub and his network of killers are also very well done, including an episode in which the BAU thinks the killings are part of the unsub network, but are not. We had master nemeses who were recurring characters in prior seasons, but none as central and multi-tentacled as Elias Volt, seething with violence that is almost always just below the surface. And when it's not ... well, his use of a vicious dog to kill someone who looks like his jackass neighbor is a representative piece of work: he can't kill his neighbor, because Volt would be an instant suspect, so he vents his anger on some innocent guy who looks like his neighbor. And ever vigilant, he then kills the dog, too.
  • The quotes are as apt as ever, and the more realistic language is welcome, even if almost all of it comes from Rossi.
So we have something in Criminal Minds: Evolution somewhere between a reboot and a new season, and an altogether commanding piece of television.

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Some reviews of episodes from earlier seasons:




 

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Monday, May 3, 2010

Reasons to Watch Friday Night Lights

Friday Night Lights returns for its fourth season on NBC this Friday Night.   This season was already broadcast on DirecTV, and I've seen it and first three seasons via NetFlix.  It's one of the best shows ever in the 60 years of television.   In recent years, this means I put Friday Night Lights in the same league as The Shield, 24, Lost, The Wire, The Sopranos, Criminal Minds, Dexter, even though those shows have much more in common than with Friday Night Lights.  This is because Friday Night Lights is a show about high school football and even more so because Friday Night Lights is a show about much more than high school football.   I don't even care all that much for football - I'm a baseball fan - but I'd watch Friday Night Lights every night of the year if it was on television that often.   My wife feels the same way about the show.   And it was recommended to us by our 26-year old son.

Here are some of the reasons why Friday Night Lights is so exceptional -

  • Coach Eric (Kyle Chandler) and Tami Taylor (Connie Britton) are the best married couple I've ever seen on television.   They have about as equal a relationship as you could find - two strong characters who love each other, love their work, have a zest for life.   They have more than their share of problems - as parents, in their work, from the world at large - but the courage and energy with which they step up and combat the bruising world is, well, an inspiration.
  • Tim Riggins (Taylor Kitsch) is a refreshing, authentic hero/anti-hero right up there with James Dean and Jeff Spicoli.  Among his memorable activities,  he freely dispenses sage advice to younger teammates Matt, Landry, and J.D.   My favorite line from Riggins: "I always skip Wednesdays," about why he's driving around in his pick-up truck rather than being in school.
  • Speaking of Landry Clarke (Jesse Plemons), you have a triumph of cool reason and intelligence over almost every obstacle.  He even gets one of the two hottest chicks in the school, and you can believe it.   And he has a not half-bad Christian heavy metal rock band, Crucifictorious.
  • Realistic portrayal of racial issues is not unique to Friday Night Lights - The Wire still gets the prize for that - but Friday Nights Lights nonetheless has a perfect bead on the trials of African-Americans trying to break out of small towns via the vehicle of football.  Smash Williams (Gaius Charles) in the first two seasons and Vince Howard in the latest season (Michael B. Jordan - a Wire alum) have stories that you'll never forget.
  • Matt Saracen (Zach Gilford) is superb in all the seasons.  But he has an hour in the latest (4th) season which, trust me, is a tour-de-force of acting easily worthy of an Emmy.   There won't be a dry eye in the house.
  • Lyla Garrity (Minka Kelly - Derek Jeter's girlfriend in real life) and Tyra Collette (Adrianne Palicki) are gorgeous, but far more than eye candy.   They're tough, savvy, vulnerable.  Julie Taylor (Aimee Teegarden) holds her own, no easy job, sweet but strong, as Coach and Tami's daughter, and grows up beautifully before our eyes.
Friday Night Lights is Peter Berg's creation - based on the movie he made of the same name.  The movie was good, but it was only about football.  The television show is all-time great, because it is about life.  May be the best show ever on television - at least, that's how I feel on Fridays, and sometimes Wednesdays, too.


6-min podcast review of Friday Night Lights


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The Plot to Save Socrates










"challenging fun" - Entertainment Weekly

"a Da Vinci-esque thriller" - New York Daily News

"Sierra Waters is sexy as hell" - curled up with a good book
 
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