- 4 days ago
Criminal Minds is packed with chilling cases, but some stories hit especially hard thanks to devastating backstories, tragic victims, and emotional fallout for the BAU. From unforgettable losses to heartbreaking reveals, we’re revisiting the episodes that left us reaching for the tissues. Which one wrecked you the most? Let us know in the comments below!
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00And it felt like everybody just stood there watching you suffer. Not a single person
00:03even tried to help. They didn't. Welcome to Ms. Mojo. And today we're counting down our picks
00:08for the BAU cases that continue to break our hearts. Spoilers ahead for all 19 seasons of
00:14Criminal Minds, including Criminal Minds Evolution. This isn't a deal we made.
00:20Our boys aren't supposed to grow up without a dad. We were in this together.
00:27Number 30. Damaged. SSA David Rossi has seen his share of terrible things in his years as a BAU
00:33profiler. But in this episode, he revisits a 20-year-old unsolved case that's still haunting
00:38him. One night in Indianapolis, a large man broke into the Galen family's home, brutally killing the
00:44couple with an axe, but leaving their three kids alive. They were crying and calling for their mommy
00:50and daddy. Three terrified children screaming for their murdered parents.
00:57Two decades later, the now adult siblings are struggling just to make ends meet. And like
01:02Rossi, are plagued by nightmares of the gruesome crime scene. With help from his teammates,
01:06Rossi finally tracks down the unsub, a clown from a traveling carnival. Solving the case brings him
01:12and the Galen siblings some much-needed closure. Is it okay if I call you sometime?
01:19Just to let you know how we're doing? Anytime kiddo.
01:24Number 29. Zoe's Reprise. While on his latest book tour, David Rossi meets a criminology student
01:30named Zoe Hawks. And he encourages her to keep working on her theory that there's an active serial
01:35killer in Cleveland, Ohio. So were the victims similar? No. Was the MO consistent? No. Was the
01:41signature consistent? Not that I know of. Then there's no obvious reason to suggest that the
01:46spike in violence was due to a serial killer. While looking around a crime scene, she's approached
01:51by a seemingly normal guy. He turns out to be the very serial killer she was investigating. And sadly,
01:57Zoe becomes his next victim. Between Rossi's guilt for dismissing her and her mother's anguished
02:02reaction to the news, this is a very emotional episode. The fact that she was right about the
02:07copycat killer makes it all the more tragic. Try not to personalize it. I was the last one she
02:14talked to before she was murdered. How is this not personal, Aaron? Number 28. The Caller. When the BAU
02:21takes on a child abduction case in St. Louis, it reminds them of a 15-year-old cold case in
02:26Memphis
02:26where a boy named Frankie Clavin was kidnapped and murdered, but the culprit was never caught.
02:31Just like the Clavins, Andy Taffert's parents, Malcolm and Lita, received anonymous phone calls
02:35leading up to and then after their son's disappearance. They wrote them off as silly
02:53pranks, but it was the unsub taunting them with a creepy recording. After Andy's body is found,
02:58Frankie's father Richard comforts his parents and it's gut-wrenching.
03:01The same maniac who killed your boy killed my son too.
03:09I'm the only person in the world who truly knows what you're going through right now.
03:14The harrowing episode closes with the Tafferts sitting in silence as their phone continues to
03:18ring. Looking for more criminal minds? Check out Ms. Mojo's 24-7 live stream. Scan the QR code
03:24on screen to join us live for more non-stop TV content. There is no doubt in my mind that
03:29you're
03:30innocent. Number 27. Normal. In California, the team assists local law enforcement in catching the
03:36road warrior, an unsub who has shot multiple women driving on the highway. Eventually, they identify
03:41him as Norman Hill, a man traumatized by the tragic death of his youngest daughter six months prior.
04:00He feels responsible for what happened to her since she was hit by a car while he changed a tire
04:04and believes his family also blames him.
04:07When they go to his home, the team finds the bodies of his wife and two other daughters, whom he
04:11had killed days ago after a psychotic break.
04:14Norman is easily one of the BAU's most sympathetic unsubs. Watching him realize that his entire
04:20family is gone is just heart-wrenching.
04:22It was your fault!
04:26You let my baby girl die!
04:29Number 26. The Tall Man. In this JJ-centric episode, the BAU travels to her hometown in Pennsylvania,
04:36where two young girls have disappeared. Their friend says they were taken by a Slenderman-esque
04:41figure called the Tall Man. But as the team investigates, they confirm there's nothing
04:45supernatural at work. It was all an elaborate plan by the unsub, school guidance counselor Ethan Howard,
04:51who had been abusing one of the missing girls.
04:53You set this up? You're with him?
04:57Of course I'm with him.
05:00And I love him.
05:01As it turns out, he did the same to JJ's older sister Rosalyn years ago.
05:06Throughout the episode, we see flashbacks to when Rosalyn was deeply depressed,
05:09and a young JJ found her body after she took her own life.
05:13JJ mentioned her sister in previous episodes, but watching her painful memories is incredibly heartbreaking.
05:19Rosalyn, probably wasn't your first victim.
05:25Trebethany.
05:27She will be your last.
05:29Number 25. North Star.
05:31Season 17 largely focused on the Gold Star Killers,
05:35a group of young people who were abused for years and groomed to become murderers.
05:39Dr. Jill Gideon unintentionally supplied the research that created the program.
05:43After she's abducted by Damien Booth, the first Gold Star,
05:46a guilt-ridden Jill tells him the truth, and the world comes crashing down.
05:50Over the years, he was ordered to kill multiple people, including his foster dad.
05:55Now, he's learning that it was all based on a lie told to him by his abusers.
05:59It was a lie.
06:03All.
06:05All of it.
06:09Yes.
06:11Damien ultimately surrenders, but gives his partner Jade a signal to shoot him before he's taken into custody,
06:17leaving both Jade and Jill distraught over his death.
06:19It's a devastating end for someone who endured so much suffering.
06:23Oh, this poor boy.
06:26Oh my god, this poor boy.
06:28GS1.
06:28We think his name is Damien.
06:30This kid didn't have anyone looking out for him.
06:33Number 24.
06:34A Shade of Grey.
06:35The team heads to New Jersey to find a missing boy named Kyle Murphy.
06:39Then, after his body is discovered, the abduction case becomes a homicide investigation.
06:43At first, they believe the suspect was an adult male.
06:46However, when Prentiss spends time with Kyle's older brother Danny,
06:50she clocks his rage issues, realizing he's only been pretending to be sad about Kyle.
06:54After you did that to Kyle, how did you feel?
07:00Like I'd get in trouble?
07:02He killed him out of anger for breaking one of his toys,
07:04and his parents asked their friend, Detective Bill Lancaster,
07:08to help cover it up to protect a remorseless Danny.
07:10Ultimately, Lancaster loses his badge and likely goes to prison,
07:14and tragically, the Murphys still lost both of their sons.
07:17The only thing Danny isn't capable of is remorse.
07:20He feels nothing.
07:25The son you were trying to protect is a sociopath.
07:29Number 23.
07:30Amplification.
07:31This season 4 episode is one of Criminal Mind's most chaotic.
07:35After someone releases anthrax spores into a public park,
07:38the BAU has to act fast.
07:39When Reed searches the lab of scientist Dr. Lawrence Nichols, their prime suspect,
07:43he's exposed to spores.
07:45Should he not survive, he records a sweet message for his mother.
07:49I love you, and I need you to know that I spend every day of my life proud to be
08:01your son.
08:03Meanwhile, JJ struggles to follow protocol by not telling her husband about the possible outbreak.
08:07They catch the unsub before it spreads, and it's a happy ending for the team.
08:11Reed has recovered, and baby Henry wasn't exposed.
08:14But we can't help mourning the dozens of innocent people who lost their lives.
08:18You're gonna be alright, kid.
08:20And we got Brown.
08:21It's over.
08:23How's that?
08:24She's on the mend.
08:25So were the three others.
08:27You were right about where to look for his cure.
08:29Number 22.
08:31Luke.
08:31Luke Alves joins the BAU in season 12,
08:34after the team enlisted his help to track down escaped serial killers,
08:37including the Crimson King, Daniel Cullen.
08:39We learn that his longtime army buddy and former Fugitive Task Force partner Phil Brooks
08:44once had a horrific encounter with Cullen that left him seriously injured.
08:48Try not to flinch.
08:52Phil told me later that's what he said.
08:54We meet Phil the next season when Luke visits him at physical therapy,
08:58where he's struggling to regain his ability to walk.
09:01He returns in season 14 having made progress,
09:04only to get targeted by Jeremy Grant,
09:06a former sniper out for revenge.
09:08Any last words?
09:11Go to hell!
09:13Luke finds Phil murdered and almost kills Grant in retaliation.
09:17Seeing him lose his best friend,
09:19who had overcome so much in such a horrible way,
09:22is always beyond heartbreaking.
09:24Sometimes it's hard, you know.
09:28It's tough.
09:31I want to find someone that you feel safe with.
09:36Number 21, The Big Wheel.
09:38Brace yourself, this one hurts.
09:40As a kid, Vincent Rowling saw his dad murder his mom.
09:44As if that weren't traumatic enough, there's a video of it.
09:48Now an adult, Vincent records himself killing women resembling her.
09:52Not a one-off.
09:53The filming of his kills makes him a sexual psychopath.
09:55We'll find more, many more.
09:58Just like this one.
09:59The most devastating parts of this episode involve Stan,
10:02a boy who was home when Vincent took his mom's life.
10:05However, Stan is blind and couldn't identify him as the perpetrator.
10:10Feeling a connection to the boy,
10:12Vincent bonds with him to the point where Stan wishes he was his father.
10:15You're going to hear bad things about me.
10:19But you can never, ever wish to die, Stan.
10:26Because you're special.
10:27While they're atop a Ferris wheel for Stan's birthday,
10:30Vincent dies of previously sustained injuries.
10:33In the end, Stan realizes that this is the man who killed his mother.
10:37In other words, the story is downright gutting.
10:41Did he kill my mom?
10:49Number 20.
10:51Dorado Falls.
10:52During his time as a Navy SEAL,
10:54Luke Dolan was part of Operation Dorado Falls.
10:57He was ordered to kill two witnesses as part of the mission,
11:00which seemingly led to PTSD.
11:02This is Red Echo.
11:03We have unwanted targets for mission to abort.
11:05Negative Red Echo.
11:07The operation is a go.
11:08I repeat, the operation is a go.
11:10After being involved in a car accident later on,
11:13Dolan became extremely paranoid and came to believe his wife and daughter had been taken.
11:18Reed eventually deduces that he's actually suffering from Capgras Syndrome,
11:22a condition that makes someone think that imposters have replaced those they know.
11:26Basically, the neural connection between the visual cortex and the emotional center of the brain
11:30becomes severed so that looking at a loved one doesn't elicit the same emotional response one would expect.
11:34So you think that they're an imposter?
11:36Tragically, the delusion was so strong that he killed several people, including his parents.
11:41It's extremely tough to see it unfold.
11:44Had the BAU not put his wife and daughter in protective custody,
11:48he would have likely harmed them too.
11:50Just the thought of it has a shuddering.
11:52Daddy!
11:53Daddy, where are you?
11:54No!
11:55No!
11:55Take it!
11:56No!
11:58No!
11:58No!
11:58No!
11:58Get him out!
11:59No!
11:59No!
12:00Number 19.
12:00The Bittersweet Science
12:02After two men are found brutally beaten to death,
12:04the team goes to Philadelphia to help with the case.
12:07Evidence eventually points them to Jimmy Hall,
12:09an unsuccessful boxer who's been on a rage-fueled killing spree.
12:13His aggression stems from his young son's health.
12:15So when is he gonna get out of here?
12:18Jimmy, are you listening?
12:21Ryan is dying.
12:23Okay?
12:25He's gonna die.
12:26Ryan was in remission, but his leukemia returned,
12:29and he's running out of options for treatment.
12:32After he loses his last fight, he's taken to the hospital.
12:35While the BAU has him in custody,
12:37he's allowed to see his son before he passes away.
12:39Watching a parent say goodbye to their child is absolutely gutting.
12:43Even Hotch sheds some tears.
12:45If your mother and I both love you,
12:48don't you ever forget that?
12:54I love you too, Daddy.
12:55Number 18.
12:57Time to say goodbye.
12:58Since he was first introduced in Season 2,
13:01former detective Will Lamontagne Jr.
13:03has had some close calls throughout the series,
13:05particularly in the line of duty.
13:07He'd been held hostage, strapped to a bomb,
13:09shot more than once, and had a cancer scare.
13:12But in Season 18,
13:14Will dies suddenly from a rare thyroid aneurysm.
13:16He's gone.
13:21Will's dead.
13:22In this episode,
13:23JJ deals with the aftermath,
13:25trying to keep it together for her boys
13:26while preparing for his funeral.
13:28Thankfully,
13:28she has her team there to support her through it all,
13:31including a special appearance
13:32by their friend and former colleague Spencer Reed.
13:35From the emotional funeral service
13:37to the many hugs shared,
13:38the tears just keep flowing.
13:40Sorry for that voice.
13:44I'm sorry.
13:45I don't know.
13:51I'm lost.
13:55This intense episode begins
13:57with a frantic search for young Katie Jacobs,
13:59who disappeared while at the mall with her family.
14:02Her parents are obviously distraught,
14:04but there's something off about her aunt and uncle.
14:07The team searches the Jacobs' home
14:08and finds evidence that Katie has been hiding a terrible secret.
14:12I know these signs.
14:14Acting out on her toys,
14:15wetting the bed,
14:15she's obviously covering up something about that necklace.
14:17When she's found,
14:18medics have to revive her as the parents watch.
14:21Katie's dad finds out his twin brother harmed his daughter
14:24and that his sister-in-law
14:25almost killed her out of jealousy.
14:27Instead of shielding her from more pain,
14:30you blamed her for your own.
14:32No, no, no.
14:34Yes, you did.
14:34You have robbed Katie of her childhood.
14:37Are you going to steal the rest of her life from her as well?
14:39No, enough.
14:42Both Susan and Richard are arrested,
14:44leaving their son Jeremy without parents.
14:47By the end,
14:48an entire family is destroyed.
14:50Susan consoling Katie's mother.
14:52It's an image that's going to haunt me for a while.
14:54Number 16.
14:55Demonology.
14:56SSA Emily Prentiss isn't one to let her emotions get the best of her.
14:59But here,
15:00she's heartbroken over the death of a close childhood friend,
15:03Matthew Benton.
15:04Matthew was
15:07incredibly messed up.
15:08And I hadn't seen him in a long time.
15:12But he was important to me.
15:13As teenagers,
15:14he supported her through an abortion.
15:16And she feels responsible for causing him to doubt the church.
15:19Matthew also battled substance use disorder and his religious parents blamed Emily,
15:24convinced she was a harmful influence.
15:26Matthew was a sweet boy.
15:28He was just troubled.
15:30He was never troubled until he met you.
15:33He became paranoid,
15:34leading them to believe he was possessed,
15:36which culminated in an exorcism.
15:38The team discovers Matthew died of a heart attack caused by the ritual.
15:42Not only did Emily lose a friend,
15:44but she knows he passed terrified and in pain.
15:48Though the priest responsible for his and other deaths is apprehended,
15:52it's painful to watch.
15:53It's like the end of the dead.
15:57When Greta remembers the boy she loved when she was younger.
16:02And she says,
16:07Some of the most tragic cases on Criminal Minds
16:11involve subjects who've experienced significant trauma.
16:14It's okay, son.
16:15It's okay.
16:17I couldn't help her.
16:19This one is no exception.
16:21L.A. comic book artist Johnny McHale
16:23goes on nightly killing sprees motivated by revenge.
16:26He tracks down members of the gang
16:28who made him watch as they killed his fiancée, Mickey.
16:30The fact that he had proposed after she'd revealed she was expecting
16:34just moments before only adds to the tragedy.
16:37His actions are reflected in his work,
16:40but he's unaware of the crimes he's been committing.
16:42What's this?
16:44It's something I'm working on.
16:46What do you mean?
16:48That sentence needs an explanation.
16:50Johnny unknowingly suffers from severe post-traumatic stress disorder.
16:54And when interrogated by the team,
16:56the awful memories come back to him.
16:58The episode heart-wrenchingly ends with him hospitalized,
17:01looking to hear Vicky's voice by repeatedly calling her.
17:04Hey, this is Vicky.
17:05Can't come to the phone right now because I'm out living my life.
17:08Leave it at the beat.
17:13Number 14.
17:14The Replicator.
17:16Aaron.
17:16Not quite.
17:18Does it ever get confusing, that whole Aaron, Aaron thing?
17:22Where is she?
17:22Closer than you think.
17:24But she's not doing well.
17:26BAU section chief director Aaron Strauss had been an antagonist.
17:30She always had it out for the unit,
17:32questioning Hotch's leadership and the team's efficiency in general.
17:36Throughout the seasons, she softened,
17:38especially after she went into recovery for alcohol use disorder.
17:41By season 8, Strauss was on much better terms with everyone,
17:45especially Rossi.
17:47Unfortunately, we didn't get to enjoy the redemption arc for long.
17:50Did you get everything you wanted?
17:51What?
17:52In life.
17:54Did you?
17:55John Curtis, aka The Replicator,
17:57poisons her and makes her consume alcohol,
18:00ensuring she won't survive.
18:02Hotch then locates a disoriented Strauss outside
18:04and consoles her as she slowly passes away.
18:07Aaron, I can't see you.
18:10I'm right here.
18:12I don't want to die alone.
18:16I'm right here. It's okay.
18:17Many probably weren't expecting to be this sad
18:20over a previously unlikable character dying,
18:23but her fate hit hard,
18:25making the episode all the more poignant.
18:27Number 13, Nelson Sparrow.
18:30In this season 10 episode,
18:32the team deals with the death of their former colleague, Jason Gideon.
18:35Is this how it's gonna go?
18:37All my friends dying off?
18:39First Aaron, then Harrison,
18:42and now Jason.
18:45Disease is one thing, but murder?
18:49Gideon was revisiting an old unsolved case and got a lead.
18:52But Donnie Malick, an unsub operating since the 1970s,
18:56killed him before he could catch him.
18:58At the scene, everyone tearfully grieves him,
19:01especially Spencer.
19:02It's hard not to tear up alongside them.
19:05However, they have to push some of those feelings aside
19:08to focus on solving the case.
19:09Still, the BAU members take moments to remember Gideon throughout,
19:14with the loss seemingly hitting Spencer the hardest.
19:16I haven't seen him in a really long time,
19:19but I think about him all the time,
19:22and I knew he was always out there,
19:26and now it just feels empty.
19:30The raw emotion is impossible to ignore.
19:34Nelson Sparrow was a powerful memorial
19:36for the character fans missed,
19:38as actor Mandy Patinkin exited the show in season three.
19:41When a good man is hurt,
19:43all who would be called good must suffer with him.
19:47Euripides.
19:48Number 12, Sick Day.
19:50The BAU has seen some awful things,
19:53but some affect them and us more than most.
19:56In Sick Day,
19:57JJ returns home after a case involving youth.
20:00Those are always heartbreaking.
20:02You want to talk about it?
20:06Well, you know we have to, right?
20:08Remember what the Bureau of Therapy said?
20:11No holding it in ever.
20:13We bring it home, we gotta get it out.
20:15She recounts the string of abductions
20:16by serial arsonist John David Bates.
20:19It was a race against the clock
20:21trying to find missing teen Francesca Morales.
20:23And while speaking with the girl's family,
20:25she bonded with her little brother Roberto,
20:27who was later taken too.
20:29You know you're scared,
20:30but we are your friends.
20:34Okay, and we will not stop.
20:36Until we get her back.
20:38JJ and Luke caught Bates with the victims,
20:40which also included his sister Trisha.
20:43Ultimately, they rescued both Trisha and Berto,
20:45but weren't able to save Francesca.
20:47The events themselves,
20:48and the toll they take on a guilt-ridden JJ,
20:51make this an excruciatingly difficult watch.
20:54Maybe if I went to her first,
20:56I could have saved both of them.
20:58You know, I shouldn't have sent Luke out.
21:01We could have saved all of them, I know that.
21:04Number 11,
21:05The Uncanny Valley.
21:06In her youth,
21:08Samantha Malcolm lost her mother
21:09and began being abused by her father,
21:11Dr. Arthur Malcolm.
21:12He then notably subjected her to electroshock therapy.
21:16Though he claimed it was to help her,
21:18it was really to keep her from exposing him.
21:21The extreme and unnecessary procedure
21:23had lasting psychological effects on Samantha into adulthood.
21:26Oh my God, she was doomed.
21:29Like Emily Bronte doomed.
21:31Like Shakespeare doomed.
21:32Like Richard at Ensign in Star Trek doomed.
21:35After seeing her father giving three special dolls to someone else,
21:38Samantha sought replacements.
21:40She began taking petite women to be her new dolls,
21:43putting them into drug-induced paralysis until they died.
21:46Don't leave me.
21:52Let us go.
21:55I can't.
21:56Whether or not you find her sympathetic,
21:58there's no denying the physical,
22:00mental, and emotional trauma
22:02Samantha endured is horrific.
22:04It adds a dark, awful layer
22:06to a deeply shocking case.
22:08Listen,
22:09you need to go with these men,
22:10but your friends can go with you, okay?
22:14They won't take,
22:15they won't take them away.
22:16I promise,
22:17no one will ever take them away again.
22:19Number 10,
22:20Ashes and Dust.
22:21This season two episode begins
22:24with a family desperately trying to escape their house
22:26as it's burning.
22:27It's one of the show's best openings,
22:29but also one of the most visceral.
22:39Hotch and Prentice go to speak to Mrs. Cutler,
22:41the only survivor of the fire.
22:43Covered in serious burns,
22:45she's just minutes away from dying.
22:47Unfortunately,
22:48she has to relive the harrowing experience
22:51in order to help the BAU find the unsub.
22:53The woman's cries for help
22:55and pleas to see her family are agonizing.
22:58Hotch sits with her as she takes her last breaths,
23:00leaving him and the audience
23:02grieving the deaths of this innocent family.
23:04I can stay with you until you're ready.
23:07If you like.
23:11I'd like that.
23:14Number 9,
23:15Lauren.
23:16Emily Prentice joined the BAU back in season two,
23:19quickly becoming a fan favorite
23:21as well as a dear friend to the team.
23:23In this episode,
23:24we learn about her past undercover work with Interpol
23:27and her relationship with Ian Doyle.
23:37Now that Doyle has escaped a prison camp,
23:39he's out for revenge.
23:41After he attacks her,
23:42she's taken to the hospital
23:43as her life hangs on the line.
23:45Hotch tells the team that she died on the table,
23:48leaving everyone devastated.
23:50Spent.
23:52I didn't get a chance to say goodbye.
23:57Of course,
23:58we know she's not actually dead,
24:00and she later returns to the BAU.
24:02But seeing the team mourn her supposed death
24:05is still heartbreaking.
24:06This also marks Padgett Brewster's
24:08temporary absence from the show.
24:17Number 8,
24:18Sex,
24:18Birth,
24:19Death.
24:19High schooler Nathan Harris approaches Reed
24:22near the subway,
24:22saying he attended one of his talks about sadists.
24:25He's afraid of his own urges and dark thoughts,
24:29worried he'll actually hurt someone one day.
24:31Why'd you run away from me?
24:32Because,
24:33I don't know,
24:34I thought you'd say I was crazy
24:36and there's no way to stop it.
24:37The team has dealt with a few unsubs
24:39who want to understand their own psychology.
24:41But for Nathan,
24:43he needs to know before he acts on them.
24:45The team discovers that Nathan
24:47isn't the unsub killing sex workers around DC.
24:50However,
24:50it is recommended that he's hospitalized.
24:53In his heart,
24:54he doesn't want to hurt anyone.
24:55Positive sign.
24:56But intelligence and awareness
24:57don't always allow us to control our urges.
24:59Admitting the problem doesn't mean you can manage it.
25:01If I put him in a hospital,
25:03I'd be telling him that he's a monster.
25:04No, no, no, no, no.
25:05You just say right now he's sick and he needs help.
25:07At the end,
25:08the teenager attempts to take his own life,
25:11feeling that this is the only way to save others
25:13he may harm in the future.
25:14The late Anton Yelchin
25:16gives an unforgettable performance
25:18as a young man in fear of himself.
25:20You don't want to do this?
25:22I have to.
25:24Number 7.
25:25Hope.
25:26Near the 7th anniversary of her daughter's disappearance,
25:29Monica,
25:29a member of Garcia's victim support group,
25:31goes missing.
25:32Bill,
25:33another member of the group,
25:34reveals that he is the one who abducted Hope.
25:37I'll bet since you got that letter,
25:39you read it a hundred times.
25:44How do you know about the letter?
25:46He promises to take Monica to her.
25:48Desperate to see her daughter again,
25:50she agrees to go with him.
25:52Later,
25:52he admits that he joined the support group
25:55after Hope took her own life in captivity.
25:57As if it wasn't twisted enough
25:59that he kidnapped a child,
26:00Bill lures Monica with plans to create another Hope.
26:04All those things that you miss out on with Hope,
26:08you'll get to experience with this new baby
26:10that we're going to create.
26:13Don't touch me!
26:15Don't!
26:15You don't!
26:16While at Bill's house,
26:18she's faced with Hope's life as a prisoner
26:20and eventually finds her body.
26:22Seeing a mother mentally tortured
26:24by her daughter's captor is sickening to watch.
26:27It's her gene.
26:28I'm an animal.
26:30No, no, no, no.
26:30You don't understand what happened.
26:32My child.
26:34Number 6.
26:35Riding the Lightning.
26:36Jacob Dawes and Sarah Jean Mason
26:38were known as a serial killer couple,
26:40despite Sarah Jean allegedly
26:42not participating in the crimes.
26:43I knew he brought women back to his workshop.
26:47It's a long way from knowing he was killing them.
26:53They died as a result of my declines.
26:56The BAU interviews them on death row
26:58in a bid to locate more victims.
27:00Though Sarah Jean confessed to murdering her son Riley years ago,
27:04Gideon puts the pieces together.
27:06Riley actually lives with an adopted family,
27:09unaware of his infamous birth parents and their crimes.
27:12Sarah Jean wants to keep it that way to protect him.
27:14This isn't about you or me.
27:16I know it isn't.
27:18That's why I'm not going to let Riley lose the greatest gift
27:21he never knew he had.
27:22But that is my gift to him.
27:24And I'll not let you destroy that.
27:25Though Gideon tries fixing things,
27:27he ultimately respects her decision.
27:29At this point, we are emotional messes.
27:33In the end, Gideon is there as the innocent woman is executed.
27:37We can't help but feel all sorts of complex emotions
27:40watching the tragic story unfold.
27:42Albert Pines said,
27:43What we do for ourselves dies with us.
27:46What we do for others and the world remains and is immortal.
27:51Number 5.
27:52Zugzwang
27:52Many fans have a soft spot for Spencer Reed.
27:55So when he began a romantic relationship with Maeve,
27:59we wanted all the happiness in the world for him.
28:01Because of Maeve's stalker,
28:03the two only spoke covertly over the phone.
28:06And yes, this is how it has to be.
28:07For today, at least.
28:10Okay.
28:11Well, I guess I'll talk to you next Sunday.
28:14Bye.
28:16Bye.
28:17Love you.
28:17But despite the distance between each other,
28:19their bond was strong.
28:21Sadly, the couple never actually did meet face-to-face
28:24until they're at the mercy of Maeve's stalker, Diane.
28:27I don't love you.
28:30Sorry.
28:33I understand.
28:34Reed does all he can to save her,
28:37but Diane shoots herself along with Maeve right in front of him.
28:41This scars Reed and us forever.
28:43Who's Thomas Martin?
28:46He knows.
28:47Number 4.
28:48Profiler Profiled
28:50Derek always appears tough and somewhat guarded.
28:53But when he's accused of murdering young boys in his hometown of Chicago,
28:56he's forced to open up to his team.
28:58When Derek was just a kid,
29:00his father, a cop, was killed while on duty.
29:03Growing up without a dad was difficult,
29:05but Carl Buford, a youth center director and football coach,
29:08stepped in to supposedly help out.
29:10To others, it looked like he did.
29:12But behind closed doors, Buford abused him.
29:15Now, Derek learns he's done the same with other boys in the neighborhood.
29:19He did him to me, too.
29:22You do whatever you think you gotta do to keep him happy
29:25because he's the closest thing to a father you've got.
29:28But what he's doing to you is wrong.
29:29He confronts Buford in a powerful, vulnerable scene,
29:33leading to his arrest.
29:34Actually, I'm saying you have everything to do with making me who I am.
29:40Because of you, I'm somebody who gets to spend the rest of his life
29:43making sure guys like you go down.
29:45Number 3.
29:46Revelations
29:47From witnessing the death of his girlfriend
29:49to being framed and imprisoned for murder in Mexico,
29:52Spencer Reed has gone through hell.
29:54This'll be over quickly if you just confess your sins.
29:57I'm not a sinner.
29:58His first traumatic experience as a member of the BAU
30:01comes in season 2, when he's captured by an unsub
30:04with a dissociative identity disorder.
30:07Tobias Henkel's two other personalities,
30:09Charles, his deceased father,
30:11and Raphael, an angel,
30:12torture Reed for, quote,
30:14his sins.
30:15I'm not a devil.
30:16I'm not a devil.
30:17I'm a man.
30:17My name is Spencer Reed,
30:18and I have a mother,
30:19and I have a father just like you,
30:20and they taught me the Bible.
30:22Let me just recite the Bible.
30:23I'm gonna confess, Spencer Reed.
30:29I confess.
30:30Tobias himself empathizes with Reed,
30:33giving him Dilaudid to help with the pain.
30:35This causes Reed's struggle with substance use disorder
30:38long after he's rescued by his team.
30:40Seeing him suffer physically,
30:42mentally, and emotionally for an entire episode
30:45is excruciating.
30:47Oh my god, he's killing him.
30:54Number 2.
30:55Moseley Lane
30:56Any case involving children is incredibly sad,
30:59and this one is up there with the worst.
31:02What are you doing?
31:03What do you think you're doing?
31:06It's not fair.
31:07Let her go.
31:08For almost a decade,
31:10Roger and Anita Roycewood abducted youth from public places,
31:13including Charlie Hillridge.
31:15I'm not supposed to touch strangers.
31:18I'm not a stranger.
31:21I'm your brother.
31:25Why did you bring me here?
31:27As a teen,
31:28Charlie is now forced to aid in the capture of others.
31:31However,
31:32he does what he can to help his brothers and sisters.
31:35Do what they say,
31:36okay?
31:38It'll make it easier.
31:40Damn!
31:42When a little girl disappears from a festival,
31:44the team thinks it could be connected to Charlie's case.
31:48Parents of other missing children gather at the BAU office
31:50while the team searches for the unsubs.
31:53Some are found,
31:54while others have been cremated in the Roycewoods incinerator.
31:58Between the distraught parents and the terrified kidnap victims,
32:01this is undoubtedly one of the show's most tragic episodes.
32:04He died protecting that little girl.
32:13He was alive yesterday.
32:15Before we unveil our top pick,
32:17here are some honorable mentions.
32:19North Maimon.
32:20The teenage girls are forced to make an impossible choice.
32:23Two of you will leave this room alive.
32:27One of you will die.
32:30You choose.
32:32Outfoxed.
32:32Soldiers overseas return home to find their families murdered.
32:36Is there someone you'd like us to call?
32:39Uh, call?
32:41Um, no.
32:42No.
32:42I, uh...
32:44I'd like to go home now.
32:46Distress.
32:47A war veteran dies saving a child.
32:49Is boy alright?
32:54Yes.
32:56Number one.
32:57100.
32:58Arguably the worst unsub the BAU has ever faced
33:01is George Foyette,
33:03a.k.a.
33:04The Reaper.
33:04Are you scared?
33:07You should be.
33:09The serial killer returns after over a decade,
33:12when his contract with the Boston detective on his case expires.
33:15This was also one of Hodge's first cases in the BAU.
33:19After he's caught,
33:20he's sent to jail,
33:21which he quickly escapes.
33:23Fearing for their safety,
33:24Hodge puts his ex-wife Haley and his son Jack into witness protection.
33:28But, in the show's 100th episode,
33:31Foyette tracks them down.
33:33Hodge is on the phone with Haley when she realizes Foyette is going to kill her.
33:36I know you didn't sign on for this.
33:40Neither did you.
33:43I'm sorry for everything.
33:48Promise me that you will tell him how we met.
33:51Hodge and the whole team listen as Foyette shoots Haley.
33:54Seeing Hodge hold Haley's lifeless body is one of,
33:58if not the most heart-wrenching scene in the entire show.
34:02Get out of here.
34:03Go see if they need help downstairs.
34:09What do you think is the saddest episode?
34:11Let us know in the comments.
34:18This is appreciated.
34:18Let us know in the comments.
Comments