![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mousmeI've been rewatching Criminal Minds lately. I have it running in the background when I'm doing stuff, and it always seems to be re-running on TV on at least one channel, much like Law and Order back in the day.
I've been watching this show from the moment it premiered, and I still really enjoy it. I'd forgotten how much it was essentially "The Mandy Patinkin Show" before he left, and as much as I love him as an actor, I can't help but feel that the show matured and improved considerably after his departure. Patinkin simply takes up too much space with his personality, and everyone else was left to drown in his wake. With his departure and the addition of Joe Mantegna as David Rossi, it felt like the rest of the cast had more room to breathe and more room to grow, and as such became a much stronger whole.
I am not entirely sure why I like this show so much. It's been nearly nine years, and there's no denying that the show is formulaic. It's also very dependent on people doing horrifying things to women about 90% of the time. They've fridged at least one recurring female character in the process of trying to further the white lead man's angst. They once got rid of their two female leads in the same season, and only reinstated one of the actresses after considerable fan backlash, and quickly brought in another woman to replace the one who wasn't coming back. (Though it should be noted that the ratio of men to women in the show is still 2 to 1).
While the cast are cute as buttons and there's enough character development to satisfy my need for such (unlike, say, all the CSIs out there), there's no one thing that says to me "Ah-hah! This is the reason you watch the show!" In fact, from everything I've said, this is the kind of show that should have me rolling my eyes and clicking to a different channel.
And yet, here I am, nine seasons in, still watching avidly. It's not at the level of obsession I've had for Supernatural, and I have no inclination whatsoever to be part of the fandom. I'm not interested in writing fanfic, gen or otherwise, and I certainly have no strong feelings about any of the characters' love lives, whether with each other or with other characters. I'm happy when they find love, sad when their love interests leave or are killed. I spent many years hoping that they'd eventually let Aaron Hotchner have nice things and not wallow in angst. Reid breaks my heart on a consistent basis. I've had a crush on Garcia from the start, and it's likely never going to fade. I miss Emily Prentiss and her extraordinary education and ability to get by in a bajillion languages.
I guess that's my answer right there. I come back for the characters, who are just complex enough that I want to watch them do their thing, week in and week out.
I've been watching this show from the moment it premiered, and I still really enjoy it. I'd forgotten how much it was essentially "The Mandy Patinkin Show" before he left, and as much as I love him as an actor, I can't help but feel that the show matured and improved considerably after his departure. Patinkin simply takes up too much space with his personality, and everyone else was left to drown in his wake. With his departure and the addition of Joe Mantegna as David Rossi, it felt like the rest of the cast had more room to breathe and more room to grow, and as such became a much stronger whole.
I am not entirely sure why I like this show so much. It's been nearly nine years, and there's no denying that the show is formulaic. It's also very dependent on people doing horrifying things to women about 90% of the time. They've fridged at least one recurring female character in the process of trying to further the white lead man's angst. They once got rid of their two female leads in the same season, and only reinstated one of the actresses after considerable fan backlash, and quickly brought in another woman to replace the one who wasn't coming back. (Though it should be noted that the ratio of men to women in the show is still 2 to 1).
While the cast are cute as buttons and there's enough character development to satisfy my need for such (unlike, say, all the CSIs out there), there's no one thing that says to me "Ah-hah! This is the reason you watch the show!" In fact, from everything I've said, this is the kind of show that should have me rolling my eyes and clicking to a different channel.
And yet, here I am, nine seasons in, still watching avidly. It's not at the level of obsession I've had for Supernatural, and I have no inclination whatsoever to be part of the fandom. I'm not interested in writing fanfic, gen or otherwise, and I certainly have no strong feelings about any of the characters' love lives, whether with each other or with other characters. I'm happy when they find love, sad when their love interests leave or are killed. I spent many years hoping that they'd eventually let Aaron Hotchner have nice things and not wallow in angst. Reid breaks my heart on a consistent basis. I've had a crush on Garcia from the start, and it's likely never going to fade. I miss Emily Prentiss and her extraordinary education and ability to get by in a bajillion languages.
I guess that's my answer right there. I come back for the characters, who are just complex enough that I want to watch them do their thing, week in and week out.
