There are better episodes of 'Criminal Minds' around. At the same time there are far worse ones as well. "It Takes a Village" was a solid season opener, if not as good as the previous season premieres, and better than quite a lot of Season 6.
As ever, the production values are top-notch, with a great dark atmosphere evoked while still making out what's going on. The music is appropriately moody without being intrusive, while also having some poignancy. Both Prentiss and JJ make shock but very welcome returns, and neither feel too out of character even if JJ shows more of a motherly side than in the earlier seasons. Seaver, a character I actively disliked, is not missed at all.
"It Takes a Village's" writing is patchy but mostly good. The highlights are the scenes between Doyle and Morgan, which have great tension, and the scenes with the team being questioned by the senator that bookend the scenes involving the case told in intriguing and never over-complicated flashback structure. Reid putting the senator in his place was a classic Reid moment and Garcia's "You're alive?" was endearing and moving.
Not all of it works, especially Prentiss' over-the-top speech which felt out of place and heavy-handed. More development of the unsubs, only mentioned really in when the team figure it all out through the profiling, and providing a reason for Hotch being away would have been more welcome. The story is tense and suspenseful, with an adrenaline-filled and poignant, if rather over-familiar climax, good twists and turns (after being convinced that Doyle is behind it, the revelation that it was somebody else was a real surprise) and one actually feels bad for Doyle.
With the team dynamic, it is very believable and charming, their shock is very believably done. Less believable is the anger, there could have been much more considering the size of the lie they were told. The acting is fine, though Strauss continues to be as cold as ever. Paget Brewster, Shemar Moore and Matthew Gray Gubler shine of the regulars, while Joe Mantegna excels at smooth-talk. Timothy V. Murphy does excellently as Doyle, and the boy who plays Declan shows terror and grief very well.
All in all, a solid season opener and one of Season 7's better episodes. 7/10 Bethany Cox.
As ever, the production values are top-notch, with a great dark atmosphere evoked while still making out what's going on. The music is appropriately moody without being intrusive, while also having some poignancy. Both Prentiss and JJ make shock but very welcome returns, and neither feel too out of character even if JJ shows more of a motherly side than in the earlier seasons. Seaver, a character I actively disliked, is not missed at all.
"It Takes a Village's" writing is patchy but mostly good. The highlights are the scenes between Doyle and Morgan, which have great tension, and the scenes with the team being questioned by the senator that bookend the scenes involving the case told in intriguing and never over-complicated flashback structure. Reid putting the senator in his place was a classic Reid moment and Garcia's "You're alive?" was endearing and moving.
Not all of it works, especially Prentiss' over-the-top speech which felt out of place and heavy-handed. More development of the unsubs, only mentioned really in when the team figure it all out through the profiling, and providing a reason for Hotch being away would have been more welcome. The story is tense and suspenseful, with an adrenaline-filled and poignant, if rather over-familiar climax, good twists and turns (after being convinced that Doyle is behind it, the revelation that it was somebody else was a real surprise) and one actually feels bad for Doyle.
With the team dynamic, it is very believable and charming, their shock is very believably done. Less believable is the anger, there could have been much more considering the size of the lie they were told. The acting is fine, though Strauss continues to be as cold as ever. Paget Brewster, Shemar Moore and Matthew Gray Gubler shine of the regulars, while Joe Mantegna excels at smooth-talk. Timothy V. Murphy does excellently as Doyle, and the boy who plays Declan shows terror and grief very well.
All in all, a solid season opener and one of Season 7's better episodes. 7/10 Bethany Cox.