Let the record state that I love Zach Gilford.
One of the many exciting aspects of Criminal Minds’ return to the screen with “Evolution” is that they cast Guilford in an extremely good role as a serial killer.
Of course, they don’t stray too far from the main thread of dark crime procedurals: bad guys or antiheroes help good guys catch more bad guys.
But the reason procedurals work so well is because they follow a routine—they know what works for them and what the audience’s response will be, and that formulaic component is attractive.
Voight was killed… literally in Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 1
The first season of “Criminal Minds: Evolution” was great because of that.
We have a clever UnSub in Voit who wreaks absolute havoc on the unit, and thanks to the series’ return to streaming, we get an evolved version of this classic crime show.
This is a full season of getting to know the twisted killer who successfully juggled a relatively normal family life with sadistic crimes.
We have a whole network of serial killers to boot, all intersecting and connecting in fascinating ways.
But it’s certainly fun to have Voight play the white whale for most of the season, unlike the old “Criminal Minds,” which usually wrapped up a case by the time the closing credits rolled.
Then they finally caught Voight, who was supposed to be shot in the head, but he was given a lifeline.
It made for a great finale to the first season of Criminal Minds: Evolution and left me clamoring for more.
That’s great of you guys
But the second season drags in some cases and becomes unnecessarily complicated in others.
What’s even worse, however, is how much Voit we get.
I never thought there was such a thing as “too many Zach Gilfords.”
Still, I reached my limits: Voight haunting Rosie at every imaginable turn, those interactions in prison, and him getting a day pass to stir up the BAU, giggle, and tell riddles.
That’s why Voight took so much center stage in season one.
But they went too far with him in season two.
Let’s go for it, that’s what I’m saying.
Steal my heart, but not the BAU spotlight, baby
Guilford clearly loves this character and I really like him.
He’s probably too good at it. But I still want to see my capable BAU also become terrible on their own.
On the contrary, Voit’s low profile made this unit look incompetent in the regular season.
Isn’t it great that Baby Girl channels her chocolate thunder and fixes Voit with a sinister death glare? yes!
Did they really win that moment in the finale? No.
The BAU spends more time tap dancing than anything else to satisfy Voit’s needs.
I had to suspend my beliefs to understand why Voight needed to be brought to the scene or consulted.
My guy literally lived in Rossi’s head all season, rent-free.
Better balance of bad guys in Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 3, thank you
Voight quickly became Reddington on Criminal Minds.
But this isn’t The Blacklist, and we’re expecting the entire series to revolve around James Spader, because, well, this is James Spader.
This was Criminal Minds, and it had many of our favorite characters before Voit came along.
I’m excited for season three and the finale definitely hints at exciting things to come.
Even if some of the inmates are using our lovable mushy-haired bad guy as a pincushion, we already know his armor of intrigue will protect him.
We know it’s going to be another full season of Voit and Gold Star’s intricate web.
If I had one request, it would be that they show a little restraint with him.
Am I the only one who thinks Criminal Minds has too much Voit? Of course you guys will let me know in the comments. Let’s do it.
