Legacy

When on form, and even better at its best, 'Criminal Minds' is one of my most watched and most re-watched shows and is a personal favourite. It is nowhere near as good now, but there are still good to great episodes made every now and then when the show doesn't forget what it's about, but Seasons 1-5 was its prime period.

Season 2 was a mostly solid season for 'Criminal Minds'. Boasting great episodes such as "The Fisher King Part II", "Sex, Birth, Death", "North Mammon", "The Boogeyman", the "No Way Out" episodes, "Revelations" and "Profiler, Profiled", with almost all the episodes missing that very high standard still being strong. The only real odd-one out, meaning barely average, was "Honor Among Thieves", while "Aftermath" was also a lesser episode it was still decent whereas "Honor Among Thieves" even strained average level.

Very like "Distress", also from Season 2, whether "Legacy" is a 'Criminal Minds' episode that one can watch over and over, with a subject matter and the way it's done hard to watch, is up for debate. In no way is this a fault, because it was an intriguing (and for 'Criminal Minds' pretty different) concept (if one that initially doesn't leave one bursting to see it) executed very well. Anyone who initially had a negative view on the homeless and the other kinds of victims are likely to no longer feel that way watching this episode, one feels very sorry for the victims here. It also left me feeling somewhat thankful for not being part of any of the groups targeted.

There may be 'Criminal Minds' episodes with more character development than here, for example the unsub is somewhat underdeveloped here. This said, it's hardly devoid of it, who can't help love the chemistry between Gideon and Hotch or the subtlety of the relationship between Prentiss and Morgan. Not to mention the Charlie Chaplin scenes (a delight for film aficionados) and Reid with the prostitutes. The chemistry between the team and how they work so cohesively is nothing short of magical and integral to the show's appeal.

On a visual level, "Legacy" is without complaint. It's very well shot and lit and is overall stylish, gritty, classy and atmospheric. The music is moody in the haunting and melancholic sense and fits well, never once being distracting. The direction keeps the momentum going but lets the case breathe, and all of the pacing is spot-on.

The script is thought-provoking, tautly paced and structured and nicely balanced. The story is absorbing and clever in construction, also being by far one of the early seasons' darkest, most suspenseful (the episode being rich in it, especially in the fate of the latest victim), saddest and gruesome (but not gratuitously so) cases. The acting is very good, who can't help love Mandy Patinkin and Matthew Gray Gubler.

In conclusion, a great episode and another winner from a mostly strong season. 9/10 Bethany Cox

I noticed something interesting in the opening scene of this episode, which is one of my long-standing favorites and a very strong episode in a season of overall excellent work. The villain seems to be whistling a bit of the tune to the song "Johanna" from the musical Sweeney Todd, written by Stephen Sondheim. He seems to lead with an "incorrect" note at the very beginning before jumping into the vocal melody, but it is in fact pulled from the string melody. I find it interesting that either the actor or director pulled this specific song, as it references the character Johanna, who is the daughter of an absent criminal and who has been locked away by the judge Turpin who sentenced her father. I wonder if it's meant as a commentary on the episode itself and the young protagonist and was chosen by the director, or if it was simply what came to the actor's mind to whistle. How fascinating! I love this show.

Season two is undoubtedly one of my personal favorite seasons, and was even as a child! However, this episode permanently scarred me as a child, and gave me wicked nightmares for literal years. I have rewatched this series front to back three times and season two at least five times, but I physically cannot bring myself to watch past the first minute of this episode. Giving it a good rating because if it messed me up that bad someone else HAS to think its an amazing episode.

This episode could easily been extended to a movie. Loved everything about it.