“Criminal Minds” is a show that likes to push boundaries, especially when it comes to unusual topics and making the show’s fans feel uneasy. We got to see some rather deep, personal themes getting discussed over the last episode, and now we’re seeing reports that episode 21 will feature some even more unusual and even frightening plot developments.
The episode, titled “Mr. Scratch”, will apparently focus on an entirely new type of UnSub, one that is capable of mind control. This will put the team at a serious risk, creating a situation the likes of which they’ve never encountered before, and forcing them to think on their toes.
It will all start with three different murder suspects claiming that they have been attacked by a strange monster-like character, and every time the story is practically the same – the murder for which the person is being blamed was actually committed by the monster, according to the person themselves. This quickly prompts the BAU team to consider the possibility that the three people are in fact innocent, and that someone else had committed the murder.
The trailer for the episode showed that one of the team’s members will specifically have their life endangered by the creature, but it’s not clear if this is a hint for what the team will have to face in the season finale, or if this is a completely separate story that’s just scary enough on its own.
We’re going to see more of Kate in the last few episodes of the season, according to Erica Messer. The character was introduced not long ago, and she’s been getting more screen time, but now it seems like the producers want to try to truly develop her character with a bit more personality, which is certainly a great approach.
The season finale will also have the team fighting to get someone back from a kidnapping, in a sub-plot that will develop over several episodes. Some have speculated that Kate might actually be killed off after this part of the story concludes, but that hasn’t been confirmed yet. Some fans have been hopeful that this is not the case, however, as they apparently want to see more of Kate in future episodes of the show.
However, Jennifer Love Hewitt, who portrays the character of Kate, is also pregnant in real life and if the writers want to keep her character on the show, they’re going to have to find a way to deal with that and integrate it into the story in some way. Otherwise, they really might decide to take the other route and get rid of her character completely for future episodes.