Criminal Minds - Closing Time

Criminal Minds – Closing Time

(Series 7 – Episode 14)

This week’s episode opens on a beach where a group of high school leavers are having a beach party. A couple who are going to separate colleges are getting things heated under the lifeguard tower however it all comes to a stop when drops of blood drip onto the girls body. The boy goes to investigate and finds three dead bodies in the lifeguard tower, two of which are wrapped in plastic.

Erica Messer has given me what I wanted, Beth is back. We see Hotch and Beth competing against each other to get to their finish line during their training session when Beth tricks him and says she has hurt her leg before legging it straight past him. They agree to go out on a date after Beth puts him out of his misery of trying to ask her. I loved the lift scene between Rossi and Hotch when he is asking how the training is going but we all know he’s asking about if he has asked her out yet and when he admits they have a date on Friday, Rossi says that he will do all he can to make sure they are back on Friday.

Garcia is giving the team the details about the case and the victims has had their genitals removed post mortem leaving the team to wonder if the unsub is keeping them as a trophy or trying to hide the evidence of a sexual assault.

We then see the unsub is at a basketball court and a teenage kid goes over to him and tells him that he will get in trouble if they are seen together, the unsub clearly has a bad relationship with his son.

One of the victims Sean Taylor was gay so the team wonder if that is part of the unsub's motives. Another victim Joseph Kraus has been found in another lifeguard tower and they also discover that both victims cars are missing.

We find out that the unsub’s name is Mike and he is having a confrontation with a guy at a car lot place and he says he ruined his life and he should go kill himself. Mike then get a new victim called Gus Harrington whilst the team discover that he is hunting at the beach not taking the victims there.

Rossi and Reid are at the hotel room where Gus was staying, bottle strewn all over the place so he went out to get more booze. The unsub selects his victims quickly, befriends them then kills them. They wonder if the unsub is committing merciful killings, he’s doing his victims a favour because their life is crap.

Mike then visits his ex wife where she tells him he is not wanted and Hunter doesn’t want to see him either, at this point we see the guy from the car place come out of the house. Has he taken over Mike’s place in the family home?

The team discover that none of the victims purchased any alcohol so this means they had to have been served it meaning that the unsub is a barmen. After all they listen to the problems of punters whilst serving them alcohol. We then see Mike with another possible victim who is drowning his sorrows and he admits to the guy that his wife and best friend moved in with each other, he is hunting for victims with broken hearts. A woman then comes to the bar that intrigues him more, she admits that her husband has left her, Mike says that the only reason to break up a marriage is if someone has cheated, the way the girl looks suggests that she has cheated on her husband. Mike picks up on this and when the guy tries to order another drink he tells him he’s had enough.

The team are then at the crime scene where the girl from the bar, known as Kelsey Ashwood has been hacked and disposed in the bin, she had been cut up whilst she was still alive. This murder was angrier making it clear that she had committed a bigger sin.

Mike is then at the car place crushing a car, trying to get rid of the evidence when the guy we find out is called Doug Summers asks what he is doing as he doesn’t work there anymore. After some angry words Mike pushes Doug over the barrier and Doug panics as he couldn’t move and thinks he has broken his back, Mike then uses the machine to pick up the car and drops it on Doug. If that wasn’t bad enough he then presses a button which crushes the car and Doug.

JJ is talking to Kelsey’s husband and after some time he admits that Kelsey had cheated on him, only once but he couldn’t move on from it. All the victims relationships ended due to infidelity. Hotch is at the latest crime scene and says the unsub wanted Doug to suffer. When they visit his ex wife Andrea and finds out that Andrea and Doug were engaged and they found out that Doug is Hunter’s biological father. They found out two months ago which was before the killings started and the stressor for Mike. We then see Mike take Hunter from school.

Mike takes Hunter to the bar and tells him they have to go, when Hunter wants to call his Mum he says that she is not part of their life anymore. Hunter asks what he has done and he admits that Doug is dead and that he didn’t mean to. Hunter is really upset and yells at him that ‘you killed my father.’ As he goes to get by Mike hits him with the gun and says ‘I am your father.’

JJ and Morgan are searching the bar, it’s JJ that finds them in the basement Mike has tied Hunter to the chair and is pointing a gun to him. Hunter tells him what Mike wants to hear in the hope that he will give JJ the gun. When she gets the chance JJ runs at Mike and they have a scrap. It was great to see JJ kick some ass. During the fight Hunter picks up the gun and points it at Mike, its Derek that talks the boy out of it.

After Mike is arrested Reid is worried and asks how JJ is in which she replies ‘I’m fine, it’s just a scratch.’ In true Reid style he comes out with ‘you have two cuts, three bruises, a black eye and a possible fractured rib.’ He then asks the paramedic to suggest counselling for JJ. You have got to love the relationship between these two.

Back at Quantico Derek admits that he is never making JJ angry again and she says she hopes her coach is proud of her which Derek admits he’s really proud and just glad it came in handy. I’m sure I am not the only one who would like to do some combat sessions with Derek.

We then see Hotch doing some late night paperwork as usual when Morgan comes in and says that its Valentine’s Day but not to worry because he forgot too and he invited him to the bar where all the singles are going. Hotch politely declines and goes to pick up Beth with a bunch of flowers; she kisses him to get their first kiss out of the way.

I love that Hotch is taking a step forward and started dating again and cannot wait to see how their relationship plays out.

Roll on next week’s episode.