Criminal Minds - A Thin Line

Criminal Minds – A Thin Line

(Series 7 – Episode 15)

This week’s episode really freaked me out as soon as it started, I find home invasion episodes the scariest ones and with the electricity being cut and the little girl hiding under the bed calling 911, you knew what was coming but could do nothing about it. I admit I hid myself behind a cushion waiting for the little girl to be dragged from under her bed.

We then see the FBI enter a house and they get shot by the intruder coming from the closet, luckily it’s the one and only Derek Morgan, himself and Prentiss are at the training academy. We get to see a different side to Morgan who gives out to the trainee who made the mistake by not checking the door and getting his team killed. Back at headquarters Prentiss tells Morgan that she thinks he was a bit too harsh back at the academy, after all they are there to learn by there mistakes. Morgan then asks how he would feel if it had happened for real.

The team are dealing with two home invasions that have only been four days apart and both invasions there was an intruder shot leading the team to believe that this is gang related. On further investigation they learn that one of the black kids found was in a gang and the other was working two jobs to pay his way through college.

The team then head off to the latest crime scene and something doesn’t add up, it turns out that the head of the house didn’t shoot one of the intruders, he had already been killed and then dragged into the middle of the room to make it look like a shooting stand off had happened. It was made to look like this and it is also too messy to be reconstructed.

Hotch and JJ are at the local police department interviewing the parents of the two gang members killed, the two intruders have different social background and the second didn’t hang about in any gangs or no anyone from a gang. Back at the crime scene Prentiss, Reid, Rossi and Morgan are still figuring out what happened when Morgan says that this unsub is trying to make it look like black kids from the hood are killing white people in a white neighbourhood.

We then are shown a young guy watching Clark Preston a mayoral candidate on TV. Clark Preston is played by no other than Paul Johansson who is more famously know for playing Dan Scott in One Tree Hill and I was glad to see him back on my screen once more. Clark Preston is stating how he wants California back to the way it was making this guy clap and cheer.

We then see that this guy is our unsub when he drives and picks up a Mexican man and offers him $50 to help him move for two hours, he then takes him out of the way and stabs him with a needle that drugs him.

The team are then at another home invasion where the intruder is a Mexican man, this shows us that the unsub has been drugging people and making it look like they have committed the crimes. The team then gives their profile that they are looking for a white male in his late twenties, early thirties and can get these drugs easily but also knows about dosage in order to not kill the men he is putting as the intruder. We then see the unsub taking care of his sick mother and giving her the exact same drug.

Morgan then comes to Hotch after seeing Clark Preston’s campaign talk where he has used the phrase ‘browning of America’ which is hate talk. After asking the mayoral candidate some questions he agrees to cut back on his campaign talks as long as the BAU can prove their theories. He also directed to Morgan that it must have had to work really hard to get to where he is now.

We then see Clark Preston visit the unsub’s house with some flowers as his mother’s birthday is coming up soon. He also tells Trevor to hold back on the plans.

Ignoring what Clark had told him Trevor is watching another house, waiting for them to turn the lights off and go to bed. After he has shot the whole family we see him go to the trunk of his car to get the fake intruder, but as he does this the man jump out, attacks Trevor and makes a run for it.

We then see the guy who is called Ramone Gomez at the police station and gives them a statement; he also tells Prentiss that they made two stops before he got out. The first stop he could hear trains, laughter and music. The only reason Ramone didn’t stay drugged was because he used to be a user.

Trevor the goes to see Clark Preston as his campaign and we see that Clark is angry that he has come to where he is working, he tells him to leave and that he will come round when he can.

The team have found a pub situated near a railway and it connects Clark Preston as they are supporters there. Garcia also finds out that Trevor’s mother invests to Clark monthly. She then gives them the address of Trevor’s home and workplace and the team set off.

Trevor is leaving messages on Clark’s phone saying that he needed his help; after all he has gone along with his plan. The team are outside Trevor’s house and I may be the only one that noticed but I saw that Reid had odd socks on; one red one blue, I loved how quirky he is. The team find a note from Trevor to his mother saying goodbye; they need to find him and fast.

Garcia has also found out that Trevor was the victim of a home invasion where his father and sister was killed, the intruders also raped his mother causing her severe brain damage and leaving her as a vegetable, all this happened while Trevor was hid in the closet. After the invasion Clark Preston had bought the house and paid for everything they needed, the monthly deposits from Trevor’s mother is her disability allowance. During this time Clark had also brainwashed Trevor in to believing in his own believes and has turned him into a murderer.

Knowing that Trevor has gone for one of the other mayoral candidates, Morgan, JJ and Prentiss are outside Hillary Ross’s house and when they find out that Hotch has gotten the other candidate Morgan suggest that they split up as if Trevor runs they have covered the house.

As JJ and Prentiss enter through the front of the house they are shot at and Prentiss get hit on her arm. JJ carries on upstairs and after Morgan has jumped the back gate he joins her, Trevor also shoots at Morgan who luckily manages to escape. He then goes on to tell Trevor how Clark has brainwashed him and doesn’t really care about him otherwise he would have answered his phone. Trevor is adamant that Morgan is the bad guy and Clark said they would try and convince him that Clark was bad. Morgan then tells Trevor how the men who are inside for his home invasion said they were paid to do it but had no proof. Would Clark Preston really go that far? Trevor then pushes Hillary out of the way and goes to shoot Morgan who fires first, killing Trevor instantly. We then see Hotch and Rossi arresting Clark Preston who thinks they are having a laugh as the voicemails he has gotten from Trevor show how mentally unstable he is.

Back on the jet Morgan apologises to Prentiss for getting her shot, I loved how she mimicked how Morgan had been to the trainee agent but then tell him it wasn’t his fault when he doesn’t laugh. My heart went out to organ when he says that he got her hurt again although she just tells him he is a leader and made a great decision, not like he did with Doyle. You see the hurt in Morgan’s eyes until Prentiss starts laughing again.

Roll on next week for some more Criminal Minds fun.