I Thought Voit’s Storyline in ‘Criminal Minds: Evolution’ Was Predictable, but the Show Just Changed Everything

Alongside the riveting serial-killer-of-the-week structure, Criminal Minds often introduces a recurring villain that heightens the stakes and makes a deeper impact on one of the BAU team members. This trend appeared as early as the elusive, alien-abduction-esque killer, Frank (Keith Carradine), in Season 2, whom Jason Gideon (Mandy Patinkin) became obsessed with, or the “Boston Reaper,” George Foyet (C. Thomas Howell) in Seasons 4 and 5, who killed Aaron Hotchner’s (Thomas Gibson) wife. While these overarching antagonists technically span a season or two, there are only a few episodes that delve into the nitty-gritty details of the case.

As such, it was a surprise when Criminal Minds: Evolutions introduced a villain that has survived three seasons thus far, completely shifting away from the show’s original structure and making me wonder if it is sustainable. I felt like the show had already squeezed out all they could in Elias Voit’s (Zach Gilford) unprecedented run, but Season 3, Episode 4 proved me wrong, completely refreshing the storyline and making me excited about the arc’s future.

Voit’s Amnesia in ‘Criminal Minds: Evolutions’ Felt Predictable

Two seasons of Voit dominating Evolutions gave us enough material to sink our teeth into, as the show was able to dissect every single part of Voit’s character and mind at a level that we had never seen before. While they do manage to dig into disturbing details in their normal weekly cases, for Voit, we got to explore his psychological landscape, his grand plan for the Sicarius network, his relationship with his family and how the team, specifically David Rossi (Joe Mantegna), responded to him. But there wasn’t much appeal in seeing him in prison for yet another season, and the show’s decision to give him amnesia seems to attest to this sentiment. To me, making Voit essentially a blank slate was an attempt to justify prolonging his involvement in the show.

I felt this memory-wiping gimmick could only last so long, and that the arc was heading to an inevitable, abysmally predictable conclusion: the evil Voit returning. In hindsight, this was probably what Evolutions wanted me to believe, as the team members were also certain that Voit would either regain his memories or that he was faking it the whole time. After being intimately acquainted with how calculating Voit can be, I couldn’t fathom another option either — he doesn’t seem like someone who could be absolved or limited by not remembering his crimes. But in Episode 4, Voit regains a tiny tidbit of a memory, a false one, that opens up another more fascinating direction Evolutions can take the arc.

‘Criminal Minds: Evolutions’ Season 3, Episode 4 Flips Voit and Rossi’s Dynamics

In his migraine-inducing memory recall scene, Voit sees himself as a victim being strapped onto a metal bench with a masked man about to drill into his skull: that masked man turned out to be Rossi. Naturally, this is a manufactured memory, and Voit soon comes to the earth-shattering realization that he is the killer, but that scene hit me like a truck with all the implications it had for Rossi and Voit’s relationship. In the previous season of Evolutions, Rossi’s psyche was plagued by taunting hallucinations of Voit. Now the roles are reversed, and Rossi is haunting Voit’s psyche. It’s a delicious, satisfying subversion that makes their interactions more eerie, as it solidifies how, in this version of Voit, Rossi is his villain. He is how Voit will reconnect with his former, murderous self.

But with Voit’s reaction to finding out he is a murderer, where Gilford’s performance conveys Voit’s devastation, guilt, and fear, it seems regaining these memories is also the worst possible outcome for him. So, is Rossi the villain for potentially being the catalyst to bringing Sicarius back? This creepy role subversion is accentuated by the parallel case-of-the-week, where the BAU is hunting down a doctor who is targeting women of color to graft their skin onto his ill daughter. He cannot see the pain he is causing his victims because he is so blinded by his desire to cure his daughter. This is thematically linked to Voit and Rossi’s relationship, as their experiences and traumas of being each other’s villains are essentially being grafted onto each other. They are irrevocably connected now, and in Rossi’s perseverance to bring Sicarius to justice, is he doing more harm than good?

Voit Could Become ‘Criminal Minds’ Most Fascinating Unsub

Voit’s visceral response to his realization also poses a fascinating question of can a serial killer be redeemed if he loses his memories? Especially if this version of Voit doesn’t seem to have the makings of a serial killer. It leads to the classic exploration of whether homicidal tendencies are a product of nature or nurture. Without the memories of the conditioning and tutoring from his uncle, Cyrus (Silas Weir Mitchell), who we saw in Season 1, can Voit actually become a “good” person? But even so, as the BAU team members have said, does that mean Sicarius’ victims cannot be avenged? Just because his mental past has been erased doesn’t mean his actions haven’t.

By only giving Voit a pinch of his memories back instead of all at once, the show poses a series of moral dilemmas and thought-provoking questions. We see how he reacts to a glimpse, and thus we’re not sure how he would react to the memories of his entire life: would he continue feeling guilty as this “new” Voit, or just revert back? Between the legal ramifications, the impact on the team, the potential inclusion of Voit’s family again, and Voit’s mental state as well, keeping Voit “innocent,” where he isn’t acting or wouldn’t regress, keeps the door wide open for Evolutions to dive into the gray area, a place they thrive the best.