Thank You Prentiss For Finally Saying My Biggest Gripe About Criminal Minds: Evolution

Emily Prentiss is no stranger to stirring pep talks, but Criminal Minds: Evolution season 3, episode 8 finally confronts the crime drama’s ugliest truth. Paget Brewster’s Emily Prentiss began as the Section Chief in the 2022 reboot, only to quickly re-assume her duties as the BAU’s Unit Chief.

Throughout Jennifer “JJ” Jareau’s (A.J. Cook) husband dying, the dormant Sicarius network of serial killers going back online, and Tara Lewis (Aisha Tyler) being shot at the end of Criminal Minds: Evolution season 3, episode 7, Prentiss has had many personal and professional challenges to navigate this season.

Yet, everything goes back to prolific serial killer Elias Voit (Zach Gilford), who began as the main antagonist in Criminal Minds: Evolution season 1. After being apprehended, Voit began haunting David Rossi (Joe Mantegna) and was called in to help the FBI pending his transfer to a public prison, where he was attacked in the season 2 finale.

Since the season 3 premiere of Criminal Minds: Evolution, an entirely new Voit has emerged due to a mix of memory loss and traumatic brain injuries. Voit’s amnesia storyline in Criminal Minds: Evolution, however, needs to be the character’s final act.

Prentiss Finally Admits That We’re All Tired Of This Case In Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 3, Episode 8

Voit Has Been Terrorizing The BAU Since The Reboot Started

From the very first episode of Criminal Minds: Evolution, Voit has been a thorn in the side of the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit, with Rossi taking a special interest in his case. Slowly, Voit became intertwined with practically every main character, from revealing his involvement in the BAU Gate AI porn using JJ’s likeness to murdering Tyler Green’s (Ryan-James Hatanaka) sister.

In the most unlikely turn of events, Garcia and Voit develop a connection in Criminal Minds: Evolution that deepens in season 3, episode 8, with Penelope claiming Voit is the “only one” who can understand her.

Prentiss: Fine, I’ll say it. I’m tired. I’m tired of this group of a—— coordinating in ways we can’t predict because it makes a mockery of our skills as law enforcement agents. But you know what I’m tired of the most? I’m tired of him.

Yet, Emily Prentiss finally says what the audience has been thinking for years: she’s tired of Voit and the Sicarius investigation. After Tara’s shooting, the BAU assemble after an already exhausting day, but nobody admits their fatigue until Emily’s speech, where she orders them to acknowledge their exhaustion and then remember Tara’s uncertain fate to keep themselves going.

It’s an effective motivator, but more than anything, Emily’s reality check reveals the toll that Voit’s prolonged presence is now taking on the show itself. Lucky, Criminal Minds: Evolution can free itself from the cycle of Voit helping and hurting.

How Criminal Minds: Evolution Can Finally Move On From Sicarius

The Main Characters All Need Closure

Truthfully, Criminal Minds: Evolution revealed Voit’s fate long ago, in a trailer clip where he attacks someone on a prison bus. Though that could easily bring him under the BAU’s microscope once again, Criminal Minds: Evolution needs to let Voit’s character depart for good.

In order for the heroes to remain triumphant, the FBI must close the Sicarius case and take down the network permanently. For years, the killers have always been one step ahead, making the protagonists look like fools. Now is the time for Criminal Minds: Evolution to restore order.

All episodes of Criminal Minds: Evolution are streaming on Paramount+.

With Tara’s attack, it’s important for the BAU to win the battle in Criminal Minds: Evolution season 3. It’s been personal since the start— Voit nearly killed Rossi, the “Gold Star” killers Voit enabled almost killed Prentiss, etc.— but now that Voit’s “Disciple” has given Tara a near-death experience, it’s time for the beloved profilers to gain the upper hand.

The longer Criminal Minds: Evolution draws out the Sicarius plot, the more it undercuts the team‘s skillful profiling and fieldwork. Of course, letting go of Voit wouldn’t be a simple happy ending.

Criminal Minds: Evolution Ending The Sicarius Storyline Allows It To Be More Experimental With Its Story

Letting Go Of Voit Would Pave The Way For A New Villain

Aside from Voit’s storyline simply needing to end, Criminal Minds: Evolution deserves the freedom to explore new storylines without Voit’s influence. Since the original series began, the disturbing unsubs in Criminal MInds were the hook, but viewers stayed for the BAU.

Week after week, the profilers took down twisted murderers, usually saved the final victim, and often learned important life lessons in the process. With Voit seemingly at the heart of every storyline, Criminal Minds: Evolution feels less like a continuation of the original series and more like a deep dive into one, end-all-be-all super villain.

The talented cast of Criminal Minds: Evolution also deserves to move on from the trauma inflicted by Voit and his legion of killers, even if only more pain awaits them in future seasons. With the BAU so laser-focused on Voit and his followers, there’s no telling how many other serial killers are falling through the cracks due to tunnel vision.

If Voit’s storyline was finally put to rest, the BAU would feel like capable protagonists again and there would be room for a new, fresh antagonist to breathe new life into Criminal Minds: Evolution