11 reviews
One Thought
Stolen Plot Story
This story is based loosely on the murders in Fort Bragg, NC in February 1970. Captain Jeffery McDonald, a US Army Doctor, killed his pregnant wife and two daughters in the same manner as portrayed in this episode.
The phantom woman, and a group of people coming into his house while he was asleep on the couch.
Check out the actual story by searching for Jeffery McDonald.
The phantom woman, and a group of people coming into his house while he was asleep on the couch.
Check out the actual story by searching for Jeffery McDonald.
- matthewpsprenger
- Apr 4, 2020
- Permalink
Found it rather ho-hum
As far as Season 6 episodes of 'Criminal Minds' goes, "25 to Life" is better than "Today I Do" and especially "The Thirteenth Step", and there are worse episodes of 'Criminal Minds' overall.
This said, while a long way from a low-point episode it is a rather ho-hum one that started off well but lost its way after the third crime and got more and more ridiculous. While there are worse episodes in Season 6, and of the show, "25 to Life" is to me a lesser episode of a show that is a personal favourite, especially in the first five seasons (from Season 6 onwards 'Criminal Minds' did become hit and miss, with an especially underwhelming Season 11, the little seen of Season 12 has not made me jump out of my chair with excitement).
"25 to Life" started promisingly. Morgan's compassion for Sanderson, his belief in his innocence and his going to great lengths to securing him parole sees a lovely and more sympathetic side to Morgan. Sure he is empathetic with victims and like at times a big brother figure to Reid, but he's tough as nails with the criminals, whether talked about, apprehended or convicted so this compassionate side to a convicted soon to be paroled criminal understandably strikes some fans as odd. That side to him was incredibly effective and beautifully played by Shemar Moore. Kyle Secor also does a great job as Sanderson, so much so that you are convinced that it isn't him and want the real person to be found. The rapport being Moore and Secor comes across really well.
In fact, all the acting is very good, with exception of Rachel Nichols who plays Seaver with her usual blandness. "25 to Life" is a very well-made episode, shot with style and love and an atmospheric but audacious look. The music is haunting and melancholic, never being intrusive or inappropriately melodramatic. Some of the writing in the first half is thought-provoking, intelligent and with enough to keep one gripped, while the concluding reunion was very moving.
However, "25 to Life" does lose its way significantly after the third crime and unfortunately never recovers. The episode by all means wasn't perfect up to then anyway, Seaver again is useless, out-of-place, annoying and with a personality and range of a broomstick and there's too much of her and not enough of much more interesting and likable characters like Reid. Strauss is as cold and dictatorial in leadership as ever, and while Hotch's absence doesn't bring the episode down single-handedly he is missed. The episode did drag at times, and was pretty formulaic where you do become too convinced too early on that it was the doing of somebody else, the one time in the episode where that is questioned is when the second crime is committed where one does temporarily does question whether he is innocent or not.
It is once the real unsub's identity is revealed where the episode falls apart. The way they found out did feel random and tacked on, and there just wasn't much to the unsub himself, nothing to make one feel anything for him, not even hate, in fact the character and his position came over as far-fetched. The reason for the family murder is not made properly clear, even if it was explained it wasn't clear enough and it needed to be elaborated upon much more.
Particularly bad however was regarding the team confrontation and arrest, the scene has to be down there in the top 5 of the most badly written, unrealistic and intelligence-insultingly ridiculous scenes of Season 6, with the self-righteous writing, the team acting out of character when accusing without proper proof in front of people and that painful slow clapping. Am amazed that anybody, especially Morgan, kept their jobs after that. The script showed good potential in the first half, but Garcia's flippant remarks in the profiling and the whole writing for the confrontation stuck out as sloppy.
Overall, rather ho-hum, started off well but lost its way after the third crime and crashed and burned after the revelation of the real unsub. 5/10 Bethany Cox
This said, while a long way from a low-point episode it is a rather ho-hum one that started off well but lost its way after the third crime and got more and more ridiculous. While there are worse episodes in Season 6, and of the show, "25 to Life" is to me a lesser episode of a show that is a personal favourite, especially in the first five seasons (from Season 6 onwards 'Criminal Minds' did become hit and miss, with an especially underwhelming Season 11, the little seen of Season 12 has not made me jump out of my chair with excitement).
"25 to Life" started promisingly. Morgan's compassion for Sanderson, his belief in his innocence and his going to great lengths to securing him parole sees a lovely and more sympathetic side to Morgan. Sure he is empathetic with victims and like at times a big brother figure to Reid, but he's tough as nails with the criminals, whether talked about, apprehended or convicted so this compassionate side to a convicted soon to be paroled criminal understandably strikes some fans as odd. That side to him was incredibly effective and beautifully played by Shemar Moore. Kyle Secor also does a great job as Sanderson, so much so that you are convinced that it isn't him and want the real person to be found. The rapport being Moore and Secor comes across really well.
In fact, all the acting is very good, with exception of Rachel Nichols who plays Seaver with her usual blandness. "25 to Life" is a very well-made episode, shot with style and love and an atmospheric but audacious look. The music is haunting and melancholic, never being intrusive or inappropriately melodramatic. Some of the writing in the first half is thought-provoking, intelligent and with enough to keep one gripped, while the concluding reunion was very moving.
However, "25 to Life" does lose its way significantly after the third crime and unfortunately never recovers. The episode by all means wasn't perfect up to then anyway, Seaver again is useless, out-of-place, annoying and with a personality and range of a broomstick and there's too much of her and not enough of much more interesting and likable characters like Reid. Strauss is as cold and dictatorial in leadership as ever, and while Hotch's absence doesn't bring the episode down single-handedly he is missed. The episode did drag at times, and was pretty formulaic where you do become too convinced too early on that it was the doing of somebody else, the one time in the episode where that is questioned is when the second crime is committed where one does temporarily does question whether he is innocent or not.
It is once the real unsub's identity is revealed where the episode falls apart. The way they found out did feel random and tacked on, and there just wasn't much to the unsub himself, nothing to make one feel anything for him, not even hate, in fact the character and his position came over as far-fetched. The reason for the family murder is not made properly clear, even if it was explained it wasn't clear enough and it needed to be elaborated upon much more.
Particularly bad however was regarding the team confrontation and arrest, the scene has to be down there in the top 5 of the most badly written, unrealistic and intelligence-insultingly ridiculous scenes of Season 6, with the self-righteous writing, the team acting out of character when accusing without proper proof in front of people and that painful slow clapping. Am amazed that anybody, especially Morgan, kept their jobs after that. The script showed good potential in the first half, but Garcia's flippant remarks in the profiling and the whole writing for the confrontation stuck out as sloppy.
Overall, rather ho-hum, started off well but lost its way after the third crime and crashed and burned after the revelation of the real unsub. 5/10 Bethany Cox
- TheLittleSongbird
- Oct 26, 2016
- Permalink
A criminally unrealistic episode.
- sorseli348
- Dec 31, 2014
- Permalink
Nauseatingly bad
Stupid and reckless confrontation
Spoiler Alert: One Of The Worst Series Scripts
- rich-73106
- Apr 16, 2022
- Permalink
One of the worst episodes I've seen.
- madman-63862
- Sep 28, 2023
- Permalink
I have no words...
Like all episodes centered on Morgan... stupid, ridiculous, way over the top
Worst conclusion in the series thus far
excellent episode
- abby_janke
- Jul 16, 2024
- Permalink