Yes, it does. I've forsaken new episodes of several shows because of my new obsession with CM.

I've forsaken new episodes of several shows because of my new obsession with CM.

Yes, this! Luckily, most of my other shows are on cable, which means they're rerun either later that day or on the weekend, so I just time-shift. The only network shows I watch are CM on Wednesday night and occasionally NCIS on Tuesday night if I've missed it earlier in the season. Comcast has NCIS available OnDemand (I wish they would do the same with CM, though). This fall will be a bit different, since I'll be adding Hawaii 5-O and Under Covers to my network schedule, along with Castle and the others.

I watched the CM pilot last night for the first time since I got into this show, and found the characterization interesting. Hotch actually smiles and is friendly to witnesses (see him with the grandma of one of the unsubs), Gideon is (or rather, was) the unit chief--Reid calls him "boss"--Morgan wears a suit and tie (!), and there is no JJ (strange seeing them fly home with no women on the plane).

Liked seeing that they had the Morgan/Garcia phone flirtation from the very beginning, and even though they had Reid be more awkward around those outside the team ("the Reid effect" on dogs and kids was funny), he was at ease with the team itself.

Hotch is consistently friendly to witnesses--he shows extreme compassion during Ashes and Dust, if memory serves, and even to the unsub in Pleasure Is My Business. That's never been a shortcoming of his.

His increasing flatness seems to be largely to other cops and his team.

His increasing flatness seems to be largely to other cops and his team.

And I think it's because of everything he's experienced, he expends the majority of his being "on" efforts for witnesses, whereas with the team, he really doesn't feel as if he has to. They don't need him to be on, they just need him to do his job. Yet it was something that Jordan pointed out during her tenure-- that a team takes on the traits of their leader and that he never smiles and to watch out for that.

You're right--I get his stiffness around the local cops mixed up with his southern gentleman quality around witnesses. All that smiling in the pilot really threw me, though, especially since I'd just gone through all of S3 and S4 when he's Mr. Intensity (and going through a divorce).

Oh, it's so heartbreaking, seeing Hotch in the pilot -- that's where they are picking baby names, right? He and Haley are so happy.

Not only picking out baby names, but he's putting together the crib. So sad in retrospect!

Ohhhh! I now have a favorite episode of Criminal Minds! Penelope! It's the one where Garcia is shot. I adored the interaction between Garcia and Morgan, and Nicholas Brendan was awesome!

"Penelope" is a great ep. I love when she's talking about fading in and out of consciousness, seeing a white light, and hearing the song "Heroes," which makes her wonder, "Is David Bowie really God?" And then having that song play over the end when she finally meets Kevin face-to-face--so sweet!