And again, Barb and I are sharing a brain. Cuban-Italian makes for a spicy mix...

Indeed. People should fear us.

I got a little teary with Spence. Very well played by MGG.

He really showed opposite sides of the spectrum since earlier in the episode when little dude tried to walk off and first Prentiss, then Spencer blocked his way, I loved the exchange of glances between little dude looking at Spence like "Seriously?" and Spencer coming back with as much of an outright "Bring it, bitch," look as I've ever seen from him and the beauty was how completely subtle it was.

All the more of a contrast with how out there his emotions were at the end, like a lost boy, uttering, "you can't go, they can't make you go."

And KV just freakin' OWNED her moment. She let it all hang out.

I initially wanted to smack Hotch for just shaking her hand, but then I realized, it's just what Hotch would do, since if he hugs her, he's acknowledging the finality of it. Shaking her hand didn't have the same air of ending.

MGG tweeted that he was sadder to see AJ go than Spence was to see JJ, so I really had to see him sell it.

And he did. They all did.

Yep, they did.

Oh, and what's with Reid downing dairy tablets and feeling sick on the plane? Could he be working on an ulcer?

Oy, I hope his secret isn't that he's ill, although the dark circles under his eyes have seemed especially pronounced the first two eps.

Somehow I don't think the actors were actually acting much at the end there. And poor Spence gets to watch another family member leave. How much more can he take?

Yeah, i'm sure that it wasn't hard for the actors to find an emotional place there.

Also, side note - not wild about Paget's new haircut. I liked it better straight cut, instead of the angled.

I am really not liking the secrets theme for this year. This has the potential to go wrong in so many ways. I don't want this show to turn into a procedural soap opera a la SVU.

I agree. Unless the secret is Morgan and Garcia's hot and heavy secret love affair. Is it just me, or are they going out of their way to show us small moments of intimacy with them? Last week, it was lingering on Morgan's expression after he apologized, this week, it was the way they touched each other as the team got into the elevator.

Or am I reading into it because I'm shipping them so hard?

Or am I reading into it because I'm shipping them so hard?

No more so than me reading into every Prentiss/Reid interaction because I ship them so hard. Like last night, when he reached for the giant bottle of Tums or Lactaid, it was Emily who said "Oh, again with the dairy?" like it had been a long-running thing between them.

We're all such a buncha saps.

Of course, that struck me as big sisterly, not romantic. But, YSMV (your 'ship may vary)

And I can't see Prentiss and Reid because all I see is Prentiss and Hotch. Not that I'm a fanatical 'shipper, but there are subtle signs in the show. I'll read just about any pairing and as long as the author justifies the relationship on a sliver of canon I'm good. Characterization is more important than pairing to me.

Vortex, I don't think you're reading too much into it. Bernero himself has said that M/G would be together if they weren't so broken as individuals. Other than Hotch and Haley I think that's as close to canon as a relationship is going to get on CM.