Recap / Criminal Minds S 11 E 18 A Beautiful Disaster

Beautiful Disaster

Savannah has been shot by a sniper. Morgan knows the UnSub is trying to hurt his family because Morgan himself was the easy shot. He figures out it's someone who blames him for the loss of their child. They leave behind a message for him to locate them.

Tropes in this episode

• Call-Back: Morgan doesn't want to sit it out, arguing that Hotch didn't sit the Foyet case out. Hotch tells him to remember how that turned out.
• Dead Guy Junior: Morgan and Savannah name their son Hank, after Morgan's late father.
• "Eureka!" Moment: When Montolo lures Morgan out to one of the houses the latter renovated, he keeps Morgan from taking him down by using Morgan's team, and later just Savannah and Garcia after the others leave, as hostages, claiming that, if his supposed accomplice doesn't receive a call from him every five minutes, the accomplice will kill them. Eventually, though, Morgan remembers that he never installed a landline into the house, and Montolo is therefore faking the phone calls, and promptly fights back.
• Friendship Moment: When Morgan, who's been on the team for the entire duration of the show, decides that he's going to leave to spend more time with his wife and new son, he gets one of these with each of the other longtime members of the BAU:
  • He and Hotch bond over the shared experience of being a new father to a baby son.
  • Rossi brings flowers to Savannah's hospital room, also bonds with Morgan over the shared experience of fatherhood (in Rossi's case, having somewhat-recently discovered that he's a father), and Morgan takes him to see the baby so the latter can meet his "Uncle Dave".
  • JJ gives Morgan a framed picture of the whole BAU team at the hospital together with Savannah and Hank.
  • When Reid is sad about Morgan's departure, Morgan reveals that his new son Hank's middle name is Spencer, after Reid, and outright calls him his little brother. The two also hug and exchange "I love you"s.
  • Garcia packs up Morgan's office for him, and the two reiterate how much they mean to each other, with Morgan saying she'll always be his baby girl and that he loves her.
• Hostage Situation: Montolo fakes one with all of Morgan's loved ones by showing video camera footage from the hospital of Savannah and his entire team, stating he has an accomplice who'll kill them if Morgan tries anything. Morgan eventually realizes that they're not really in danger, and takes down the crook.
• Imperiled in Pregnancy: Morgan's very pregnant wife Savannah is shot and almost killed.
• It's Personal: Morgan is taken off the case, since the UnSub is going after his family. Morgan takes it anyway.
• Platonic Declaration of Love: Morgan exchanges these with both Reid and Garcia as he's saying his farewells to the team.
• Put on a Bus: Morgan leaves the team to spend more time with his wife and baby son.
• Trauma Conga Line: Poor Morgan. First he gets kidnapped and tortured, then his pregnant wife is shot and almost killed, then the father of a dead contract killer tries to kill him.
• Wham Line: "This house doesn't have a landline!"

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