…And Back
Written & Directed by Edward Allen Bernaro
The BAU have found their UnSub, and he's a quadriplegic. The UnSub's brother, whose limbs work, was interrupted in the middle of murdering his latest victim, so instead of bashing her skull in with a hammer he carries her to an underground bunker in the woods. Part 2 of 2.Tropes present in this episode:
- Big "NO!": Morgan is visibly shouting "NO!" and "CEASE FIRE!" when the SWAT members start to shoot Lucas.
- Chekhov's Gun: A literal gun. The shotgun that William Hightower will use to execute Mason can be seen in various scenes, with the camera even lingering on it a few times.
- Cliffhanger: The Reaper ambushes Hotch at home, with the episode ending just after a gunshot.
- Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Played with Lucas. In interactions and his crayon art, he seems to have the developmental level of a small child, but he knows how to abduct homeless people, perform medical experiments on them, and dispose of them.
- Downer Ending: William Hightower executes Mason, ensuring his own prison sentence, Lucas is killed by the police, and the entire team is emotionally spent by the horrors of the case. And that's BEFORE the Reaper shows up to attack Hotch.
- Dying Smirk: Mason gives one before being blown away by William Hightower.
- Evil Cripple: Mason is a quadriplegic on life support, and a depraved sadist. The "cripple" part becomes a plot point, as the team discuss how his condition and the fact he did not do any of the actual killings will make it hard for a jury to convict him.
- Fall Guy: Mason tries to pin everything on Lucas. Even thought the BAU sees through it, they figure it will sound plausible enough in court.
- Fed to Pigs: How the victims' bodies are disposed of. The trope image comes from this episode.
- Foreshadowing: Reid comments to Hotch that he has a feeling this case won't end well. He has no idea how right he is.
- Good Cannot Comprehend Evil: Normally, the BAU can understand the Unsubs well enough to catch them, this case leaves the entire team at a loss to understand any of it. It's even reflected on by Hotch for the closing quotesHotch: Sometimes there are no words, no clever little quotes to neatly sum up the day.
- Indirect Serial Killer: The quadriplegic Mason Turner has his mentally handicapped brother Lucas kidnap and murder people and perform experiments on their corpses.
- Jack Bauer Interrogation Technique: At one point when it cuts back to Rossi interviewing the quadriplegic brother, Rossi's hand is on the man's ventilator tube and he's suddenly much more willing to talk. It looks like the scene of Rossi doing this trope got cut, perhaps by someone who remembered
that the show denounced it as counterproductive way back in season two. - Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: Mason claims that he's performing experiments into stem cells, and the knowledge gained can benefit others and even cure his condition. Rossi immediately counters that the technology he has is nowhere near advanced enough for any of that, and the strategically placed mirrors allow him to see Lucas do the actual killing. So in reality, he's just a sadist.
- Oh, Crap!: It's subtle, but when Hotch realizes the Reaper is behind him, he is visibly (if subtly) alarmed. That said, by the time he turns around his expression is one of angry defiance.
- Once per Episode: Inverted. This is one of the few times when there is no quote at the end of the episode, with Hotchner (in narration) talking about how sometimes there is just nothing that can help make sense of the evils of the world... right before he discovers that the Reaper was waiting for him in his living room.
- Shout-Out:
- Garcia makes many The Wizard of Oz references to keep her cool.
- Lucas appears to be based on Lennie.
- Suspiciously Specific Denial: Lucas vehemently denies pushing his brother off the roof, although no one asked.
- Vigilante Execution: William Hightower shoots his sister's murderer, having overheard that he likely won't be convicted on account of being paraplegic.
- The Villain Knows Where You Live: Hotch discovers the hard way that the Reaper found out his home address.
- Wham Line:
- At the farm, Morgan and Prentiss discover a crate full of used shoes that look like they've belonged to homeless people.Morgan: There was supposed to be, what, ten victims? There's gotta be over a hundred pairs of shoes in there.
- At the end of the episode, Hotch is attacked in his home, and the unseen attacker whispers:Foyet: You should've made the deal.
- At the farm, Morgan and Prentiss discover a crate full of used shoes that look like they've belonged to homeless people.
- With Friends Like These...: Discussed. Rossi finds it suspicious that Mason would tell them to not even try to talk to his brother before gunning him down.
- Hotchner: "...Like I said, sometimes there are no words. No clever quotes to neatly sum up what happened that day. Sometimes, the day just (gunshot)...ends."
