Published Jun 27, 2026, 11:45 AM EDT
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With only four episodes left, Criminal Minds season 19 is seemingly forgetting its best trend. Undeniably, the original Criminal Minds was one of the most formative crime dramas of the 21st century, running from 2005 to 2020. The austere feel of the Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU), coupled with the incredibly dark serial killers they chased, created a winning formula that countless contemporary series drew inspiration from. Criminal Minds was such an idiosyncrasy, in fact, fans assumed everything would remain the same when Paramount+ announced its revival as Criminal Minds: Evolution. Yet, the continuation sometimes feels like a completely different show.
As is the case with any reboot or remake of a beloved classic, there are highs and lows to the changes. Evolution takes a far more serialized approach, following one main villain each season and building thematic nodes around their subplot. The mature rating update means more gore, more drama, and more well-deserved F-bombs for the central team. Even the new main cast members— Ryan James Hatanaka (Tyler Green) and Zach Gilford (Elias Voit)— are standout, net-positive additions. Unfortunately, the crime drama is far from perfect, and the first half of Criminal Minds season 19 is overlooking one major storyline.
Luke Was Meant To Be Criminal Minds Season 19's Unofficial Main Character
Agent Alvez Has Been Massively Underutilized Since The Continuation Started
Since Criminal Minds: Evolution kicked off in 2022, each season has centered around one BAU member. The first installment was a tense psychological battle between Elias Voit and David Rossi (Joe Mantegna), the second was Gold Star's deeply personal vendetta against Emily Prentiss (Paget Brewster), and the third was Jennifer "JJ" Jareau's (A.J. Cook) devastating journey of grief following her husband's unexpected death. Ahead of Criminal Minds season 19, showrunner Erica Messer confirmed that Luke Alvez (Adam Rodriguez) would be the next BAU member spotlighted in a season-long arc. Sadly, that promise has yet to be fulfilled.
Considering the Criminal Minds season 19 premiere was Rodriguez's 100th episode, longtime viewers expected big things for the character. Right out of the gate, Luke took on his usual role as the BAU's muscle— and had little to no development for the rest of the episode. "Cluster" was a marked improvement, capturing Luke's palpable bereavement after losing his dog, Roxy. Beyond cementing him and Penelope Garcia (Kirsten Vangsness) as an inseparable duo, the second episode of the season allowed Rodriguez to flaunt the lesser-seen shadows of his acting range.
"Friendly Fire" similarly forced Alvez to mourn an FBI agent he was allegedly exceptionally close to, but Criminal Minds has left Luke on the sidelines for every other episode. Aside from a few scene-stealing moments, Alvez's arc in Criminal Minds season 19 has remained stagnant, while a side character like Brian Garrity (Paul F. Tompkins) has been cast into a shockingly important role. While Luke broods silently or cracks a joke in the corner, Garrity is the one progressing the main plot, and having a wacky conspiracy theorist lead the attack against The Fan just adds insult to injury.
Character-Driven Plots Are The Best Part Of Criminal Minds: Evolution
Paramount+ Has Proven In The Past That It Can Handle Deeply Personal Storylines
Of course, not every season needs to highlight one character alone. In fact, each season has had numerous prevalent characters that drive pivotal subplots. In Evolution's first season, Rossi was player one, but Garcia's highly-anticipated return to the FBI was a major focus, alongside Prentiss' bureaucratic battle with the institution itself. Season 17 continued following Emily, but Tyler emerged as a promising rookie profiler while JJ dealt with the sick repercussions of BAUGate. Naturally, JJ then took center stage in season 18, but Tara Lewis (Aisha Tyler) had a monumental near-death experience that stole the show.
All this to say, the disturbing cases in Criminal Minds are certainly part of its charm, but the vast majority of viewers came for the characters. For agents from the original series specifically, fans are already heavily invested in their wellbeing, meaning the continuation doesn't need to cultivate the same intrigue as it does for, say, Brian Garrity. A fraction of the fanbase may enjoy Garrity's sporadic appearances and zany subplots, but the audience has had an overwhelmingly negative response to his antics in season 19.
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Criminal Minds: Evolution Won't Stop Repeating Its Most Frustrating Pattern
The Paramount+ reboot of the CBS original series won't stop repeating an irritating pattern, making some of their cases feel less important overall.
The issue isn't even the story itself; for all intents and purposes, Garrity running The Sicarius Files podcast is an extremely clever way to start a conversation about the detrimental effects of true crime and how quickly curiosity can sour into obsession. Furthermore, Tompkins and Gilford are both wildly talented actors, and the material allows them to shine. The trouble is in the plot's timing— and, namely, how Criminal Minds continues to fight a losing battle against narrative balance.
With such a diverse ensemble, Criminal Minds can't possibly prop up every BAU member week after week. Rather, the crime drama prefers to divide and conquer, splitting the team into small groups to split the focus. Yet, attempting to weave together three to four subplots each episode is an impossible task, and it ultimately takes away from the magic of Criminal Minds: the BAU's teamwork.
There's Still Hope For Luke's Arc In Criminal Minds Season 19
The Final Episodes Will Have To Somehow Tie Back To Luke's Arc
Trae Patton/Paramount+Nevertheless, viewers shouldn't completely write off Luke's role in Criminal Minds season 19. It's true that in past seasons, the "main" characters felt more involved, but what the crime drama has done with Alvez thus far has been nothing short of exemplary. Adam Rodriguez is a gifted performer, and seeing Luke get some much-needed dimension has been massively rewarding. Consequently, Criminal Minds' biggest problem is that Luke has so much potential, it simply feels unnecessary to allocate so much screen-time elsewhere.
New episodes of Criminal Minds season 19 drop each Thursday on Paramount+.
Already, the seasons of Criminal Minds feel so short, with only 10 episodes to tell a comprehensive story. By bringing in subplots like Garrity's podcast, Garcia's secret testimony at Voit's sentencing, and more, Criminal Minds season 19 feels ambitious but somewhat unfocused. Ironically, Alvez could easily emerge as the season's anchor, but that would require the crime drama to pour more into his character. In theory, the next four weeks could go all-in on Luke's arc and flesh out his personal development in detail, but the harsh reality is that Alvez realistically only has a few major moments left.
Now that Criminal Minds has thoroughly shaken up his character, however, Luke feels truly within reach for future plots. Whether it's in season 20 or beyond, Luke thankfully has the foundation laid for further development. Hopefully, Alvez will stay in orbit enough to earn many more opportunities, but the criminally underrated character still deserves proper closure in Criminal Minds season 19.
Release Date September 22, 2005
Showrunner Erica Messer
Writers Bruce Zimmerman, Virgil Williams, Edward Allen Bernero, Janine Sherman Barrois, Chris Mundy, Simon Mirren, Debra J. Fisher, Kimberly A. Harrison, Jay Beattie, Dan Dworkin, Karen Maser, Oanh Ly, Stephanie Sengupta, Aaron Zelman, Kirsten Vangsness, Erica Meredith, Andi Bushell, Holly Harold, Alicia Kirk, Jeff Davis, Randy Huggins, Edward Napier, Jayne A. Archer, Chikodili Agwuna
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Kirsten Vangsness
Penelope Garcia
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Matthew Gray Gubler
Dr. Spencer Reid
English (US) ·