What Fresh Hell? (2006) User Reviews (8)

Had the danger of being routine and bland, ended up being one of the season's better episodes

[TheLittleSongbird · 8/10 · 18 September 2016]

Not one of the best of the entire show, and just falls short of being outstanding. However, out of the episodes between "The Fox" and "Riding the Lightning" where the quality slumped and some cases became bland, dull and routine, "What Fresh Hell" is the best one.

It isn't perfect by all means, although 'Criminal Minds' generally is a personal favourite there are not many episodes admittedly that are virtually flawless. Gideon's manner of getting into the house at the end has been criticised by fans, and personally do have to agree that it was rather over-the-top for him. Also Elle's lack of personality is continuing to annoy me, and Lola Glaudini plays her too much of a cold fish devoid of much emotion.

What to me though was good about "What Fresh Hell" was how it took a basic and very done-to-death plot (by crime-mystery standards), and made an episode out of it that was edge-of-your-seat, intense and moving, allowing one to really feel several emotions about the situation, which is every parent's worst nightmare, while watching. Some of the episodes in the first season, especially in the slump between "The Fox" and "Riding the Lightning" (for example "The Popular Kids" should have been a much more interesting case than it actually was), suffered from pacing issues and twists and unsub identities that can be smelt from ages away. "What Fresh Hell" had none of those problems.

Really loved what was done with the supporting characters, especially the parents. The episode has been criticised for too much soap opera-like issues but to me they added so much to giving the story depth as well as making the parents interesting and easy to feel for, personally they are among the most interesting and most well-developed parents on the show especially in episodes tackling this kind of story. These plot-lines were balanced very well with the mystery, which contains classic 'Criminal Minds' profiling, and tension and emotional impact are palpable.

Production values are still stylish and atmospheric, and the music is haunting and adds a good deal to scenes if not quite enhancing/inhabiting it (never is it distracting either). The writing is tight, with a well-developed Gideon and considering the subject matter keeping humour at minimum to nothing was a good, wise decision which would have run the risk of jarring if included. The direction is also solid, while all the acting, from leads and supporting, is fine, Mandy Patinkin dominating.

Overall, should have been routine and bland but while not one of the show's overall best it is one of the better, and perhaps underrated, episodes of the first season. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Annoying Parents District From Crime Story

[ccthemovieman-1 · 6/10 · 12 January 2007]

A snotty 11-year-old girl, arguing with her mother the soccer coach, is told to take out her hostilities with a few laps around the park. Before she begins, she cellphones her recently- divorced, leaving a message that she wants to stay with him. Moments later a stranger comes by and says he's looking for his lost dog. The next we know, we the girl in the back seat of an SUV trying to get someone's attention as she is being driven off.

The BAU is called to the area - Wilmington, Delaware - to handle the kidnapping. They know from past child abductions that all of these kids were killed by the 24-hour mark. It is now 21 hours so they assume they have three hours at most to find this kid.

The episode is "fair." My complaint would be that there was a little too much soap opera stuff in here regarding the kid's parents (the mother having problems with the girl; the father battling cancer; the two just divorced; the father hot-tempered, the woman still bitter. etc.) This program, like CSI, is better when they concentrate more on the crime and not all the personal issues.

Interesting

[lottiemarshalllm · 7/10 · 29 July 2020]

Disclaimer:I am no expert reviewer, I just need a show to binge watch and I'm going to Write a review for every episode I watch.

I liked this episode, I thought the ties very well into what we learn in school about stranger danger and how serious we need to take things like this. Although I like the plot I thought character development wise there wasn't a lot there, nothing really happened with any of the characters except for Gideon just knowing he's right. He just takes control of the whole mission and does what he thinks is best, which he does like every episode and it usually is correct as he is the most experienced one on the team but it's a little frustrating to see all the characters just bend to his will.

I also have to agree with another reviewer as they found the parent subplot frustrating and annoying. I just felt like a big time suck, when that time could be spent doing more to find a missing child I guess.

Overall I like the episodes concept looking into child abductions rather than just adult victims But not my favorite

Goofs not right

[gallaghet-53354 · 2 November 2018]

Goof review of the girl having a cast on & not breaking the window she was not trying to break the window just calling for help if u r going to pick holes get it right

Your Eyes Are Glued To The Screen!

[maryamsarah · 10/10 · 25 May 2009]

I Think That This Is Truelly One Of The Best Episodes , Its Different And The Profiling Is Yet Again Amazing Its Something Our Kids Should Learn To Watch Rather Than Some Good For Nothing Cartoons. Gives You inside Information.

The Actors Act Out Their Parts Greatly , Especially Dr Spencer Reid the Obvious Cute One. They All Act Incredibly rehearsed And Fit into Their Character Very Well . You Can See That The Screen writer Has Gotten Very Useful information And Added It Very Carefully Into Episode. Instead Of Havng Normol Boring Killing Episodes On And On , Shows Such As CSI. Criminal Minds Is A Show That Will Hopefully Go A Long Way , With Me Onboard!!

Solid but dull

[moysant · 5/10 · 17 October 2006]

The team hunts down a child kidnapper who isn't playing games or providing leads and the cops are getting nowhere fast. There's some 'touching' background business about the divorced mum and dad, that really is just padding. It's an episode where Gideon is more erratic than usual which provides a bit of oomph, but most of the other scenes are just filler that don't move the plot along much. There are the usual actors 'talking to camera' to give us (the audience) vital statistics about child survival rates after the first 24 hours, etc, etc, which are just jarring (I feel like I'm in a lecture). In other words it is slow. And it is unbelievable that the cops search the hideout and don't find the girl the first time, or that Gideon picks such a dramatic way to get into the house (seems a bit over the top).

And Elle's unemotional persona is beginning to bug me.

Garcia flowers

[gallaghet-53354 · 2 November 2018]

Garcia pickes up flowers from the table and places them near the computer .u got this goof wrong

Stranger Danger

[nebohr · 2 December 2021]

There is a 2.3% chance that monkeyface Gideon will show a human emotion this episode.

I hope the guy didn't have too far to drive because somebody is going to notice a panicky little girl banging on the window with her pink arm cast.

If 44% of the kids die in the first hour and 75% after three hours maybe it's better to just write them off from the get go. That way nobody gets their hopes up unnecessarily.

Hotch says: "finding vulnerable kids is what these guys are good at". Not much of a job market for that skillset. Or is there?

We think Gideon did it. Notice him poking around in the girl's bedroom with that weird look on his face?

So: literally every minute counts but mom can't face talking to the press to help save her daughter.

The writers have succeeded in making us dislike mom in under 12 minutes.

Maybe, since the child abduction cases are so time sensitive, have more resources like mugshots of sex offenders readily available. They did have laptops back then.

So: the unsub lives in the neighborhood but nobody remembers seeing a dark green SUV.

So: the scary guy wearing a trench coat hiding behind a tree is a LIE. Another government LIE.

Just string the crime tape wherever. It doesn't really matter in the woods.

Hey, knuckleheads. It doesn't take four men to recover a little girl's body. One guy grabs under her arms; the other grabs her feet.