The Criminal Minds season 16 revival could fix the show's most controversial plot twist, which involved the sudden romance of JJ and Reid. Just a year after the CBS police procedural wrapped up its 15-year-run, Paramount+ announced its plans to bring the show back on the streaming platform. Now, the return of the Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU) is set, giving the reboot a chance to rectify Criminal Minds' most divisive narrative decision.
In order to balance out their storytelling, office-set shows tend to introduce in-house romances. That was the case with The Office's Jim Halpert and Pam Beesly. Things are different with Criminal Minds, however, as the show was able to veer away from any office romances until it was revealed in season 14 that long-time colleagues JJ (A.J. Cook) and Spencer Reid (Matthew Gray Gubler) had feelings for each other. It was an unexpected plot twist and very controversial. Not only was there never any indication of an attraction between the two characters, but JJ was also supposedly happily married.
This ill-executed romantic plot twist can be rectified in the Criminal Minds reboot via Luke Alvez (Adam Rodriguez) and Penelope Garcia's (Kirsten Vangsness) own love story. A fairly late addition to the BAU, Alvez was recruited amid the team's hunt for Mr. Scratch (Bodhi Pine Elfman), and as someone who doesn't like change, it took a while before Garcia opened up to him. After several seasons of working together, however, they eventually became good friends. In the Criminal Minds season 15 finale, Alvez finally asked Garcia on a date, and surprisingly, she said yes. As they continue to work together in the revival, the Paramount+ project can finally show a proper in-office love story within the BAU. The show took the time to actually develop Alvez and Garcia's relationship, which makes their future journey more interesting, unlike JJ and Reid's romance, which was seemingly done just for shock value.
Why JJ and Reid's Romance Plot Didn't Work
JJ and Reid’s failed Criminal Minds romance plot had the potential to be successful. As long-time colleagues, they've had a solid relationship, and it isn't impossible to think that they may have developed a crush on each other over the years. The problem is how Criminal Minds executed JJ and Reid's romance. For starters, the idea only came about in the middle of a case where JJ was forced to make some kind of confession. She wondered how her life would have panned out if she and Reid got together. This hurts her story with her husband, Will, which was the best romantic narrative in Criminal Minds. Secondly, there was barely any fallout from it, hinting that even the writers weren't really sure about it.
As badly done as it was, the failed plot line can still be used to explain why Reid isn't in the Criminal Minds reboot. Paramount+ can simply reveal that the boy genius decided to leave the BAU to have some separation from JJ. Meanwhile, it can continue with Alvez and Garcia's romance instead.
