Criminal Minds
Devil's Backbone
TV Flash files “Devil's Backbone” as hour 254 of 364 in the TV Flash guide — Criminal Minds (2005–2020) on CBS, season 11, episode 21, aired 2016-04-20, 60 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S11E21: listed hour 254 of 364 in the Criminal Minds guide, hour 21 of 22 in season 11. It aired 2016-04-20 (60 min). The listed hour before it is “Inner Beauty” (S11E20). Next is “The Storm” (S11E22).
Catalog log
Broadcast listing — not a TV Flash recap.
The BAU enters into a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse with a convicted serial killer after guards at a Virginia prison intercept a package with evidence relating to the kidnapping of two boys several years ago. The team believes the notorious killer may have information on the boys' whereabouts.
Viewer FAQ
Where does Devil's Backbone sit in the Criminal Minds guide?
S11E21 is listed hour 254 of 364 — hour 21 of 22 in season 11, season 11 episode 21.
When did Criminal Minds S11E21 air?
Devil's Backbone aired 2016-04-20 and is listed at 60 minutes.
Is Criminal Minds too dark to be comfort TV?
It is formulaic dread with bullpen warmth: Reid's brain, Garcia's color, the jet as home. Serial-killer cases as appointment ritual, not prestige horror.
In the series
Why this series still plays
The jet, the profile board, the unsub of the week: CBS packaged serial-killer dread as a long-haul appointment ritual. Criminal Minds is bullpen warmth against formulaic dark — Reid's brain, Garcia's color, a procedural that lasted long enough to grow folklore and a streaming encore.
The jet is the silhouette. Criminal Minds (2005–2020) dresses serial-killer dread in CBS appointment tailoring: an elite FBI unit, a profile board as the week's jewelry, unsubs as a vocabulary the camera treats like a fabric you should not touch. Jeff Davis built a staple — Thomas Gibson, Shemar Moore, Matthew Gray Gubler's Reid, Kirsten Vangsness's Garcia, A.J. Cook, Joe Mantegna — formulaic dark with ensemble warmth in the bullpen. Reid's brain. Garcia's color. Fifteen seasons as a long-haul ritual, later…
Filed against
- Thomas Gibson as Aaron Hotchner
Thomas Gibson ran Criminal Minds as Aaron Hotchner — the jet, the profile board, the unsub of the week, CBS serial-killer dread as a long-haul appointment ritual. Bullpen warmth against formulaic dark. TV Flash files him as 2000s…
- Shemar Moore as Derek Morgan
Shemar Moore charged Criminal Minds as Derek Morgan — bullpen warmth against the unsub of the week, a CBS jet that turned serial-killer dread into a long-haul appointment ritual. Muscle, loyalty, a profile board that still photographs…
- Matthew Gray Gubler as Spencer Reid
Matthew Gray Gubler boarded the jet as Spencer Reid on Criminal Minds — the profile board, the unsub of the week, CBS serial-killer dread as a long-haul appointment ritual. Bullpen warmth against formulaic dark, a brain as folklore. TV…
- Kirsten Vangsness as Penelope Garcia
Kirsten Vangsness's Penelope Garcia colored Criminal Minds from the bullpen's neon corner — CBS serial-killer appointment ritual, jet and profile board, warmth against formulaic dark. A procedural that lasted long enough to grow folklore.…
- A.J. Cook as Jennifer Jareau
A.J. Cook’s Jennifer Jareau became Criminal Minds’ liaison-and-heart — the jet, the profile board, the unsub of the week, CBS serial-killer dread as a long-haul appointment ritual. Bullpen warmth against formulaic dark, a procedural that…
- Joe Mantegna as David Rossi
Joe Mantegna’s David Rossi became Criminal Minds’ long-haul profiler — the jet, the board, the unsub of the week, CBS serial-killer dread as appointment ritual. Bullpen warmth against formulaic dark, a procedural that lasted long enough…