#s1 gideon

[cmdeepdive]

Every Episode of Criminal Minds

01x02 - Compulsion

[jenny-from-the-bau]

The most awkward roadtrip

[danburys]

The Behavorial Analysis Unit CRIMINAL MINDS: SEASON 1

[brothermayihavesome0ats]

Criminal Minds S01E01 - a scene analysis/things I noticed

(The text in the images is the same, I just worried you can't read my handwriting)

1. In the beginning scene where Gideon is asked to return to the BAU, the way the characters are positioned is representative of their power dynamic or role within the BAU at that point as well as representing the dilemma within the scene

- Reid is in the background since he is the youngest and least experienced, also the least in focus atp. He's also positioned in front of a map, which could be foreshadowing for his ample ability of geographical profiling

- Morgan is in front of Reid but still behind Hotch and Gideon

- At first, Gideon is positioned as the main focus with the camera showing him debating returning to the BAU for the first time since the Boston incident. As Hotch tells him that “the order came from the director” the camera focus switches as in the team “came back into focus” as Gideon realizes he has to come back.

- The camera then focuses on Hotch since he is the leader of the team. This shows that now that Gideons dilemma isn't the only thing in focus, the team has dynamics and roles which are also a large aspect of the show

2. In this scene with the family of the unsub, although the family isn't centered they are very clearly the focus of attention due to the clear blue colour tint around them. This suggests the grief they are in after finding out their family member committed a crime. The family is surrounded by green tints as well, showing their grief is surrounded by the unsubs world (explanation in next observation)

- In the next scene if you look at the family portrait you will see that everyone in the family except the unsub is in blue, showing that the entire family was affected by his actions in their grief but also that he stands out from them.

- When Elle comes in from the left in the next frame, her red outfit is a contrast to the blue. She is from the outside world, an outsider to the family's grief.

3. The general lighting in this scene shows an outside world (the warmer lights in the hallway) and the inside world of the unsub, with the darker green colors. In the frame pictured, the unsub is looking away from the outside world.

- Gideon is wearing red to contrast the green

- The family portrait shows how the unsub is an outsider with the rest of the family positioned in a tight triangle and him in the bottom right corner, also wearing different colors from the rest of the family

- The family photo is centered in this scene, showing a clear contrast between them surrounding the unsub versus him now being all alone

- The table in front of him is empty, showing he has no future in front of him. In a few seconds Gideon places his book in front of him, showing that the only future now is the BAUs work

- There is a chair facing backwards behind the unsub. This is like an interrogation, so the two chairs are for the two unsubs. But because the team doesn't know this yet, the chair faces away from Gideon, the interrogator.

4. Following the train of thought about the colors, we can see that the car the unsub used to lure the women into is red. The contact with the outside world is red, and in the scene where we see him kidnap a victim we can see he is wearing a green jacket as he locks the girl in the red car, showing that she is being locked away by the inside world of the unsub.

5. In this scene with Hotch interrogating the unsub, he is centered as he walks into the interrogation room to show his importance.

6. In the scene at the very end of the episode, the unsub is once again shown in green lighting. His truck is shown in red, while Gideon is also in green. This shows how Gideon Has stepped into the inner world of the unsub, and is looking out on the outside world from within as he realizes who he's talking to.

Colour contrast throughout the episode:

[lilliesthings]

One thing I keep thinking about is that Reid joined the FBI below the minimum required age right? But he also failed a bunch of qualifications in the academy. So he was not only the wrong age but also not exactly qualified and it's safe to assume Gideon is the one who got him in despite all that since he is the one who convinced him to join the FBI. Reid certainly couldn't have forced his way in lmao

But why? What was the hurry when it seems he could have used those extra years of experience? It always felt to me like he was very much pressed for time to get this job Right Now, and the only reason I can think of it that maybe it was immensely difficult to pay for Diana's care in these years ever since he was 18, and perhaps Gideon was sympathetic to that while also seeing potential in him.

[crimsondinnerparty]

Gideon in *Antipasto* is an absolute force, and it’s such a delicious irony that he, the man with no limbs and nowhere to run, has Hannibal completely on edge. Gideon’s presence is the ultimate power move. Every word, every utensil tap is a challenge, a reminder to Hannibal that he’s no longer the puppeteer pulling all the strings.

Hannibal’s reaction when Gideon refuses to be cowed—his fumbling “you still have to eat”—is not just desperate; it’s telling. Hannibal, who thrives on control, is visibly rattled by a man who’s supposed to be powerless. And when Gideon taps those utensils, it’s like a slap in the face, a reminder that Hannibal’s carefully crafted world is slipping through his fingers. Gideon’s sharp “Why do you think I’m allowing this?” slices deeper than any knife, and Hannibal’s empty response shows just how lost he is—because Gideon’s not just sitting there; he’s indulging Hannibal’s pathetic need for an audience, for companionship, in the most twisted way possible.

Hannibal’s arrogance has always been his defining trait, but this scene strips him down. Compare it to *Aperitif*, where Hannibal is reveling in his solitude, dining on his secretary’s offals, radiating superiority. It’s all gone now. After Will Graham shattered his defenses, exposed his weaknesses, and took a sledgehammer to his heart, Hannibal’s left grappling with a stark new reality. He’s reduced to this shadow of himself, sharing joyless, empty meals with a man who’s more interested in psychological warfare than in the food. Gideon hurls truths at him like weapons: that Hannibal’s dining games are nothing but a sad parody, a hollow echo of his former grandeur.

Gideon’s relentless needling cuts through Hannibal’s pretense, exposing a rawness we rarely see in the cannibal. Gideon knows he’s living on borrowed time, and he uses every second to tear into Hannibal’s ego. He’s not just some victim; he’s a mirror to Hannibal’s own emptiness. And let’s not forget the meta-layer here—Gideon’s awareness of Hannibal’s desperate need for an audience mirrors the way Hannibal manipulates others but can’t handle it when the tables are turned.

[criminalmindsverse]

Criminal Minds | 1x09 | Derailed

[rumbellesource]

1.12 || 7.04

[cmeveryepisode]

criminal minds 1x01 “extreme aggressor”

[spencelle-secret]

missing s1 gang

[cmdeepdive]

Every Episode of Criminal Minds

1x07 - The Fox

[anteomnia]

reid being treated like the baby of the bau in season 1 is so funny to me, he’s supposed to be the smartest mfer there but they act like he can’t even figure out how to “think outside the box”

[ssamorganhotchner]

idk why i don't watch criminal minds more often. i restarted it from s1 and i cannot get over how much i love this stupid little show and the characters <3

[brothermayihavesome0ats]

why are they all standing like the mom I just frew up meme ( also I can't draw hands so hotch looks like a lego guy )

[jeannemarythefourth]

in 2012 ppl would have been like “genderswapped griddlehark! (but i tend to picture gideon as being played by a male actor so i chose a female one here teehee)” and then they’d attach a photo of holland roden and dylan o’brien from hit cw show teen wolf

[thorinsbeard]

Criminal Minds S01 E04: Plain Sight