Warning: the following contains spoilers for Criminal Minds: Evolution season 3 episodes 1-3.AJ Cook, who plays Agent Jennifer "JJ" Jareau, talks about how Emily Prentiss (Paget Brewster) will be her character's rock in the Criminal Minds: Evolution season 3. "Time to Say Goodbye" takes place right after episode 2's explosive ending, where JJ lost her husband, Will LaMontagne (Josh Stewart), suddenly, after having been together for 18 years. Cook has played JJ since season 1 of the original Criminal Minds. After her initial departure in season 6, the actor returned in season 7 and has been with the series ever since, including the revival season. 2k4u3f

Warning: The following contains spoilers for Criminal Minds: Evolution season 3, episode 1-3.

Warning! Spoilers ahead for Criminal Minds: Evolution season 3, episodes 2 and 3.Criminal Minds: Evolution season 3, episode 2 kills Will LaMontagne, and I am livid about it. Before it became one of Paramount+ most reliable thriller series, the Criminal Minds series lived on broadcast TV, airing on CBS as an annual show for 15 years. When it ended in 2020 with David Rossi finally defeating his latest unsub and remarrying Krystall, its run was more effectively capped off with Penelope Garcia quitting the Behavioral Analysis Unit. However, Criminal Minds maintained its popularity, so the then-starting Paramount+ decided to pick it up as essentially a continuation of the CBS show, albeit with some changes.

Criminal Minds: Evolution's Kirsten Vangsness has weighed in on Matthew Gray Gubler's brief franchise return. Gubler was part of the core cast of Criminal Minds from 2005, until the show's original run concluded in February 2020, after 15 seasons. However, in 2022, the show was revived and retitled to Criminal Minds: Evolution on Paramount+. To date, Gubler has not appeared in the revival series, with his character described as being on assignment. However, he is expected to make a brief return to the show during the current season 18 run.

For over two decades, Criminal Minds has faced off against dozens of terrifying killers, but the BAU's most nagging and notorious nemesis has always worn a suit and worked in D.C. While each season introduces a new "unsub" to chase, the team is consistently tripped up by red tape, political agendas, and higher-ups more concerned with optics than justice. Now, in Criminal Minds: Evolution season 3 (also being called Criminal Minds season 18), the cycle continues with a bureaucratic plotline that feels all too familiar.

Criminal Minds Evolution acts as a continuation of the original CBS Criminal Minds series, and a fourth season of the show is on the way. The franchise focuses on the Behavioral Analysis Unit of the FBI, the team that uses psychology to unravel mysteries that cross state lines. That hook has allowed Criminal Minds to stand out from the sea of crime procedurals on television and retain a loyal fan base.

Warning! Spoilers ahead for Criminal Minds: Evolution season 3, episode 1Criminal Minds: Evolution season 3 officially debuts, but Dr. Spencer Reid is nowhere in the episode despite Matthew Gray Gubler's confirmed return. After FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit ended the team's stint on CBS, it didn't take long for them to return to the small screen, only this time, they are on streaming via Paramount+. The change came with a format alteration, as each season, which is only comprised of 10 episodes, is dedicated to 1 overarching storyline. Coming into Criminal Minds: Evolution season 3, the BAU's main unsub remains to be Elias Voit aka. Sicarius.

Criminal Minds: Evolution is back and will once again feature a star-studded cast. Criminal Minds: Evolution season 3 is the third season of the Criminal Minds reboot led by Paramount+, but it is also widely referred to as Criminal Minds season 18 as the eighteenth season overall. The show will feature beloved returning cast and will even feature one character that has not appeared in the reboot yet.

Many elements of the original Criminal Minds are absent from the continuation series, but the BAU’s former Unit Chief, Aaron “Hotch” Hotcher, is the hardest void to fill. The original run of Criminal Minds had disturbing unsubs (unknown subjects) who committed atrocious crimes but always ended up apprehended by a team of FBI profilers, led by Thomas Gibson’s Hotch. After 12 years, however, Gibson left Criminal Minds, leaving Emily Prentiss (Paget Brewster) to rise up the ranks.

Criminal Minds: Evolutionshowrunner Erica Messer pulls back the curtain and previews why Matthew Gray Gubler is finally reprising his role as Spencer Reid. After the actor gave an interview confirming that he was coming back for Criminal Minds: Evolution season 3, it was revealed that Reid would be appearing in a single episode. It'll mark Gubler's first appearance in the streaming revival of the long-running procedural drama, which picks up directly from where the original series left off.