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Criminal Minds Season 4 Episode 13

Bloodline

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8.8

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EPISODE REVIEWS
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Episode Summary

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AIRED: 1/21/09

The BAU is called to Alabama when young women are being abducted by what appears to be a family working together.

FAN RECAP

Fan Episode Reviews (24)

Kinda...ignorant

1.0

By SamElm, Nov 07, 2012

While the episode never says it explicitly, the strong implication is that this is somehow significant of all Romani. Clearly, the murder-cult is a vast exaggeration. But the parts that casually characterize the Romani as insular, paranoid, lawless nomads are not so clearly exaggerative. For example, when they mention the sound of bells, Rossi casually mentions that this is common training among Romani pickpockets (It's actually not - that is from "The Hunchback of Notre Dame", a French novel).

This episode coincidentally premiered during a period of anti-Romani violence in Europe. The depiction of Romani as thieves and criminals is a common one, a stereotype that originates among anti-Romani hate groups and has slowly contaminated the public view.

An akin example would be if some overseas crime show depicted a secret society of rich white Americans who, when their progeny turned 16, were issued their first gun, tattoo, and car, and sent abroad during the ritual of "Spring Break" to infiltrate foreign cultures, seduce young local girls at bars, then ritually gang-rape them while reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and worshiping Satan.

It's incredibly wrong. It's scraps of truth and stereotypes mixed into some horrible sick brew of fantasy. And anyone who knows the reality of American culture would know it's a ridiculous exaggeration. But people who don't ... they'll read sensational news stories about some Spring Break rapist and then form their own conclusions.

You see why this might be problematic.moreless
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A little perspective

0.5

By MWilliams1, Jan 11, 2012

How many of you would approve of this episode if the word gypsy was replaced by ***?

I'll never know because this post won't even make public view.

We are an ethnic minority. a "bloodline".

(edit: I didn't know they would put *** for the n word)
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The episode is disturbing and sad.It made me interested in the culture and researched the Romani tradition.@rrada-I am sorry that you were offended by the episode and its contents but I am sure that nobody thinks of this as the real deal.This is fictionalmoreless

10

By mella_dlc, Sep 09, 2011

The episode is disturbing and sad.It made me interested in the culture and researched the Romani tradition.@rrada-I am sorry that you were offended by the episode and its contents but I am sure that nobody thinks of this as the real deal.This is fictional
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Disgusting, ignorant, racist, and appalling!!! Shame on all who made this episode possible.

1.0

By rrada, Sep 09, 2011

I am an American Romani and it is hard enough trying

to explain what that means. The closest English word

for Romani is gypsy and because of hollywood and ridiculous ignorant propaganda such as this episode,

I can never explain what Roma is without being stereotyped and misunderstood. There should have

definitely been more research on the Roma people and

culture before letting such a derogatory episode be

aired to the public. It is ignorance like this that

contributes to anti-Roma sentiment. Atleast google

or wikepedia Romani culture when editing script. This

is almost as demeaning to my people and my culture than

the porrajmos (aka holocaust in the jewish community).

The false information about Romani culture in this episode give ignorant people justification for such

terrible acts such as the porrajmos and further add

to the struggle of the Roma people. Please look into

Romani culture and hopefully you will realize that it

is not anything like this episode makes it out to be.

Watching this episode totally ruined my day and has

made me believe that all episodes of criminal minds

will be filled with ignorant filth such as this. I was so terribly offended by this that I had to sign up

for an account just to voice my opinion and I never

waste time on this kind of stuff. This episode was

almost as disgusting as the porrajmos itself!!!moreless
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Just a response to the previous poster:

8.0

By Aly358, May 04, 2011

This is not so much a review of the episode which I consider excellent in acting, writing and shooting. (Especially the child actors are phenomenal)

I just read the previous review and I must say: You are right and you are wrong. Obviously Romani culture is not what is depicted in this episode. BUT! no where in this episode it is being said that this is part of Roma lifestyle.

On the contrary! I believe it is Rossi who says: they warped tradition into pathology. Just because there are a few deranged people who take something beautiful and turn it into something awful does not mean that everyone does.

In no way was this episode meant to portray Roma just as no episode on terrorism was ever meant to explain Islam. Please differenciate in your reviews!moreless
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Cast & Crew: STARS

EDIT

Thomas Gibson	Unit Chief Aaron Hotchner
Joe Mantegna	Senior SSA David Rossi
Matthew Gray Gubler	SSA Dr. Spencer Reid
Shemar Moore	SSA Derek Morgan
Paget Brewster	SSA Emily Prentiss
A.J. Cook	SSA Jennifer "JJ" Jareau

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Cast & Crew: RECURRING AND GUESTS

EDIT

Andrew Divoff	Dad	Guest Star
Cynthia Gibb	Mom	Guest Star
Slade Pearce	The Kid	Guest Star
Meta Golding	Agent Jordan Todd	Recurring Role

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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TRIVIA (0)
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- ADD TRIVIA from this episode.
QUOTES (4)
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- Garcia: Hiya, baby.
  Morgan: Hey, baby girl. We need to talk.
  Garcia: PG or NC 17?
  Morgan: You're on speaker phone.
  Garcia: I charge extra for groups.
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- Garcia: Romani?
  Rossi: Gypsies.
  Garcia: As in "Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves?"
  Morgan: Exactly.
  Garcia: Oh, bless you all for turning my life into a Cher song.
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- Hotchner: "Mario Puzo wrote the strength of a family, like the strength of an army, is in its loyalty to each other."
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- Prentiss: "Winston Churchill said there is no doubt that it is around the family and the home that all the greatest virtues of human society are created, strengthened and maintained."
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NOTES (1)
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- A.J. Cook was credited, but not appear, in this episode because she was on maternity leave.
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ALLUSIONS (2)
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- Hotchner: "Mario Puzo wrote the strength of a family, like the strength of an army, is in its loyalty to each other."
  
  This is an allusion to a quote in the book, The Family, by Mario Puzo. The book is about Pope Alexander VI, his children, and his time as Pope. This line comes up when Alexander is telling his son Cesare to be loyal to his brothers in response to Cesare saying if they were not blood, he would kill his brother Juan.
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- Hotchner: Garcia?
  Garcia: O captain, my captain?
  
  "O Captain, My Captain" is the title of a well-known poem that Walt Whitman wrote in 1865 after the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln.
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