Demonology

Season 4, Episode 17, Aired

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8.4
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The BAU investigates a series of deaths involving possible exorcisms in the Washington area that appear to be sanctioned by the Vatican, and SSA Emily Prentiss finds herself personally involved in the case.
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Fan Episode Reviews (11)

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  • Whil I love Emily, this episode was well below par.

    8.5
    "Great"
    By amazing_race, Jul 14, 2011
    This was one of my least favorite episodes ever, even though I really love Prentiss as perhaps my favorite character.

    The storyline was definitely deifferent from anything in the past - I'll give it that much, but I didn't enjoy the idea of the exorcismsf. It was quite freaky and it gave me some nightmares for sure, but it wasn't even that gripping.

    All up, I wouldn't recommend this episode. It ws not very interesting and it was overly freaky and I didn't enjoy it. Thumbs up for trying something different in this episode, but safe to say, it didnt work well.

    I know Criminal Minds is awesome, and I'm sure it weill return to a high standard in the coming weeks.moreless

  • Emily centric episode

    10
    "Perfect"
    By vicky24c, May 10, 2011
    In this episode of Criminal Minds, the following happens. We open with Emily going to a bar to meet a friend. We learn that another friend of Emily's named Matthew has died. Apparently from a heart attack. But they believe that he was murdered and so Emily agrees to look into it. She returns to the BAU and Hotch agrees that the team will look into it as a case, as there appears o be a pattern and a second victim. We quickly learn that Emily's friend had a drug problem and due to this he had nose bleeds (thorough using cocaine and other medications which are illegal). Soon a 3rd victim is reported and Morgan, Emily and Reid go to investigate the crime scene. Emily admits to Rossi that when she was 15 she got pregnant and Matthew helped her get to a clinic where she had an abortion. Matthew helped her throughout it and he started questioning the bible. He also started taking drugs and Emily blames herself for it.
    They soon learn of the priest who is committing the exorcisms which is leading to the deaths of men and they learn that he has diplomatic amenity. Emily questions him but they have to let him go. Hotch sends Emily home for a few days, but Rossi takes her out on a little trip. They go to see Matthews's parents and his father admits that he was in the room with Matthew during the exorcism. His mother says that Matthew was never troubled until he met Emily. We learn from the parents that John (the fiend Emily met in the bar) was not told from them about Matthews's death. We then see that John is next in line for an exorcism. Emily and Morgan go there and find the priest performing the exorcism. As Morgan takes him out of the room, he splashes both of them in holy water. We also learn that John was the father of Emily's baby (at least I believe so after what I saw). At the very end of the episode we see Emily walking, and her nose starts to bleed. But why? Is she now sick? Is she doing drugs? Hopefully all will be explained in next week's episode.moreless

  • Poor Emily Prentiss. We knew her childhood hadn't been an easy one and when an old friend who supported her through some tough times dies of a supposed heart attack, we can sympathise with her need to find out if he really did die of natural causes.moreless

    7.0
    "Good"
    By Lady_Lancaster, Feb 22, 2011
    Prentiss learns that her old friend, Matthew Benton, who recently returned from a trip to Spain, has died of a heart attack. She is clearly very shaken up and her pain is visible for all to see. When she learns of another, similar death, she talks to Hotch and tells him that they may be dealing with a serial killer rather than young men just dropping dead naturally. Seeing her distress, Hotch agrees to help and look further into the cases.

    Seems that the dead men DO have something in common. Not just Matthew, but others have recently returned from a trip to Spain where a priest died. Speaking of priests, as we see the BAU noting strange scratch marks on the bedroom floor at Matthew's home, (where Emily is decidedly unwelcome) we see an elderly one performing what is obviously an exorcism and the 'possessed' person is quite obviously mot having a fun time of it at all.

    Apart from learning that Prentiss fell pregnant at the age of 15 and that her friend, Matthew, helped her procure an abortion, this episode in itself was extremely predictable and very dull. It WAS good to some a Prentiss-centred piece though.moreless

  • I am religious but this episode wasn't...

    9.0
    "Superb"
    By mksgrl1500, Oct 17, 2010
    This was a good episode. I find it interesting that so many other reviews judged this episode based on their religious beliefs. I just got home from church and decided to write this review. The difference of opinions regarding religion is a pivotal part of human interaction. That's what I see this episode about and it did a great job of portraying a portion of the vast and varied thoughts on the subject. The character development was noticeable in this episode but while each character grew they stayed true to themselves. The crime was not the exorcism but the absence of aid for someone who was dying. Prentiss was right to step in and, in the end her certainty saved a life.moreless

  • A friend of Emily Prentiss requests her help when he believes one of their friends has been murdered. The BAU team discovers a series of suspicious deaths that occurred during exorcisms.moreless

    9.0
    "Superb"
    By blue_fish24, Aug 17, 2010
    Paget Brewster did a fantastic job in this episode. She manages to convey Emily's grief over the death of her friend, Matthew, her anger and frustration when the others doubt a crime has been committed, her determination to do right by Matthew, and her continued questioning of life-changing choices she made as a teenager stand out as some of her best moments.

    I always enjoy episodes where we are revealed more of the characters' backstories, and this episode is no exception. I really started to feel bad for Prentiss growing up while constantly being shuttled around by her mother's postings. She must have felt terribly lonely, and clearly she was not very close to her mother. The episode said nothing of her father, so I am still wondering about where he was while Emily was growing up.

    I also really enjoyed Rossi's role in this episode. I love how he saw Emily's pain and found a way to talk to her, but not embarrass her in front of the rest of the team. I don't really understand exorcisms, or how someone would die from one being performed, so that aspect of this episode continues to be confusing. I was also a bit disappointed that we never learn whether or not Matthew and his friends actually had any involvement in the death of Father del Torro. Since it is never addressed, I assume they did not.moreless
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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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  • TRIVIA (3)

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    • Although referenced in this episode as a cathedral, Santiago de Compostela is not a cathedral. It a city located in the northwest of Spain in the Province of A Coruña that has a cathedral. There is a tomb in the cathedral that allegedly contains the remains of one of Jesus Christ's 12 Apostles, specifically St. James, son of Zebedee and brother of the Apostle St. John.

    • J.J. says that Father Silvano was "invited to say mass at the Washington National Cathedral," which would never happen because the Washington National Cathedral is Episcopalian, not Catholic.

    • At the very beginning of the episode when Prentiss drives up to the bar, the reflection of the neon "bar" sign on her car is not backward, as a reflection should be.

  • QUOTES (4)

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    • Morgan: Rossi, don't tell me you believe in evil.
      Rossi: Don't tell me you do this job and you don't.
      Morgan: I believe there are evil acts, but those are choices, brain chemistry. What do you think, Hotch?
      Hotchner: I think deep down inside we are all capable of unspeakable things. Where it starts, or what you call it, I don't know.

    • Prentiss: (entering the BAU office) Is Hotch still here?
      Garcia: Oh, I'm pretty sure he lives here.

    • Prentiss: Leonardo da Vinci said, "He who does not punish evil, commands it to be done."

    • Rossi: "There is no heresy or no philosophy which is so abhorrent to the church as a human being." James Joyce

  • NOTES (4)

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    • Ian Woolf, first assistant director for the series, guest stars as a cab driver in this episode.

    • Thomas Gibson and guest star Roxanne Hart worked together previously on Chicago Hope. Guest stars James Remar and Carmen Argenziano worked together previously in the movie Hellraiser: Inferno.

    • The music heard in this episode was "The Fix" by The Noises 10 and "My Side of the Story" by Hodges during the final scene.

    • This storyline for this episode was modeled on "Robbie Doe," the Washington, DC, boy on whom The Exorcist movie was based.

  • ALLUSIONS (1)

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    • Prentiss: 'I think he died for me.' Prentiss quotes a line from James Joyce's short story, The Dead, published in Dubliners in 1914. This line is spoken by Gretta as she remembers a young boy who was ill and yet ran through the rain to say goodbye to her when she was leaving Galway. Gretta's memory is bittersweet - Michael, the boy, died from his illness within a week. The main character of the story, Gretta's husband, Gabriel, reexamines his life and his own priorities after his wife's nostalgic story.

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