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"Compulsion" is the second episode of Season One of Criminal Minds, and the second of the two-part series premiere.

Summary[]

The BAU is called to Tempe, Arizona, to assess the mind of an escalating serial arsonist targeting a local university and figure out the unsub's true motive for setting the fires. Meanwhile, Gideon continues to recover from his near-death experience with a serial killer.

Full Summary[]

The episode resumes with the flashback from the last episode, where the Footpath Killer is holding Gideon at gunpoint. He has him remove his gun from his holster and tells him to throw it. When Gideon asks where to throw it, he hits him in the back of the leg, causing him to drop the gun. Gideon is then thrown against a wall inside the gas station. The Footpath Killer is stuttering, asking him who he is, and he admits that he's FBI. He hands over his credentials, and Gideon buys himself time by claiming he knows why he kills and how he does it, as well as why he stutters.

Back to the current point in time, Gideon is sitting with students in Quantico, and they're questioning him about the Footpath Killer. He admits that while he was afraid, he stumbled on him purely by accident. Greenaway comes in and he dismisses the students. She asks why he stuttered, and Gideon challenges her to tell him.

The next scene is in the bullpen and Gideon finishes the game of Chess Reid was playing with himself, recalling check in three moves, before moving on. Greenaway comes in asking Morgan and Reid why the Footpath Killer stutters, and they admit that they don't know. Unit Liason Jennifer Jareau introduces herself to Elle. Hotchner calls the team to the roundtable over a video from a Tempe campus. The video shows two college students witnessing a fire from across the building, and then there's something being poured under their door before being set on fire. One student is by the door and catches on fire, while the other tries to put him out.

The team flies to Tempe, and the team talks about the stressors for arsonists, while Hotchner and Morgan work on a timeframe for the fires. When they get to the campus, Gideon says that he doesn't want t raise alarm and to tell the team to look 'less official.' Representatives from the school admit that chemicals from the campus have gone missing, and Morgan points out that fires occurred quickly after the last time accelerants were stolen from the campus. Hotchner and Reid visit the dorm while the rest of the team view the last device that set off the fire. The team talks more about motivations for fire.

The team sets up a hotline and Gideon traverses the campus. As Professor Wallace enters his office, Gideon sees a student lighting up a cigarette, and then another student attempt to drink from a fountain. He's hyper focused as he rushes the fountain when nothing comes out. He remembers how the last fire had water cut off from the building. Back to Professor Wallace's office, he opens the closet, sees liquid on the floor and turns on the light as Gideon pulls the fire alarm and runs. While this is happening, the lightbulb ignites and Professor Wallace is set on fire. Gideon makes it to the office, but it's too late. Morgan pulls him from the building, against his objections, but Morgan tells him that the Professor is already dead.

They talk about the possibility of evacuating, but don't want to do it. Jeremy, a researcher with the science labs comes in and talks to the dean, saying he knows how the arsonist lit the fire. The team looks over the photos but comes up on a series of dead ends while they work the profile. As Gideon is leaving the building he comes across a campus patrolman on a bike. Reid and Hotchner are in the lab with the other researchers. They ask the researchers for help, and Jeremy explains that the lightbulb was filled with accelerant. As they leave the labs, Jeremy has to get the elevator started with a key, and tells them that it only functions with the key after ten PM.

Back at the BAU a tip comes in with an automated voice saying "I do this for Karen!"

Gideon and the team continue to replay the message, and Morgan informs him that the message came from beside Wallace's office five minutes before the fire. They have Penelope Garcia, the team's analyst sort through the vocals and then go to the dean, who prints off all women named Karen so they can interview her. On the campus quad, Reid and Gideon muse about what is outside the norm, and say that they need to think outside the box. Back inside, Greenaway and Morgan are interviewing Karens. Elle asks Morgan if he knows what caused the stutter yet, referring to the Footpath Killers stutter, and he doesn't, but Elle has been researching.

Inside a building, Gideon is looking at research boards, and comes across the security guard again. He points out that the guard is no longer wearing the necklace he was the last time, to which he admits he's gay. Gideon asks more probing questions, and he says that the girl took it alright except for the fact that 'homosexuality is a sin and he's going to incur the wrath of god,' which strikes a cord with Gideon. He meets up with the team, and they come to the realization that the arson is religiously motivated. And when arguing, Reid comes to the conclusion that it's a compulsion. After reviewing the video he notices how the unsub turned the door knob in the video of the two students.

Going to the office of Professor Wallace he sees that he was office number three. And then going back to the dorm, he sees that the last student had a class on Tuesday, the third day of the week, at 3 PM and it was his third class of the day. He approaches Reid and Gideon and tells them about how the unsub has ocd. First fire was March 3 at 3 PM as well. Hotchner admits that he might know who the unsub is. Clara Hayes, a chemistry student. The same chemistry student that admitted she knew how to make a lightbulb bomb.

Elle and Derek enter her apartment off campus, and see that it's obsessive. They find out that Clara was in a housefire but came away unscathed. The house number was 333, so when three 3's show up around another person she takes it as a sign to test them. The rest of the team inform campus security to start going into every building and pull fire alarms to alert everyone that could possibly be at risk. Meanwhile, Jeremy and the other two girls from the research group get into the elevator to continue their work on the three body problem. Clara turns it off once they reach the third floor.

Hotchner tells Gideon not to try to convince Clara to stop because her issues are something that cannot be stopped. Meanwhile, in the elevator, the group tries to pry open the doors. Clara opens her side of the doors and says that she's here to save them. When they ask if the building is on fire she responds, 'not yet.' She takes off her sandals and goes back to the door, telling the group that god chose them. She retrieves three squirt bottles of accelerant and starts spraying down the group. Holding a flame, Hotchner comes in and sees her. He tries to reason with her, but pulls his gun. He shoots her in the leg, and Gideon runs over to hold his gun on her, while Hotchner stomps out the flame.

Fast forward to Elle on the jet. She claims to know why the Footpath Killer stuttered. She says that Gideon was buying time, and that he didn't really know why he stuttered. Gideon tries to refute her claims, and she asks what really happened in the convenience store. He admits that he knows how to provoke a stutter, and we're taken back to the flashback.

The killer tells Gideon to grab the key from over the door. Once inside the room, Gideon sees the pictures on the fridge, and knows that he has no time left. He points out that they only found six victims. He starts to antagonize the Footpath Killer to make his stutter worse. He tries to tell him to take the camera, but he can't, so he gestures, and Gideon gets the upper hand, knocking him out with his own gun.

Back to the present, Gideon is playing chess with Reid, and Reid calls 'check in three.' Gideon makes a move and calls checkmate, then tells Reid not to worry as he's getting there.

Cast[]

Main Cast[]

Guest Cast[]

  • Kristen Caldwell - Chemistry Student #2
  • Michael David Cheng - Fire Inspector Zhang
  • Evan Lee Dahl - Jeremy
  • J.J. Dashnaw - Matthew Rowland[1]
  • Lukas Haas - The Footpath Killer
  • Jennifer Hall - Clara Hayes
  • Bob Jesser - Professor Ralph Wallace
  • Erika T. Johnson - Agent Trainee #1
  • Sage Mears - Chemistry Student #1
  • Rolando Millet - Campus Security Guard
  • Nathanial Moon - Agent Trainee #2
  • Christopher Mowod - Campus Patrolman
  • J. Karen Thomas - Dean Ellen Turner

Referenced Criminals[]

Music[]

  • "Every Day Is Exactly the Same" by Nine Inch Nails

Bookend Quotes[]

  • Jason Gideon: Einstein once said, "Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world."
  • Jason Gideon: Faulkner once said, "Don't bother just to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors. Try to be better than yourself."

Trivia[]

References[]

  1. Credited as "Matthew Cooke"
  2. Referred to by his birth-name of Peter Dinsdale


Criminal Minds Episodes
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