"Zugzwang" is the twelfth episode of Season Eight and the 174th overall of Criminal Minds.
Summary[]
When Reid discovers that his girlfriend has been abducted by her stalker, he and the BAU band together to find and rescue her before it is too late.
Guest Cast[]
- Jay Hayden - Bobby Putnam
- Nancy Linari - Mary Donovan
- Robert Mangiardi - Joe Donovan
- Benmio McCrea - Doctor Lawrence Becker
- Beth Riesgraf - Maeve Donovan
- Michelle Trachtenberg - Diane Turner
Referenced Criminals[]
- Adam Worth, The Napoleon of Crime
- Mark David Chapman
Music[]
- "Infinity Street" by Richard Walters
Bookend Quotes[]
- Spencer Reid: "Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage." — Lao Tzu
- Maeve Donovan: "Love is our true destiny. We do not find the meaning of life by ourselves alone; we find it with another." — Thomas Merton
Trivia[]
- The term zugzwang in chess is a German word for "compulsion to move," which refers to when one player is at a disadvantage due to having to move a piece even though any move will give the other player an advantage. It has also been adapted for usage in a situation in which someone is forced to make a decision, especially an uncomfortable one in which the person must lose something.
- This is the 4th of 9 episodes in which a non-BAU/ guest cast character, Maeve Donovan, recites a bookend quote. The other episodes are:
- "Tabula Rasa" - Ending bookend quote recited by both Mr. Corbett and Spencer Reid.
- "Coda" - Ending bookend quote recited by Ian Doyle.
- "Lauren" - Ending bookend quote recited by JJ (who was with the State Department at that time)
- "200" - Beginning bookend quote recited by Prentiss. (Who was with Interpol at that time)
- "Beyond Borders" - Ending bookend quote recited by Jack Garrett.
- "Tribute" - Beginning bookend quote recited by Prentiss. (Who was with Interpol at that time)
- "Chameleon" - Beginning (and only) bookend quote recited by Krystall Richards.
- "Family Tree" - Beginning and end bookend quote recited by Everett Lynch.