Elias Voit has been the focus ofCriminal Minds: Evolutionfor the first three seasons. The concept of The Disciple killing someone of emotional value to Voit as a final step to reawakening Siciarius in theCriminal Minds: Evolutionseason 3 finalecould have been interesting, but viewers didn’t care enough about Dr. Ochoa.
Voit’s unique relationship with Penelope Garciawas teased in the season 3 premiere and built throughout the season. It would have been much more powerful to have Garcia - a longtime fan-favorite character - be in danger than a new character from this season. With this simple switch, theCriminal Minds: Evolutionseason 3 finalewould have been much stronger.
Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 3 Never Paid Off The Unsettling Relationship Garcia Was Establishing With Voit During His Coma
Garcia Was Helping Voit Find Something Redeeming In Himself, Until The Show Dropped Their Friendship
Garcia sitting bedside with a comatose Voit was alarming, but when it became clear that Voit was also seeking something redeeming in himself made their journeys dovetail poetically. Garcia using essential oils to cleanse Voit inCriminal Minds: Evolutionseason 3, episode 7 after Tate Andrews’ deathwas one of the most tender moments this season.
I wish the show had built on this chemistry by using it as the emotional core of the finale, but insteadCriminal Mindsdidn’t weaponize or use it in an interesting way. Their friendship just fizzled, making it another dropped emotional plot point, like Will’s death.
Fans Have Loved Garcia For Almost Two Decades
Garcia is one of the oldest and most belovedBAU team members, so the stakes would have been exponentially higher for fans if her life were on the line. Dr. Ochoa didn’t have enough time in just 10 episodes to make an impact. Her relationship with Voit boils down to a candy bar he gives her in the finale.
Garcia’s sudden interest in Voit in the premiere felt heavy-handed, and many of her team members expressed concern about her relationship with Voit over the course of season 3. It would have felt like a natural payoff to have their bond feature more centrally in the finale, if Voit’s soul was on the line.
If Garcia was the target of The Disciple, the finale could have drawn on nearly two decades of audience attachment to her character, creating an immediate emotional hook that Dr. Ochoa simply couldn’t match. Since Garcia’s relationship with Voit was seeded in the season premiere, tying it into the climax would have given season 3 a satisfying full-circle arc.
Criminal Minds: Evolution Needed To Seed Dr. Ochoa Differently To Make Her The Emotional Linchpin Of The Finale
If Anything, CBS’ Show Seemed To Be Hinting Dr. Ochoa Was A Villain
If The Disciple wanted to target someone she considered to be the most important person to Voit,Criminal Minds: Evolutionneeded to lay more groundwork to give Dr. Ochoa that emotional weight. She seemed determined to treat Voit fairly regardless of his past, but there was no sense of a special bond until the finale.
If the writers had gradually built a connection between Dr. Ochoa and Voit, her peril could have carried real emotional weight. Given how the show emphasized that her reputation was beyond the need for a background check twice, I thoughtDr. Ochoa was going to be The Disciple, which would have been far more interesting.
Making Dr. Ochoa secretly The Disciple would have given the season a sharper twist, leveraging audience trust in her character for a genuine gut punch. Instead, the real villain was a character we had no knowledge of or connection to, leading to a lacklusterCriminal Minds: Evolutionfinale.
