Worst TV Show of the Week Brought to you by the Parents Television Council WARNING: Graphic Content!!! Do NOT push play if you don't want to see the explicit video!!!

Criminal Minds on CBS

By Josh Shirlen

Clearly inspired by popular sadistic horror films such as Saw and Hostel, the September 12^th rerun of Criminal Minds featured some of the most traumatically violent content to air on prime time in recent memory.  Sadism, torture, dismemberment, foul language, and enough blood to fill a swimming pool made this episode our clear pick for Worst of the Week.

The episode, which originally aired on May 9th, opened with a battered and bloody elderly man being rolled down a frightening hallway while strapped to a gurney.  It becomes clear that he is being carted off to his death.  One savvy police officer becomes aware of the fact that 63 prostitutes and homeless people have gone missing from his district and goes to the team of FBI agents for help.  Detectives suspect that they have a “cleaning house” killer on their hands who, they believe, is obsessed with killing the dregs of society.

Meanwhile, back on the street a man in an ominous van picks up a woman after offering her $500 for an unspecified sexual act.  The girl gets in and wakes up in a giant warehouse filled with different rooms. In a frenzy she tries to escape, but mistakenly crashes into a room covered in broken glass.  The girl falls to the ground where she gains multiple wounds, including several on her face.  She cries as she pulls the shards of glass from her cheek.  A voice is heard telling her that if she can find her way out of the building she will be set free.  Throughout the entire episode the girl is shown running for her life, but only finding rooms with the words “dead end” written on the walls in blood.  A Doberman pinscher is released and chases her into the “Kill Room,” where body parts hang from the ceiling.  The head of the old man from the first scene is shown on a table. The viewer learns that he was killed and cut into pieces with a circular saw.  The girl is ultimately put on a gurney and prepped for death, when just in the nick of time FBI agents rush in and save her.

Additionally, foul language was prevalent in the episode with words such as “damn,” ‘bastard,” “whore,” and “son of a bitch.” 

This episode was horribly inappropriate for families and children due to its violent content.  Simply flipping channels past CBS could have potentially been traumatic for any viewer. The plot was practically nonexistent. The entire point of the episode was frightening and sickening viewers with graphic scenes of blood and dismemberment.  Had this episode been a movie it would certainly be considered for an “R” rating due to violence.  For this reason Criminal Minds is our pick for Worst of the Week.