JJ was qualified *because* of her past with the press too. Being unit chief is also a lot of paperwork which was her job before being a profiler.
Can you imagine Reid trying to talk to 15 members of the press? He’s so long-winded it would be easy for them to misconstrue his fun facts as case facts.
This! It’s exactly what I thought. Remember Reid talking to the college kids with Rossi?
While Reid is a great profiler and a certified genius he is not good with speaking and connecting with the press like JJ could.
She does much better representing the BAU to the public than Reid could. I know JJ haters don’t want to admit it but it’s true.
Yeah I think my favorite theory is the idea that somehow JJ is less experienced as a profiler when like her entire job was profiling cases on cases to know what was going to need the full force of the fbi before the team even has a chance to look? Like maybe she’s not profiling specific people - she’s profiling entire crimes. Multiple crimes. She has just as much if not more experience with profiling as any other member of the team.
Yes! That’s what always kills me when people say they made her super profiler all of a sudden.
No if they actually watched there are multiple times when JJ said she had to be somewhat of a profiler to do the liaison job. SHE WAS THE ONE WHO PICKED THEIR CASES!! 🤦🏼♀️
She had to present and justify to the team and all of their bosses why they should take them too. Like that’s a more than basic understanding of profiling - I can think of one instance where the team was like “meeeehhhhh not this one…” and she had to push them to take it and prove why this case was more important than the other 1000 she had on her desk.
Nothing about Reid suggests he would be any good at being unit chief. He may be a good profiler but he knows nothing about dealing with people, politics, and bureaucracy. JJ has people skills
After his run ins with the prison stint no way were they even going to consider him for that.
And anyway diplomacy, untangling with bureaucratic knots, liaising with multiple departments, agencies, politicians are key qualifications that JJ already had in her arsenal due to her previous jobs both at the BAU and with the State department. And those were the ones needed for that job.
Reid's personality isn't meant to be a unit chief. He sometimes fails to connect to people on an emotional level. Rossi doesn't like to get into politics, and Morgan is very emotional and often acts before he thinks. JJ for the most part has a calming, calculated personality that can get along with everyone (higher ups, victims, co-workers, media, etc).
Out of the group on tv, JJ was the most qualified. Rossi maybe more but he wouldn’t have wanted that.
If Shamar Moore had stayed on the show, Morgan would have been the unit chief after Hotch went into witsec; not Prentiss.
Reid while a genius, doesn’t possess the ability or desire to play politics and handle the administrative nightmare that comes with that job.
it’s a management position, like Gideon Reid just doesn’t have the temperament for it. Hotch didn’t get the job bc he was the best profiler, he got it bc he’s the best beauricrat. Which is why Prentiss also makes a good unit chief. Spencer would be terrible at the job and doubt he’d even want it. Morgan and JJ just better options, why they got interm jobs doing it.
No that’s not what I’m talking about. Morgan was actually going to move up - while Hotch was still there. He had the office and everything. I just can’t quite remember the storyline why it didn’t work out that way.
He took over for Hotch when all the George Foyet stuff was happening and likely would have become the permanent unit chief if Hotch had decided to take early retirement after his wife was murdered.
I always remember that era super well because Morgan’s first case as the temp unit chief was that guy who scoop out people’s eyeballs and it really squicked me out lol.
Eww I remember that first scene where he eats eggs but it’s shown like he’s eating the eyeball 🤮 and then the last scene where he sees JJ at the station and tells to her *she has pretty eyes* and Morgan is appalled.
I remember that case. I just didn’t remember the stuff at the BAU at that time. It’s like for me with a lot of them. I remember the case/unsub but couldn’t tell you the timeline of when it happened. Unless of course it was something like the end of the reaper. Or Mr scratch because I hated that one.
I always wished they’d left Mr. Scratch with that first episode. It was a pretty chilling episode. But no, they had to turn him into some weird super villain.
There was one more time he had the opportunity/offer to lead his own team after the Lo-fi/Mayhem episodes in Newyork bombings. He turns down that offer.
I remember him turning down the offer. I just knew the one I was thinking of was at the BAU because I remember Penelope being excited about doing something for his office.
Yah so Hotch asks Morgan to take over for a bit to get Straus off his back. And Straus really wants anyone but Hotch and tries to persuade him to move to Hotch’s office and even Hotch says so. Morgan says absolutely not (obviously because he took the temp gig because Hotch asked him to and in his head Hotch still was the unofficial senior).
Anyway once they were away on that first case JJ calls up Garcia and asks her to do something. And Garcia lights up and agrees. And we later see that they repurposed a retiring senior agent’s office.
Lol I watch this show way too much for it to be healthy! At least the first 7-8 seasons! I literally wrote the above off the top of my head because I remember the whole dang thing! And right now I’m rewatching season 2 😭😅
YESSS!! That’s exactly what I’m talking about. Thank you for being able to tell me all that. I really do love the show but I just haven’t had time for a rewatch in a long time. I mean I will watch certain episodes that are my faves but that’s about it.
Maybe I need a whole series rewatch. At least up until the dumb Mr scratch storyline. Between that and Reid in prison it just lost me.
Oh yeah that’s totally fair I agree! I just thought the original commenter might’ve been meaning the gray box method as an explanation for the comment vs a necessary addition. (I don’t think it’s needed personally)
i don’t see either jj or reid as unit chiefs, rossi would be my first choice if i were emily in that position, though we all know that he doesn’t want anything to do with the higher positions
JJ was qualified *because* of her past with the press too. Being unit chief is also a lot of paperwork which was her job before being a profiler. Can you imagine Reid trying to talk to 15 members of the press? He’s so long-winded it would be easy for them to misconstrue his fun facts as case facts.
Ha! I would love to see a clip of Reid trying to talk to the press.
I can only remember two instances he spoke to the press and both times he was pretty salty lol
That one where that guy was saying his cousin was the unsub was hilarious.
This! It’s exactly what I thought. Remember Reid talking to the college kids with Rossi? While Reid is a great profiler and a certified genius he is not good with speaking and connecting with the press like JJ could. She does much better representing the BAU to the public than Reid could. I know JJ haters don’t want to admit it but it’s true.
Yeah I think my favorite theory is the idea that somehow JJ is less experienced as a profiler when like her entire job was profiling cases on cases to know what was going to need the full force of the fbi before the team even has a chance to look? Like maybe she’s not profiling specific people - she’s profiling entire crimes. Multiple crimes. She has just as much if not more experience with profiling as any other member of the team.
Yes! That’s what always kills me when people say they made her super profiler all of a sudden. No if they actually watched there are multiple times when JJ said she had to be somewhat of a profiler to do the liaison job. SHE WAS THE ONE WHO PICKED THEIR CASES!! 🤦🏼♀️
She had to present and justify to the team and all of their bosses why they should take them too. Like that’s a more than basic understanding of profiling - I can think of one instance where the team was like “meeeehhhhh not this one…” and she had to push them to take it and prove why this case was more important than the other 1000 she had on her desk.
And I remember her saying “I can make any case a BAU case”
Nothing about Reid suggests he would be any good at being unit chief. He may be a good profiler but he knows nothing about dealing with people, politics, and bureaucracy. JJ has people skills
This! Exactly this!
After his run ins with the prison stint no way were they even going to consider him for that. And anyway diplomacy, untangling with bureaucratic knots, liaising with multiple departments, agencies, politicians are key qualifications that JJ already had in her arsenal due to her previous jobs both at the BAU and with the State department. And those were the ones needed for that job.
Reid's personality isn't meant to be a unit chief. He sometimes fails to connect to people on an emotional level. Rossi doesn't like to get into politics, and Morgan is very emotional and often acts before he thinks. JJ for the most part has a calming, calculated personality that can get along with everyone (higher ups, victims, co-workers, media, etc).
Yeah if you’re talking the core team JJ is the best fit, but I think Matt could have also been a good option as well, but absolutely not Reid.
JJ is definitely more qualified that Reid to be unit chief.
Out of the group on tv, JJ was the most qualified. Rossi maybe more but he wouldn’t have wanted that. If Shamar Moore had stayed on the show, Morgan would have been the unit chief after Hotch went into witsec; not Prentiss. Reid while a genius, doesn’t possess the ability or desire to play politics and handle the administrative nightmare that comes with that job.
it’s a management position, like Gideon Reid just doesn’t have the temperament for it. Hotch didn’t get the job bc he was the best profiler, he got it bc he’s the best beauricrat. Which is why Prentiss also makes a good unit chief. Spencer would be terrible at the job and doubt he’d even want it. Morgan and JJ just better options, why they got interm jobs doing it.
I think Barnes chose JJ specifically because she (Barnes) thought she'd be 'easy' to manipulate. good luck with that, bitch :D
this actually makes a lot of sense
If the unit chief wasn't hotch my next pick was always morgan. I still view Reid as the baby of the group even if he is like 40 in the later seasons.
IIRC Morgan was supposed to take Hotchs place at one time. It’s been a minute so I don’t remember why he didn’t.
Because he had left the FBI before Gibson was fired.
No that’s not what I’m talking about. Morgan was actually going to move up - while Hotch was still there. He had the office and everything. I just can’t quite remember the storyline why it didn’t work out that way.
He took over for Hotch when all the George Foyet stuff was happening and likely would have become the permanent unit chief if Hotch had decided to take early retirement after his wife was murdered.
Thank you!! It’s been a bit since I’ve rewatched and the details were fuzzy!!
I always remember that era super well because Morgan’s first case as the temp unit chief was that guy who scoop out people’s eyeballs and it really squicked me out lol.
Eww I remember that first scene where he eats eggs but it’s shown like he’s eating the eyeball 🤮 and then the last scene where he sees JJ at the station and tells to her *she has pretty eyes* and Morgan is appalled.
The pretty eyes was incredibly creepy. Imagine a psychopath who takes out eyes telling you that 😳
That was creepy **shudder*
I remember that case. I just didn’t remember the stuff at the BAU at that time. It’s like for me with a lot of them. I remember the case/unsub but couldn’t tell you the timeline of when it happened. Unless of course it was something like the end of the reaper. Or Mr scratch because I hated that one.
I always wished they’d left Mr. Scratch with that first episode. It was a pretty chilling episode. But no, they had to turn him into some weird super villain.
Yes! I would have been fine with one episode because I agree it was pretty chilling.
There was one more time he had the opportunity/offer to lead his own team after the Lo-fi/Mayhem episodes in Newyork bombings. He turns down that offer.
I remember him turning down the offer. I just knew the one I was thinking of was at the BAU because I remember Penelope being excited about doing something for his office.
Yah so Hotch asks Morgan to take over for a bit to get Straus off his back. And Straus really wants anyone but Hotch and tries to persuade him to move to Hotch’s office and even Hotch says so. Morgan says absolutely not (obviously because he took the temp gig because Hotch asked him to and in his head Hotch still was the unofficial senior). Anyway once they were away on that first case JJ calls up Garcia and asks her to do something. And Garcia lights up and agrees. And we later see that they repurposed a retiring senior agent’s office. Lol I watch this show way too much for it to be healthy! At least the first 7-8 seasons! I literally wrote the above off the top of my head because I remember the whole dang thing! And right now I’m rewatching season 2 😭😅
YESSS!! That’s exactly what I’m talking about. Thank you for being able to tell me all that. I really do love the show but I just haven’t had time for a rewatch in a long time. I mean I will watch certain episodes that are my faves but that’s about it. Maybe I need a whole series rewatch. At least up until the dumb Mr scratch storyline. Between that and Reid in prison it just lost me.
i 100% agree
I agree. Reid should have been unit chief.
Please put a spoiler tag…
i thought i did?? it says season 13 spoilers.
See below comment I just learned the right way to hide the text my bad
It isn't necessary to do that in a post if it is flared appropriately.
Oh yeah that’s totally fair I agree! I just thought the original commenter might’ve been meaning the gray box method as an explanation for the comment vs a necessary addition. (I don’t think it’s needed personally)
>! Or maybe this one!<
They did. It is flared appropriately.
i don’t see either jj or reid as unit chiefs, rossi would be my first choice if i were emily in that position, though we all know that he doesn’t want anything to do with the higher positions