TVSquad

While I'm a fan of Patinkin, he certainly isn't what "makes" Criminal Minds. In fact, he's rather pretentious and annoying a lot of the time. I prefer the other characters.

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I wasn't overly fond of Patinkin in Season 2 of CM, not sure if it was the actor or the writing staff. He doesn't make the show for me, and I'd honestly rather much rather see him on DLM again...

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hub -

I have to disagree with you big time. I've been covering Criminal Minds since the beginning and Patinkin definitely makes the show. Criminal Minds isn't like Law & Order... changing the cast is a big step for CM. Hell, Paget Brewster (a minor character) was on almost the entire second half of season two and she still feels out of place. It'll be even harder to adjust when there's a new face to the BAU team. This is bad news for CM's longevity no matter how you slice it.

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Although it would be sad to see him leave Criminal Minds, I don't think it's going to affect the show's success THAT much. I mean, it's a very strong ensable cast show and although Patinkin is a strong leader, I think they'll be okay if he decides to leave or gets fired.

As a huge Dead Like Me fan, I'd sure love for Rube to be a part of the new Dead Like Me movie and since Ellen Muth hinted on her MySpace post that if the movie does well, they might resurrect the show, I'd love for Rube to be a part of that as well. So as much as I love Criminal Minds, I love Patinkin more on Dead Like Me as Rube.

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I think if he is let go it's a big mistake, I think he actually does a lot for the show. if he goes I'll probably not watch the show anymore.

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Bring back Dr. Jeffrey Geiger from "Chicago Hope"! Patinkin was brilliant in that role. Maybe David E. Kelley could find room for him as a consultant on "Boston Legal". I'd watch Patinkin in almost anything, except a gory serial-killer TV series.

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It's too late for Dead Like Me, they already started filming, and most likely already said he went on.

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i don't care if you have to re-write half the script - get mandy on DLM.

also, there's talk of a new DLM series if the DVD Movie does well. well, now mandy can be there.

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While I would miss MP I do not think it would kill the show. Now if they tried to do a soap opera-ish move and have a carbon copy of the character that would kill the show.

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I guess Andy isn't listening.

Rube is not going to be on DLM ever again. All this means is that he MIGHT do his "Goodbye". Unless of course they do a prequel to this movie all about Rube's last day, which I doubt.

And the show coming back is a huge long shot. It can only be on Sci-fi or Showtime, and I think Showtime is out of the question.

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Mandy Patinkin's character is the only thing that really makes this show any different from all the other "cop" shows. The part was poorly written of late, and the show is suffering from "soap", but without Mandy we've all been there done that-

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he should rejoin dead like me

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CM is an excellent show that can definitely survive - even thrive - without Patinkin.

Doesn't he have a history of bailing on successful tv series (i.e., Chicago Hope)?

Good riddance.

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As long as Dr. Reid doesn't go - Mandy is a great actor but he doesn't make the show. I'd hate to see him go but he's not the only star.

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I think he adds a kind of paternal vibe to the show that a new character just wouldn't have, and I, for one, would miss it. Of course, I just came on this season, so it's not like I can compare it to last year and find fault.

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At the beginning of the series I would have said it was hopeless without Patinkin, but now I'm not so sure.

Hotchner, although a very generic character, does do well as a leader, and I enjoy the quirkiness of Reid and Garcia. If Matthew Gubler (Reid) left the show I'd stop watching, but otherwise I'll wait and see.

I think it would be a BIG mistake to bring in another "Gideon-like" character to fill in the whole. Either promote Hotch or bring in someone COMPLETELY different, someone the entire cast has trouble trusting.

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If I'm not mistaken, isn't Hotch the leader? Gideon is just his senior field agent. I gathered that Hotch was the leader from the season finale where the team might be trying to be dismantled anyways and that high-up chick was talking to Hotch about it.

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My biggest concern when CM started was that it appeared written around Mandy Patinkin. Once it began airing of course it was much more an ensemble show than I expected it to be and because of that, it flourished. Two seasons in the cast continues to tighten up and although he would be missed and the general flavor of the show would change, it is certainly not the end of the road.

Criminal Minds is NOT CSI where Gil Grissom has been the cast anchor for seven seasons. The show is still in its relative infancy and while Gideon is certainly a key player in the office, life could and would go on without him. Each of the supporting cast members has been given a well developed role to play and I feel "connected" to each of them equally. Hotch, Morgan, Reid, Garcia, JJ and even Prentiss are a terrific team that really and truly have no weak links. In fact, the direction the season finale took almost demands that someone take a fall - right now they are gunning for Hotch but it seems totally within Gideon's character to step in and save his ass.

I do agree that Gideon has been cast as the team mentor and that may in fact be Mandy Patinkin's undoing. Now that the show is well established, I can see far more interesting plot developments as the team adjusts to a leader who is a much less effective mentor than Gideon was. The way he took Reid in under his wing was especially well done. If Gideon leaves, the team would naturally look to Hotch as a surrogate. There could be an substantial amount of friction created by someone new who disagreed with Hotch's direction.

I love this show - it is one of the shows I truly make an effort to see "live" each week. While it would change the show to lose Gideon, I would rather he leave now while the show is young than later on when it would damage what they've accomplished so far. Heck, look how well ER has performed with all of their key cast leaving the show. Why should cast changes at CM be treated differently?

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While Patinkin was the reason I started watching CM, he definately isn't why I stayed with it. The show is actually quite bland, but it's the the entire cast that makes it watchable. It wouldn't really matter if he left now, although I would miss him. The only characters that would break the show for me if they left is Dr Reid and the hot chick.

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