JJ’s Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 2 Struggle Sets Up The Ugliest Franchise Character Exit

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Criminal Minds: Evolution season 2 sets up the franchise’s ugliest character exit with JJ’s current BAU problem. As the only remaining original character who is still on active duty, JJ’s personal and professional history played out through her almost two decades with the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU). She has seen her fair share of tragedies and issues in the past, but the revival has seemingly been extra hard on her. Aside from the extra pressure of hunting down Elias Voit and taking down Sicarius’ network of serial killers, JJ was also dealing with some issues at home.

Picking up just as the global pandemic was winding down, Criminal Minds: Evolution season 1 changed the weekly format of the CBS show by allowing the whole year to crack a single case. This gave the show extra time to spend with the profilers, resulting in additional focus on their life outside the halls of the FBI office. Out of all the main characters, JJ’s home life was the most interesting, and unfortunately, not in a good way. As she helped the BAU track down Voit, she was also dealing with a family crisis as Will suffered a health scare.

JJ’s Storyline Sets Up Her Separation From Will In Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 2

Will’s Exit From Criminal Minds: Evolution May Not Be Permanent

Ultimately, Will survived the whole ordeal. However, showrunner Erica Messer subsequently revealed that he may not be out of the woods yet in Criminal Minds: Evolution season 2. Between this and the news that Josh Stewart is exiting the Paramount+ revival, there have been assumptions that Will would be killed. In an unexpected plot twist, however, Messer came back and hinted that JJ’s husband may not be permanently written out, ruling out a potential death. This has opened up new hypotheses as to his future fate, and JJ’s new crisis may pave the way for their separation.

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In Criminal Minds: Evolution season 2, episode 3, “Homesick,” JJ learns about the AI deep-fake site that targets her, specifically. The show doesn’t reveal how serious the matter is, but the problem may impact her marriage, resulting in her and Will separating. JJ’s husband has yet to appear in the sophomore year of the Paramount+ show, but as she mentioned in the premiere, he has been busy working. Whether there are other marital issues at play is uncertain, but the detrimental site is a big enough threat to the pair’s relationship.

Will Separating From JJ In Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 2 Is Worse Than Him Dying

JJ & Will Are Proof That Love Is Possible For The BAU

Knowing that there’s a chance for Will to return to Criminal Minds: Evolution is great, but it has a major trade-off. Stewart’s character dying would be absolutely devastating, considering how long he and his wife have been. Throughout every failed and tragic relationship in the franchise, the pair endured. Will and JJJ’s story is vital to Criminal Minds: Evolution because they are proof that there’s a possibility of a life outside the BAU. Regardless of the specifics of their possible separation, it’s heartbreaking to think that, ultimately, they will end up just like any other failed BAU couple.

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