In the episode "Epilogue" (Season 3, Episode 6) of *Criminal Minds*, the BAU searches California's Angeles National Forest after multiple bodies mysteriously appear in the mountain lakes. Meanwhile, Rossi struggles with a difficult and painful decision regarding his ex-wife. This week's episode, titled "There's No Place Like Home," sees the BAU investigating the bodies of young boys that arrive in Kansas following tornado-related storms. Additionally, work pressures create tension on JJ’s home front.
*Criminal Minds* is an American police procedural drama that premiered on CBS on September 23, 2005. The series follows a team of profilers in the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU), based in Quantico, Virginia. The BAU is part of the FBI National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime. Unlike many procedural dramas, *Criminal Minds* focuses on the criminal rather than the crime itself. The show is produced by The Mark Gordon Company in collaboration with CBS Television Studios and ABC Studios. On May 18, 2011, CBS renewed the series for a seventh season, which began on September 21, 2011. In October 2009, CBS announced that Legacy Interactive would develop a video game based on the show. Players will explore crime scenes for clues to help solve murder mysteries, with the game scheduled for release later in 2011.
Initially, the series centered around Jason Gideon (Mandy Patinkin), Aaron Hotchner (Thomas Gibson), and the rest of the Behavioral Analysis Unit, known as the BAU team. At the start, the team included Elle Greenaway (Lola Glaudini), Derek Morgan (Shemar Moore), Dr. Spencer Reid (Matthew Gray Gubler), Jennifer "JJ" Jareau (A.J. Cook), and Penelope Garcia (Kirsten Vangsness). When the series began, Vangsness was not part of the regular cast but appeared as a guest star. During the second season, Greenaway left after the sixth episode and was replaced by Emily Prentiss (Paget Brewster) in the ninth episode. At the beginning of the third season, Gideon departs after the second episode and is later replaced by David Rossi (Joe Mantegna).
In the sixth season, JJ leaves after the second episode, and a new character, Ashley Seaver (Rachel Nichols), is introduced in Season 6. Later in the sixth season, Prentiss also leaves the show. A.J. Cook returned to the show for Brewster’s final episode, credited as a "special guest star." For the seventh season, it was announced that Cook signed a two-year contract to return as a series regular at the end of the sixth season and the start of the seventh season. It was also announced that Brewster would return as Prentiss as a series regular for season seven. Nichols’ contract was not extended for season seven, meaning she left the cast. Both Moore’s and Gibson’s contracts were renewed, and their salaries were increased.