(L-R) 'Criminal Minds' cast Matthew Gray Gubler, Jeanne Tripplehorn, A. J. Cook, Kirsten Vangsness and Joe Mantegna attend the CW, CBS, and Showtime 2012 Summer TCA Party held on July 29, 2012 in Beve (Photo : Getty Images/Frederick M. Brown)
When "Criminal Minds" Season 12 returns from its midseason break, viewers will begin to see some storyline changes that will impact many of the CBS series' lead characters. Latest spoiler news also teased of the impending re-appearance of a familiar face whom the BAU team encountered in an earlier case.
The remaining episodes of "Criminal Minds" Season 12 will feature a bigger story arc that will impact the personal and professional journeys of beloved characters. In a recent interview with TVLine, showrunner Erica Messer shared that the said plotline will trickle through several upcoming episodes.
Messer explained, "It feels like we've earned the right to tell some serialized stories ... So we're running with that, telling a really big arc that will last all of the back 9 [episodes] of Season 12."
The showrunner also mentioned that the storyline changes will introduce an "intense" journey for members of the BAU team, such as Spencer (Matthew Gray Gubler) given the impending reappearance of his mother Diana (Jane Lynch). Moreover, viewers can also expect to see another character return to the CBS series.
It appears that one of the BAU team's former adversaries will challenge the group's crime-fighting skills. Messer stated that they wanted to pay homage to the show's long history by bringing back some of the characters, whether good or bad, who "made an impact" to the show's protagonists.
Meanwhile, the upcoming midseason premiere of "Criminal Minds" Season 12 will force the BAU team to revisit an old case given a hieroglyph drawing found on a dead man's body, according to episode spoilers posted on Spoilers Guide. Titled "Surface Tension," the said episode will also feature an emotional reunion between Spencer and his mother.
"Criminal Minds" Season 12 episode 11 will be released on Feb. 1, Wednesday, on CBS. Watch the teaser clip for the said episode below:
