There comes a time in any project where one must decide exactly what their mission is. In entertainment, that’s usually a pretty easy question to answer. Of course your goal is to entertain as many people as possible so that it can be profitable and enduring. For many years there have been filmmakers and television series show runners who have let that goal get out of hand, mostly in the political arena. I don’t have any issue when a show’s editorial policy happens to come down on one side or the other. It doesn’t even matter if it’s my side or not. But two things I don’t want in my entertainment. I don’t want to be hit over the head every five minutes. Trust me to get your point. The second is that there must still be entertainment value that compels me to care about a show and its characters and their stories. Madam Secretary fails in both of these tests. The West Wing was just as political, but there was a demanding quality to everything from the performances to the stories and production value. As a government teacher, I was impressed at how many of those little-known facts about our system they got right. I used moments of the show as teaching moments. This last season of Madam Secretary would be a disaster in any classroom.

The series started by telling the story of Elizabeth McCord (Leoni) who became the Secretary of State to President Conrad Dalton, played exceptionally well by Keith Carradine. The stories would involve her struggles to balance the affairs of the world while also being as much of a mom and wife as she could be. The show was populated by a few compelling and interesting characters. Tim Daly as husband Henry is one of the more complete characters you’ll find in a television series. A true renaissance man, he is a professor of theology and ethics who was also an intelligence agent, as was Elizabeth at one time. He has the show’s best stuff to do and say, and as wonderful as the character is, he takes a ton of the air out of the room. Another outstanding performance comes from Zeljko Ivanek, who played the President’s Chief of Staff and returns to that role for McCord. He’s the complete politician’s hatchet man who loves to wield power and hates to lose. Another outstanding performance that unfortunately steals too much thunder. I loved him in a similar role in the Gary Sinise Truman.  McCord had an interesting staff, but there was never the kind of chemistry there that ensemble shows need so desperately. It became too obvious as the seasons rolled by that the show was becoming a love letter to Hillary Clinton, who even ended up doing a cameo on the series. And as Hilary took the plunge toward the presidency, it appeared obvious that needed to happen with Elizabeth, and that’s exactly how the fifth season ended. McCord is elected President.

To the point, Criminal Minds is very compelling television. Ever since The Silence of the Lambs and perhaps long before, we have been fascinated by serial killers and the profilers who try to get inside their heads. To see evidence of the continuing trend, one needs only look toward the success of shows like Dexter. Of course, serial killers are not the only prey this FBI team pursues, but they are certainly the marquee item on the agenda. To be sure, there are equally disturbing subjects such as arsonists, bombers, kidnappers, and rapists to give the show a touch of variety, but let’s face it, it’s the killers that keep us tuned so attentively to Criminal Minds. But now after 15 seasons the series has come to an end, and we realize it wasn’t just the murderers we’ve been tuning in to see. The characters have become like a little family, and their stories were just as compelling over the years. Now Criminal Minds finishes with a brief 10-episode final run, and it’s out on DVD from CBS Home Entertainment.

Let’s not take anything away from the show’s true force here. This is an excellent cast being fed brilliant scripts playing to an awesome crew. Everything just clicks on this series, and it only got better in the second year. I am truly impressed with how much these characters are fleshed out and how much we learn about them without the need for office romance. No precious show time is squandered on excessive personal life stories. We’re given just enough to bring the characters alive beyond their team dynamic, which is quite strong. Each character is constructed through the subtle nuances the actors infuse their performance with. From the moment you watch your first episode, you will find this team believable enough to care about them and their work. Surprisingly, the show often gets muddled in a ton of exposition, but somehow it’s carried off by the cast so that you never find yourself going numb with clinical information overload. Granted, the material itself is attention-worthy, but these guys pull it off no matter how interesting the information might be. Add to the stellar portrayals a writing team second to none in the industry. The support teams do everything they need to make sure these talents are never wasted.