Ep 12. Soul Mates

The fourth season of Criminal Minds highlights the Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU) of the FBI. The team revolves around the profiling of criminals and their psychological makeup to catch them. In episode 12 of season 4, entitled "Soul Mates," the BAU team takes on a case in Tallahassee, Florida. The episode follows the usual pattern with the team analyzing the psyches of the unsubs to uncover their motives, which in this case appear to involve a search for eternal love.

The episode starts with an unusual introductory scene where a couple is seen exchanging soft words, and shortly after, the woman shoots her partner. The Tallahassee team is quick to respond to the scene, and they come to the realization that the murder is the work of a serial killer. The motifs on the victim's forehead seem to be ritualistic, and there are other clues that point to a revenge killing.

The BAU team is quick to arrive at the crime scene and starts work immediately. However, this proves challenging, as the suspects appear to be a couple that is seeking love. Each of the couple's victims has an X carved into their skin, which the team determines to be a symbol representing a crossroad. The killer is determined to murder couples who are loved and who feel loved, believing that if he is not capable of experiencing such love, then nobody else should be.

As the investigation progresses, the team discovers that the "revenge killing" pattern is representative of the killer's frustration, and he seeks to project his feelings of inadequacy and loneliness upon his victims. The victims' happiness and fulfillment deem them deviant in the killer's eyes, and this triggers a desire to inflict pain on them.

As the team delves deeper into its investigation, they soon discover that the couple behind the committed atrocities is Rachel and Vincent. Vincent appears willing to kill to attain eternal love and Rachel is under his spell. They have a disturbing connection, and the latter appears to have completely dissociated from reality. They both see themselves as soulmates, albeit at the expense of other people's lives.

The BAU team continues to investigate and starts piecing together the various facts they have amassed about the couple. They eventually discover that Vincent has been kidnapping deeply connected couples and performing ritualistic acts that he believes will bring everlasting love. According to Vincent’s delusional ideology, if a couple is willing to die for each other, then they will rest in eternal bliss in the afterlife.

The team, through the impeccable profiling techniques used, is finally able to locate the killer's lair and rescue the abducted couple. The chase scene and the confrontation between Vincent and members of the team bring viewers to the edge of their seats.

In the final scene, the couple is reunited, but the scene is tainted with the knowledge that the BAU team has perhaps saved many other couples' lives from the wrath of Vincent. Ultimately, the team was able to identify and capture a skilled psychopath with the power to make people believe in his delusion. The episode leaves you wondering, how many more couples were robbed of their soulmates due to the wrathful actions of people who think they can dictate life's course.