Partly ([identity profile] partly.livejournal.com) wrote in [community profile] criminalxminds2010-05-15 10:26 pm

Looking for timelines...

Has anyone ever compiled a time line of Criminal Minds episodes? The kind that lists when an episode takes place using in-show time, rather than using air date. I know that some episodes have references to dates/events (such as Halloween in "About Face") and I'm interested in seeing how the episodes would align to real-life time.

Thank you!

[identity profile] busterhenry.livejournal.com 2010-05-16 03:47 am (UTC)(link)
The show's timeline is a pretty big mess. "Machismo," for instance, has a specific date attached, the Mexican Day of the Dead, which is in November. But the show aired in April of '06. The you have "The Big Game" on the Super Bowl in February of '07, so were the fourteen cases (less TFK 1&2) in between those eps really all in the five months in between the Day of the Dead and the Super Bowl? 'Cause that would be a lot of traveling. No wonder Haley was pissed off.

"A Thousand Words" theoretically took place over a Friday and Saturday, but the date given on screen for the first 9-1-1 call was a Wednesday.

I've not seen anyone try to work out a logical timeline for all eps, based around the few that have specific dates attached. Like Hotch's backstory, it's probably best not to think about it too much.

[identity profile] busterhenry.livejournal.com 2010-05-16 04:07 am (UTC)(link)
Another issue with TFK and its placement relative to "Machismo" and "The Big Game" is that TFK is clearly supposed to be some kind of summer break for the team. The glimpses we get of Gideon's cabin and Hotch's house don't look like late November/early December around Washington, DC. So if you place "Machismo" properly in November of '06, then you have to move TFK to May/June of '07. But you can't do that, because "The Big Game" is clearly February of '07. So is "Machismo" November of '05 and the events of the pilot long before September of '05? But then Jack's timeline doesn't work out, because he was born shortly after the pilot and his general age lines up pretty well with the show's age.

My brain hurts from just thinking about those three, four episodes. I can't imagine trying to make the entire puzzle work out.

[identity profile] cloudzrshibby.livejournal.com 2010-05-16 03:50 am (UTC)(link)
I dunno how accurate it is, but if you search "Criminal Minds episodes" on Wikipedia, it pops up with a list of all of them. It shows the original air dates, so maybe you can gage from there.

[identity profile] http://users.livejournal.com/_nextboldmove_/ 2010-05-16 03:57 am (UTC)(link)
This could be an interesting project for us to work on this summer during the hiatus. Maybe...if anything, we could compile a table of inaccuries and send it to Ed Bernero with a note saying: 'From yer fans, pleaz fix k thanks'. Hahaha!

[identity profile] justams.livejournal.com 2010-05-16 07:42 am (UTC)(link)
I like that idea. XD
ext_381663: (spider)

[identity profile] britt-m-89.livejournal.com 2010-05-16 05:03 am (UTC)(link)
If the timeline wasn't so screwed up to begin with I would love to do a timeline. But my brain would probably explode. It is easy to determine when some episodes do take place though.

The Big Game/Revelations obviously took place in the first week of February 2007.
JJ said that Henry's birthstone is Citrine. That means Memorium took place in November 2008.
The episodes that feature Jordan as a member of the team probably take place over a 9 week period (Maternity leave is 12 weeks. JJ came back three weeks early though.) Cold Comfort would had probably been set in February, possibly January.
In Public Enemy, the check Rossi made out to the victim's daughter had the date on it. I believe it was set in the middle of February of this year.

That's all I can think of right now. For the most part the air dates usually correspond with the time of year the episode is set.

[identity profile] dragonladyk.livejournal.com 2010-05-16 06:31 am (UTC)(link)
They don't. The bad news is that if you try to figure out a timeline, your head explodes. The good news is that with few exceptions, you can pretty much do whatever you want in fic. ^^

DragonLady