After two years, everybody’s favorite FBI agents are back. The first episode of “Criminal Minds” aired back in 2005, and it has since gained a loyal following among viewers of all ages. Following the conclusion of its fifteenth season, the show was canceled since COVID made it extremely difficult to produce. However, since then, Paramount+ has renewed the show, and the series is ready to make a comeback.

The first episode of “Criminal Minds: Evolution” was released on Thursday, Nov. 24. Following a majority of the original cast along with a few new characters, these FBI agents take viewers on an even darker and twisted journey of unraveling a case, discovering the unsub, or unknown subject, and how things have changed in Quantico since the pandemic.

The way the episodes were structured was one of the biggest changes I noticed in this reboot. In the original series, we could usually expect there to be one major case per episode, but in “Criminal Minds: Evolution,” it’s clear that the writers have planned for one major case to last the entire season, with smaller cases that are connected to it dispersed throughout. I ended up really liking this element because I have to now wait until the following week to learn more about the case, which just got me more excited for what’s next.

In addition to the structure, the producers did a fantastic job escalating the tension with clothing and music. The majority of the characters wore dull clothes, and there was an obvious dark yellow coloring that they put over most scenes as well. You also see how the mood immediately changes when Penelope (Kirsten Vangsness) makes her appearance. She instantly changes the viewer’s mood and catches their attention with her bubbly personality and vibrant, distinctive clothing.

Also, I’m generally not a fan of reboots and wouldn’t even consider watching them, but when I learned that almost all of season 15 cast was returning, I knew I had to give this a try. Other than Reid’s (Matthew Gray Gubler) absence, I was stoked to see some of my favorite characters on my screen again. And their performance, of course, didn’t disappoint. You can clearly see how much Rossi (Joe Mantegna) was struggling, as he continues to deal with the loss of his wife, while also attempting to maintain his position as the team’s leader. With all the other characters, you can also see all of their concerns not only him, but the case they are trying to solve and their determination to catch this monster. Everyone’s acting kept me on the edge of my seat for the entire hour and was something that I missed.

What I didn’t like though, was the fact that the team was never fully together once throughout this whole first episode. I understand how all of the characters went their separate ways when the show finished, but it would only make sense for all of them to regroup in order to work on such a big case like this.

Even though this episode was almost an hour long, it honestly didn’t feel like 56 minutes had passed because of how many plots twists there were just in the pilot. I would recommend this show to any crime lover, especially if you watched the original “Criminal Minds.” Things finally feel like they’re going back to normal, now that I get to see the BAU back and accomplishing more than ever.