“Criminal Minds” Season 13 premiered last week that delivered a twist on Aaron Hotchner’s (Thomas Gibson) fate with his son Jack. Fans can recall that the father and son entered WITSEC when Hotch’s arch-enemy Peter Lewis a.k.a Mr. Scratch started stalking his son. The showrunners had to write Gibson off the show following his altercation with one of the show’s writers, Virgil Williams. He later issued a public apology and explained that the dispute was due to their creative differences. Earlier today, the show’s official Twitter account posted a teaser photo of the profilers captioned with “Family Reunion” that received mix reactions from fans.

Fans respond to the preview photo

On Twitter, some “Criminal Minds” fans were in high spirits seeing the photo that features JJ (Aj Cook), Spencer Reid (Matthew Gray Gubler), Luke Alvez (Adam Rodriguez), David Rossi (Joe Mantegna) and Penelope Garcia (Kristen Vangness). The looks of each team members appear to be cheerful but what’s more interesting is how Gibson fans reacted to the image, particularly to the photo’s caption. “But it will never be a complete family again,” one fan responded. “Mourning the loss of Hotch and Jack from the show. Sad. Loved the son as much as the dad.”

Gibson is terribly missed by fans

Apparently, fans who have been following the show still want to see Gibson on “Criminal Minds.” He is one of the show’s cornerstones and fans find his departure difficult to deal with.

As what most of them said, it will never be a “family reunion” unless Hotch, Jack, and Derek Morgan (Shemar Moore) return.

When CBS fired Gibson in August 2016, his avid fans tried to file a petition in a hope to get him back on the show. They also started a massive Twitter feast with the infamous #NoHotchNoWatch but that too still falls on deaf ears.

The show has been criticized for its insane cast rotation that even those who have been watching it since it originally premiered in September 2005, started to get discouraged.

Is the show going down?

When the show started its cast shake-ups, the ratings have also begun to wane especially when another fan-favorite actor, Shemar Moore decided to make an exit.

“Criminal Minds” Season 13 premiere ratings only earned seven million viewers, which is two million less than the viewers in Season 12. Gibson’s contract was terminated after the 12th Season’s Episode 2 and many of his fans claim that their boycott created a massive impact on the show’s ratings.

Nonetheless, “Criminal Minds” remains one of the most popular American shows. However, fans are the keystones of every show’s success. Thus, their criticisms should fall on the constructive side and must not be considered unruly.
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