TV spin-offs have been very popular in the entertainment industry. When a "parent show" becomes very successful, writers and producers test the waters by introducing a new show with ties to the original. While some of these new shows do flop and are unable to attain enough views for the network to continue airing them, many have become very successful. Some well known spin-offs of this decade include the "Bachelor" franchise on ABC, the "Chicago" franchise on CBS and the very popular "CSI" franchise, which included four different shows over the course of 15 years, the original parent series lasting for all 15 years.
Criminal Minds, a police procedural that premiered in 2005, follows a team of elite criminal profilers across the nation. While this parent series has done very well for itself, entering its twelfth season in 2016 and still maintaining a loyal "fan-base", it's a no-brainer that the producers would try to do a spin-off show. In 2011, the first attempt at a spin-off was done by the creation of the show, "Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior." Unfortunately, due to low ratings, the show was cancelled after only one season. Five years later with the parent series in the midst of one of its most intense and emotional seasons ever, a second spin-off aired, "Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders."
Unlike the first spin-off, this one had an entire new concept, which shows how Americans are not always safe when they leave our country. It features an entire new team of profilers who are portrayed by Gary Sinise, Alana de la Garza, and Tyler James Williams to name a few. Over the course of the first season, the team traveled to international locations like South Africa, Japan, and Mexico. With this new perspective on the original show's premises, it was picked up by CBS for a second season to be aired in 2017.
After watching the first season of the show, it became clear why this spin-off was able to succeed alongside its parent show. Although it followed the same format as the original show, there were numerous things that producers made sure to include to have the show stay true to real life and have it ultimately succeed. Here are just a few featured consistently throughout the show.
1. Each episode features a new setting, with season one ranging from Thailand to Haiti. With these global locations means that each week, viewers are immersed in a different culture. In the second episode, the team traveled to India and you could see how life in the slums affects people's health and how those citizens are viewed by the more wealthy Indian nationals.
2. History plays a huge part in how the team tries to catch the "unsub" in each episode. Not only do they have to consider the more common types of motive, they also have to see if the society has a history of certain rituals in past-time because those acts could be influencing the criminal.
3. Simply put, the language barrier. Not everyone in foreign countries can speak English. This show tackles that issue by having translators for whoever needs to be interviewed or spoken to, or one of the agents themselves are fluent in languages. For example, Agent Clara Seger, portrayed by Alana de la Garza, speaks Xhosa in the premiere episode, a language native to South Africa.
4. Since each episode goes from country to country, gun protocol is very different. In some episodes the team can have their weapons, sometimes their shirts must be pulled over the gun, and sometimes the use of guns is restricted and the team must leave them on their plane.
Not only are you watching a new episode each week and following the overarching storyline of the international response team, but you are immersing yourself in new cultures where you can learn different facts about these foreign places. For example, on June 30, 2015, 5he U.S. and Cuba agreed to reestablish their diplomatic relations. Personally, I thoroughly enjoyed the show and the new point of view producers took for this spin-off show. So even if you're someone who doesn't like spin-offs, go beyond your comfort zone, break the borders you have set up, and give the show a shot.
