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The Best Episodes of Criminal Minds Season 5

Every episode of Criminal Minds Season 5 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Criminal Minds Season 5!

The Best Episodes of Criminal Minds Season 5

An elite team of FBI profilers analyze the country's most twisted criminal minds, anticipating their next moves before they strike again. The Behavioral Analysis Unit's...

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  1. 9.2/10(4.4k votes)

    #1 - 100

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    S5:E9

    The BAU team races to help Hotchner find The Reaper and save his family before it's too late.

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  2. 8.9/10(4.0k votes)

    #2 - Mosley Lane

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    S5:E16

    The BAU is called by local authorities in Ashburn, Virginia, to profile a predator who may have been abducting children for at least eight years.

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  3. 8.4/10(3.2k votes)

    #3 - The Uncanny Valley

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    S5:E12

    An unusual personal obsession is at the center of a BAU abduction case. Meanwhile, Hotch struggles with his return to work.

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  4. 8.0/10(2.5k votes)

    #4 - Nameless, Faceless

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    S5:E1

    As Rossi, Morgan and JJ profile a killer who is targeting an emergency room doctor, Prentiss realizes that Hotch is missing.

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  5. 8.0/10(2.2k votes)

    #5 - Our Darkest Hour

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    S5:E23

    A series of rolling blackouts in the city of Los Angeles lures a serial killer out of hiding, giving him renewed opportunities to continue his killing spree.

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  6. 7.9/10(2.4k votes)

    #6 - ...A Thousand Words

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    S5:E20

    The BAU team must profile a serial killer covered in tattoos who commits suicide, but leaves clues to the whereabouts of his last victim.

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  8. 7.7/10(2.8k votes)

    #7 - Haunted

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    S5:E2

    The BAU must determine what caused a disturbed man to murder several people at a pharmacy before he harms anyone else.

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    Director:Jon Cassar
  9. 7.7/10(2.0k votes)

    #8 - Outfoxed

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    S5:E8

    The BAU team is tracking down a family annihilator, but needs to take a break from the case to get advice from "The Fox", who is an horrific killer from the team's past. "The Fox" surprises the team with a ominous message for Agent Hotchner.

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  10. 7.7/10(2.0k votes)

    #9 - The Slave of Duty

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    S5:E10

    The team needs to reunite in order to solve a home invasion case, while Agent Hotchner may have to leave the team.

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    Director:Charles Haid
  11. 7.7/10(2.8k votes)

    #10 - Risky Business

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    S5:E13

    A rash of startling teen suicides in a small Wyoming town is the focus of a BAU investigation.

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    Director:Rob Spera
  12. 7.7/10(2.3k votes)

    #11 - The Internet Is Forever

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    S5:E22

    The BAU team profiles a serial killer who uses the Internet as his hunting ground, bringing a whole meaning to the term "social networking".

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  13. 7.6/10(2.0k votes)

    #12 - Cradle to Grave

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    S5:E5

    The team hunts a suspect who impregnates young women and has them give birth before murdering them.

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    Director:Rob Spera
  14. 7.6/10(1.9k votes)

    #13 - Public Enemy

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    S5:E15

    A serial killer who targets random victims in highly visible places to create a sense of public fear is the subject of a BAU investigation.

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  15. 7.5/10(1.9k votes)

    #14 - Solitary Man

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    S5:E17

    A truck driver is kidnapping women and disposing of them in random locations and the BAU must find out his motive in order to catch him.

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  16. 7.5/10(2.7k votes)

    #15 - Exit Wounds

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    S5:E21

    Garcia plays a crucial role in a case when she travels to Alaska with the BAU team to investigate the murders of several members of a small town.

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  17. 7.4/10(2.7k votes)

    #16 - Reckoner

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    S5:E3

    The BAU investigates a case in Rossi's hometown that involves both his personal and professional life.

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  18. 7.4/10(2.3k votes)

    #17 - The Performer

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    S5:E7

    The BAU team investigates the mystery behind a trail of murders that all seem to align with the tour schedule of a rock star.

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    Director:John Badham
  19. 7.4/10(2.0k votes)

    #18 - Parasite

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    S5:E14

    The BAU follows the mental decline of a con artist whose schemes have become so complicated that he begins to eliminate the people involved in them.

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  20. 7.3/10(2.3k votes)

    #19 - Hopeless

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    S5:E4

    A group of suspects with a pack mentality who kill for the thrill of it are the subjects of a BAU manhunt.

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  21. 7.3/10(2.0k votes)

    #20 - Retaliation

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    S5:E11

    The BAU is called upon to profile the past of an ex-convict and help stop him after he escapes from custody and embarks on a violent killing spree.

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  22. 7.3/10(2.2k votes)

    #21 - The Fight

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    S5:E18

    The BAU team travels to San Francisco to investigate the murders of several homeless men and teams up with a separate group of BAU operatives who are working another case they think is connected.

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  23. 7.3/10(2.1k votes)

    #22 - Rite of Passage

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    S5:E19

    The BAU team heads to Texas to track a serial killer targeting illegal immigrants attempting to make safe passage into the U.S.

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  24. 7.2/10(2.1k votes)

    #23 - The Eyes Have It

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    S5:E6

    The BAU team tracks a serial killer who keeps the eyes of his victims as souvenirs.

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    Director:Glenn Kershaw
    Writer:Oanh Ly

Season 5 Ratings Summary

"100" is the best rated episode of "Criminal Minds" season 5. It scored 9.2/10 based on 4368 votes. Directed by Edward Allen Bernero and written by Erica Messer, Simon Mirren, Edward Allen Bernero, Rick Dunkle, Chris Mundy, Breen Frazier, Oanh Ly, it aired on 11/25/2009. This episode is rated 0.3 points higher than the second-best, "Mosley Lane".