This article mentions suicide, death, and horrific crimes like murder.
Warning: SPOILERS for Criminal Minds: Evolution season 3, episode 10, “The Disciple.“Criminal Minds: Evolutionhas finally said goodbye to Zach Gilford’s Elias Voit, but the prolific serial killer undermined the BAU’s authority. Since the reboot premiered in 2022,Criminal Minds: Evolutionhas focused on someoriginal BAU members, some new allies, and one main foe: Elias Voit, aka Lee Duval, aka the Sicarius killer. For years, agents like David Rossi (Joe Mantegna), Jennifer “JJ” Jareau (A.J. Cook), and Emily Prentiss (Paget Brewster) were tormented by Voit and his clandestine army of serial killers scattered across the United States.
Eventually, Voit became less of a character and more of an invasive species that overshadowed every new storyline.Criminal Minds: Evolution’s Gold Starprogram could have been a compelling storyline, but Voit remained at the forefront, consulting the FBI while keeping a tight grip on the new killers. Rather than explore an entirely new threat and give it room to breathe,Criminal Minds: Evolutionalways ended up back at Voit. Thankfully, the season 3 finale served as a proper send-off, retiring the Sicarius network and the reformed killer in one fell swoop.
The Disciple’s Identity Recontextualizes Voit’s Entire Storyline
Tessa Was Always Obsessed With Him
Immediately,Criminal Minds: Evolutionseason 3, episode 10 confirms that the seemingly random woman Tara (Aisha Tyler) found in “Col1ateRal” is actually the Disciple. Sadly, the reveal fails to shock or astound, considering there were no real suspects until the penultimate episode of the season. Tessa Lebrun — who is actually Constance Teresa Merrick — was targeted by Cyrus (Silas Weir Mitchell) after Voit left to become his own killer rather than remain Cyrus’ second-in-command.
Enter Tessa, who Cyrus takes hostage and tries to mold into Voit’s replacement. The horrific uncle burns down Tessa’s family home, killing her parents just like Voit’s. Asthe Behavioral Analysis Unitlater surmises, Cyrus tried to repeat history to make another Sicarius out of Tessa. Aside from killing her family, Cyrus kept Tessa locked in his basement, feeding her food scraps and leaving her nothing to do aside from sit in her trauma. Eventually, Tessa trauma-bonded to Cyrus, becoming his loyal servant and losing her sense of self.
Cyrus abducts Tessa after drinking with her at a bar and confirming that nobody would immediately notice her absence.
Tessa’s backstory is devastating, but her character posed an interesting challenge forCriminal Minds: Evolution. Given the timeline, Tessa was under Cyrus’ control when Voit came to murder him in season 1. Rather than accept the incongruity,Evolutionincluded supplemental footage to imply Tessa was there all along, silently listening from the basement. From then on, Tessa’s fixation on Voit extended to the Sicarius investigation, where she kept tabs on him, his criminal case, and his killer network. Though unseen,Tessa has been in the woodwork sinceCriminal Minds: Evolutionbegan, waiting for her perfect moment to strike.
Tessa’s character is an interesting addition to the series — and I love how the procedural subtly changes past scenes to involve her — butCriminal Minds: Evolutionsquandered the Disciple’s potential by waiting so long to introduce her. Had the crime drama mentioned Cyrus having a second apprentice in passing or peppered in more clues relating to Voit’s past throughout the season, the big reveal would have been immensely more effective. As it stands, Tessa feels like a cop-out answer to season 3’s burning questions.
Tessa Tries To Reawaken Sicarius By Using Dr. Ochoa As Her Pawn
While Protecting His Doctor, Voit Unleashed His Killer Instinct
Despite her abrupt introduction, Tessa succeeds as a villain inCriminal Minds: Evolution’s season 3 finale, complete with a master plan to tap into Voit’s evil true self. Rather than simply kill Dr. Julia Ochoa (Aimee Garcia) as Rossi and the team originally predicted, Tessa uses Ochoa as a misdirection. The Disciple has Ochoa strapped to a chair with Sicarius spiders on deck, but Voit intervenes when the Engineer goes to make the fatal move.To protect Ochoa, Voit brutally beats the Engineer to death, which Tessa assumes will unlock the“real”Sicarius.
If Voit were truly a psychopath by nature, he would have no problem disposing of Ochoa…
However, the flaw in this plan is that it inherently relies on Voit’s progress being real. ThroughoutVoit’s amnesia storyline inCriminal Minds: Evolutionseason 3, Dr. Ochoa has been the only one constantly in his corner. Yet, in episode 9’s cliffhanger ending, Ochoa expresses disappointment in Voit and plans to have him transferred. If Voit were truly a psychopath by nature, he would have no problem disposing of Ochoa after she seemingly gave up on him. Even though he murdered the Engineer, Voit’s motivation ironically proves his rekindled humanity.
Voit Tricks His Disciple & Consults The BAU One Last Time
Voit Uses His Genius For Good In The Final Showdown
Nevertheless, Voit seems to revert to his dark side, proudly telling Tessa that he felt“like a f—ing god”after killing someone again. From there, Voit appears to be back on the killer’s team, reaffirming Tessa’s delusions about their connection and fated meeting. With the BAU already on the back foot, it seemed hopeless when Voit got behind a computer. To seal the deal, Tessa watches on the security camera as Voit marches into the next room and mercilessly shoots Ochoa in the head.
Criminal Minds: Evolutionpulls the perfect bait-and-switchby revealing Voit had outsmarted Tessa from the start, pretending to be Sicarius simply to lower her guard. In mere seconds, Voit relays this to Ochoa and tells her to play dead before taking an expert marksman’s shot just next to her head. Additionally, the coded message Voit sends out to the network actually sends vital information to the BAU, giving away their location along with the location of every remaining killer on the Sicarius network.
All episodes ofCriminal Minds: Evolutionare streaming on Paramount+.
Voit even manages to help the BAU’s rescue mission by dividing Tessa from her foot soldiers under the guise of escaping together. Only when they’re alone and far away from the action does Voit reveal where his true loyalties lie, raising a gun on the Disciple. If it weren’t for JJ and Tyler Green’s (Ryan-James Hatanaka) sudden arrival, Voit likely would have killed Tessa and then himself. While Tessa makes a run for it, Voit tries to goad Tyler into shooting him, hoping to protect the world from his inner darkness by dying. Fortunately, JJ talks him down.
After ten episodes, it still feels strange to root for the same man who was responsible for some of the most brutaldeaths inCriminal Minds. Beyond turning him into the ultimate savior,the season finale all but says that Voit is better than the FBI— and by redeeming the character,Criminal Minds: Evolutionsacrifices its protagonists’ ethos. Despite the decades of experience most agents have, the BAU was one step behind all season long, and they never would have been able to defeat Tessa and the network without Voit simply handing them the victory.
Criminal Minds: Evolution Finally Closes Its Sicarius Chapter
While The BAU Rejoices, Voit’s Ending Is Bittersweet
Despite how little their involvement affected the end result, the BAU happily close the Sicarius investigation and end the season on a hopeful note. Tara and Rebecca (Nicole Pacent) are happily engaged, Tyler has officially been placed with the BAU permanently for his training, and even Rossi seems to be in his best mental state sinceCriminal Minds: Evolutionbegan. In a suspiciously upbeat ending, the BAU — along with Rebecca and Evan (Geoff Stults) — go out for a celebratory round of drinks. The screen fades to black as the agents trade barbs and playful quips.
Voit’s fate inCriminal Minds: Evolution, in stark contrast, feels hopeless. The highly anticipated scene of Voit attacking an inmate on the prison bus turns out to be a mere daydream, alluding to the inevitability of Voit’s inner killer returning. Despite the pep talks from Rossi and Dr. Ochoa, Voit’s outlook is understandably bleak. The work he did throughoutCriminal Minds: Evolutionseason 3 feels pointless, with Voit’s newfound conscience only making him feel worse. In a cruel twist of fate,Criminal Minds: Evolutionredeemed Voit only to condemn him to a lifetime of miseryand guilt.
The dichotomy between Voit’s ending and the BAU’s ending startled me, with the difference disturbing me rather than instilling a sense of the good guys prevailing and justice being served. I find myself wondering whyCriminal Minds: Evolutionredeemed Voit. If it was to show that anyone can be saved, Voit’s purgatorial fate bulldozed any feelings of hope. Conversely, if it was meant to illustrate that even killers have the choice to be good,Criminal Minds: Evolutiondoes nothing to reward Voit for his heroism. Frankly, the final arc for Voit’s character merely turned him into a walking martyr.
Beyond the disappointing conclusion to Voit’s storyline,season 3 was leaps and bounds better than season 2. Thanks to Voit’s grand gesture of disclosing the location of every network killer, the BAU will have no loose ends heading into its next season. Additionally, with the Sicarius plotline definitively over,Criminal Minds: Evolutionwill have an exciting blank slate for season 4. There were highs and lows in season 3, but the crime drama now has nothing but potential.
Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 3, Episode 10
Cast
Criminal Minds follows an elite team of FBI profilers from the Behavioral Analysis Unit as they analyze the nation’s most complex criminal minds, led by experienced agent David Rossi. The team works to anticipate and prevent crimes by understanding the behavior of these dangerous individuals.
