A blog dedicated to all things relating to newcomer Matt Simmons. Will write or post anything relating to the most underrated member of the BAU
Update: I am no longer a fic writer
pocket-sized sewing kit if you have even basic knowledge of how to use one
a pocket knife and/or scissors
Swiss army knife or sturdy multitool (they sell trendy, cheap quality ones that will break immediately)
if rope is too bulky at least keep around those paracord lanyards/bracelets which are compact and meant to be unraveled
optionally, tinfoil for outdoor cooking, extending radio antenna range, and even keeping warm if crucial
consider socks essential in the “undergarment” category
a roll of toilet paper or large packet of tissues in the “sanitary napkins” category
expanding on “battery pack,” a charged portable power bank with usb ports etc to charge devices. A friend gave me a pocket sized one, and we purchased a larger one with jumper cables and electrical outlets
some type of analog entertainment, especially for kids; deck of cards, a coloring book and crayons, miniature board games, travel versions of holy books, i.e. whatever you think would keep you sane
You’d be surprised how many of these items, including tough nylon bags to carry them, are just laying around in thrift stores and yard sales. Most of my emergency equipment was free/cheap while still perfectly brand new. People buy excess stuff for camping trips like lanterns and fire starting kits, and then never use them. Take advantage of that if it is best for you.
Your circumstances and what you can grab fast may vary. Sometimes evacuation is possible, sometimes hunkering down is the only option, but either way keep this go-bag in an accessible place.
if you were a writer on cm, how would you have change the season finale? or any other episode in s19?
Ah. This is such a tricky question. I should probably preface my response by clarifying that I liked season 19 overall. And I prefer consuming media I had nothing to do with making because that's fun and I get to experience something I wouldn't have thought of myself. The Fan isn't where I personally would've taken the season but I enjoyed that they took it there and I got to watch it.
That being said, every week after watching the new ep, my poor fiancée had to listen to me ramble about what I would've done differently so I've narrowed down those ramblings into one key change per episode under the cut. So... less of a rewrite, more of a punch-up.
19x01 - Now and Then:
shorten the painful Emily / Rossi exposition dump at the start of the episode so it's confined to fleeting mentions of where the others are + a briefer version of Rossi not wanting to write a book about Voit. The podcast craze around Voit would've been better if it was shown to us instead of told. Eg. the victims in the cold open could've been listening to a Voit podcast during their road trip and discussing it, or Emily could've walked past someone listening to it in the bullpen on the way into Rossi's office and rolling her eyes. Or both! That way we, the audience, already understand Rossi's concerns about adding to the hype and don't need him and Emily to beat us over the head verbally with it. As for their Tara discussion point, TARA could've told us herself that she chose to interview Voit to protect the others by simply extending the first scene where we see her talking to Voit and throwing Rebecca in the room for it. Eg. they're waiting for Voit to arrive and Rebecca says "I still can't believe you volunteered for this," then Tara reminds her wife why she did it. If they were really set on this scene being a Tara/Voit solo convo Rebecca could've even left the room to take a phone call before Voit arrived. But that would mean giving Tara a character moment and letting one of the wlw ships have unchaperoned screen time which was obviously against the rules this season.
19x02 - Cluster:
I didn't have any non-Jemily-related grievances with this episode and will probably get my Jemily card revoked if I voice that particular grievance so I'll leave this episode alone I think.
19x03 - Body Count:
After Rossi and Voit are done talking on the jet at the start of the episode, add in a moment (60 secs or less) where JJ tells Emily and/or Tyler about Mr Wednesday. She was visibly affected by Penelope keeping her dating life a secret and we got zero follow up on it afterward. Tyler could've reflected on how people treated him differently after he lost Allison or Emily could've given advice on readjusting to life when people start to perceive you differently, calling back to the struggles she experienced while returning from the dead in season 7. It would've been a lovely, low-effort character moment for both JJ and whoever she ended up talking to.
19x04 - The Witching Hour:
Kill Lance at the end like they were originally supposed to. Everything that involved him after this episode could've just as easily involved someone else, I'm sorry.
19x05 - Friendly Fire:
Because I would've killed Lance last episode, The Fan would need a different person to call Brian during the interview with Rossi. This could've been Holly (revealing she's being held captive way earlier on in the season) OR someone like Ramona from last season. If we're going for low effort changes, then the Ramona one is my preference I think. Imagine ending the episode with all the characters thinking The Fan has just killed the ONE victim who survived Voit. Would've had way more impact than some random guy we just met but idk, I don't care enough about gay hockey players I guess.
19x06 - Proxy:
Because I would've killed Lance in 19x04, Tara and Luke could've been interviewing Ramona in the hospital instead. OR, for argument's sake, if we went down the route of Holly being the one who dialled into the podcast last episode then swap the Tara/Luke interviewing Lance at the hospital scene with them talking to a very agitated Voit in prison. He's climbing up the walls over what's happened to Holly and we still haven't been told if she's alive or not. But again, I would've preferred the Ramona thing I think.
19x07 - The Furies:
Show us literally any character other than Rossi having any reaction whatsoever to the reveal that Penelope testified on Voit's behalf. My personal order of preference would've been 1) Tyler, 2) JJ or 3) Luke.
19x08 - Requiem:
JJ appeals to the unsub of the week via the suicide / grief route (Will/Roz) instead of referencing Henry. Luke chimes in too. They deliver a heartfelt plea to convince the unsub life is worth living based on their personal experiences with grief and are both THROWN when the unsub takes their words as proof life actually isn't worth living and kills himself anyway.
19x09 - Special Agent Garrity:
Emily has the sense to call the others back when she / Garcia / Dave realise Garrity is being held at the church, since they probably hadn't even left the fucking building yet and it makes no fucking sense to send them off on a wild goose chase. The team splits off when they arrive at the church so the end outcome / CPR scene doesn't change, but at least the characters don't come off stupid.
19x10 - Bad Blood (I had to do at least two for this one sorry):
Restructure the episode so that the Laura and Holly rescues are unfolding at the same time. We jump between both missions to gradually build suspense and a sense of urgency. Luke's fate after the explosion is left ambiguous for 1 or 2 scenes.
Before he dies, Crowley opens his eyes and smiles at Voit, implying that turning Holly into a killer was his plan all along. Camera stays on Voit's reaction as he realises this too.
Crying laughing over the e09 point about Emily calling the team back because I literally said that while I was watching. Like oh that church is obviously where the Fan is, so call everybody back because the elevator probably hasn't even hit the parking garage LMAO
I like your ideas! Keeping Lance alive was stupid, such a weird move from a weird obsession over this guy and definitely hurt the storytelling. He was superfluous and they could have done more interesting things around the plot. I liked the Fan plotline but they could have hit it even harder. But then here's me not giving a single f about unsub of the week and thinking about the ways we really could have fleshed out the Fan storyline into something amazing if we hadn't bothered with the other stuff going on 😂😂
"Call the others, have them meet us on site." It would've been so easy 😂😂
Oh yeah I had to limit myself to improvements in this list because if I start looking at broader structural changes I'll never stop hahaha. I'm always in two minds about unsub of the week. I think the occasional new case keeps things fresh but they were clearly spinning too many plates this season and it showed. Unsub of the fortnight maybe...
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romaincrisis
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