[s6e19] With Friends Like These Apr 2026

This episode is a standout for its unique portrayal of the unsub's mental state. By showing the hallucinations as real, active participants in the first half of the episode, the audience feels the same confusion and helplessness that Ben experiences.

In a heart-wrenching scene, Ben calls his mother for help during a breakdown, but she dismisses him, telling him to "find a yellow pages" and hangs up, leaving him to the voices. [S6E19] With Friends Like These

Early theories suggest a "pack" of killers, but Hotch quickly realizes it is one single, highly disturbed individual leaving the same shoe prints at every crime scene. The unsub is Ben Foster (played by Bug Hall), a paranoid schizophrenic who believes he is being pursued by the ghosts of three friends he killed in a fire when he was a child. These "ghosts" (Matt, Tony, and Yolanda) now haunt him, acting as "imaginary foes" that force him to kill to get them to stop nagging him. This episode is a standout for its unique

The BAU realizes the overkill is a desperate act to burn energy so Ben can sleep and get a reprieve from his hallucinations. Early theories suggest a "pack" of killers, but

When a suspected gang in Portland starts targeting a new victim every night, the BAU is tasked with finding a "pack" of killers before they strike again. But what they find is far more personal, tragic, and psychological than a simple gang war.

It’s a deeply sad episode, highlighting that the true monster isn't just the illness, but the lack of support. Ben’s struggle is treated with a surprising amount of empathy compared to other Criminal Minds episodes, especially in the final scenes with Ashley Seaver, who grapples with the remorse Ben showed.