The Similarity You Never Noticed Between Some Of The Victims On Criminal Minds
"Criminal Minds" remains one of the most successful shows ever to air on broadcast TV. This series concluded in 2020 after 15 seasons, though a highly-anticipated revival is currently in the works, which will stream on Paramount+. The series, which followed the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU), continues to have a very loyal following of fans who, no doubt, have never stopped binge-watching — and analyzing — the show's impressive 323 episodes (even if there are some moments that are disturbing enough to warrant skipping on a rewatch).
Needless to say, the crime drama was a huge success, thanks largely to its unique take on crime solving, choosing to focus on the FBI profilers who use their knowledge of psychology to help find the perpetrator of a crime, or "unsub," as they are called on the show. However, like other crime procedurals, the "Criminal Minds" run included a long list of victims. Unfortunately, as is also the case in real life, many of the victims of these horrible, violent crimes have been women.
However, some observant fans have also noticed another similarity between the victims that is rather surprising.
Many Criminal Minds victims share the same name
On the Criminal Minds subreddit, one Redditor astutely observed a fact that, until now, has rarely been mentioned: "How many victims have been named Katie on Criminal Minds??? It seems like every other episode the murder victim is named Katie."
Another user, ChaoticacademiaCMfan, noticed the same trend. "Thank you. None of my friends that watch CM notice, but at least twice in a season the victim is Katie. What is wrong with Katie?" The user also suggested that maybe one of the writers had a personal vendetta against a real-life person named Katie, as an explanation for why so many Katies in the "Criminal Minds" universe are murdered.
While we have personally never noticed this trend in our many "Criminal Minds" watches, it makes sense on a certain level — after all, pretty much everyone knows a Katie (or two). According to BabyNames.com, Katie was an incredible common name in the 1980s and 1990s: as a frequent nickname for Katherine and its many spellings, "Katie" was the 38th most popular name in the US at its peak in 1986. Katherine, on the other hand, was even more popular in the era, as the 25th most popular name in America at its peak in 1991.
To be fair, people with many other names met a grisly end on "Criminal Minds," as well. Nonetheless, we can imagine it must be challenging for show writers to come up with new names for victims every single episode, so perhaps that's why so many Katies have been faced with unsavory deaths on "Criminal Minds." And now, fans have something new to look out for next time they rewatch the show.