It's good that things don't always get neatly tied up in a bow.

Take, for example, Criminal Minds Season 14 Episode 13.

I kept expecting Rossi to pull a solution out of a hat by episode's end. Because that's what happens week after week, season after season, except for the occasional two-parter.

But no. The chameleon unsub got away. That doesn't happen.

Unless the unsub is going to be a continuing presence, and frankly Everett Lynch wasn't intriguing enough to keep him looming for the dozen episodes or so that the venerable Criminal Minds has left.

Related: Criminal Minds Season 14 Episode 12 Review: Hamelin

In an episode that was AJ Cook's directorial debut, having Rossi tell about the case through flashbacks was effective, especially so because Krystall is a civilian.

It's not like JJ talking to ex-cop Will or Prentiss explaining to current FBI agent Mendoza.

That didn't mean Krystall was a wide-eyed innocent. She's worked in Las Vegas and has seen some of the dark sides of humanity.

Not BAU dark, mind you, but she was able to ask the right questions during Rossi's tale.

She was the sounding board he needed. Prentiss hit the nail on the head when she said Rossi needed to find the right person to tell why he wasn't fine.

Prentiss was right to send him home. I wondered why Reid was still there second-guessing himself.

As a faceless character, Everett was difficult for the BAU to pin down.

He portrayed the person necessary to lure in his various marks, and it was hard to sort fact from fiction as a result.

Related: Watch Criminal Minds Online: Season 14 Episode 12

Why did Everett let so much truth slip out? Was it just because that was an easier story of which to keep track?

Or did he mean to sprinkle clues for those pursuing him?

His methods seemed to be as old as time: A younger woman courting an older woman while robbing her blind.

But it wasn't that simple. Unsubs' motivations rarely are.

Instead, Everett was yet another unsub with mommy issues. Mommy was a con woman and she taught him everything she knew, and he hated her for it. 

He also hated her for what happened to his daughter Grace.

His mother Bobby, as played by the ever-engaging Sharon Lawrence, was a piece of work.

Even in a prison jumpsuit, she tried to turn on the sexy for Alvez and Simmons, even though such behavior is what sent her there.

Related: Criminal Minds Renewed for Season 15

Yet Bobby had a secret -- what had happened to Grace. And, despite all that Everett had done, he was still her son and she got out a warning to him. 

And rather than flee after he had tracked down Grace, he decided to take on the BAU, enlisting Grace to his cause.\

Grace was a big piece of the puzzle to not have figured out, and the BAU paid for it. She was a third generation of crazy.

Rossi is usually such a pillar of strength for the team, but it's natural such a near-death experience would lead him to doubt.

I always thought he was the person most capable of walking away, and now that Krystall is back in his life, retiring to become a full-time author has to be enticing to him.

But not yet. Rossi has a new archfoe now in Everett, and he can't tolerate such unfinished business. That's why he ended up talking to Grace at episode's end.

I'm sure the rest of the BAU feels the same. This case can only be seen as a loss, but justice delayed. 

There's a killer out there who can change his appearance, his mannerisms, his speech as circumstances demand.

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Maybe being such a blank slate Everett's attraction. As Rossi pointed out, he could be right next to you and you'd never know it was him.

Unlike the most flamboyant of the past serial killers, he's not proclaiming his genius to the world.

Still, how much could he be used while trying to wrap up everybody's stories during the short, 10-episode Criminal Minds Season 15?

Frankly, I'd rather have the greatest hits than the latest hits when it comes to unsubs, along with bringing back the essential past agents for a final bow, especially Morgan and Hotch at the very least.

I suspect Shemar Moore will be available after SWAT gets canceled.

And I'm sure the powers that be and Thomas Gibson could do bygones for one episode.

To catch up as the season finale looms, watch Criminal Minds online.

Does Everett stand up as a continuing Big Bad? Can the BAU shake off this one?

What do you want to see in the final season?

Comment below.

Dale McGarrigle is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on X.