Profiling contemporary TV crime drama's special agents : the Byronic detective in NCIS and Criminal Minds

Vol.51,No.2(2025)

Sara Pini

https://doi.org/10.5817/BSE2025-2-8

Stable URL (handle):
http://hdl.handle.net/11222.digilib/digilib.83806

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Abstract
This essay examines the main special agents of two contemporary TV crime dramas, NCIS (2003–ongoing) and Criminal Minds (2005–ongoing), claiming that they can be considered re-elaborations of the Byronic hero. In these TV series, the traditional literary figure combines traits of the classic Holmes-style detective and the hard-boiled private eye; thus, the resulting character is defined by using the neologism 'Byronic detective'. To contextualize Byronic detectives, the essay provides a discussion on the main characteristics of the Byronic hero and his enduring remodeling as well as an outline of the inherent mobility of crime fiction as a genre, which well matches the ongoing vitality of the Byronic icon. Special attention is given to the return of emotions in recent crime fiction because these are a core feature of Byronic detectives, given that they tend to sacrifice family relationships to do their job at their best.

Keywords:
NCIS; Criminal Minds; Byronic hero; Byronic detective; emotions

Pages:
149–169
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