#idk lahdkshd i dont think i explained this well

[maschotch]

Random ask but I was just thinking about how weird it was that hotch didn't immediatly call Hailey and tell her and Jack to get out of the mall in that one episode were a bomb was going to go off? (2×10) he did eventually but it always struck me as odd that he needed Derek to tell him to do it... such a big part of him is how protective he is of everyone around him and I feel like that should be even stronger with Jack, but it collides with his sense of justice and faith in the system and rules, so he hesitates, even when it could mean Hailey and Jack die in that mall. It would make sense if his sense of duty combated with his protectivness, but in episodes later he expressly breaks protocol repeatedly to help members of the team. He goes so far as to say "I don't care about protocol" when Garcia is shot, but it happens with Emily in minimal loss, Rossi, reid, ect. He breaks protocol to protect them repeatedly, it seems so strange and inconsistent that he wouldn't do the same for his son, who he loves more than anything.

I'd like to say it was a one off thing but it happens again in amplification when he tells jj not to call will and Henry. Same situation. I know jj was annoying in that episode but it was the same dilemma were she's in a position to save her families life and hotch is firmly against her taking any action. Another time he tells Emily that "this is the job, and I need to know you can be objective" when she considers adopting a foster girl... idk it might be the writers fucking up his character [again] but he does some things that are very protective of Jack but in other ways is more protective of his team than his son. It just doesn't make sense with his values, he may place too much importance on the job sometimes but at the cost of his sons life? At the cost of haileys? Eventually he does break protocol in 100. He literally kills someone to protect Jack, which I like to think is him learning in some weird way, but I also think it might be a bit of a mischaracterization on what hotch shows his values really are. Thoughts?

hmmm i dont really think its mischaracterization as much as its his conflict with different values. he’s protective, sure, but he values JusticeTM more. which is why in lessons learned/amplification, he knows its wrong to reach out to warn his family because its not fair to others who share equal risk.

but i dont think thats necessarily contradictory to his resolve to catch garcia’s shooter in penelope. its focusing on one case, but its a different circumstance than only certain people who may be in danger, if that makes sense? i guess you could argue theyre sacrificing time they could be so ending solving some other crimes, but its not as explicitly unfair as giving one person a warning and leaving everyone else to chance. idk if im really explaining it right akdhskdh but i dont think you can judge both situations equally

over time, i think he starts to prioritize protecting people he cares about over protocol, and i think that has a lot to do with the way 100 played out. he knew he would be under scrutiny with the foyet case, and he needed to let someone else make as many of the decisions as possible, well aware of how strauss would try to twist this around and pin whatever happened on him. so hotch let derek make a lot of the calls that day. and i mean… hotch respects and trusts derek, which is why he went along with him even if he disagreed (like when to burst into foyets apartment). but ultimately derek was wrong and that precious time they wasted waiting mightve been enough to save haley if hotch didnt have to wait on someone else’s decision. hotch doesnt blame morgan, but i think he blames himself for hesitating when he knew he shouldnt have

after that, we see hotch take a lot more risks when trying to protect people he cares about when they’re in danger. faking emily’s death without telling any of his superiors, defying the director’s orders and continuing to dig into jj’s secret work, etc. he’s had this running conflict throughout the show between family and work… he’s lost his family family by now, so now he’ll do anything he can to keep his work family safe. his dedicated adherence to rules and regulation slips away as he realizes he doesnt want to live with regrets just because he was worried about following orders

but again, i think the lessons learned/amplification circumstance is different. im not sure if post100 hotch would make a different decision… bc its not just “putting my family above protocol” anymore, now its “putting my family above other people’s families” and thats a line im not sure he’s crossed yet.

akxhakhd anyway i dont really think its a mischaracterization of hotch’s values. i think its an adjustment of his values as he goes through these different tragedies and tries to figure out how far he’s willing to go to save the people he cares about. for the others, like derek and emily, its not really a question bc to them nothing matters more than protecting people they love (or protocol matters so little that its not even a concern, in emily’s case) but w hotch its a little more complicated

#i also think its an extreme oversimplification to point out decisions made under drastically different circumstances and call it inconsisten #cy #asks #idk lahdkshd i dont think i explained this well #but its hard bc there are so many different reasons that go into all the stuff you pointed out #theres more going on #its not just ‘does he care about his family or not’