Warning! This article contains spoilers for Cross season 1.Crossseason 1’s primary storyline is driven by the Fanboy serial killer whose identity and motives gradually become more and more evident as the show progresses.Adapted from James Patterson’sAlex Crossbook series,Crossseason 1 initially confuses viewers by suggesting that the person who murdered Alex Cross' wife, Maria, is also the Fanboy killer. However, towards theending moments ofCrossseason 1, story developments reveal that, while the Fanboy killer posed a significant threat to Alex Cross and his team, the true identity of Maria’s killer is entirely different.
Unlike mostdetective shows on Amazon Prime Video,Crossdoes not wait till its final moments to reveal the Fanboy killer’s identity. Instead, it tells the truth about his identity in one of its early episodes. However, it still keeps viewers hooked by taking the time to explore the killer’s motives and how he intends to achieve them by outsmarting Alex Cross.
The Fanboy Killer Is Revealed As Ed Ramsey In Cross Season 1
Ed Ramsey Carefully Uses His Power & Influence To Get Away With His Murders
In one of its opening episodes,Crossseason 1 confirms that an influential man named Ed Ramsey is the central serial killer. The police department dubs him the “Fanboy killer” becausehe always makes his victims look like other renowned serial killers before murdering them. Apart from making them look like famous real-life killers, Ramsey also pays homage to his favorite criminals from history by recreating their final moments before they were executed. After changing his victims' appearance, he even feeds them the same meals as the serial killers he wants them to resemble.
Cross Show Cast & Character Guide
Prime Video’s Cross brings James Patterson’s characters back to the screen, with a cast including Aldis Hodge, Isaiah Mustafa and much more.
With his murders, he follows a strict ritual and intends to kill a total of 12 people. To Alex Cross and the police department’s dismay, they do not notice the pattern in Ed Ramsey’s crimes until he manages to murder 11 people. Realizing that catching the killer would be impossible after he commits the final murder, Alex Cross races against time inCrossseason 1 to save Ramsey’s final victim, Shannon Witmer, before it is too late. While he is at it, Ramsey tries to stay one step ahead of him by laying out many traps to keep Cross off balance.
Ed Ramsey’s Backstory In Cross Explained
Ed Ramsey Lies About His Mother’s Death
After learning that Ed Ramsey has been lying about his mother’s death, John Sampson sets out to meet his mother to learn more about his past. However, when he arrives at his mother’s home, he is initially disappointed after learning that she has Alzheimer’s disease. He still does not give up on his hunt for answers and tries to jog her memory by giving her relevant prompts. With this, she finally recalls howshe had a daughter whose death significantly impacted her relationship with her son, Ed. She also recalls how Ed’s behavior was concerning from a young age.
…Alex Cross deduces that Ed and his mother grew distant after his sister’s demise.
Alex Cross also meets one of Ed Ramsey’s childhood acquaintances, who reveals that Ramsey killed many birds from the neighborhood when he was younger. Although his behavior was worrying, the friend never reported his actions to anyone because he believed he would grow out of it. With these bits and pieces surrounding Ed Ramsey’s past, Alex Cross deduces that Ed and his mother grew distant after his sister’s demise. To seek his mother’s attention, Ramsey started killing birds in his neighborhood.
65%
Number of episodes
8
Based On
James Patterson’sAlex Crossbook series
Since his behavior and violent tendencies remained unchecked, he gradually progressed from animals to humans. InCrossseason 1’s final arc, the titular character finds an old concert video in which Ed Ramsey watches a band that performs fake sacrificial killings during their live performances. When he reaches out to one of the band members, the band member reveals that Ramsey tricked him into killing one of their friends. He even shows him video evidence for the same, confirming that Ed Ramsey has been killing people for quite some time.
Why Ramsey Became A Killer & Pays Homage To Famous Serial Killers With His Crimes
He Believes He Is An Artist
While Alex Cross and his fellow police officers call Ramsey a fanatic who is obsessed with other famous serial killers, Ramsey sees himself as an artist. He claims he looks up to so many renowned serial killers because he admires how, unlike most people, they embraced the darkness of death by killing people instead of shying away from it. He also seems to have a god complex, where he believes that by “controlling” someone’s life and death like the killers he idealizes, he has become somewhat of a godly figure himself.
Alex Cross has been featured in three feature films so far. While Morgan Freeman played him inKiss the Girls(1997) andAlong Came a Spider(2001), the character was portrayed by Tyler Perry in 2012’sAlex Cross.
However, as Alex Cross deduces, Ramsey’s violent tendencies can likely be traced back to his childhood. After being almost abandoned by his mother following his sister’s death,Ramsey developed a skewed sense of control in a desperate bid to reclaim his mother’s attention. What started as an effort to fill the void his mother’s emotional withdrawal had left in his life eventually turned into an obsession with violence and fame.
Ed Ramsey’s Accomplices In His Crimes Explained
Many Helped Ramsey Execute His Twisted Murders
Former DC cop Bobby Trey is revealed to be one of Ed Ramsey’s biggest allies. He not only helps him hide all the evidence surrounding Amir’s murder by killing a woman but also keeps a close eye on Alex Cross to ensure he does not find Ramsey’s final victim. If it wasn’t for Bobby, Alex Cross would have eventually found solid evidence to prove that Ramsey killed Emir. Ramsey also hires a dentist to create a denture for Shannon to make her look exactly like Aileen Wuornos. The Fanboy killer also seems to have a butler who assists him in maintaining all the steps of his twisted operation.
After Shannon cuts her face to ensure she does not look like Aileen Wuornos, Ramsey also seeks help from a plastic surgeon, Dr. Daine. While Ramsey keeps most people wrapped around his fingers by paying them a hefty sum or blackmailing them,Daine seems to collaborate with him willingly. She sees him as an artist and even shows up to see his final kill inCrossseason 1’s finale.
Why Alex Only Charges Ed Ramsey For Emir’s Murder & Shannon’s Kidnapping (Not His Other Crimes)
Alex Cross and his fellow police officers realize that even though Ramsey failed to execute his final plan of killing 12 innocent people, he is excited about being touted as a vicious serial who killed 11 victims. They understand that Ramsey committed those crimes because he wanted to see himself rank among the vicious serial killers he always idealized. Therefore, to ensure they wipe off his “legacy” of violence, the police officers torment him by burning his scrapbook on a live stream and showing it to him.
The police department denies him the notoriety he desperately craved by stripping down the one thing that gave him a sense of power: his carefully crafted self-image as an artist.
By destroying the scrapbook, they intentionally eradicate all evidence of Ramsay’s previous crimes and charge him only for Emir’s murder and Shannon’s kidnapping to ensure he stays in prison. The police department denies him the notoriety he desperately craved by stripping down the one thing that gave him a sense of power: his carefully crafted self-image as an artist. With this, the law enforcers inCrossseason 1 manage to put him away without giving him what he wants.
Cross
Cross follows the life of Alex Cross, a skilled yet troubled homicide detective balancing his role as a devoted father and relentless crime investigator. Haunted by his wife’s murder, he navigates personal turmoil while persistently pursuing justice in the face of dangerous adversaries.
