TV Shows - CSI: Las Vegas IX

TV Shows - CSI: Las Vegas IX

After a long break and some thoughts about CSI: Las Vegas, I have to say that writing about the series is not as enjoyable for me as with Dr. House. Right now, I'm watching "Built to Kill" S7E1&2, and my desk already has bite marks because there are just so many things that annoy me and I find crappy in interpersonal relationships. (You just shouldn't treat others like that, no matter what the writers' intentions were.)

In this season, we also have to slowly say goodbye to Warrick as he gets shot towards the end (the actor couldn't agree on a new contract with the studio). It's a shame, I personally think it's a big loss. This triggers a kind of weird fluctuation in the cast. I can still remember some, especially Elisabeth Shue, whom I don't really like, but I really enjoyed her in the CSI role.

I also thought it was cool that we almost see the entire second tier of Bones actors spread out over the previous CSI seasons.

Of course, Jason Segel's appearance in three episodes was also really good.

The double feature from Quentin Tarantino was also pretty good and I think, that after that, the show got some minor changes in tone, color and camera composition.

This list could go on, but my wrists are asking for an end. I don't know what's next, but I'll probably finish the rewatch without writing about it anymore. Let's see what topic I choose next, maybe I'll see if there's more to explore with Dr. House. Or I'll venture into entirely new territories. I just want to go with the flow, but for now, CSI: Las Vegas is over.

TV Shows - CSI: Las Vegas VII

I had to take a little writing break because my wrists were starting to feel the strain from all the writing (I have to write a lot for uni, and I also need to fill up my own page). But of course, I didn't stop watching CSI: Las Vegas, and that's why we're already in the middle of Season Four!

You can tell by now that the characters have become very well-established and developed. Many of them don't seem as young and inexperienced anymore, and that even applies to Greg. I find him the most interesting here because he has developed to the point where he's even taken out into the field, and we know that he'll soon leave the lab and go into the field. He hasn't left behind his outgoing nature but has used it to progress. His exceptional knowledge about various things also comes in handy!

Nick and Sara are now applying for a higher CSI class, and they are overshadowed by Catherine, as Grissom assigns her an important case. She brings in Greg, which further frustrates Nick and Sara. However, by the end of this episode, you can see that, due to past episodes, it's no longer just a team here but rather friends in a somewhat familial relationship (even their time together during breaks or after cases shows this). Because it's patched up, you understand why it was Catherine and why she brought in Greg. (Nick and Sara have another story connecting them, but that's more related to the actors, but more on that later!)

At the beginning, it was still a bit rough, and sometimes even a bit rough when switching between cases. But this is absolutely not criticism at this point, just an observation. Because this has also been ironed out more and more, and you always switch at just the right moment, so one case doesn't "wear out," and you have to immediately deal with the other one. As a viewer, you're always kept on your toes, which is good because with crime series that handle only one case, this can sometimes be very exhausting over the intended 45 minutes. This danger rarely exists here.

One of the big mysteries of the series has now also been revealed; we know who Catherine's father is. The casino mogul Sam Brown! Catherine found this out about Greg with a not entirely legal DNA investigation, and of course, Sam Brown immediately tried to bribe her after being acquitted of a murder case. I vaguely remember that there's still a lot to happen here, and I'm curious how the gaps in my memories will be filled. Don't worry, otherwise, I won't get on any Catherine rage train today. Since the episode with her ex-husband and daughter, she has been reformed, and you can see that in her character, which is calmer and even more grounded. Although there are still outbursts sometimes, but that's human!

What we're increasingly seeing now is the famous CSI effect. I've worked with people in the lab for a long time, and it's fascinating what you notice in such a series. It starts with the absolutely wrong use of gloves because when you wear them and work with materials, you absolutely don't touch anything else and don't even touch your hair; it would all contaminate. Then also the quick processing of analyses through various devices, including DNA comparisons. Yes, the operation of the devices is okay, and the devices are real, but everything is very much accelerated, which of course also happens in terms of storytelling. But normally, such analyses would take much longer than shown here. What's really interesting is the many reports that this was actually demanded in the real world by law enforcement agencies because, as you could see here, it's possible. There are also statistics showing that the number of students enrolled in scientific studies has increased. This shows what power and impact such a series can have when it's well done.

I'm considering whether I should also make a post about the music. I wanted to do that with Dr. House, but then I forgot. Because the individual pieces chosen are really good, plus then some scores contribute a lot to the mood of the series and to individual scenes.

Oh, come on, here's a little preview. In the first season and in the famous roller coaster scene of Grissom (the end of season one), you can hear this song, and as far as series go, it's one of my absolute favorites.

TV Show - CSI: Las Vegas III

OH BOI! In the first season, Catherine becomes a symbol of double standards. Everyone is constantly reminded not to get too involved with the victim, not to get too emotionally invested. But not Catherine, because she's the strong woman in the team, the mother, the sinner who has left her sins behind and been sanctified. The same goes for assigning cases! Everyone else has to follow the supervisor's orders on which case they get, but not Catherine; because of her backstory and her role as a mother, she gets to choose repeatedly.

Sure, she's seen as an emotional contrast to Grissom, and I can understand that to some extent. The resulting emotionality in cases involving children is still bearable. But what really gets on my nerves is the fact that, because of her experiences, she sees everything from this perspective. But she ignores the fact that this is only her perspective, yet she believes it's universally valid, disregarding the fact that there are other ways to view things. I have a strong allergic reaction to that kind of behavior, and I really don't like it.

Grissom is slowly but surely becoming my spirit animal, because he often finds himself in situations that I can relate to very well, albeit on a smaller scale. Especially now at the end of the first season, there's a case where he goes against the system, and I've seen similar things happen in my surroundings many times. However, Grissom has the advantage of having his team behind him, which supports him. I never got to enjoy that luxury. Well, that's a different story for a different format.

Overall, I found the first season very solid and good; it provides a good introduction and isn't one of those "once you get through it, it gets really good" seasons. Plus, we saw faces like Dakota Fanning or Milo Ventimiglia, who had on of their first appearances here. And then there's Reginald VelJohnson (Family Matters) and James Avery (The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air), who are always a special delight for me. Both played strong father roles in 90s series, which I found very fascinating as a child and teenager. Seeing them in completely different roles here is refreshingly different, and it makes my little TV series heart beat loudly!

They've also adjusted the contrast a bit; they pay more attention to when to use cold and warm colors. An important element for storytelling, very interesting. In this context, I've been wondering when the lab will undergo a redesign and become more stylish or more glassy. I had it in mind that this happens in the first season, but so far, I haven't seen anything.

On to season two, and I'm right in the middle of it!

TV Show - Dr. House | House M.D. X

So, we're still in the fifth season but we're already on episode 16. We just found out, after a shocking cardiac arrest with House, that he's on methadone and actually doesn't need Vicodin anymore since his leg doesn't hurt anymore.

Episode 9, "Last Resort," is now behind us, and I mention this episode on purpose because it's one of those that ranks relatively low for me. Yes, I can understand the dude with the gun quite well, but just shooting around isn't a solution, even if there are countries in this world where people live who have a different opinion. Besides, Thirteen suffers too much here. Yes, it bothers me because I simply like Olivia Wilde and her role, but it's also annoying because she already suffers enough due to her illness. Strangely, this is often observed in series, that there's always a character who gets a lot of suffering. In Star Trek: Voyager, for example, it's Harry Kim, or in CSI: New York, it's Danny Messer. If I think about it more closely, I'm sure I can come up with more examples. In House, it's only occasional and not spread throughout the entire series, since Thirteen isn't there for the whole series, but it's still noticeable.

Episode 12, "Painless," I also found interesting because we have a kind of mirror image of House. Only in the basics, but still interesting enough to see where House might end up if things continue like this for a few more years. Sure, both characters are fundamentally different in character, please don't get me wrong, but here you can deduce a lot of things that we will encounter in the following seasons. Maybe one could even go so far as to say that this episode is a key experience for much of what follows, which brings us back to the episode mentioned at the beginning. Because precisely because they are so different, and House maybe doesn't want to end up at this point, he does all the things that are still to come after this episode.

Let's come to the episode mentioned at the beginning, "The Softer Side." House has a cardiac arrest right in the office, while it seems like he's taking a nap. Everyone is worried, and the immediate assumption is that he's taking heroin. After dinner with Wilson and House's subsequent confession, it becomes clear that it's even worse because he's taking methadone. After throwing away his cane, he just walks away. What immediately strikes me here is the fact that although he's pain-free, as he says, he's still limping. Which makes sense, because the muscle in his leg is completely destroyed. But the strange thing is the limping, because a few seasons ago we had a similar case where House was pain-free and he could walk normally, even though nothing has actually changed about his leg between these two incidents.

Cuddy must then confront House with a cruel choice, but House chooses painlessness, even though it's much more risky.

What is also addressed in this episode should not be ignored! It's about a baby being born with both male and female genitalia and being forced by the parents to grow up as a boy. The episode is from 2009, so it's still quite early for such a topic, kudos for that! However, you shouldn't listen too closely to the parents of the baby because it's repeatedly shown here that the child itself has completely different wishes and needs than the parents dictate, hence my statement about coercion! I also think that Thirteen acted completely correctly here, not regarding the suicide story, but definitely regarding the "vitamins"! It's even the second time this topic comes up. We already had a "teenage supermodel" (female) who suffered from hermaphroditism, resulting in an unusual form of testicular cancer being detected too late.

Yes, there's also the relationship between Foreman and Thirteen, and you could talk about that for a lot of words, but I find the whole thing actually relatively uninteresting. Even when they wanted to outsmart House! Where did Foreman work in the past few years? Outsmarting House? On the way to not becoming like House, he becomes more and more like House, which can also be seen in altering the medication for Thirteen. What happened to the study actually?

We mustn't forget about Cuddy, of course, as she now has her daughter named Rachel. On one hand, I'm happy for her, but on the other hand, I can also understand the patients who have been driven nearly insane by the baby's crying. Yes, I understand why this was done here, to trigger symptoms and lead House onto the right track. Nonetheless, I find Cuddy's behavior simply unacceptable, because to call in the middle of an operation with a crying child in her arms and not hang up is outrageous. Yes, children often cry, and that's just part of it, but I find it simply unacceptable behavior, and I really took it against her that she didn't hang up after Rachel cried so intensely!

Since I'm watching on Prime, I can see directly which episode is coming next, and there we have the patient who always tells the truth due to a condition and practically has no filter between thoughts and speech. Also very interesting, because you often wonder what absolute honesty and openness could look like. Here we get a taste, and personally, I think it tastes quite bitter sometimes. Sure, you shouldn't lie or gossip and talk about others, but that's something completely different!

Late night thoughts

Dragon Quest Playthrough

Played the SNES remake of the first Dragon Quest for the first time and I'm blown away. After a few minutes you get the feeling, that you are on a real adventure with exploring, fighting monsters and ready to save the world. A lot that you see in other games that startet here. Off to part two!