''Concentrate on what cannot lie.......the evidence.'' -- Gil Grissom [lead forensic scientist of the C.S.I show]
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Clues….Signs….Information
The one-hour fast-paced dramatic series CSI is about a team of dedicated Crime Scene Investigators in Las Vegas. This show revolves around the professional & private lives of this forensic experts team who usually work night shift to solve crimes, wherein they first identify, document & collect physical evidence at a crime scene & later they try to piece together clues using the latest in scientific techniques & their brainpower, they analyze crime scene, they also attend autopsies & testify in court. Most of the times, CSI successfully assist the police in nabbing the criminal. Each of these CSI is specialized in a certain field; one is expert on bugs whereas the other on blood-splatter analysis.
This graveyard shift CSI team is headed by Gil Grissom (William Petersen), a gruff, no-nonsense medical examiner who also has a penchant for disobeying his superiors. One of 15 forensic entomologists in the country, Gil lives & breathes his job, he utilizes the latest scientific methods along with the old-fashioned shrewdness to solve the crime. Devoted & determined to finding the truth, Gil puts his unsolved cases on a fish shaped message board. Although Gil is a science geek, there is something he isn't quite good at - getting along with live people. A man who has no hang-ups & will also admit when he's wrong, much to the surprise of his team, Gil hates paperwork, office politics & is very happy spending his freetime solving crossword puzzles or reading his forensic journals. Gil allows his team to learn & experiment on their own. He is protective of his team & supports them when they get into trouble. Interestingly, Gil does carry a gun & yet has never fired the weapon.
Catherine Willows (Marg Helgenberger)
is Gil's second-in-command & specializes in blood matter analysis. The most stylish member of the team, Catherine is a former exotic dancer, now a single mother & a dedicated C.S.I. A headstrong & sometimes impatient lady, Catherine believes in knowing all the hows n whys of her case. She also believes in not wasting her life in regrets ''Never doubt & never look back''
Warrick Brown (Gary Dourdan)
specialising in audio visual analysis, Warrick has learnt some life lessons the hard ways. Expert at his job he has too much addiction for gambling [he can count cards in his head] that nearly cost him his job. Luckily for him, with Gil's help Warrick was able to get out of his habit. A funky character, Warrick is a treat to look at! He wears a goatee, silver chains, earring, a tattoo & the works ;o)
Nick Stokes (George Eads)
specialising in hair & fibre analysis, he became a CSI so that he could carry a gun! Always in competition with Warrick, he is a charming ladies man, which does help a lot in his investigations. The other thing Nick loves besides his job is video games & of course teasing Gil with his silly dialogues.
Sara Sidle (Jorja Fox)
specialising in materials & element analysis, she is the newest member of the team, has been Gil's student & is now one of his most trusted subordinate. Just as her leader, Sara too is obsessed with her work, has an outspoken attitude & prefers to work with dead bodies than the living ones!
Captain Jim Brass (Paul Guilfoyle)
from the Homicide Department assists the CSI team but was once the head of the CSI graveyard shift. His curt manner caused friction between departments & he was moved back to Homicide. Not that Jim is complaining, quiet opposite to Gil, he would rather keep his hands off corpses & spend his time investigating paperwork. He doesn't always think Gil is right, in fact he once suggested that he didn't know if Grissom was brilliant or nuts!
Greg Sanders (Eric Szmanda)
lab technician; a very extrovert & colorful kid, Greg analyzes just about anything the CSI given him, from peanut shells to DNA. He performs his job in an expeditious manner & wears hawain shirts with gelled spunky hair to work.
Dr. Robbins (Robert Hall)
Coroner at the police department; a different doctor, who likes rock music & loves making his own coffee. Extremely good at his job, Dr. Robbins works with Gil's team doing many autopsies & guiding them towards the truth.
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The Show/Performances:
Creator Anthony Zuiker & producer Jerry ''The Amazing Race'' Bruckheimer, bring to us this forensic drama with interesting characters, fascinating stories, mind numbing jargon of words, awesome sets that we won't get to see in other serials & some enhanced cinematography. Each episode handles two or more cases, with some stand-alone cases as well as some recurring subplots, keeping the viewer glued to the screen. The team has names for rooms of the meeting places such as the Interrogation Room- where they question suspects, the Layout Room- where they examine items, the Drying Room- where clothes of the victims are kept & the Break Room- where the gang talks & snacks. Occasionally, there can be disturbing portrayal of the crimes or the autopsy scenes; but that only makes the viewer realize the seriousness of the situation & the necessity for the criminal to be bought to justice. CSI also has a companion program ''CSI: Miami'' starring David Caruso, who also made an appearance in CSI to solve a murder case.
William Peterson who plays the Einstein like intellectual Gil Grissom is superb & its impossible to visualise Gil as just an actor! He is totally convincing as an investigator who uses extraordinary techniques to catch killers. The other character that stands out is that of Catherine, played by Marg Helgenberger. Rest of the impressive cast aptly supports these two central characters.
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My Word:
I like watching the The F.B.I. Files & The New Detectives on Discovery Channel where the stories are much similar to the ones shown in CSI, only the real-life forensic shows is less dramatic & more accurate, they sometimes take months/years to solve. Its interesting to note that the CSI team gets its work done in a jiffy whereas it is well known that such tests would at least take a couple of days or maybe weeks to get the result. But if we ignore some specifics then one can enjoy the CSI team's work, get to know some cool forensic tools & watch them solve some really weird cases.
Watch CSI on AXN, wednesdays 10pm; rerun sundays 7pm
