Warning!! This review, may have spoilers!!!!
This is an overall dark and morbid yet ingeniously written show. CSI is more than just a murder mystery; unlike the usual cop show, the evidence and the technology they use to track down the killer are the major focus in this series. Forensics enters a whole new dimension of fascination and discovery in this show; though personally, I thought the science and the cases were particularly intriguing in the earlier seasons; for one thing, you were always learning something new. The overall episodes are overwhelming, in a good way, especially the earlier ones; there is so much to take in and the endings are not always predictable.
It is an extremely complex series, but its complexity does not only dwell in the science and story lines per episode(s). For the past nine years-sometimes it was obvious, other times it was so subtle that you had to watch an episode more than once, or just pay careful attention to see it- most of the former main characters (CSIs Gil Grissom, Sara Sidle, Warrick Brown, Greg Sanders, Nick Stokes, Catherine Willows and Homicide Detective Jim Brass in particular) each had their own depth, personality, perspective of the job they do, and each developed/matured in their own way over the seasons. Despite that Grissom and Catherine were/currently are the leaders of the main CSI team, also referred to as the Graveyard or Night Shift (Grissom for nine seasons before he left the show in the episode "One to Go"),-in most ways-there was no lead character.
Although the overall focus on characters was never as grand--in other words, the characters' personal lives, any growth/background that the writers would give them; even the relationships between the people on the show, whether romantic, platonic, or just plain friendly, were either hinted, shown briefly in various scenes, or rarely revealed at all. Although there were a few exceptions in the show, such as the friendship between CSIs Nick Stokes and Warrick Brown, or the relationship between Catherine Willows and Gil Grissom; perhaps the two most prominent were the Grissom's romantic involvement with Sara Sidle, and Catherine's chemistry with Warrick, which had romantic potential- -as some other drama shows I've watched, and even now-in some ways- it still isn't ,you will see it nonetheless, especially if you become attached to CSI. However, having the cases become primary and the characters secondary decreased any chance of melodrama; that, and it kept the show true to its general theme for the past eight and half years, finding the murderer through the evidence.
As of now, the show has gone in a different direction. It seems as though there is slightly more action, the emphasis on science has decreased, and the team is no longer portrayed as an ensemble, where all the main characters have their own stories and decent amount of screen time. Additionally, the latest season has mainly focused on their newest character, CSI Raymond Langston, thus pushing some other major characters into the background such as Greg Sanders the former lab tech who turned CSI almost six years ago. However, CSI has not ended yet and according to news updates, it intends to run for much longer, so there is no knowing what the creators have in mind for the show's future. Whether its current direction will remain, alter or change drastically, fans and viewers in general have yet to find out.
This is an overall dark and morbid yet ingeniously written show. CSI is more than just a murder mystery; unlike the usual cop show, the evidence and the technology they use to track down the killer are the major focus in this series. Forensics enters a whole new dimension of fascination and discovery in this show; though personally, I thought the science and the cases were particularly intriguing in the earlier seasons; for one thing, you were always learning something new. The overall episodes are overwhelming, in a good way, especially the earlier ones; there is so much to take in and the endings are not always predictable.
It is an extremely complex series, but its complexity does not only dwell in the science and story lines per episode(s). For the past nine years-sometimes it was obvious, other times it was so subtle that you had to watch an episode more than once, or just pay careful attention to see it- most of the former main characters (CSIs Gil Grissom, Sara Sidle, Warrick Brown, Greg Sanders, Nick Stokes, Catherine Willows and Homicide Detective Jim Brass in particular) each had their own depth, personality, perspective of the job they do, and each developed/matured in their own way over the seasons. Despite that Grissom and Catherine were/currently are the leaders of the main CSI team, also referred to as the Graveyard or Night Shift (Grissom for nine seasons before he left the show in the episode "One to Go"),-in most ways-there was no lead character.
Although the overall focus on characters was never as grand--in other words, the characters' personal lives, any growth/background that the writers would give them; even the relationships between the people on the show, whether romantic, platonic, or just plain friendly, were either hinted, shown briefly in various scenes, or rarely revealed at all. Although there were a few exceptions in the show, such as the friendship between CSIs Nick Stokes and Warrick Brown, or the relationship between Catherine Willows and Gil Grissom; perhaps the two most prominent were the Grissom's romantic involvement with Sara Sidle, and Catherine's chemistry with Warrick, which had romantic potential- -as some other drama shows I've watched, and even now-in some ways- it still isn't ,you will see it nonetheless, especially if you become attached to CSI. However, having the cases become primary and the characters secondary decreased any chance of melodrama; that, and it kept the show true to its general theme for the past eight and half years, finding the murderer through the evidence.
As of now, the show has gone in a different direction. It seems as though there is slightly more action, the emphasis on science has decreased, and the team is no longer portrayed as an ensemble, where all the main characters have their own stories and decent amount of screen time. Additionally, the latest season has mainly focused on their newest character, CSI Raymond Langston, thus pushing some other major characters into the background such as Greg Sanders the former lab tech who turned CSI almost six years ago. However, CSI has not ended yet and according to news updates, it intends to run for much longer, so there is no knowing what the creators have in mind for the show's future. Whether its current direction will remain, alter or change drastically, fans and viewers in general have yet to find out.