CSI: New York--'Taxi'

[CSI Files]

Synopsis:

Detectives Flack and Angell are bringing a suspect in when Flack is nearly run down by a taxi cab on a body dump mission. The two detectives are surprised when they see the victim is a New Jersey police officer named Jimmy Comitis. Quinn Shelby, a New Jersey CSI who evaluated the lab several weeks ago, shows up to aid the NY CSIs with the case. Mac Taylor suspects Comitis is the latest victim of the taxi cab killer plaguing New York City. Flack can't recall any unusual details about the cab, but Danny does find a special motor oil made from animal fat. Only one cab company is using it: 5 Brothers Cabs. Flack and Stella visit the company and speak with two cabbies, Jeff and Artie, who insist all of their cabs are accounted for. In the morgue, Sid shows Mac and Quinn that the scratches on Comitis' neck don't match those found on the previous victims, which all read "L 27:29." The coroner also observes that Comitis was beaten by three different assailants before being gassed with carbon monoxide. Angell calls Flack and Danny to tell them she's located the cab, but the three are surprised to discover that the cab was registered to Comitis himself, who was moonlighting as a cabbie.

The mayor's criminal justice coordinator, Jordan Gates, turns the heat up on Mac when sensitive information about the marks on the victims' necks appears on Reed Garrett's blog. Mac confronts Reed, but Reed refuses to name his source. Lindsay tells Stella she's identified blood on Comitis's jacket as containing monkey DNA--specifically a white-throated monkey considered a delicacy, despite the fact that it can cause monkey pox. Stella recalls seeing signs of monkey pox on Artie's hands at the cab company, and the man is brought in for questioning. Under interrogation, he admits he and two of his co-workers killed Comitis after reading in Reed's blog that his source said the killer was a driver named Jimmy. Quinn lines up a judge to force Reed to reveal his source, but when Mac goes to try to talk with the young man, he finds him missing, his backpack in front of his apartment door, the keys still in the lock. Mac tries to call Reed, but he's bound and gagged in the cabbie killer's trunk, forced to listen helplessly as the killer pics up a new victim. After the killer murders her, he dumps the body in with Reed. The cabbie killer forces Reed to blog about his exploits while he carves up his latest victim's neck.

Mac's entire team works the case. Danny brings Mac Reed's taped interview with the killer and the CSIs hear the killer tell Reed that he suspected Jimmy from 5 Brothers of being the murderer. Lindsay is only able to trace Reed's IP address to Midtown, but Reed leaves clues in his blogs that allow Mac to figure out he's being held at an abandoned brewery. The CSIs arrive just in time: the killer has slit Reed's throat. Stella manages to slow the bleeding, but the killer escapes. Jordan warns Stella that the mayor is going to turn the case over to the FBI's forensics division. Hawkes matches prints on the killer's cab to those found on Comitis's car, leading the CSIs to realize that Comitis and the killer were in a car accident with their cabs. The killer didn't want Comitis to report the incident, so he targeted the man through Reed's blog. Using Reed's recounting of his time in the killer's cab and a worn fire hose in the killer's car that transported the carbon monoxide to the back seat of the cab, the CSIs conclude the killer has been living in an abandoned firehouse in Washington Heights. The CSIs storm the building an apprehend the killer, a religious fanatic suffering from delusions that made him believe the faces he saw on billboards were sinners he needed to deliver to the underworld. The killer finally caught, New Yorkers--including Mac and Reed--can once again safely take cabs.

Analysis:

The taxi cab killer storyline which began three episodes ago in "Like Water for Murder" comes to an end in this episode, but much as I enjoyed the storyline, I can't help but feel a bit let down by its conclusion. In my review of last week's episode, "Personal Foul", I wrote that I hoped the mental patient's record was a false lead:

The strongest lead the CSIs have on the killer at the end of the episode is that he's a patient released from a mental hospital, but I have my doubts. The taxi cab killer, at least from what little we've seen of him, doesn't seem like someone suffering from extreme psychosis. His pattern seems methodical and rational and he seems calm and collected anytime we see him in his cab, so much so that he can drive around the streets of New York City while literally killing someone in the back seat of his cab. Maybe I'm wrong and the killer will turn out to be someone from this mental hospital, but I have my doubts. I smell another red herring.

Though it's not directly referenced in this episode, I assume we're supposed to think that the cabbie killer, who is never even named, is this mental patient. When he's ranting at Reed and later when the CSIs find him, he's ranting about religion and sinners, claiming to be Charon sent to ferry the sinners over the river Styx. Mac finally recognizes the numbers on the victims' necks as Leviticus 27:29, and surmises the killer had a psychotic break after seeing the same faces on billboards day after day. He was, Mac notes, a ticking time bomb waiting to go off.

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To read the full reviews, please click here.

[Elsie]

Excellent synopsis and analysis as always Kristine.

I enjoyed this episode, and I have to agree that the killer ranting at Reed was odd considering his otherwise calm and methodical behaviour. I think the mental patient's notes mentioned something about 'religious fanaticism' so yes, even though none of this was mentioned again in this episode it presumably is the same guy. I'm still surprised that, given the patient notes, the piece of gravestone and the carvings, none of the team had previously considered that perhaps it was a reference to Leviticus. I would say it's a fairly well known biblical passage, and of course Mac can even quote it. Not that them working that out would have helped, but it still irked me a little that our incredibly intelligent and talented CSI's are sometimes a little slow on the more obvious things.

I really loved Reed and Mac's interaction in this episode. I think the ending did show that Mac certainly has very strong feelings towards Reed, and I like that he doesn't really know how to handle him. Kyle Gallner's performance was great.

Flack was awesome. I loved it when Angell pushed him out of the way, and I loved that he couldn't describe the cab as anything other than a yellow cab. Poor Flack was not happy.

[xfcanadian]

s I said in my review for the previous episode, the killer seemed methodical and rational--nothing like the raving lunatic we see ranting at Reed, demanding he write in his blog while the cabbie killer carves up his latest victim's neck. I simply expected something more creative, especially after how well done the build up to this episode was.

while i agree that there are not enough rational serial killers and psychopaths on tv and movies, i disagree with this point. What we consider to be mentally insane, like this guy was is highly misunderstood by people. I can actually think of a couple of real life serials with similar profiles of what we see...their mental though process completely off the wall, but they are still capable of highly methodical procedures with killings. In fact, i would argue that his mental instability probably is a biggest reason for his highly methodical way of killings.

I liked the way the end was done personally, we were kept in the dark of the killer, his identity to parallel the new yorkers fear. It could have been any cab driver, and that is what they wanted us to feel.

Do we need a reminder in almost every episode that Lindsay is from Montana?

I don't think its was so much of a reference of where she is from, but her nickname. I don't mind it, just a name they call her.

[speed_cochrane]

Great review, Kristine.

By looking at the guy's half-face in the rear view mirror, I tend to think it was the man who collected coins at the fountains for the city. I may be wrong, but I recognized the eyes.

[Wolf359]

Great review!
My favorite scenes were the ones with Mac and Reed and the one that has Mac going from room to room. As I said in the grading thread, Gary Sinise was excellent in this episode.

[Faylinn]

Excellent review, Kristine. Interesting points about the killer. I thought the episode was pretty exciting, and that kind of thing didn't cross my mind. It was kind of like 'yeah, another religious fanatic,' but since someone (Elsie?) had worked out the Leviticus thing after 4.17, I wasn't surprised.

I did enjoy Quinn, once again--I think it's a good character, and it's one that I like after only a few scenes in a few episodes. Luckily, they didn't center any of her scenes in this episode around her crush on Mac--that would have been a shame considering how promising the character is.

I tolerated Jordan. Honestly, I barely even noticed her until that last scene with Stella. The actress is good, I just think the portrayal of her job irks me a bit. Why did she think she and Stella would chit-chat about Mac's relationship with Reed? Nothing about her interaction with the team in this episode or her previous appearances implies that she has anything more than a professional relationship with these people, so why would Stella share information that isn't relevant to Jordan's job?

I don't know that I'm making sense with that last part. Oh well.

The 'Montana' reference felt unnecessary, and it didn't add anything to the scene or the episode.

[Dragonfly]

Do we need a reminder in almost every episode that Lindsay is from Montana?

Wait. Hold up a minute. Lindsay is from Montana? Why didn't anyone tell me??

yes, we know Lindsay is from Montana and yes, we know things between her and Danny have been rocky lately. Can we move on?

Amen.

Quinn definitely adds a different dynamic to the show. I'm not ready to say I like the character, but she brings something new to the show, which is nice. Her relationship with Mac differs from anyone else's.

I liked Jordan in her first episode, but she doesn't seem to be bringing anything else to the show now, which is unfortunate.

Overall a good episode, but could have been better.

Great review!

[Elsie]

The two detectives are surprised when they see the victim is a New Jersey police officer named Jimmy Comitis.

I was just rewatching Taxi and I noticed that they show the name of the police officer (on his badge) as Chameides, not that the spelling of his last name is particularly important but I thought I'd point it out.

[GSRgirl]

Kristine - What is your issue against Lindsey? Seems like everyone has some problems with her. I think Danny and Lindsey's story line is a nice reprieve from the gloom and doom of crime. Cut her some slack. If anything, Danny is the one that needs to be taken to task for being a complete jerk to her for the past few episodes.

[Top41]

Originally Posted by GSRgirl

Kristine - What is your issue against Lindsey?

I think that's been outlined pretty well in my reviews but the Cliff Notes version is that I think she's a selfish character who has repeatedly acted in an unprofessional manner and puts work second to her personal issues. Mac should have fired her long ago.

Seems like everyone has some problems with her. I think Danny and Lindsey's story line is a nice reprieve from the gloom and doom of crime.

That might be true if the characters had any chemistry together, or if it wasn't being played for angsty drama. I thought they had some appeal in season two, but since then it's been all ups and downs. The characters just aren't really on the same page.

Cut her some slack. If anything, Danny is the one that needs to be taken to task for being a complete jerk to her for the past few episodes.

We'll have to agree to disagree there. Danny is grappling with a huge loss, one he's partially responsible for. It's a bummer he forgot her birthday, but in the grand scope of what he's going through, it's inconsequential.