CSI: Crime Scene Investigation--'All In'

[CSI Files]

<p><b>Synopsis:</b><p>Langston's pro-bono trauma work is interrupted by a call to a crime scene. The body of a man has been dumped in the desert, the victim of a fatal gunshot wound to the head. Comparing the skid marks from the car that dumped him and the location of the body, the CSIs are able to determine the man was likely the driver of the car. Riley isn't able to find the man in AFIS, so she puts his prints in the system. Langston shows Greg two distinct sets of shoe prints leading away from the car, one wearing sneakers and the other boots. Greg notices a blood trail with one of the sets of prints, leading him to conclude the man wearing sneakers was wounded. During the autopsy, Catherine examines the bullet and notes that the murder weapon was either a .38 or a .357 revolver. Langston returns to the lab in time to see Nick before he leaves for an entomology conference and stops by his office to find a box of items from a woman named Gloria Parkes, which contains a medal of valor and a picture of a Corporal John Langston. Riley is able to identify the victim: an Elba resident named Huston Dobbs. Brass goes to the diner where Huston worked as a fry cook and speaks with Barb Aubrey, the owner of the diner, who is surprised to learn Huston is dead. Between Barb and the diner patrons, Brass learns that Huston hung around with a guy named Bruno Curtis, and that the fry cook said he was looking for work up north. A deputy in Elba finds Huston's car abandoned and on fire and the CSIs claim it, going over it and discovering evidence Huston was living in his car. They also find a Hux Club casino chip, which Hodges recognizes as being a tribute to an out-of-print gentlemen's magazine. Riley recovers a gun from the car, a .22 and Hodges finds a large belt buckle that was used to conceal the gun.<p>Riley matches a print on the buckle to a collectables dealer named Wiley Schindler who is in Vegas. Brass and Langston find Schindler at his hotel, trying to broker a deal. He claims he bought the Hux chips from two guys at the diner for $200, and that he gave them his belt buckle to seal the deal. A skeptical Brass puts him under arrest, and the team recovers 172 of the Hux Club casino chips, worth over $150,000. Schindler maintains that he didn't kill anyone. Langston learns Huston and Bruno were recently doing an odd construction job that took them to an abandoned factory that used to belong to the now-bankrupt Blue Bird Button Company in Elba. Langston and Riley go to the factory and find evidence someone has been living in the defunct building. They catch sight of the wounded Bruno, who runs from them. They chase him and find him hiding under a tarp. Langston approaches him cautiously, taking his gun once he gets close enough. After Bruno is taken away to the hospital, the team discovers a plethora of Hux Club chips in the mounds of dirt at the site. Hodges realizes the company must have buried the chips rather than destroying them, as they were supposed to do once the chips were decommissioned. In the hospital, Ray gets Bruno, whose infected leg has been amputated, to talk. Bruno tells the CSI that Barbie found him and Huston a buyer for the chips: Wiley Schindler. They claim Schindler stole their chips and when they lured him in with more, denied taking them. They went for a ride with Schindler, but he shot them, wounding Bruno in the leg and leaving Huston dead. Ray goes back to the lab and matches the .38 gun Bruno was carrying to the bullet that killed Huston. Mandy finds only Bruno's prints on the gun.<p>Clayton Ferris of the Gaming Commission pays a visit to CSI to urge the team to find the chips; Las Vegas will be forced to pay the value of the chips if they're turned in. After Schindler is released, Langston goes to speak with Barb and finds her dead in her home, surrounded by chips. David Phillips determines that she was killed by a single large caliber gun shot to the head. Schindler is caught trying to leave town with two carry-on bags packed with Hux Club chips. Brass questions Schindler, who tells the detective that he bought the chips in his possession from Barb for $2,000. He swears he left her alive. Back at Barb's house, Langston finds her cell phone and discovers an angry message on it which is from Walter Ellis, a bus boy at Barb's diner. Catherine notices his address is the same as Barb's and wonders if Barb stole the chips from Bruno and Huston--and then Walter stole them from her. In Barb's garage, Langston finds a car with a trunk full of chips and also discovers the $2000 in cash and a plane ticket for Walter Ellis. Suddenly, Ellis jumps out at him and starts firing. Langston fires back and hits the man in the chest. As Ellis dies, he mutters, "Thirteen years of living with that bitch! I'm getting out" and dies.<p><b>Analysis:</b><p>Not all finales have to be "event" episodes. One of <i>CSI</i>'s finest finales, <A class="link" HREF="http://www.csifiles.com/episodes/csi/season4/bloodlines.shtml">"Bloodlines"</a> was a regular standalone episode, with a great plot and a sinister villain. "All In" isn't a bad episode of <i>CSI</i>, but it's a very, very average one at best, and doesn't make much of an impact as a season finale. As a capper for a season that's seen quite a bit of change and some significant upheaval for the Vegas team, it simply underwhelms. Some interesting bits are dangled in front of us--economic hardship hitting the lab, the box Langston receives with a picture of a man who is presumably his father, burgeoning conflict between Langston and Riley--but these tidbits don't quite make up for what essentially is a weak story.<p><HR ALIGN="CENTER" SIZE="1" WIDTH="45%" COLOR="#007BB5"><p>To read the full reviews, please click <A HREF="http://www.csifiles.com/reviews/csi/all_in.shtml">here</A>.<center></center>

 

[koshi700]

Great review! Thanks for sharing.

I have to agree that this was a very weak episode. It did not grip me at all. I was rather dissapointed. But I think part of my reason is because the episode was once again focused on Langston. I'm not quite as upset about the overwhelming focus on him since at least a couple of the last few episodes featured some of the other characters.

But I still think the finale should have been more ensamble than it was. We missed out on that in the mile marking 200th episode, they should have made up for it in the finale. But at this point I've given up hope of the show being ensamble for awhile. I've finally realized that Langston is TPTB's new favorite toy and the fans are just going to have to suffer through until his shiny wears off for them.

I'm actualy rather sad about this because I really liked Langston in the beginning. I thought his character was interesting. But he's become like having a big huge yummy cake, do you enjoy that cake more if you eat it slowly piece by piece, or by eating all of it at once? If you eat it all at once you get rather sick of the cake and will most likely not want to even think about for ahwile. That is where I'm getting with Langston. Instead of letting us slowly get to know him, they're giving us everything at once. Fore me there is no more mystery to him. As I said in a post on a different forum, we've learned more about Langston in one half of one season than we have of Greg for the entire 9 seasons.

But alas, maybe the summer break will be good for the show, and hopefully TPTB are listening and realize that not all of the fans are as enthralled with Langston as they seem to be, and maybe next season we'll see some of our other favorite, very loved and missed main characters.

 

[Faylinn]

Excellent review, as always.

I like Langston, but I agree with koshi - too much of a good thing isn't always good. I have enjoyed learning about him since he joined the show, but I wish it didn't come at the expense of the others the way that it does sometimes.

This episode definitely didn't thrill me. As an average, middle of the season filler episode, it would have been sufficient - but as a finale, it's a let-down.

That said, it did have some good moments. I hope we learn more about Riley next season.

Bring on season 10!

 

[m1304m]

Good riddance! At last the finale which did not look like a finale came too slow. The past 8 seasons, the premier and the finale included the whole cast.

The finale is to make the fans to look forward to seeing the next season’s premier. In this case it was another mini episode of CSI Langston. Poor Nick, he was conveniently packed and sent away to Hawaii to an entomology convention – hope he meets Grissiom there. It looks like they could not spare a script for him as the spotlight was again on Langston. Finally, Catherine had a script but kept on bragging about her “Daddy” – Sam Braun.

The finale started with Langston and ended with Langston. Well, I suppose the next season premier we are going to see a moody Langston. After taking a break, to counsel himself (for killing a suspect)

In this episode we see Langston playing 3 roles:

Firstly, as the Fearless ER doctor. I wonder where he found the time to do pro bono work – after Grissiom had told him that the job consists of very long hours and lousy pay.

In his second role, he put on his priest collar, telling the suspect in the hospital that if he confessed to him of his crime he would not tell anyone. I wonder what is going to write in his report.

Then as usual, his 3rd role – Superhero and Super Knowledge CSI 1!! Ability to solve any case by himself, sympathetic towards criminals, chasing after suspects faster than a speeding bullet – snatching weapons from criminals in a wink of an eye.

The rating is good but not as high as when Grissiom was in it. I suppose it is because in this economic downturn, people stay home to watch TV. And moreover loyal fans tune in to watch the original cast and to see if there is any news on Grissiom – which I normally do.

I pine for the good old days where i brag to my friends that CSI is one show on Television that everyone should watch for its forensic and realism. Alas, I don’t do that anymore.

Watching this episode which was directed by Paris Barclay, was a kind of déjà vu for me. Certain scenes which Langston was in looked so familiar to me, as if he was trying to emulate Grissiom. In the scene where Langston stood in the door way of the Lab talking to Mandy, he leaning against the door, the way he shook his head, the way he held his hands – what Grissom normally did. I have always looked forward to the next season; in this case I am totally put off!!

Thank God there is a CSI movie I can look forward to.:thumbsup:

Reality is more important than the feeling for pictures

 

[jafox]

Nice review, as usual. I think you said it best with one word: underwhelming.
I don't need an explosive or cliffhanger episode for the finale, but I do expect something that will make me look forward to next season; and this one failed. I'm curious about Ray's and Riley's pasts, but not really all that interested; there's a difference.
My biggerst gripe: Ray with sunglasses in the casino, yet he had his regular glasses on outside. I know, it's a small detail. I feel that they are going for the 'Horatio' syndrome with Ray, and I'm not a big fan. Unless his character is suppose to be mocked, this whole 'hero' thing is misguided and cliched.
I will admit to being somewhat jaded because my favorite characters are no longer on the show; but I really am trying to like the 'new CSI'.

 

[Ceindreadh]

Agree with being totally underwhelmed. As a mid season ep I think this would have been average at best, but a season finale? If they'd given Nick more than a single scene I might have been more enamoured of it (obviously I understand if they were trying to accomodate GE's back problems)

One thing though, I sort of got the sense that the box came from Langstons wife or ex-wife. Maybe some stuff that he'd left behind after they'd split up. I could be wrong, but I really can't face rewatching the ep to confirm.

 

[sg1cat]

"Underwhelming" is a perfect description for this episode. I don't demand pyrotechnics and death threats in a season finale but in a show like CSI I *do* expect the season finale to be about the ensemble. Frankly, we deserved a true ensemble showcase after the 200th episode which I felt was a slap in the face to the actors & characters who have actually been there for more than a handful of episodes. But what we got was some great nods to canon history, a few good original character moments, a bit more of Riley and way too much Ray.

I mourned the loss of Grissom, but knew the character's departure would be the only way to get rid of the ghost of Sara Sidle. The ensemble balance has been haphazard at best ever since "Dead Doll" as they've worked to accommodate departures, dangling story threads and so forth. While Langston's arrival at first seemed promising it very soon began to feel like, with a few exceptions, the Ray Hour wherein the amazing doctor became as well trained as a CSI Level 3 within 3 episodes! At first there were some wonderful scenes with Nick as the teacher, Catherine in charge. (and we did get the phenomenal "turn turn turn" showcase). But in the last few of the season it seemed like Ray was the one giving orders to Nick. Has the man even had any proficiency exams? Poor Greg failed one and it took 10 episodes to get certified as a Level 1.

So a mediocre episode with more drama for Langston and cameo appearances by the characters I love rather than a rich season finale. I understand accommodating poor GE with his back injury by having Nick go out of town (a wonderfully canon rich reason why though) but that still leaves Greg and Catherine. In the end instead of leaving me wanting more it left me rather bored, frustrated that the last scene was focused on Ray yet again, and wondering if my love for the original characters is enough anymore. And that makes me sad.

 

[electra]

Agree with everyone.I watched yesterday and I was thinking all the time:Is that all? I hate all the drama from Grey to put an exemple but it could have been at least a terrific case.This was a filler episode.

I still love the show but I want it to have it's mojo back.

 

[poodlelu]

One thing though, I sort of got the sense that the box came from Langstons wife or ex-wife.

I also thought that the box was from an ex-wife. I'm completely over 'The Langston Show', I actually breathed a sigh of relief when the series ended this time, I think he has ruined it and pushed out all the other actors on the show, many of the regulars just aren't seen anymore and it's a shame. I don't know if I will bother watching the next series at all, quite honestly Mr Know-It-All sets my teeth on edge. :angryrazz:

 

[eightclapcheer]

It's hard to dispute the notion that this episode fell short, especially when many of the Langston scenes felt contrived (don't get me wrong, Lawrence is a fantastic actor, but to have one character repeatedly shoved down the throat can be suffocating, to say the least). In the midst of all the Langston buildup, though, is what I feel to capture the true CSI spirit--Riley. Not much is revealed of her in what little airtime she has, but there's more than what meets the eye, and I cannot wait for next season to find out the truth about her.

Also, does anyone know the name of the song playing during the Hux Club flashback?

 

[egeria]

Thank you for the snyopsis and review. I never did watch this episode, and I never will. Now I know exactly why.

 

[GregNickRyanFan]

In the midst of all the Langston buildup, though, is what I feel to capture the true CSI spirit--Riley. Not much is revealed of her in what little airtime she has, but there's more than what meets the eye, and I cannot wait for next season to find out the truth about her.

I agree with you about Riley. I adored the character. Sadly, we won't learn that truth about Riley because tptb scrapped the character. They "Sofia-ed" her.