Grade 'Silent Night'

i thought it was great not just cause danny looked really hot in it :) i like the the baby story line.
and the skater story was good too
loved dannys line about the change color thing
but i needed more danny
il give it A
 
B

Stunt casting and a supposedly big reveal basically masked an otherwise average episode. Marlee Matalin was awesome--she says more with her eyes than some performers say with their whole demeanor. I saw the twists in that case, but her performance made it interesting to watch. The other case was rather run of the mill--I pegged the guy right away (Danny made way too big a deal out of that paint--maybe he's earned his trip to the circus now ;) ) but I thought it was a nice twist that he wasn't really a stalker.

Per usual, Lindsay was an idiot, but an even bigger one than the norm. Why would someone with her issues even go into this field? And as my roommate who watched with me said, "why now?" She didn't have issues first season, and was even pissed when Mac sent her away from a scene with...what do you know, a massacre. :rolleyes:

hidinginmyeyes said:
They started to clue us in on the Lindsay backstory. Finally! I am bewildered at people thinking that seeing a group of your friends being murdered and you being the only survivor is no big deal. Or that Lindsay being traumatized by it is lame. If it was one of the other characters would the attitude be different? Poor Anna Belknap. I hope she doesn't come here and read how people bash her character. I'd be really hurt if it was me.
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As much as I think Anna is a very mediocre at best actress (at least in CSI: NY), I do have to say that in this episode the writers shoulder most of the blame. They seem completely incapable of making Lindsay likeable or even palatable. "Leave me alone!" WTF? Is she five? :rolleyes: And crying in an autopsy? :rolleyes: It had nothing to do with her situation, other than that teens were victims in both cases. The character is just a failure: Anna can't overcome the bad writing to make the character appealing and the writers just make the character worse with each episode. Writing her out of the show would be the best option at this point.

On the bright side, I'm glad Mac and Peyton aren't over! :D I know many don't like the relationship, but I think she brings out a warmth in Mac that's absent otherwise, and I like seeing that side of him. I like her, too. I was expecting this to be the end and I'm thrilled it wasn't. :D
 
Edit: I posted while you were, Top. :lol: Good points. :)

Im new here. Just to confirm something. So lindsay is leaving, on maternity leave. Anybody got any idea how long she will leave? And what is with her and danny? Im really really really lost here.
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Hi ilovespecs. :) Yes, Anna has to leave to have her baby, obviously, so Lindsay will have to be gone for a few eps. We don't know the exact time frame, though. :)

As for her and Danny, I don't know why anybody is confused. :lol: There is nothing going on there, because nothing has happened. He asked her out, she stood him up, he confronted her about it, she said she couldn't deal with a relationship, and that was it. There hasn't been anything since then. So, nothing is happening with Danny and Lindsay. They're just coworkers. ;)

They started to clue us in on the Lindsay backstory. Finally! I am bewildered at people thinking that seeing a group of your friends being murdered and you being the only survivor is no big deal. Or that Lindsay being traumatized by it is lame. If it was one of the other characters would the attitude be different? Poor Anna Belknap. I hope she doesn't come here and read how people bash her character. I'd be really hurt if it was me.
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Well, Anna's a grown woman, and a professional actress, so I'm sure she's more than used to criticism. Besides, I think it's pretty safe to say that the vast majority of the criticism of Lindsay as a character has to do with the writing, so I don't know why that would hurt Anna. But I'm not her, so I can't say what she does or doesn't feel.

As for what we learned tonight, I agree with 1CSIMfan that it's definitely not all that they're going to tell us. However, I think the disappointment people feel isn't because it's a pathetic story, but because it wasn't as original as they were hoping it would be. At this point, I'm still friggin' confused, so I can't say if I like the past they're giving her or not. *shrug* I remember something about a group, and one survivor, but I didn't catch anything else...

As for how it would be different with another character--I seem to recall that a lot of people were unhappy with the resolution in "Run Silent, Run Deep" because the build-up and speculation after "Tanglewood" had them expecting more than what we saw in Danny's past. So, obviously, the attitude toward a storyline isn't totally dependent on the character involved. Sometimes it's just hard to live up to the fans' expectations. And this has been building up for a while.

I don't really have anything to add to the discussion so far. Marlee was fantastic, and her scenes with Gary were wonderful. The scene with Mac and Peyton was very sweet, and I have no problem with them continuing the relationship. I don't want it to take over the show, but we'll see how they handle it from this point on. :)
 
I gave the episode a B.

I agree with Top that after all the hype about the big reveal -- it really was nothing more than a mediocre episode. Marlee Matalin was without a doubt the standout in tonight’s episode and I thought she played a great role.

But oh Danny, you’re such dork. My guess is that he’s been hanging around Adam a little too much and the idea of paint changing colors totally appealed to his inner geek. :rolleyes: Though in all seriousness, he made way too much fuss about the paint chips. I felt like he was waving the killer’s identity in my face every time.

I also thought it was about time someone called Lindsay out on her erratic behavior. I enjoyed watching Stella finally draw a line between indulging the character’s self-centered and oftentimes childish behavior, and deciding to lay down the law. It’s understandable that Lindsay should have some difficulties after a traumatic episode (like say, witnessing your friends’ murders), but in having it affect the way you perform your job and how you treat your coworkers without explanation isn’t acceptable behavior. The woman can’t expect telling superiorities to bugger off and stalking off crime scenes to fly. Stella isn’t Danny; she has no urging of the loins to tell her to take the attitude in hopes of a date.

But really, I haven’t completely decided how I felt about Lindsay’s past. In the tidbit they revealed, they somehow have to work in a mother and the other little random info TPTB have thrown in over time. Though for as much hype as the TPTB have made out of her “deep dark secret,” I highly doubt it will live up to viewers’ expectations. The event may be still a hush-hush secret, but for some reason I can picture Lindsay blaming herself for her friends’ deaths (I don’t know, maybe a mother ranted about her being the only survivor and held her responsible), developing a complex over it (and somehow reared its head years later), and she became a CSI to somehow justify the act and help resolve her guilt. Just my vague guess to follow the vague story.

Other than that, I’m pleased to see it’s not the end of Mac and Peyton.

Edit: I do hope that TPTB do not make Lindsay's friends' killer to be some psychotic (ex-)boyfriend. They've already gone down the rocky relationship route with Frankie and Stella, and I'm sure TPTB could be a little more creative in the womens' exploitation department, lol. I'm not sure I'd be too fond if it was an ex-boyfriend and it was suddenly meant to explain her behavior towards turning down Danny's advances or something to the effect.

Then on another completely random note, when Lindsay refused to explain any more details to Stella -- I sort of wanted to say, "Ah screw it, Stella. Go look it up in the archives; it was bound to make the papers in a small town in Montana."
 
So Lindsay survived a massacre, huh? I guess that's why Mac told her to stay in the lab during the Henry Darius/Miami crossover episode.

Still haven't watched the episode so I'll be back later...
 
I agree with SimplyBlue's assessment of the Lindsay secret; a massacre with many of her friends involved, she's the only survivor. She shoulders some of the guilt, which many people do when they survive and loved ones die. Probably the mother of one of her close friends even blames her, or at least gives her a real guilt trip for suriviving, or whatever. I thought during her conversation with Stella, Stella said something about "years ago" and Lindsay said something about "I don't know why now" or something like that, meaning she doesn't know why her feelings are surfacing now, all these years later, but they are. At any rate, I'm still on the fence re: Lindsay's character, but I can certainly see an event like that being traumatic to the point of cropping up and bothering you years later, so I guess I'll wait and see when all is revealed.

I loved the A storyline, Marlee Matlin knocked it out of the park, so did Gary. Loved their scenes together. Nice touch with the bookend scenes of the snowglobe at both the beginning and the end. Enjoyed seeing the scenes recreating the gunshot/floor vibrations. Also thought the writers/ directors did an admirable job of showing a hearing person the silence of a hearing impaired person's world, with the muted sounds in some scenes, particularly the kidnapping scene. You didn't need to hear the full sounds to feel Gina's terror, or the ex-boyfriend's desperation. I felt somewhat sympathetic (to a degree) towards the ex, in a way; his parents were at fault for poisoning his mind and making him see his impairment as a shameful thing.

Finally, I did enjoy the final scene with Mac/Peyton, I knew it was coming the second time Gina mentions him speaking with his eyes. I thought it was well done, emotional without being maudlin.

The B case was weak, but not the worst I've seen in the CSI franchise, LOL. I would have liked seeing the A case fleshed out more, along with LIndsay's secret (Go, Rambo Stella!) and the B case disappear altogether. But pretty much, that's my only complaint with the ep, I gave it an A
 
OK well, the eppy was ok. I gave it an A-. I loved the deaf family case. The one about the skater. Well, I figured it was the Professor.

The incident with Lindsay. I just wonder if the guy that is in the picture on her computer could possibly be a jealous, crazed out b/f who killed all of her friends of Lindsay's and only left her b/c he loved her and perhaps the mothers all blame her, or felt she should have been the vic. I mean, she has issues with mama's, she has issues that keep her from relationships, and she blames herself for the deaths. Could be something there. Or could not be. I just hope my senario is more interesting.
 
So Lindsay survived a massacre, huh? I guess that's why Mac told her to stay in the lab during the Henry Darius/Miami crossover episode.
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Yeah, that make sence now...

I think that too MBGrissom, that some mother blamed her for beeing the only survivor, you know what mothers can do when they are blaming someone ("And Here's To You, Mrs. Azrael", killing the "other" one), also the radio in the background said "15 and 17 down, one possible survior" or something like that, so I guess her friends must be 15 and 17 years old and Linds also somewhere near that age...

I like that ep, I'll give it an B, both cases could have been better... Mac and Peyton back together *yeah* I like that couple, even when I'm a D/L shipper :) . But Peyton always has that look on her face that she'll start crying in the next few seconds, in every ep... No D/L Scene... one point minus and I think Stella was rude to Lindsay, yeah she didn't know why Lindsay dissapeard from the scene but she could have been more sensitive...
 
It was good seeing Marlee Maitlan(sp)again. Haven't really seen her since Reasonable Doubts. I loved the ep especially now that I know what's been bugging Lindsay. Felt soooo sad for her. Could care less about the M/P deal. Glad it worked out but rather have a M/S pairing. Anyway just an awesome ep all around.
 
Well, that episode did something that no other CSI episode has done.......it made me cry.......the sheer emotion during the scene in the car at the end.....maybe its with having a grandmother who went deaf at 30 and her stories of non-acceptance but it really got to me.....

A+++++ for the acting there

As for the rest of the storylines, as soon as I saw Peyton in the lab I knew they'd get back together, couldn't really care about the ice-skater story

I would like some of that paint though.......
 
A

Nice episode :)
The b-cas rather stupid, but there was Danny so... :rolleyes:
That scene with the multicolor thing: priceless :lol: (like the one with the piece of the moon :D)

Stella was great with Lindsay. Not for the "you have a friend here" part, but for the "I'm your boss" part :devil: I was screaming "c'mon Stella, kick her ***!" :lol:
I like Lindsay, but she replied really badly to Stella.

Why would someone with her issues even go into this field? And as my roommate who watched with me said, "why now?" She didn't have issues first season, and was even pissed when Mac sent her away from a scene with...what do you know, a massacre.
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Top, you're so right!!!

Mac and Peyton are so sweet in this episode
*sigh*

Great job for Sasha Cohen, but amazing performance for Marlee Matlin :)

Nice episode, but not for an A+ :)
 
I give it a B+. The only good thing I can say about the B case is that it continued to bring us the old Danny back and he was so very nerdy. I especially liked his performance when he was sitting across from the professor who was being smug about his invention and Danny let his inner nerd out. So nice. But he and Stella still had to go to Hawkes to figure out the Physics of the case. Thank goodness they showed some infallibility with the CSIs and they do not, in fact, know everything.

Sacha Cohen, thank you for showing up. Please return to your Olympic training now. The rest of this case was so very poorly done.

The A case on the other hand was excellent. I've loved Marlee Matlin since Children of a Lesser God and she is still phenomenal. I loved that she called Mac out almost immediately when he tried to pull his condescending act out of his hat. That action scene at the end was intense, but I have to agree with others - while, on the surface, the episode was riveting, on further analysis, it was just average.

I loved Stella's response to Lindsay's pathetic running away from the crime scene. If you're not going to give your boss a damned good reason why you walked away from a job right in the middle of it, then you better take the reprimand without being pathetic about it.

Hiding I don't really see what goes on here as Anna-bashing. As Faylinn said, she is a grown woman and a professional at that. If she did a better job, we wouldn't have to tear her apart on such a regular basis. Nor is she the only recipient of our skewerings: remember "Prozac Danny" from earlier this season? We're happy he's gone now and he is, therefore mostly back in people's good graces. Mac is regularly derided as being stiff and wooden...

Speaking of Mac, that scene at the end with Peyton was so moving. I think that was all she wanted from him in the first place. Some moisture came to my eyes, but since I don't actually own tear ducts, there were no tears :eek:

Anyway, pretty good episode, but not as good as others. B+
 
I'm with the very small group of people who actually feel bad for Lindsay. I don't understand how everyone else is shrugging it off as "no big deal" and that she's being too "emo" about it. I mean, has anyone here been the lone survivor of a massacre? Then I doubt you know what the character's going through. Try looking up articles about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or survivor's guilt and see if you could handle it.

Maybe I'm just taking it the wrong way (I've never been in a situation like Lindsay's and hopefully I never will). It just irks me how everyone's like "Oh, Lindsay saw all her friends murdered and she's the only survivor? Bo-ring." It made me cry, actually. I'm thinking maybe it was a school shooting or something, or maybe a random act of violence at a high-school party. They were all supposed to be 15 or 17 years old, right? (Unless I misunderstood the guy on the radio, he could have been saying there were 15-17 victims).

Something like that affects people in different ways. At the time, Lindsay may have thought she'd dealt with it and it "steeled her resolve," so to say, and she wanted to go into the CSI profession because of what happened. Perhaps she was never on a lot of cases with dead teenagers until now, and it just brought her past into the forefront.

I didn't see it as her acting like an "immature 5-year-old" I think her actions, while unprofessional, are justifiable considering the nature of her "dark secret." I hope we learn more about it in future episodes.
 
This was not one of my favorite episodes, for several reasons.
First of all, what was the point of the deaf family making such a secret out of the fact that the baby's mother was the teenager daughter, not her middle-aged Mom?? This is New York City in the 21st century, not Utah in the 1950s!! Who did they really think would be "scandalized" by the notion of an unmarried, teenage mother in this day and age??
Secondly, I couldn't help but contrast the strikingly different attitude toward handicapped people in this episode and the one about a month ago featuring the teenage girl who was paralyzed in the drunk-driving accident. Last month we were supposed to buy into the notion that being in a wheelchair was such a TERRIBLE thing that it would be a "kindness" to kill a person rather than having them spend the rest of their life in a wheelchair. Now, we're supposed to buy into the notion that being deaf isn't even something people should *TRY* to cure, because it's not really a "disablity"??? I just find this attitude on the part of the writers weird. Especially because, if you put a gun to my head and forced me to choose one or the other, I'd prefer to lose my ability to walk rather than my ability to hear.
Thirdly, I just thought it was overkill to have the victims in both cases be attractive teenage girls. Yes, I realize that scantily-clad female bodies attrack the young male viewers that advertisers crave, but one per ep should be sufficient. Realistically, teenage boys are a lot more likely to be homicide victims than teenage girls are.
Finally, I didn't like the Mac/Peyton stuff at the end. I want him to dump her and get together with Stella. Failing actually "getting together" with Stella, I just want Mac to go back to being the tortured soul he was in the first two seasons of the show. I don't like the whole Peyton think fee it detracts from the chemistry of the leads.
 
^Island Girl...

Just thought I'd jump in about the writers handling of disability.... I thought they did much better with this episode than past epis because it looked like they were knowledgable of issues within the deaf society. There is tension between people who embrace the implant and those that feel they were born deaf and that's fine. (In fact there's a stunning documentary on this issue within a family, however the name escapes me right now).

I thought they did well showing both sides of the issues and I felt so bad for the father of the baby and what he struggled with... wanting "better" for his child, while at the same time empathizing with the family's point of view of what "better" is for a child when it comes to deaf culture. I think they did handled it very well.

In fact it was the only part I liked about this episode.

Oh yeah, except Stella's Lindsey smack down (finally!),

Flack's "What he was trying to say was your a scumbag... etc" (Love Flack),

and I'll even go so far as to say I liked Mac's emotional scene with Peyton at the end. Too bad it involved Peyton. Still don't like her. I wish Mac found another woman to get all emotional with.
 
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