Season 12 Review

Discussion in 'CSI: Crime Scene Investigation' started by Crumbs, May 13, 2012.

  1. Crumbs

    Crumbs Police Officer

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    Another year gone and yet another season has come to an end, and it doesn’t feel so long ago since it had only just got started, the season really has flown by.

    So what were your thoughts overall about Season 12? Which were your favourite episodes, which ones did you dislike the most? Any surprises? What are your thoughts on the new characters, D.B. Russell, Morgan Brody and Julie Finlay? What could be improved for Season 13?

    As well as the introduction of the three new characters, we also saw: the departure of Ray Langston and Catherine Willows; the reunion between Ecklie and Morgan; the corruption and fall of Sam Vega; the appearance of Judy Robbins and Olivia Hodges; the Gabriel story-arc; the return of Jeffrey McKeen and “Homecoming”.

    Episodes:

    1201 73 Seconds
    1202 Tell-Tale Hearts
    1203 Bittersweet
    1204 Maid Man
    1205 CSI Down
    1206 Freaks & Geeks
    1207 Brain Doe
    1208 Crime After Crime
    1209 Zippered
    1210 Genetic Disorder
    1211 Ms. Willows Regrets
    1212 Willows in the Wind
    1213 Tressed to Kill
    1214 Seeing Red
    1215 Stealing Home
    1216 CSI Unplugged
    1217 Trends with Benefits
    1218 Malice in Wonderland
    1219 Split Decisions
    1220 Altered Stakes
    1221 Dune and Gloom
    1222 Homecoming
     
  2. sharp52092

    sharp52092 Star Wars and CSI Fan Moderator

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    One of the stronger seasons I'd say, strongest since season 7 imo :)

    Morgan and DB have been pretty successful characters. Finn could use some work. I feel she doesn’t have much purpose outside DB. Interacting with other characters would help so more A and B (C and D) while we’re at it too next season

    Vega: At first I wasn't sure how I felt about Vega becoming a bad cop but after Altered Stakes I felt better about it since it was addressed again and not swept to the side and never heard about again

    Not sure how I feel about McKeen returning yet, I’ll probably know more after the season 13 premiere, but as long as he leaves sooner rather than later unlike Haskell, I think I'll live

    Continuity was decent this year :)


    Best:______

    Tell Tale Heart- Great team eppy, strong case

    Bittersweet- Great A and B case, nice Sara stuff

    Genetic Disorder- Good to see Doc Robbins getting some attention :) and to see Greg leading was better than Christmas :thumbsup:

    Crime After Crime- Good use of characters, quite the twist

    Tressed to Kill- Great post Catherine ep, good team ep with a good case, love seeing Sara as the leading lady too


    Good but not quite the best:_______

    73 Seconds- Good intro for DB and Morgan, B case could have used a little more work

    Maid Man- Nice to see another A and B case ep, but the B case lacked a little spark, also a Warrick mention would have been great since Gedda was sort of in it

    CSI Down- Pretty good just the whole CSI in danger thing has been overdone, different storylines please

    Zippered/Ms. Willows Regrets/Willows in the Wind- Catherine’s exit was okay, the thing that I really don’t like is all the shooting/guns, and it’s not what I would have done, I always loved the idea of her going after the chemical companies poisoning the water since The Case of the Cross Dressing Carp

    Malice in Wonderland- Nice to meet Hodges' mom, but once again the enough with the whole CSI (in this case lab rat) in danger

    Altered Stakes- Great to see the team out playing baseball, but it lacked something (besides Sara too) not sure what though


    Average:______

    Brain Doe- Okay, some nice Brass stuff in it

    Seeing Red- Decent entrance for Finn, I thought I would like having Jesse McCartney on but I didn’t since I knew something was up with his character

    Stealing Home- Okay but I felt it could have been so much more and become the next Rashomama

    Unplugged- Case was so-so, I knew the nanny would be found dead and the child alive early on and also don’t like how they stuck with same pairings throughout most of the ep- DB/Finn, Nick/Sara, Greg/ Morgan

    Trends with Benefits- Good use of the characters in it but nothing really special about the case

    Doom and Gloom- So-so case, glad to see some more Greg/Sara interaction finally

    Homecoming- Decent finale, but please if characters are in danger or quitting, don’t let the fans know they’re returning


    Not so great, but not that terrible:______

    Freeks and Geeks- Average, nothing special in it that I can recall

    Split Decisions- Decent use of the characters in the ep but the whole quad thing annoyed me

    There were none that I really hated unlike last season, which is good thing

    One last thing, more A and B cases next season please and thank you :)

    Okay, that's all I can think of :lol:
     
  3. bill_az

    bill_az Rookie

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    I think Danson turned out to be a masterful addition to the cast. I can sense some of the pluckiness he exhibited in Sam Malone, but he can be as serious as a heart attack. There was an amount of tension between the old guard and the new additions.

    I'm a little leery of this "everyone is under suspicion" cliffhanger. The writers will either play it to death, or insert it in selected episodes. It's hard to tell their intention.

    The actor/actress turnover has been remarkable for this show. I think back to all the characters replaced on MASH--McLean Stevenson, Wayne Rodgers, Larry Linville, Gary Burghoff, and they still put out quality shows.

    Of the 3...ahem 2 franchises, I think CSILV will get the best set up for a true windown of the plots and a true "finale." CBS has made a fortune on the show, they deserve it.
     
  4. Crumbs

    Crumbs Police Officer

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    I thought the Season got off to a fantastic start, the introduction of a light-hearted character like DB was a brilliant move and the dark, depressing years of Seasons 7 – 11 seemed quickly dusted under the carpet within the first quarter hour of the premier. I am certainly missing neither Langston nor Haskell and I’m glad they were dealt with swiftly with little palaver. I certainly got vibes of Seasons 1 – 5 within many episodes of the first half of the season where there was certainly more of a focus on the team rather than an individual character.

    Sadly I think they went a bit downhill when they brought Finn on board. Firstly, I found it hard to like her as a character, one moment she’s fine and in the next episode she’s portrayed as an overconfident, irritating and judgmental character. Secondly, having a history with DB was a bad idea as the show started to revolve around their relationship and the team dynamic they had built up so brilliantly in the first half of the season began to crumble. I’m really not buying her character yet.

    I really like Morgan though; however I feel the writers are giving her a bit too much at the moment, particularly at the cost of other characters. I’m enjoying her storyline with Ecklie but I really don’t like the one concerning Hodges which I’m finding awkward and almost, unnecessary.

    At times I thought that the original cast members were getting left out but actually on the whole, each of them got their own individual episode and moments to shine. Nick with “Altered Stakes” and “Homecoming”; Sara with “Bittersweet” and “Dune and Gloom”; Greg and Doc with “Genetic Disorder”; Hodges with “Malice in Wonderland”. I’m hoping that next year brings us with a Brass episode and more episodes with the core cast, especially considering that there shouldn’t be any cast changes ahead.

    Overall, I feel that the Season was a huge improvement over the last three or four; I’m just hoping that next Season can reform the team back together and continue the vibe we got at the start of the season. (And for god’s sake TONE DB’s FAMILY DOWN! :lol: ) Oh, and more multi-case episodes next season pretty please!

    Episodes (ranked from favourite to least favourite):

    The Crème de la Crème

    Tell-Tale Hearts – probably in my Top 10 of all time, if not a little outside. Case was excellent, unpredictable, excellent balance of screentime and reminiscent of many classic episodes from previous seasons. Wonderful episode!
    Genetic Disorder – loved this one for two aspects: it delved into the personal life of Doc outside of the morgue which I really loved. (I particularly love the final scene, really sweet.) Second, it shows how much Greg has evolved as a CSI. This one gets minus points for overly portraying Brass as an ass though.
    Ms. Willows Regrets – had me on the edge of my seat for the entirety of the episode, it’s been a while since I’ve felt that on the show.
    Crime After Crime – aside from the rather left-field revelation of Vega being dirty, this was a solid episode all around. Even though the cases were related, I loved the fact we got to see the whole cast working around this one.
    Bittersweet – TWO CASES! Woo! Loved both of them, felt like a classic CSI episode, Sara was brilliant in this one.

    The Other "Crumbs Approved" Episodes

    Maid Man – again, TWO CASES! Loved the Old Vegas stuff, the maid case was okay but I think this was the one where Morgan came across as a bit cocky. Again, felt like a classic.
    Willows in the Wind – didn’t quite capture the tension, excitement and dread that Part 1 achieved, ultimately it felt rushed and a bit contrived (was there really any need for Cath to be shot?). Overall though, it was a solid exit story and I loved all the references to past episodes. The continuity fairy struck gold with this one!
    Homecoming – Holy cliffhanger, Batman! One of the better finales, particularly in recent history (although not up to the standards of S1 – 5), just a shame I didn’t really care about any of the cliffhangers. Finn was pretty insufferable in this one. Still, liked the case and the McKeen stuff.
    CSI Unplugged – the “old school forensics” were by far the biggest highlight of this one! The blackout stuff was pretty cool but I’m glad it wasn’t anything which extended beyond this episode. Still annoyed about Finn returning the child though, should have been Sara and Nick.
    Tressed to Kill – for an episode that looked to be a filler between Catherine’s exit and Finn’s entrance, it was very good. Loved DB in this one. Quite a creepy episode too.
    73 Seconds – even without my rose-tinted glasses this is a pretty solid opener. Oh, and much TWO CASES love for this one too.
    Dune and Gloom – nothing bad to say about this one really. Felt sorry for the three misfits who were set up. Liked the scenes with Sara/Greg and Sara/DB too.
    Stealing Home – despite the continuity boo boo (though to be fair to the writers, surely the brother would have been brought up again during “Nesting Dolls” at the very least?) this was a fun episode. The siblings bickering got on my nerves a bit though. Oh and annoying!Finn was annoying.
    Trends with Benefits – filler, but a good one. Good team interaction with this one.
    Zippered – bit of Guest Star Overload and a lack of “anybody not called Catherine” but I remember liking the episode overall. Not one I’d rewatch lots though.
    Altered Stakes – a conviction based on a pair of keys being swallowed by a dog, really? Good thing the character interaction was top notch because on the whole, the case was pretty crap.

    The lukewarm lumps of mashed potato

    Freaks & Geeks – had the classic CSI episode feel, unfortunately it felt like one of those unmemorable fillers which are dotted around sporadically in Season 3. Oh and the torn off nipple = eww!
    Brain Doe – and the winner of the most convoluted, WTF storyline of the season goes to…
    CSI Down – loved the Ecklie/Morgan stuff but the crap story and the appalling CGI sort of stand out more in my mind.
    Malice in Wonderland – awesome crime scene but the episode was ultimately bogged down by the Morgan/Hodges charade.
    Seeing Red – it’s clear the introduction of Finn took priority over the script in this case. The resolution lacked the emotional punch the writer intended; all in all it felt a little… flat. Diebenkorn really was the only highlight of this one.

    and the wooden spoon of the season goes to…

    Split Decisions – the only episode of the season I would say I disliked. Far too much police work, crappy story, horribly clichéd opening, too many twists which quickly became annoying and in the end the kid planned it all? Come on writers, I’m seriously worried about the number of child prodigy criminal masterminds that appear to flock to Vegas. :lol:

    Overall, Season 12 I believe was easily the best season we’ve had in years, despite the decrease in quality mid-way through the season. I’d probably rank it behind Seasons 5, 4, 2 and 3 but all in all, it was a massive improvement of the Ray Langston show we were ‘treated’ to last year. :)

    I've just realised... that's a lot of writing :lol:
     
  5. jafox

    jafox CSI Level Two

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    I will admit that this season was a more balanced one for the characters, and easily better than the LF era, but I wouldn't say it was stellar, or will be particularly memorable for me overall. And, although it's tone was similar to earlier seasons, I wouldn't say it measured up to them; but those were a different time, different tv landscape.
    No doubt, Danson has been a great addition, and I'm happy that the show seems to have some renewed life to it because of him. And the other characters have had some decent screen time and storylines this season. But introducing 3 new characters was bound to take away something from the originals. I like Morgan; I'm on the fence about Finn, and I can't say I've been happy for the focus she's been given in the last few episodes. And, TBH, I think the focus on Ecklie has taken away from Brass in some of the episodes.

    I found many of the episodes entertaining and well written, and I like that they have gone to more believable cases, but I honestly can't remember many of them specifically and by name, as I have in the past. 'Genetic Disorder' was a favorite, as was 'Bittersweet', and the more recent 'Dune and Gloom' because of all the unexpected Sara goodness. But I miss the '4X4's and the multicase, non-murder episodes. I'm pretty sure CSI's have to investigate even the more trivial of crimes; and in the past some of those cases balanced out the more emotionally powerful ones.

    As a Sara fan, I loved some of the character moments she had with Greg and DB this season; but I can't recall any special moments with Nick like we had last season. Since Grissom left, I'd put 'House of Hoarders' and 'The Two Mrs. Grissoms' at the top of my list, and they are the last of my CSI itunes downloads.
    I'm just not as invested in the show as I once was.
    I'm glad the cast is returning, and I will continue to watch as long as Sara and Greg and Nick get some storylines; but the show is missing something, or someone. And the new 'someones' just don't hold as much interest for me.
     
    Last edited: May 16, 2012
  6. warrick17

    warrick17 Hit and Run

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    man, i did write an big review, but it got lost due to an sporadic error.so i just say(in rage) this, it was the worst season overall.it had 2 standout episodes and a massive overload of d.b. charisma problems.
    yeah sure now it works.:rolleyes:
     
  7. warrick17

    warrick17 Hit and Run

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    best episodes-
    crime after crime
    csi down

    above average-
    freeks&geeks
    split decision

    least ones-
    73 seconds
    stealing home
     

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