Will the REAL Danny Messer Please Stand Up?

JDonne said:
He desperately wants Mac’s almost fatherly approval, he’s awaiting that pat on the head, the moment when his father figure heaps accolades upon him. You see the man-child when Danny bows his head in the wake of Mac’s fury or disappointment. I would like to see Danny emerge from that need, but there must have been years of damage done to create an almost crippling fear of disappointing those he looks to for approval.
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I originally started watching purely because I am a long time fan of Gary Sinise's. What has evolved is that I have ended up watching because of Danny. It was the relationship between Danny and Mac that hooked me finally. We've seen none of that since Run Silent, Run Deep. In that episode I was so involved in their relationship I was actually yelling at the TV screen for Mac to "give him a hug, you b*#%$^d!!!". Are we meant to believe that was the moment their relationship was 'resolved'? We've seen no Danny/Mac interractions since and that disappoints me ... hugely.

That need for approval, along with his volatility, conflicting nature, and all the other things we all love about Danny, make him the most real and human character on television for me. That's got nothing to do with the writing and everything to do with Carmine's acting ability.

I'm hoping (with tightly crossed fingers and toes) that what is missing now is purely because TPTB are pushing others into the limelight ... for a while. I'm hoping it's just a brain fart in the writers' case and they quickly remedy the situation. But ... the longer we wait, the worse it gets. Seems to me Danny is the most vital character in the show for a lot of fans and it wouldn't be a smart move to not take the fan's complaints into consideration, if indeed the writers visit the board.
 
The first time I ever saw Danny Messer, I kept on thinking of Ol' Logan Cale from Dark Angel (played by Michael Weatherly!) But Danny's from a blue-collar background.

He seems to switch back and forth between this Wiseguy Brooklyn goo-goots attitude to being this confused individual that wants approval. It makes the character hard to access sometimes. Danny is best when he works with Flack and he has the attitude. That's the Danny I like!!!!
 
Hankster said:
He seems to switch back and forth between this Wiseguy Brooklyn goo-goots attitude to being this confused individual that wants approval. It makes the character hard to access sometimes. Danny is best when he works with Flack and he has the attitude. That's the Danny I like!!!!
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I totally agree
 
JDonne said:
When Danny feels, he truly feels and to borrow a cliché is like a dog with a bone and it is this quality which makes him an excellent CSI. He truly comprehends the idea of being the last earthly advocate for the wronged, he wants the perpetrators of those crimes to answer for what they’ve done. He wants them to feel the full extent of his fury.
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That has always been one of my favorite things about the character--how driven he is, how personally he takes each case. They're not "cases" at all to him, but real people, and he seems affected not only by their fates but by the plight of those they leave behind. To me, that made him a fully-rounded, very real character, as opposed to a cardboard cutout or a drone.

Has Danny’s behaviour veered towards the infantile at times, certainly it has, you see it most often in his neediness where Mac is concerned.

He desperately wants Mac’s almost fatherly approval, he’s awaiting that pat on the head, the moment when his father figure heaps accolades upon him. You see the man-child when Danny bows his head in the wake of Mac’s fury or disappointment. I would like to see Danny emerge from that need, but there must have been years of damage done to create an almost crippling fear of disappointing those he looks to for approval.
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This always made the character seem so sad to me. Danny is very needy, and he seems to pick out people whose expectations he can't seem to meet to focus on. He's constantly disappointing Mac--he tries to work cases the way Mac wants him to, but can't seem to put his emotions aside the way Mac usually does. And all the while he tries so desperately to please Mac. That conflict added a lot of depth to his character and while it was something he needed to move beyond, dropping it without explanation or resolution was a mistake.

These conflicting natures are what made Danny so compelling, his tenacity, which often leads him down the wrong or even destructive path, coupled with his need for approval and praise. All of this is what I suspect, but what I know is that whatever it was it is long gone and with it, a character that constantly fascinated me, a character that riveted me to the television screen.
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Agreed completely. The conflict was pretty much dropped after season one, and though RSRD expanded upon Mac and Danny's relationship, it didn't capture the previous tension that had existed between them.
 
**bump**

Thought we could re-start this discussion after last night's magnificent performance. It was so amazing to have the old impulsive, explosive, melodramatic Danny back.
 
Agree with you!!! But I wait next episode, just to be sure... :rolleyes:
Maybe TPTB thought "hey, we're losing them, let's catch their attention a bit" :lol:
 
He's back!!!! :D

Was it just me, or was there something almost hyped up and giddy about Danny last night? Like he was so fired up to finally have something to do.

Loved the final scene--that was fantastic and I loved how Danny handled Shane. He's a very emphathetic character.
 
That has always been one of my favorite things about the character--how driven he is, how personally he takes each case. They're not "cases" at all to him, but real people, and he seems affected not only by their fates but by the plight of those they leave behind. To me, that made him a fully-rounded, very real character, as opposed to a cardboard cutout or a drone.
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That was why I love the character. He gets involved, he's not afraid to be emotional, biased or involved. He cares about each case and the people involved in the case. Even though being emotional, biased and involved are considered negative characteristics for a CSI they show that he is human and that he can't always be perfect. He lived in his brother's shadow for so long, had the Tanglewood Boys pulling him to join them and now seems to live under constant scrutany from the people around him. I agree that if he'd stayed the same as in S1 he would've got fired, but he still needs to have the moments where he goes 'you know what? This is what I think and you aren't going to change my mind.'
Thought we could re-start this discussion after last night's magnificent performance. It was so amazing to have the old impulsive, explosive, melodramatic Danny back.
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Last night Danny was amazing! The way he absolutely refused to belive that Hawkes was guilty even if the evidence and the eye witness said he was. That's the Danny I love from S1, the Danny that stands up for people no matter what!
Loved the final scene--that was fantastic and I loved how Danny handled Shane. He's a very emphathetic character.
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He's got that 'I've been there, I know it's hard, but you can make it through' thing going on and it really rounds off his character. He can be 'Get outta my face' and then be empathetic enough to apologise. He has a good character and I'm glad tptb found that in him again. And lets all say thank you to Carmine for being able to portray him so well!
^^ If that was the cause of the 'down and out' Danny I'm glad they got him off the prozac, that stuff can be dangerous!
 
Good idea reviving this thread. :D Looks like the real Danny Messer stood up last night. We got the old Danny back after nearly half a season of dormancy. Last night showcased the Danny I love. He drops a few good lines, stops to examine the porn in the peep show place, calls an old dude out, treads into ethically questionable territory going to see the eyewitness because that's what he believed he needed to do for his friend, and he handled Shane with compassion. He's such a well-developed character and Carmine does an absolutely fantastic job of portraying all the various facets of Danny's personality.
 
Yes. If he had been standing in front of me last night, it would have been all over. I'm still hoping that he got it on in one of the back rooms with Flack or Angell or both.

He was so marvelously impulsive last night, but, as someone pointed out in the grading thread, it served to showcase both the fact that the same old Danny was there but the impulsiveness was tempered with a maturity that knows the difference between breaking and bending the rules. Thank goodness that prescription for Prozac is gone!
 
^ Yes, he has matured. He knew his conduct was questionable. In the past, he wouldn't have demonstrated such an awareness of the boundaries his conduct must fall within. ... But I do love that he's still willing to push those boundaries for something he believes in.
 
What did he say about breaking the rules. "I didn't break them, I bent them, maybe, but I didn't break them" or something to that affect. I think that was him, I watch about five shows on Wednesday and I may have gotten confused. I'm glad our Danny is back, I believe Kimmychu was keeping him hostage and finally decided to release him. :D thank you for that!
 
My arse he didn't break them. Danny could have been charged with witness tampering/obstruction of justice, whatever. Any other case, if a friend of the suspect spoke to the main witness and tried to persuade them to change their testimony, they'd be arrested for sure, and Danny would be well aware of it.
It really bugged me how smug he was, both when talking to the bouncer, and later telling Mac all about it. I know that if I'd been the bouncer, Danny showng up would have made me more determined than ever to stick to my guns.
 
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