Like most people, I have those few favorite shows that I have to catch every week. Unlike most people I have waaayyy too many of these favorite shows. So when I hear about a new show that I ‘just have to watch’, I’m generally very skeptical as I only have so many hours in the day to get in some quality viewing. In recent years I’ve shied away from most ‘cop shows’, because the few I had tried to get into in the 90’s left me kind of cold. They were all the same, with semi-interesting characters, dull plots, car chases and shoot-outs. I had the same reaction a few years back when I had several friends tell me to watch “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.” I was way too busy and just couldn’t find the time to give it a chance. Thanks to Paramount Home Entertainment, I’ve learned I really need to listen to my friends a little more often. A few short years ago, they released the entire 1st season on DVD which gave me the opportunity to sit down and ‘give her a spin.’

What I expected to be another run of the mill cop show, turned out to be one of the best and most original TV dramas I had seen in recent years.

Originally I was going to just watch a few episodes and get a cross section idea of the scope of the show so I could get an overall opinion to share in my review. Instead, I was completely hooked and ended up watching all 23 over the course of a few days. Each time my wife and I finished an episode we looked over at one another and said… “One more?” Sleep and I had officially parted ways. Which is repeated every time a new season hits my doorstep.

“CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” is original in that it avoids nearly all the conventional action sequences that most police dramas need to survive. It’s a show that really makes you think, as each episode is a puzzle waiting to be solved. Some episodes have more than one plot, while others would pull all the members of the CSI team together to solve one big crime. The pieces of the puzzle are presented in flashback version of the crimes, based on suppositions or lies. But more interesting is the way the physical evidence is shown. Utilizing creative cinematography, the camera often zooms in close to give us, at times, a microscopic perspective of the smallest items; hairs, blood drops, etc… Other times we are given a ‘bullet’s eye’ view of the damage that can be done to the human body.

As a show simply cannot survive on cool cinematography alone, “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” also consistently delivers stories that are really well-plotted. Each episode is intricately woven, and though it is fast paced it never seems rushed. The show’s writers are careful in making sure no fact of the case is missed in case you want to play detective right along with the CSI team. In the 1st season none of the stories seemed too far-fetched and were unfortunately all too realistic at times. I say unfortunately, because where some shows glorify the violence they present; “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” offers an unflinching view of how horrible, sadistic and sickening acts of violence can be. And it also goes beyond the physicality of the acts to show the tragic effect it has on the victim’s family.

Furthering my take on the writing is the simple fact that the CSI team doesn’t always win; this in itself brings an even more realistic feeling to the show. When they win, it’s exhilarating; when they lose it can be devastating. We also have five main characters, and though one or two are the obvious leads, over the course of the series, and sometimes within a single episode, all of them have the opportunity to come to the forefront.

Speaking of the characters, the cast is by far what really makes the show tick. Heading them up is William Peterson as Gil Grissom, the leader of the Las Vegas CSI Unit. I first remember seeing Peterson in “To Live and Die in L.A.” and he had one of those commanding personalities that made you sit and watch. Over the years I’ve only seen him in a few other films, and for some reason as good an actor as I thought he was, he never seemed to cross over to ‘star’ status. This show has finally put him on the map, and deservedly so. Grissom is easily one of the most likable characters on Network TV. His easy demeanor and quick wit allow him to easily bridge the gaps between being a boss, father figure and friend, to the members of his team.

Marg Helgenberger has always been a welcome addition to the cast of any movie or show. As Catherine Williams, she is the maternal member of the team. On one side of the coin she is tough as nails when it comes to the criminals; on the other side she is empathetic to the victims. Gary Dourdan as Warrick Brown, is in constant competition with George Eads’ Nick Stokes, and the interplay between the two is priceless. Jorja Fox as Sara Sidle struggles daily with just how to deal with all the death, and will hopefully learn to move on. This is a group of highly watchable and believable actors and characters, each with their own flaws and inner demons. How they come together as a team, in and on the show make for an entertaining hour each and every time out of the gate.

Keep in mind this was how I felt after watching the first season. When the 2nd season showed up, I was curious to see if the series could keep up the momentum. I’m happy to say there was no disappointment, and my wife and I ended up with yet another marathon run to get through all the episodes. The same thing happened with the 3rd season release.

In the 3rd, 4th, and 5th seasons, the stories continued to get more outlandish, which might have caused some viewers to feel like they had to suspend their belief. However, as much as I keep an eye on the news and all the abominable things that people do to one another, all of those stories were well within the realm of possibility. If anything, it may only be a little hard to believe that they could all happen within the confines of Las Vegas.

Of course, this is why the popularity of the show caused the producers to create a whole new team to fight crime in the show’s sister series, “CSI: Miami.” The characters were introduced in one of the 2nd season episodes and have gone on to achieve nearly the same popularity of the original. Now we have an even newer show that's in its fifth successful season, “CSI: New York.” I’m still not a huge fan of “Miami”, but really enjoy “New York.”

In the meantime, no matter what happens, we’ll always have the original to fall back on. And now that the 8th season is readying its release, my wife and I had to set time up for yet another marathon watch. Well, it’s not so much that we had to, we really wanted to. The 8th season DVD set offers up the 17 episodes in glorious widescreen, with an awesome Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack. Each episode looks like a mini-movie, the quality is so good. It also has its share of extra features, which are really just icing on the cake. Even though this is probably the weakest of the seasons, the series alone still makes this set worth owning, albeit the shortage of episodes caused by the writer’s strike.

This season was a mixed bag, coming off the ultra-cool season arc of the ‘miniature killer.’ I was surprised we found out the identity of the killer before the end of last season, but was not so that we would have a cliff-hanger. Just who was under the flipped over car? We not only find out this season, but the effect of the experience carries throughout several episodes culminating with the exiting of a major character. (Most of you know who, but if you’re like me and don’t even try to watch these shows until the DVDs are released… then you don’t and I won’t spoil it for you.) Of course, that’s not all that happens as there are even more shocking turns of events that forever change the landscape of the best of the CSI shows. I can even begin to guess what will happen if the changes that are rumored in the 9th season come to pass. I only hope that this 8th season, which includes a handful of weak episodes doesn’t signal the beginning of the end for this juggernaut.

On the brighter side, these “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” DVD sets can never be accused of lacking in the extra features department, though I will admit that even these offer a few weak ones. There are 2 episodes that include cast and crew commentaries (which I will list below), but neither is as good as what we’ve been given in the past. One even features famed director William Friedkin, but even he fails to elicit any real insight with his comments. You'll also find several featurettes including a tribute to Friedkin, a short send off for a popular character, a piece on the effect the writer’s strike had on the series, interviews with two of the director’s of photography, and an interview with the show’s consulting entomologist. Add to this a shortened version of one of the commentaries featuring the show’s lab techs and a deleted scene and you’ve got a pretty well rounded package. One nice addition (and one you don’t see very often) is the inclusion of an episode of “Without a Trace” which was part of a crossover story between the two shows. Usually you’re expected to buy the other series’ set as well in order to get both pieces.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the really sharp packaging. Paramount has continued with the same style for each set, and it is very cool. It includes a book-like disc holder that fits neatly inside a plastic slipcover. When you take it out, you can flip through it to see each disc. I especially love the neat little band made up to look like one of those yellow ‘Crime Scene: Do Not Cross’ tapes that you can slip over the whole package.

“CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” is still easily one of the best shows of its kind on network television. So far we have eight seasons available for the DVD market, and each set is worth its weight in gold.

Episodes:
Dead Doll
A La Cart
Go to Hell
The Case of the Cross-Dressing Carp
The Chick Chop Flick Shop
Who & What
Goodbye & Good Luck
You Kill Me (Naren Shankar, Wallace Langham, Lis Vassey, Archie Kao, Sheeri Rappaport, David Berman)
Cockroaches (William Friedkin, William Petersen, Dustin Abraham)
Lying Down with Dogs
Bull
Grissom’s Divine Comedy
A Thousand Days on Earth
Drops’ Out
The Theory of Everything
Two and a Half Deaths
For Gedda

Starring: William Peterson, Marg Helgenberger, Gary Dourdan, George Eads, Jorja Fox, and Paul Guilfoyle
Extras: Audio Commentaries on 2 Episodes, Deleted Scene, While the Cast Is Away, The Rats Will Play, William Friedkin: A Different Take, So Long, Sara Sidle, What Happened in Vegas, Shot in the Dark, TOD: A Bug’s Life
Specifications: Widescreen, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound
Studio: Paramount
Release Date: 10/14/2008
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website

We'll give CSI: Season 8 a B.