Plotlines

We did it! The middle of the second season brought the much talked about changes in the aspect ratio, and at the same time, although it was subtly hinted at the beginning of the season, the lab and the interrogation rooms also changed.

But before we can enjoy this new, wonderful, screen-filling view, we have to go through another tough battle. Because yes, I’m harping on it, but Catherine is really exhausting at the beginning of the second season.

So far, she hasn’t been confirmed as supervisor, and she graciously declined the temporary takeover by Grissom. Yet she behaves constantly like a boss, always bringing up that she’s not properly appreciated, and her interactions with colleagues are just impossible; that’s just not teamwork, sorry. Yes, she’s supposed to be portrayed as the strong woman, and I can understand a certain gruffness there, but I find her incredibly disrespectful when working with Nick, Greg, or Sara. They’re her colleagues and teammates, what’s up with that??

This brings us directly to another point that struck me in the first part of the second season, namely the treatment of Greg. The impetus for this came from a comment by Grissom when Greg dared to call Paul Millander clever in his eyes. You can do that, and yes, Grissom is particularly involved in this case, but that was kind of intense. It made me realize that Greg is being treated quite disrespectfully. After all, he’s a crucial point in almost every investigation; let’s remember how often Grissom is with him, gets some info, and leaves with the idea to solve the case. It’s no different with the others, and yes, Greg can be difficult, but he simply doesn’t deserve this treatment.

Now I’ve watched one episode in the new format, and it feels like they’ve changed quite a bit here. We’ve already mentioned the aspect ratio, and as a result, the camera shots of the city feel much more natural and fuller. But even with the individual characters, more is revealed or they are set in scene differently. There’s more play with the composition of the individual shots, and it feels like the series has undergone a facelift. The aforementioned lab has also changed; it hasn’t received the full glass setup yet, but the somewhat outdated look from the first season is gone. Now, they play even more with the light; through the glass fronts, some shots can be better executed, and characters are often accompanied by the camera when walking through the facility or from one lab to another.

Other actors also have one of their first appearances here, just like back then in Dr. House. So we see an even younger Jeremy Renner and a very young Amanda Righetti, who will later become a regular on The Mentalist. What becomes of Jeremy Renner should be known!

With Paul Millander, who pulled a pretty big rabbit out of his hat in his last episode, we’ve also dealt with one of the first episode-spanning villains. Tammy is still around, but I found that Paul was much more present, especially because he managed to establish himself as a judge.

Meanwhile, Grissom’s hearing impairment has also become noticeable, which will manifest more frequently as the series progresses. I especially like the episode where he reveals that he knows sign language because I really like Deanne Bray. She’s always a ray of sunshine when I see her in a series, and it’s fun to watch her speak or gesture in sign language. I just saw that she’s also in Heroes for a longer period (9 episodes). Luckily, this series is also still on my rewatch list.

Now that we’re practically in full throttle, because Doc Robbins and Super Dave are fully on board, along with Archie, who used to sit behind the cameras at a university and now works in his role as Archie in the CSI, we can really get started. My brain is already being flooded with wild memories, and I’m more excited than ever that I started this rewatch.

And don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten that we’ve already had the pleasure of meeting the charming Lady Heather. But I’ll save that for the next post because we know there’s still a lot more to come.