# CSI Fans, Why do you like it? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 24, 2010, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275 "2010-01-24T21:06:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2010, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/1 "2010-01-24T21:06:45Z")
I caught my first ever episode of CSI last Thursday night. The only reason why I tuned was that it was about golf, and a few golfers were to make cameo appearances. FTR, I thought it had horrible acting and even worse writing. The jokes seemed forced and full of cliches. Did I catch a bad episode? Should I give it another chance? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2010, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/2 "2010-01-24T21:09:02Z")
Funny, the episode _I_ saw last night was about fans of a blatantly _Star Trek_-like show, and it was full of jokes and had some cameos, and I thought it was hiliarious. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2010, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/3 "2010-01-24T21:17:27Z")
I gave up on it awhile ago, but did watch the golf episode because of the golf. It was a lot better when William Perterson was the lead. I used to like it because it was slightly geeky (technical) and edgy. But everything is edgy now, so it’s not such a standout. ---
**Author:** ![nikonikosuru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5f8ce5/32.png) [@nikonikosuru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nikonikosuru)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2010, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/4 "2010-01-24T21:46:00Z")
Which version were you watching? I hate CSI: NY and CSI: Miami but I love the original. I don’t even know why, really. The plots are pretty predictable. All I know is that while I’m easily bored with other shows, I can watch a marathon of CSI for hours on end. Maybe it’s all the sciencey stuff I’ve learned from it (don’t fire a gun without wearing a glove or otherwise you can be tested for liquid paraffin on your hands and you’ll get caught!) ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2010, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/5 "2010-01-24T21:53:20Z")
I was watching the one on Thursday nights. It was in Vegas. I suppose the science was neat, although I don’t know how realistic it was. And FTR, I have come close, too close, to self impalement with a broken golf shaft (cause of death on the show) . I found a broken steel shaft in some woods, picked it up to dispose properly, and tripped on some roots and sticks and nearly fell on the shaft. ---
**Author:** ![fiddlesticks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddlesticks/32/18129_2.png) [@fiddlesticks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fiddlesticks)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2010, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/6 "2010-01-24T21:55:20Z")
I like the characters. I’m a fan of CSI: Original Flavor and don’t watch either NY or Miami. I remember when I first watched I was at a friends and I expected to hate it, thinking it’d all be silly pseudo-science and unrealistic police work (which it is 99% of the time!), but I got hooked regardless, mostly because of William Petersen, who’ve I’ve been a fan of long before he got his “break” on CSI. ---
**Author:** ![MatthewGerlach](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5e9695/32.png) [@MatthewGerlach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MatthewGerlach)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2010, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/7 "2010-01-24T21:56:31Z")
David Caruso as Horatio Caine does it for me. He’s got a great talent for playing the tough yet smooth detective. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2010, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/8 "2010-01-24T21:58:30Z")
Back when I used to watch it (and like it) I tried some of the other flavors and found them to just not work. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2010, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/9 "2010-01-24T22:02:02Z")
> [@MatthewGerlach](#): > > David Caruso as Horatio Caine does it for me. He’s got a great talent for playing the tough yet smooth detective. \ ---
**Author:** ![Snooooopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2010, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/10 "2010-01-24T22:16:30Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > \ The glasses … do they do anything? ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2010, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/11 "2010-01-24T22:18:23Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > \ **YEEEAHHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!** I’m a fan of the Original CSI: Las Vegas. The other two are just poor imitations. I do think it was better with William Peterson was still the lead, but Lawrence Fishburne is still miles ahead of the other two shows. I like the sciencey parts, the mysteries and how sometimes they’ll change it up and the death will be accidental. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2010, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/12 "2010-01-24T22:47:52Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > **YEEEAHHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!** > I’m a fan of the Original CSI: Las Vegas. The other two are just poor imitations. I do think it was better with William Peterson was still the lead, but Lawrence Fishburne is still miles ahead of the other two shows. I like the sciencey parts, the mysteries and how sometimes they’ll change it up and the death will be accidental. Or the killer gets off. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2010, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/13 "2010-01-24T23:51:08Z")
> [@Snooooopy](#): > > The glasses … do they do anything? Surprisingly, no. ---
**Author:** ![detop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bcef8e/32.png) [@detop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/detop)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/14 "2010-01-25T00:24:52Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > **YEEEAHHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!** > I’m a fan of the Original CSI: Las Vegas. The other two are just poor imitations. I do think it was better with William Peterson was still the lead, but Lawrence Fishburne is still miles ahead of the other two shows. I like the sciencey parts, the mysteries and how sometimes they’ll change it up and the death will be accidental. I agree. The original one is light-years ahead of the spin-offs. Although I have to admit watching CSI : Miami for its comedic value. And CSI : NY is not so bad (compared to Miami), at least they are making an effort. ---
**Author:** ![Winnipeg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ec9cab/32.png) [@Winnipeg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Winnipeg)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/15 "2010-01-25T00:44:41Z")
I’m in and out of Labs all the time, I never miss an opportunity to explain why they must be such losers, none of them wear Armani suits, drive Hummers or work in such cool lighting. Losers the lot of them. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/16 "2010-01-25T19:11:48Z")
Because I’ve had a crush on Marg Helgenberger since “China Beach.” ---
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/17 "2010-01-25T19:32:35Z")
I like CSI: Original Recipe. The others I’ve felt have just been horridly bland for intangible reasons (casting, production team?). I like it in the way I liked Dragnet, Columbo, Perry Mason, etc. Episodic, only enough character and background to deliver the story, but not so much that I have to dedicate myself to watching. Vegas has a strong cast that work well together. The producers also experiment with a variety of techniques, character POVs and script structure, like MASH did way back when. ---
**Author:** ![plankter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ba0ec/32.png) [@plankter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plankter)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/18 "2010-01-25T20:21:27Z")
Another “Vegas only” watcher here. I got into it starting with Season Three, attracted by the “science” aspect. It wasn’t long before I was disenchanted by the show’s slipshod treatment of reality, but by then I was watching for the characters. Then my original favorite Grissom was replaced by a Gary Stu, but I stayed for Sara, Greg, and Warrick. When Sara left I thought I was free but then she came back _sans_ onscreen Grissom and better than ever. So now I only watch the episodes she’s in and it works out well. It helps that Dr. Ray isn’t annoying me (yet). The insidious thing about CSI is that, even when many of the episodes are crappy (“After the Show”, “Unbearable”, “Pirates of the Third Reich”, etc.), the writers occasionally throw out gems like “Rashomama” or the Miniature Killer arc. And then I get sucked back in. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/19 "2010-01-25T20:39:52Z")
I was a late-comer to the original series, but did catch up on all the seasons I missed, then watched the whole “Miniature Killer” and the end of Grissom “live”. I just dug the show, got used to watching it. I don’t enjoy it as much now (altho I never liked Sara and now she’s almost mostly pretty much gone) but I still like it for the “episodic”-ness of it (is that right? One mystery per episode) and the general lack of info about the character’s personal lives. ---
**Author:** ![myskepticsight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cc9497/32.png) [@myskepticsight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/myskepticsight)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2010, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275/20 "2010-01-25T20:43:36Z")
I LOVED CSI seasons 1-4. After that for me it started to go downhill. I watched sporadically from season 5 and around season 7 mostly quit unless the spoiler site I used to read had info about something interesting concerning Grissom/Sara happening. I loved CSI so much I even won a CSI trivia contest at my college put on by [David Berman](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2003884/) and [Jon Wellner](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0920082/), who act and research for the show. I got a DVD set signed by them. I think Petersen’s departure was a huge blow to the series, and probably having 2 spinoffs didn’t help either - I am sure they are running out of fresh/clever ideas. I saw a recent commercial talking about “CSI is delving into the world of underground street racing” and they already did that… But if you are interested in the show I strongly suggest watching them in order starting with season 1. There is some character continuation throughout the series and I think the episodes are better if you “get” the characters. And there are some truly great episodes in those first few seasons. I can only offhand think of one really good one from a later season - Rashomama from season 6, IIRC. Well and Grave Danger from season 5, and the miniature killer stuff. Otherwise for me it got blah as time went on. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-fans-why-do-you-like-it/526275.md?page=2)