# CSI Season Finale thoughts? \[Spoiler discussion\] **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 17, 2005, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179 "2005-05-17T01:53:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Improv\_Geek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b3f665/32.png) [@Improv\_Geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Improv_Geek)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/61 "2005-05-20T14:40:43Z")
> [@ivylass](#): > > Oh, I forgot Warrick’s line when they found him, “Nicky, we got you! We got you! Put that thing down! We got you!” The way he said it made me laugh. > > (The thing was the gun. I would have thought there would have been only one bullet, and he used it when he shot out the light.) Warrick was amazing this episode. The emotion he expressed seemed truly genuine and I found his performance the most moving of all. Does anyone disagree? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/62 "2005-05-20T15:30:05Z")
While a lot of attention is given to Tarantino’s dialogue and plot gimmicks, I don’t think he’s received the credit he’s due for his outstanding ability to get great performances out of his actors. Especially as he often works with second tier people who aren’t reknowned for their acting ability. I think this episode showed this talent and we saw some of the best performances ever for _CSI_. That said, there were some clunkers. The Tony Curtis and Frank Gorshin cameos were painful to watch. The twins murder at the start of the show was just a gratuitous snuff. The dream sequence in the autopsy room didn’t work and threw off the pacing. And the ants thing was a little over the top. But overall, an excellent show. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/63 "2005-05-20T15:32:32Z")
> [@ronincyberpunk](#): > > Greg would have been my next choice because of his status as still the ‘new guy’. But he’s more psychologically fragile and that might’ve pushed him into another career. Nick has always been so tediously perfect and together it was nice to see that omnipresent smirk slapped off his face. ---
**Author:** ![Improv\_Geek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b3f665/32.png) [@Improv\_Geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Improv_Geek)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/64 "2005-05-20T15:53:44Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > But he’s more psychologically fragile and that might’ve pushed him into another career. Nick has always been so tediously perfect and together it was nice to see that omnipresent smirk slapped off his face. Very true! Good call on that. I hadn’t thought about it that way. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/65 "2005-05-20T16:47:52Z")
Besides, Greg has already been tortured. Remember when the lab blew up and he got caught in it? ---
**Author:** ![ouryL](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ouryl/32/6067_2.png) [@ouryL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ouryL)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/66 "2005-05-20T17:01:16Z")
> [@Snooooopy](#): > > I thought the twins who were shot through the head were going to be explored in a properly developed B-story. But they never went back to them! Are we going to come back to this case next season? That I think was T. ---
**Author:** ![ouryL](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ouryl/32/6067_2.png) [@ouryL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ouryL)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/67 "2005-05-20T17:05:43Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > Something I liked was that, unlike other shows with stunt directors, this one was absolutely canonical, as if Tarentino has watched and memorized every previous episode (which I wouldn’t be surprised to hear). I mean, since Grissom got his ears fixed there has been little, if any, use of that part of his life. We always knew there would come a time that Catherine (or is she with a K? C is a sexier letter) would get into a jam that only her father could fix and she would have to swallow her pride and ask for his special kind of help. And didn’t we hear that Nick and his father call each other Cisco and Pancho in an earlier episode? If you remember the Cisco Kid and what Cisco would typicalky say to Pancho… ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/68 "2005-05-20T17:44:24Z")
Besides “Eh, Pancho!” “Eh, Cisco!”? Forgive me, it’s been a while. ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/69 "2005-05-20T18:15:34Z")
Saw this, loved it. The dialogue was fairly snappy (it could have been tighter in places, but considering that the plot arced out over two hours it did a pretty good job) and the cinematography was brilliant–pure Tarantino mastery. The scene with the dirty old guys seated around the table was stupidly unnecessary, but I _loved_ the creepy vibe we got from the horticulturalist in prison. The dynamic between each of the actors (Grissom and Nick, Catherine and Nick, Warrick and Nick especially slash ahoy!) was spot on. Amazing performances all around. (I would have liked to see more out of Sara and Greg, but that’s just me.) [hijack] Has anyone read the Artemis Fowl books and thought that Greg would make an excellent Foaly? [/hijack] Also, whoa, Catherine, talk about the boobage. That is one foxy lady. 🆒 Fantastic episode–cheers all around! ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/70 "2005-05-20T18:22:12Z")
OK, so I’m new to the show. Grissom is their leader, William Petersen, right? He’s very intense. George Eads plays Nick Stokes. He just had a rough night. Catherine is Marg Helgenberger? And she has a rich daddy. Warrick… the African-American guy? Then there’s Jorja Fox (so cute!), and one or two other people who didn’t do much last night. What do I need to know about all of them, and anyone else key? ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/71 "2005-05-20T18:27:55Z")
> [@Big Bad Voodoo Lou](#): > > Grissom is their leader, William Petersen, right? He’s very intense. Got it in one. He’s got a passion for bugs and creepy-crawlies (the scene with the ant was pure gold) and he’s got a very dry sense of humour. > [@](#): > > George Eads plays Nick Stokes. He just had a rough night. The award for Understatement of the Year goes to… 😃 > [@](#): > > Catherine is Marg Helgenberger? And she has a rich daddy. Absolutely, and she _loathes_ the sleazebucket–but she swallows her pride occasionally to help her friends, and her young daughter Lindsey (she’s a single parent, _and_ a former stripper. Yow! ;)). > [@](#): > > Warrick… the African-American guy? Warrick Brown. He’s played by Gary Dourdan, who should probably be illegal for being so mind-meltingly hot. > [@](#): > > Then there’s Jorja Fox (so cute!), and one or two other people who didn’t do much last night. What do I need to know about all of them, and anyone else key? Jorja Fox plays Sara Sidle, a very straightforward and direct sort of girl; Eric Szmanda plays Greg, the geeky-looking guy with dyed hair; Robert David Hall is the coroner (his name eludes me, but he’s white-haired and he walks with a limp); Paul Guifoyle is Brass, the captain of the department and the sort of unofficial liaison with the LAPD. ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/72 "2005-05-20T18:35:44Z")
Thank you very much, **Kythereia**. If you ever need a crash course in any of the shows I watch (The Shield, 24, Arrested Development, Scrubs, Justice League), I’ll be happy to share info! ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/73 "2005-05-20T18:37:29Z")
24? Scrubs? Justice League? Sweet! _high-fives fellow fan_ ---
**Author:** ![Lakai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de0a6/32.png) [@Lakai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lakai)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/74 "2005-05-20T18:39:47Z")
I loved the way the music played when the CSI team put in the tape. The camera moved across the room to show the team standing there helpless and listening to upbeat music. I also liked how the music played with Nick screaming in the ground. The intensity while the police cars were pulling up was nicely done too. Best buried alive scene I ever seen. I did not think that the actor who played Nick had it in him. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/75 "2005-05-20T18:55:37Z")
> [@Big Bad Voodoo Lou](#): > > Grissom is their leader, William Petersen, right? He’s very intense. If you like him, check out the movies _Manhunter_ in which he plays a similar (if not Clarise in SOTL) role, and _To Live And Die In L.A._ in which he’s equally “intense”. Heh, I love his cocky, bowl-legged saunter. ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/76 "2005-05-20T19:01:13Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > If you like him, check out the movies _Manhunter_ in which he plays a similar (if not Clarise in SOTL) role, and _To Live And Die In L.A._ in which he’s equally “intense”. Heh, I love his cocky, bowl-legged saunter. Oh, Manhunter is great. Even though I generally preferred the slicker, more updated _Red Dragon_ with Edward Norton and Anthony Hopkins, I thought Petersen and Brian Cox were both awesome as Will Graham and Hannibal Lecter in the original movie. ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/77 "2005-05-20T19:04:38Z")
> [@Lakai](#): > > I loved the way the music played when the CSI team put in the tape. The camera moved across the room to show the team standing there helpless and listening to upbeat music. That’s another Tarantino trademark. He is esteemed for using music to enhance and “complete” scenes rather than just providing catchy background noise, and he is well-known for using quirky, upbeat songs to accompany horrific violence. The use of “Comanche” during the bizarre BDSM male rape in \*Pulp Fiction \* and “Stuck In the Middle With You” during the ear-slicing torture scene in \*Reservoir Dogs \* come directly to mind. The soundtracks to his movies are usually as classic as the movies themselves. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/78 "2005-05-20T19:12:55Z")
> [@Big Bad Voodoo Lou](#): > > OK, so I’m new to the show. > > Grissom is their leader, William Petersen, right? He’s very intense. > George Eads plays Nick Stokes. He just had a rough night. > Catherine is Marg Helgenberger? And she has a rich daddy. > Warrick… the African-American guy? > Then there’s Jorja Fox (so cute!), and one or two other people who didn’t do much last night. What do I need to know about all of them, and anyone else key? In a nutshell, all of them worked together on the graveyard shift. Greg used to be a lab tech, but wanted to work out in the field, and I got the sense that was, if not a demotion for him, at least a cut in pay. Catherine used to be a stripper. Her ex-husband died in a car accident, and now her mom helps take care of her daughter. She wanted to move to days, but she was moved to the midshift for reasons I’ll explain in a second. Brass has a wayward daughter who is currently working as a prostitute in LA. We learned recently she’s not his biological daughter, but the product of an affair his wife had. Gil’s mother was (is?) deaf, and he’s fluent in sign language and lip-reading. He’s very proud and grateful for the type of mother she was (is?) and he was also going deaf due to a genetic disease. That was fixed with surgery, which is why I found it interesting that the paramedics asked if Gil’s ears were ringing after the explosion. Maybe some problem there in the future? Gil also has a passion for roller coasters. I don’t think we know much about Warrick, other than he used to have a gambling addiction and he can play the piano. Nick is a graduate of U of Tennessee and has had some run-ins with stalkers and murdered prostitutes. Sara had a drinking problem, and was arrested for DUI. She had a thing for Gil, but I think she’s over that now. She spent some time in foster care as a child, and IIRC her mother murdered her abusive father or her father in a drunken rage murdered her mother. David the coroner has two fake artificial legs. He takes his job very seriously. Ecklie (the bald guy) is the head (?) of the lab. Due to some office politics, which Gil won technically but didn’t win diplomatically, he split up the team. He promoted Catherine and gave her the midshift, along with moving Nick and Warrick to work with her. He kept Gil, Sara, and Greg on the graveyard shift. Ecklie had a protege, some blonde CSI, who was angling for a promotion, but because she confirmed Gil’s side in the office politics, she was denied the promotion and moved to the graveyard shift. I didn’t see her last night, so maybe she was on vacation, since the rest of the lab was looking for Nick. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/79 "2005-05-20T19:17:55Z")
What was that song they played in the episode? ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2005, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179/80 "2005-05-20T19:28:14Z")
**ivylass** , was that Nick’s mom’s first appearance on the show? (I don’t watch on a regular basis.) Like I mentioned before, that’s Lois Childs, I believe Holly Goodhead on a Bond show, and her father was Eddie Childs. _“I’m mad too, Eddie!”_ Anyone remember him? Western CEO that did the radio spots? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/csi-season-finale-thoughts-spoiler-discussion/304179.md?page=5)