CSI New York: Expanding the Franchise

By Jonathan Berohn

Shamelessly embracing the tried and true Hollywood and TV maxim that it's better (read: easier and cheaper) to reuse a successful idea than it is to invent a new one, CBS has debuted the latest installment of the CSI franchise: CSI: NY. On one hand, it's hard to blame them. Hey it works for NBC and its Law & Order cornucopia, and both previous CSI series are big hits. On the other hand, overexposure seems like a real possibility here. How many interesting ways are there to show a DNA test?

A Mixed Bag

That's not to say that CSI: NY is all bad. At the very least, it's more than the cleavage fest that seems to be the motivating principle of CSI: Miami. The cast, too, has some heavyweight performers. Headliners Gary Sinise and Melina Kanakaredes are certainly fine performers, and they add credibility to the show. The little visual touches like the washed out cinematography and the white lab coats are good at both adding mood and making sure viewers know which CSI they're watching.

On the Other Hand...

The above notwithstanding, I can't help but feel that CBS would have been much better off designing a new show for its standout cast rather than try to plug them into the CSI mold. The plots, while always ready to shock viewers with a clever twist, are essentially all the same. There is a murder, sexual assault, or mysterious death that the intrepid CSIs will solve by dusting for fingerprints, swabbing for gunshot residue, shining ultraviolet light in search of blood, or testing for DNA matches. A science lab, is a science, lab, is a science lab. And I have to think that 3 labs a week will only dilute the strength of the original.

They've certainly diluted the help they get from using The Who for theme music. "Who Are You," and "Won't Get Fooled Again" work really well as theme songs. Baba O'Riley, though, is another story. Anyone who knows The Who well enough to think it's cool that CSI uses Who songs knows that the next lines of Baba O'Riley are "Don't cry, don't raise your eyes. It's only teenage wasteland." Huh? CSI: NY also has to cope with some unfortunate writing. In the first couple episodes, somehow they feel they have to explain procedures like the CSIs are all rookies. Hopefully they'll soon realize that anyone watching CSI; NY is a veteran. The only hope the show has is to get, if anything more sophisticated, not less.

For More Information:

If you want to read more about the show, you can get all the scoop at the CBS web site.