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Sunday 10 March 2013

Mr Selfridge Series 1 Episode 10 Review

                                       
SO Harry (Jeremy Piven) spends yet another night away from home with some nameless, shameless hussy: the one in the red dress, and then sneaks back home to lie beside Rose (Frances O'Connor) as if she wouldn't have noticed his absence or what he's been up to.  She storms out of bed when he touches her.  Tensions are running high at home and at the store.  Rose tells Lois (Kika Markham) she wants to return to Chicago but Lois tells her Harry won't take them.  Mentioning how he's lost without Rose.  Something which has been repeated many times.

At the store, Lady Mae (Kathleen Kelly) waits for Harry to tell him news of her regal visitor and Henri (Gregory Fitoussi) waits to tell him news of his own.  Lady Mae mentions the King will be visiting his store and what a great honour that would be.  Something he conveys to Rose as well and how he needs her by his side.  Then afterwards they're to accompany him to the theatre to see Ellen Love's (Zoe Tapper) and Tony's (Will Payne) play.  Rose reluctantly agrees to attend, not what she needs to do but must do, her duty.

Kitty (Amy Beth Hayes) blabs to Miss Mardle (Amanda Abbington) about Doris's (Lauren Crace) engagement ring and that her fiance is none other than Grove (Tom Goodman-Hill) well that was apparent.  Miss Mardle would have liked him to have told her beforehand, but he's just a coward really.  Later he comes round and explains how he wants to leave behind something of himself, a legacy, a child of his own.  Which Miss Mardle would "have gladly born" him.  Yeah use her, throw her away, after taking the best years of her life and then find a younger model!  To add insult to injury he also wants them to continue their illicit affair even after he's married, as before.  What a scoundrel!  He doesn't want to hurt Doris but wants his cake and the other woman too.  Rightly Miss Mardle refuses to carry on as "the other woman" for a second time even when he says no one would know.  "I'd know" she replies.  Good for her!  In that respect he was like Harry, wanting a family and a wife but not being able to remain faithful.  Talk about selfish, falling back into his old routine and wanting their Tuesday night together still.

Preparations are afoot in the store and Crab (Ron Cook) teaches the staff to curtsy and the lift staff to bow like boys.  Henri wants to borrow Agnes (Aisling Loftus) again and Irene (Anna Madeley) says she's not a "lending library" as he treats Agnes as his own property.  He tells Agnes he's leaving for New York and for Valerie too.  She understands of course.  It's not as if she'll be alone, or had any real feelings for him as she told Irene.  Anyway Victor (Trystan Gravelle) tells her it's his birthday and he expects a present from her.  She may pop down with one later.  Which she does after the King's visit, bringing Victor a present and as he tells her, she didn't come for cake.

They reminisce about their first time in the Palm Court and how Agnes was partial to some sherry.  She didn't accept his offer to dance but she does now.  Also how she was shy and he was going in search of his restaurant.  Which he didn't get but he remarks on there being more important things in life, like Agnes no doubt.  That's where we came into the opening and that's how we went out with these two.

George (Calum Callaghan) strikes up the courage to ask Kitty out after a bit of advice from Victor and brings her some violets, Victor reminding George that he doesn't see Kitty as all that "high class."

The King arrives, Edward VII (David Calder) and asks Rose how she's finding being in England after asking how Harry was treated here.  Harry had to win over the press and he still does.  The King wants to buy, as he's brought money and has never been shopping before.  He asks the assistants what would be a good present and Miss Mardle comes forward with a dog brooch, as 'she' loves dogs.  The King comments how they can now call him "one of the people."  Which Irene says she will tell her friends.  Harry giving Rose a look as if she wouldn't say she was settling in here.  Though it's true she's no longer settling here, giving up Chicago for him.

At the theatre, Harry calls on Ellen to wish her luck and to hope there aren't any hard feelings, where Frank (Samuel West) tells him he's off to Paris.  Reminding Harry "you reap what you sow."  Ellen warns Harry he won't like the play but he assures her he will.  Rosalie (Poppy Lee Friar) asks what a satire is, well she found out the hard way.  As we know the play's all about Lady Mae as Lady Lushington (Lisa Jackson) and Harry as Horace Spendrich (Bob Golding).  What a send up they got, with the audience loving every minute of it.  They even mention Horace's wife taking up with a painter to which Rosalie is horrified, as are Rose and Harry.  Notice the King left already.  Lady Mae tells them she'll ensure the play doesn't last a week, but the damage has already been done.

Rosalie is upset Rose wasn't honest with her as she would have understood and they all retire for bed, even though Harry wants Rose to stay.  She gets up and tells him she's leaving for Chicago.  He comes out with his line gain of how "lost I am without you."  She replies he always says that but why all those women then?  Harry: "Because I'm a damn fool."  She doesn't know what's going to happen between them.  Harry sheds a tear!  But he won't change his ways.

He has to face those people in the store tomorrow and he can't do it without knowing he can come home to her.  Not much comfort as Rose leaves the next day with the children.  Lois understanding what she's going through.  Henri leaves Harry a note, "to the king of Oxford Street."  Crab tells Harry these things will blow over and Harry had to face the press when he came into the store, having a "no comment" for them when asked about the play.

Harry is a broken man, for now, at least until next season, when Henri will return and me thinks Rose will too.  Harry telling George he started out where he is now and George thinks that means he'll be like him.  Harry doesn't believe George wants to be like him.  But many people would.  What a backstabber Frank turned out to be, well what else can one expect from a "gentleman of the press," when things didn't work out for him and he didn't get a job from Harry.  Seeing as he was 'editing' the play of course those personal tidbits of info from Harry's life would make it onto the stage.  Not to mention the line about people only liking Harry for his money.

Everyone's deserting Harry this last episode as rats from a sinking ship!  Not that the store isn't doing well, it's doing better than Harry's life and Miss Mardle too for that matter.  So they both suffered heartbreaks here and think Henri would have expected more of a farewell from his boss after his speech of not "leaving anyone out in the cold."  Seemed those words turned out to bite him back cos he was the one left in the cold with Rose gone, still as least Ma stuck by him.

Two scenes this episode of Harry walking into the lift, they're not as exciting as him walking out as in the past, since nothing really happened when he walked in.  He only got bad news from Henri and Rose.  The play was no surprise as Harry and his  were all the rage of London and Lady Mae mentioning Lord Loxley is in the country, just to remind us before that line was used in the play.

Also especially Aisling Loftus who really was brilliant at portraying Agnes, from shy girl to confident woman and Amanda Abbington as the ever suffering Miss Mardle not finding happiness at the hands of the insufferable Grove. Was in two minds about feeling any sympathy for Harry, on the one hand he brought it all on himself with his philandering ways and on the other, he had his private life held open for ridicule in that play.

Thus the saga ends and we'll have to wait until next year for it to return.  Too long a wait for most people.  My final words, turns out I enjoyed this more than I thought I would at the beginning seeing as that was  a little slow to get going.  So kudos to Jeremy Piven and the cast, for making this an enjoyable piece of drama for cold and wet Sunday nights!  Here's to Series 2!!

Friday 8 March 2013

The Mentalist 5.12 "Little Red Corvette" Review

It's Actionman Patrick and Bionic Woman Lisbon to the rescue...

This ep of The Mentalist was different, it was more like how do we catch Volker?  A bit like Columbo in that we knew who did it but the question was how was Lisbon (Robin Tunney) going to prove it?  As mentioned last ep she would get help from Patrick (Simon Baker) and resort to using Patrick's methods which is why she asked for his help.  So it was strange when he asked if she was going alone to see Volker (Henry Ian Cusick)and she didn't want him to come.  But at least we saw Patty get his teeth into Volker, first by meeting him at the school.  Was about to say when he told Volker he's very believable when reading the story to the children, he was a bit like Patrick himself in that respect.  Especially since Patty is adept in doing the same with people when he tells them what they're thinking and reels them in.

He did this twice and second time was when Volker made another impromptu visit to Lisbon's office in search for her.  You mean to say he didn't see her standing at the back.  Lisbon wants Cho (Tim Kang) to escort him out and before he leaves Patrick tells him how intimidated Volker really is.  He's afraid and thinks they don't know it, but Patrick can read him like the squirming worm that he is.

Two Months Earlier  This began with a boy, Marvin (Emjay Anthony) playing with his remote controlled little red Corvette (hence the title) in a condemned building when Volker arrives with Milk (Matt Baker) and another man, Clyde (Steven Bauer) to finish off one of the witnesses from the Amazon energies case.  Milk strangles him with a wire and then Clyde helps him move the DB.  With Volker watching on hand, always around but never getting his hands dirty.  As they're about to leave, the car makes a noise and Marvin is discovered.  Milk leaving Clyde to finish off the witness, but of course he wouldn't.

Present Day  So when Lisbon et all arrive at the CS they ID the decomposed DB as Horatio Jones (Adam Tsekhman) and Patrick stumbles upon the car, wondering what it would be doing there.  Lisbon doesn't seem interested in the car since she thinks it was just left there but Patrick and his paternal instincts makes him pursue the issue further.  He gets Van Pelt (Amanda Righetti) to look up places where there are children and narrows down the closest one to the warehouse.  Leading to Marvin Pettigrew.  His mother, Sharon (Jennifer Sommerfield) says he's been missing and thinks he's dead, but Patrick doesn't know.  Nice to see him handle the situation with sympathy, as he would.

Lisbon knows Jones since he was on the witness list against Volker but disappeared when he was to testify, thus she needs to get the deposition but it's closed.  Patrick suggests she use blackmail on DDA Ardilles (David Norona) but she needs leverage to do this.  Thus Patrick suggests who knows everything that goes on at the CBI.  That was a clue if ever there was one as to who would leak info to Volker.  So Lisbon turns to Brenda (Rebecca Wisocky) but can't tell him why she needs some sort of info to use on Ardilles.  But Lisbon will owe her one.  She suggests mentioning the Furland case.  Which she does and gets him to give up the deposition.  Wonder if there'll be any reference e to that further down the track and why Ardilles was so nervous at the mere mention of the name.

On the deposition list they find the name of Annabelle (Nicola LaLiberte) who met with Jones in Brazil and they shared drinks.  Cho questions her on whether she heard of any mass killings there but she didn't.  NOW anyone can tell Volker had gotten to her and I wasn't sure if Lisbon sussed that out when she listened on the other side of the glass.  Cos she heads back to Volker telling him she didn't blab and she's leaving the country.  Volker the sleaze has taken a shine to her, just like he did with Lisbon and kisses her on the cheek.    She's a liability and he doesn't like liabilities so it's a surprise he let her go.

Patrick turns up at the children's school where Volker reads for them and notices two men who watch them when Patrick introduces himself, especially when Patrick grabs Volker's arm.  Cue Rigsby (Owain Yeoman) taking photos of Clyde.  DNA from the CS turns up belonging to Milk and there's also a hair, which they didn't identify.  Thought they would have said that belonged to Clyde when they bring him in and he's not asking for a lawyer since innocent men don't need one, but rather cos Volker will hear.  Anyway that was moot point since Volker would know anyway.  Patrick questions him and he finally says he wouldn't kill a child but he won't tell them anything.  Which again defeated the purpose.

Lisbon goes to Jones's Energy company to talk to Jones's boss but spies the camera on the wall and thinks Volker will get there before them as he's one step ahead, which he did, he must have seen them on the camera.  Lisbon asks Judge Davis (Amy Aquino) for a warrant for their documents but she doesn't have sufficient probable cause.  She then leaves and calls Patrick, who once again tells her that she knows what he would do.  Obviously, lie a little, embellish should I say.  She bursts in saying they have a witness who gave them probable cause to enter the building.  When they arrive it's deserted and Lisbon displays her anger by throwing a vase against the wall.  That was different to see cos she's usually so calm and collected, but Volker just riles her up.

Clyde is dropped off so Volker doesn't know he's been at the CBI but Volker calls him and tells him he's a dead man.  Thus Clyde steps in front of a bus.  They check out all leads as to who Clyde would trust enough to leave the boy with, and Cho says someone desperate for a child.  They find one woman on their list and Volker arrives at the apartment before them.  Had a funny feeling they may have gotten there already and would be lying in wait, but alas that'd spoil all the excitement of Lisbon's takedown of Volker.  He finds a letter on the fridge about a zoo visit and Rigsby also finds this when they finally arrive there.  That was Rigsby's paternal instincts in play there, re Ben.

Great to see Patty getting some running in this episode and they hear Marvin screaming for help, but no one else bothered helping him.  Volker pulls his gun on Lisbon but she gets a shot in and then gets to punch him too.  Bet she was just aching to do that.  Patrick takes Marvin home and it was good to see the smile on his face at parent and child being reunited and that he had helped in bringing him home.

So the leak, well it was none other than Brenda, so she was under suspicion for being a Red John cohort, but why did she help Volker and what was he holding over her?  But Brenda shame on you when she handed over Marvin's photo knowing full well she sentenced him to death.  What would drive her to this, save her own life, but how did she get into Volker's clutches to begin with.  What can I say, come on red John finish her off.  Seems in the end Volker had to get his hands dirty cos no one would kill a child, as we know certain bad guys have a few scruples when it comes to children.  AT least he's dealt with now, hopefully.  As said the episode before last, Lisbon has exhausted every legal avenue open to her so she had to resort to Patrick's methods to get her man, it was a last resort.  But Lisbon's always been the one to play by the rules and hopefully this was just a momentary aberration for her.

Cho and Rigsby's scene where Rigsby takes a sip of Cho's week old soda and he didn't tell him.  Thought Cho was more of a tidy person and wouldn't have left that in there.  Still a fun scene.  Van Pelt still behind the desk but hopefully not for long, oops keep using hopefully here a lot.  Patrick says Marvin's been missing 63 days when talking with Van Pelt but then it's said he's been missing 61 days.

Also when we get Present Day Patrick mentions it's been a week since Milk was killed thus she couldn't get anything from him.  So that means last eps's case came in between in terms of the timeline.  Patrick being supportive of Lisbon whilst still looking for Marvin and getting time on the sofa too, ha.
Some great dialogue too between Patrick and Volker when he tells him he wanted to meet him when he has the chance.
Volker: "Are you going somewhere?"
Patrick: "No, but you are.  After your arrest, things are bound to get a little hectic and I probably wanted to have a chance to introduce myself and here I am."  SO perceptive Patty, sure enough he was arrested.  Actually it was more like Patty was preening his feathers to say he's the man in Lisbon's life!  One nitpick, Volker with his billions, hiring anyone he wants to, and yet he panicked over a little boy who could ID him at the scene.  Losing his cool, abducting Marvin in public and what, he'd have shot him in public too, for someone who always hid in the shadows, that was out of character for him.

Patrick: "You're afraid of us...you want us to think you're gloating, but you're not, you're afraid....I can see right through you.  We were close searching your offices like that...you want us to think that you're in control, that you're untouchable, but you're not.  You're afraid of us and you should be."  Did this have Volker panicking?  Patrick got under his skin just like Volker did with Lisbon.

Good moment when Patrick tells Lisbon Volker would gave her his DNA voluntarily if she asked, that's how cocky Volker is.  Let's not have Volker turning out to be in league with red John cos that'd be too weird and somewhat unbelievable.

Wednesday 6 March 2013

The Vampire Diaries 4.12 "A View to a Kill" Review

Stefan (Paul Wesley) ropes in Klaus (Joseph Morgan) to babysit Damon (Ian Somerhalder) and to give him blood.  So they get to talking about Elena (Nina Dobrev) at least Klaus does asking questions about her and how Damon's in love with her.  Though it was only a matter of time before Klaus would show his true colours.  Of course he wouldn't be interested in finding the cure, he has no interest in becoming human again, just like Kol (Nathanial Buzolic).  Except for Rebekah (Claire Holt) who craves the cure too.  Klaus lets slip about catching Stefan leaving Rebekah's room/bed and Damon thinks he's getting the silent treatment from him, taking a page out of Damon's revenge sex manual.

So Elena tells Bonnie (Kat Graham) her plan again (and remember this is The Vampire Diaries where plans always backfire!)  Whilst she washing dishes her hands burn and Bonnie finds out her father, Rudy (Rick Worthy) has put vervain in the water system.  He's also setting up a curfew and the Decades Dance is cancelled, so much for Bonnie helping out Caroline in setting it up.  SO where is Caroline?  Bonnie will help Elena but first they need the dagger from Rebekah and also she has some white ash too.  But she's not going to come right out and give it to them.  Instead Stefan finds a way for Matt (Zach Roerig) to search the house to find the dagger whilst he takes Rebekah to the dance, just the two of them.  Talking about the 80's and she doesn't want a corsage.  Instead he gives her a koala which were all the rage back then.  Then talks about his friend Lexie and how he was good when he was with her, a different person, like how he was with Elena.  Notice Rebekah come out with the question of whether he slept with her too.  She has sex on the brain, like Damon, ha!  Then he mentions the Breakfast Club slide which he does, but Rebekah is hopeless.  Aside from the fact her boot heels changed from high to low heeled boots!  The revealing moment was when she realizes Stefan is after the dagger and gives it to him.

Elena calls Kol in the hopes of luring him somewhere so they can kill him off, however he turns up to their house and Jeremy (Steven R McQueen) has to invite him in, before Elena sends him away.  She asks him about Silas and wants a truce.  Kol's more interested in cutting off Jeremy's arm and not kill him since he doesn't want to be burdened with the hunter's curse, which will drive him mad.

All this backfires as we knew since Bonnie is meant to be having a family meeting with Rudy.  He believes Shane even though he's locked up but Bonnie says she can handle herself.  Jeremy wants her to come back with him but she's stopped at the door by her mother, Abby (Persia White).  She's warned her about using dark magic but Bonnie says expressionism isn't like that.  Bonnie uses her dark power over her mother to get away.  Also she used it on Kol before when he had her cornered at the school, so maybe Bonnie is becoming the proper witch she needed to be about two seasons ago.  Telling Rudy she's no longer in touch with the spirits but she's her own person.

Kol daggers Elena with a bit of wood from the stairs (ha)  and has Jeremy tied up until Elena frees herselft and Jeremy attacks him with the vervain hose and then Elena daggers him and he burns.  Klaus arrives in time and was that a tear he had in his eyes for Kol.  He swears revenge on them, especially since he was going to kill them all after they found the cure.  Bonnie arrives to save them and uses a moon spell to hold Klaus in the living room.  They have about three days to find the cure.  Damon also gets out and arrives to see Stefan bring back Silas's  headstone. Elena thinking he daggered Rebekah to get it.  Surprised then that Stefan didn't since she's on their side and trusts her.   Klaus is livid they killed Kol cos he wanted to take him down on his own terms. Rebekah is also saddened when Stefan tells her and she asks if Stefan knew all this time. See Rebekah is more into family than Klaus ever was or will be.  He also doesn't bloody care about the hybrids.

Perhaps she gave in when Stefan said he wants the cure for them, to find it for Jeremy, Elena, even wants to be there for Damon, but importantly he said he wants it for Rebekah.  So she can be human and have children, find that someone to love.  Which Rebekah actually believes.  So anyway Damon gets there in the nick to blab about Stefan and Rebekah being "naked in the sack."  Stefan knows he couldn't wait to get that in.  Wait am I missing something here, weren't Stefan and Rebekah together in the 1920's.  That glorious decade Rebekah keeps harping on about.  Besides why would Elena care what Stefan gets up to now she's got her hooks in Damon.  Hypocritical much Elena?

Klaus talking about Elena with Damon as if he has feelings for her, but it's Caroline he wants.  Infact he's getting advice on love from Damon wondering how Damon got Elena when he's after Jeremy and has been compelled by Kol.  Since Caroline won't even look at him after he killed Carol Lockwood.  Liked Damon's line of having to be the bad guy cos someone has to and he's not like Klaus when he is bad since he can control himself and knows when to stop.  What like the number of times he used to kill Alaric when he was angry and had to take that anger out on someone.

Wanted a bust up between the Salvatore brothers but Jeremy rips off his shirt Incredible Hulk style, to reveal the tattoo spreading all over his chest!  A great scene for Jeremy fans.  Also a great '80's theme for the episode for those of us who recall the glorious '80's.  With Stefan mentioning The Princess Bride, Say Anything.  Now I'd like to see Damon's revenge sex handbook, wouldn't you?  Stefan gives Damon water wonder if he knew it was laced with vervain, since Bonnie only found out from Rudy.  Also Stefan's not really one to drink water is he? SO funny how Rebekah didn't burn in the showers, oh and didn't Stefan hav one either.

Again Elena shows no remorse for killing off so many and it really didn't seem like it was in an attempt to save Jeremy but rather find the cure cos she looks as if she so desperately wants it.  Then being called a "Mary Sue vampire." So the plan worked eventually, though not Elena's one to rid Rebekah in the process. At least one good thing came out of it; they found out Klaus's true intentions and did they really trust him to begin with?

The title of course referring to a James Bond film and the theme song by Duran Duran, so it was only natural that Kol did his little "dance into the fire..." or dance of fire.  Klaus being so rattled by watching him as he always wants to be the one to torture his siblings and get his own way.  Oh that photo looks like Kol wants his way with Bonnie doesn't it, ha and poor Caroline's 89 red balloons strewn all over the place by now!

CSI 13.2 "Code Blue Plate Special" Review

                                       
The scene opens in Frank's Restaurant, the hang out of the CSIs, as each one of the regulars is shown, as well as the waitress, Edie (Elizabeth Bogush) who is afraid to go home cos of her stalker and is working late,  as he stands outside and watches her.  She asks the police to have a word with him, but he disappears.  Nick (George Eads) and Greg (Eric Szmanda) show up and find the CS.  Everyone is dead and they find Vincent (Ayre Gross) locked in the walk-in freezer.  That was convenient for him, as my sis blabbed he did it and I was about to say the same, especially since he had a 'convenient' alibi of being locked in.

They get to gathering evidence and Finn (Elisabeth Shue) arrives for her usual blood spatter analysis, looking at the ceiling she finds blood spatter on there as well as the counter.  She finds DB Owen's (Matt Hoffman) finger was shot off and landed by the door.  She stops a policeman from stepping on her finger.  Brass (Paul Guilfoyle) is angry the suspect stalker, was allowed to leave.

DB (Ted Danson) visits Ecklie (Marc Vann) in hospital and he's checking out.  Morgan (Elisabeth Harnois) is there to collect him but she's called in to the CS.  To which DB also arrives.  Finn shows him some discrepancies between the blood and the DBs, meaning three of them were moved, Rios (Yves Bright) Alex (Adrian Quinonez) and Connie (Del Hunter-White) so the CS was staged.

Hodges (Wallace Langham) pops his head through the door when Greg and Morgan are together and actually wanted to ask about Ecklie, however he was hoping for some conversation about her kissing him no doubt, unless that was resolved without us knowing.  Doc Robbins (Robert David Hall) and David (David Berman) are accosted by Basderic (Adam J Harrington) who says he's Edie's next of kin.  Doc sends out David to get Sara (Jorga Fox) as she's got the paperwork.  Took their time getting to Autopsy didn't they.  He wants to put a ring on Edie's finger as he was going to marry her but Doc can't let him touch the DB.

Basderic is arrested but claims he didn't shoot anyone as he hates guns and he loved Edie.  Rios doesn't have any criminal record but a red flag is raised when Alex's prints are checked.  Brass is visited by Deputy US Marshall Karen Taylor (Monnae Michaell) who tells them Alex was in witness protection but the Vegas brass (ha, sorry) didn't get a heads up cos they didn't know if they could trust the LVPD, due to the corruption investigation.  Doc finds Rios had polar fleece residue in his lungs as he was wearing a ski mask and had GS residue on him.  There were two guns at the scene and one of the guns belonged to Alex.

There's another callout to the same diner location where a newspaper delivery man shot off a gun accidentally. It was buried in the pile of newspapers.  Nick finds a second gun in another pile of papers.  Ecklie is also there when he's meant to be taking it easy.  Sara tests the papers for prints using ninhydrin which shows up a set of prints belonging to Basderic.  He is questioned and says the gun isn't his.  He touched the paper cos DB explains he's OCD.  He took the second paper out and not the top one which is folded and no one takes.  It's like taking bread from a packet, Sara says she takes a slice from the middle.

Sara doesn't like him though and does a search on him with Greg's help who finds he was involved in a civil case where he shot a man and the judge awarded him damages.  Apparently it was self defence, so much for not liking guns.

Finn prints the newspaper stand and finds she can't open it up cos there's a coin stuck in there.  Nick asks if she needs a quarter.  He removes the coin and finds it's Chinese.  Recalling Vincent keeps foreign coins behind the counter.  Thus he was involved.  At last figured that out ages ago, ha.  Vincent tells Nick he's not  a monster but he is, irrespective of getting all those innocent people killed, his regulars he's known for years, and shooting Edie through the head when she was still alive.  Vincent became a monster as soon as he thought up the plan to have his brother murdered.  Nick's familiarity with the restaurant and knowing Vincent so well breaks the case but also since he removed Vincent's apron from him as evidence since Vincent insisted on entering the CS when told not to.  Which was to get blood on himself just incase any traces were found on him.  He thinks he's clever just cos he's heard the CSIs talk about their cases when they're eating there.  Nick finds the apron Vincent was wearing when he was locked in the freezer was different to the one he cut from him.  Also Greg getting stuck in the freezer too where he found the camera placed there by Vincent, as another way of establishing an alibi.

Owen tried to wrestle with Rios and pulled his mask off, thus everyone saw his face and they had to be taken care of.  Rios shot each one of the diners in turn but why were they just sitting there when clearly they would have heard the gunshots going of.  Especially since Connie and Alex were at the back and may have made it out before Rios got to them.  At least Connie may have.  So they assumed the intended target was Alex but the crime and criminal were closer to home.  Vincent's greed go the better of him.

Sara telling Basderic that he got Edie killed as she was afraid to go home and her shift ended so she wouldn't have been there.  Yes he was to blame but she should have also vented her anger on Vincent, he was the instigator of the entire plan. But her anger was justified in such a creepy stalker as Basderic being able to get away and move on to another Vic.  Sara always takes a personal interest in most of her cases and Victims and it's good to see she still hasn't lost that caring streak after 13 years.  Though a bit disappointed there wasn't time for a continuation between Sara and Nick from last week when they were having their argument.  Seems Nick is firmly back in the ranks of the Vegas CSIs, which is great.  Seeing as he's also one of my fave CSIs.

Hodges is peeved he doesn't know about the restaurant cos he's never invited, well Nick's not listening.  There's still mention of the ongoing corruption scandal so hope there's more made of that even if it is early days yet. Notice the newspaper headlines they analyzed mentioning "Police scandal corruption opens doors to Appeals".  They always have some sort of a storyline in the CSI shows which leads to criminals being set free and having to deal with the fallout.  CSI:NY done it in 3.8 Consequences (one of my fave eps) and CSI:Miami has also covered it too.

Morgan didn't have much to do this episode and when she determines the angles of the bullets using lasers, she gets that wrong, since she places the oil can the wrong way round, would have thought she would have tried the can in all directions before concluding where the bullets came from.

Also DB is having family woes as Barbara has accompanied Maya back to Seattle and intends to stay there. The tension is apparent and he doesn't tell Finn when she asks if he's okay.  Barbara may be thinking of not coming back since DB is heard to tell her this is their home now. Kind of strange since they were always shown to have a strong marriage, the kidnapping has obviously shaken her.

Liked the reconstruction near the end showing where everyone was and what happened.  Took me back to the plane episode from the first season Unfriendly Skies, where they did something similar, that was one of my fave CSI eps.  Also this episode reminded me of CSI:NY season 1's Outside Man episode where the killer also killed everyone in the restaurant for personal reasons.  They turned out to be collateral damage since he was actually after his girlfriend as she was taking their children out of state.  Thus he made it look like a robbery gone wrong but he murdered all those other people too.  Here Vincent wanted to open  a diner in the Mediterranean but Owen was against the idea, so just to get him out of the way, he got Rios to kill him in a 'botched' robbery, but ended up with all those deaths on his hands.

Enjoyed this episode of CSI as the show gets back on track covering cases which have a personal impact on the entire team, which are always interesting to watch.

Tuesday 5 March 2013

666 Park Avenue 1.3 "The Dead Don't Stay Dead" Review

                                        
After the secret door closed on Jane (Rachael Taylor) last episode she finds herself stuck with no phone battery and then sees a little girl who grabs her ankle.  Anybody else would've been out of there quick smart, but she can't get out you see, so it was funny, amazing or just plain incredulous that Henry (Dave Annable) was the one to find her.  I mean I know Jane's been spending more than her fair share of time in the laundry but how did he know she was there and more importantly how did he wake up, seeing as how he's always dead to the world when Jane has her dreams/nightmares and doesn't stir at all.

Gavin  (Terry O'Quinn) greets Annie (Aubrey Dollar) a writer of obits moaning about having to write them, especially since she tells Brian (Robert Buckley) her mother wrote stories but was unpublished.  Gavin apparently thinks "cue deal here" and inspires her to let her imagination run world.  Thus she types up an obit for Diebold (really Die Bold) and turns him into an American hero with links to the CIA and the Russian Mafia and an assassin named Kandinsky.  Just cos she sees the name on a book.  Huh Kandinsky reminds me of Revenge and Ashley who was going to talk art with the Russians in order for them to not make her a sex slave.  Sorry digression there, unless you're a Revenge viewer!

She sits stuck in traffic in a taxi and the news mentions the death of Diebold, it's her obit being becoming reality.  At work she looks at her mother's photo and prints a retraction of her obit lying about what a well published author she was.  Er, this was all wrong, I mean even if she's an obit writer, you don't embellish or make up obits.  Hey anyone recall Over My Dead Body the TV series from the '90's, the lead was an obit writer too.  Anyway after Annie writes her mother's new obit, her clothes change and she's called in to write about Diebold, this time a 'serious' article on him.  Serious that's funny since she'll make it up too.

Apparently Gavin's little ploy of letting her imagination run wild means whoever she thinks up becomes real.  Cue Kandinsky as she describes him she arrives at the Drake, zigzag scar 'n'all.  Knocking on her door, she sees him through the peep hole and he captures her, holding her hostage.  Hey she can't change the story since her hands are tied and me thinks she must type in order for events to take place.

So it's the anniversary of Sasha's death.  Sasha being Gavin and Olivia's (Vanessa Williams) daughter.  Jane finds out when she asks Gavin about the orchids in the building, whilst wanting the original blueprints to the Drake.  He's taking Henry to his club and he wants her to take Olivia to lunch.  Cue Olivia back from another shopping expedition.  Jane tells Henry about the girl and her ankle but he thinks she heard voices through the grate.  She might be a little crazy.  Though for now, Jane appears to be the same one of the lot.

Gavin steers Henry towards higher ambitions and he has an interview with a councilman for chief of staff but that's in 4 weeks, to which Gavin tells him the position could already be filled.  What's with Gavin and his quest to acquire real estate anyway, some dream of his to build a hell on earth.  Anyway Henry walks up to the councilman (Clark Johnson) and scores himself a job after he tells him he won't be elected mayor and will be out of a job in six months.  Later councilman wants his incentive for giving Henry the job as Gavin wanted, but Gavin isn't obliging.  Instead Gavin wants a certain piece of real estate which he refuses.  Thus Gavin shows him the exit, through the liftshaft!  Gavin and lifts!

Brian wants Henry to check his lease agreement to see if they can break it but Henry tells him Gavin made a good deal.  Of course it's unbreakable.  Henry then notices Alexis (Helena Mattsson) who strips in front of the window again but covers herself up when she sees it's not Brian perving.  Yeah and what was it with Alexis walking in on them and straight to their bedroom too earlier on.  Brian invites Henry and Jane out later on.

At lunch Jane confides in Olivia thinking she might be a little crazy and Olivia confides in her about Sasha and a letter she left her, which Gavin doesn't know about.  She takes Jane for a speedy spin in the Porsche and stops before hitting the concrete wall.  Saying Sasha killed herself even though Gavin calls it an accident.  He has to know she killed herself, heck he probably drove her to it.  That's why what I don't understand is that if she was Olivia's daughter and his, why no deal to bring her back, or at least some sort of necromancer ritual or something.  Jane mentions "sometimes I feel the dead won't stay dead" and then realizes what she just said.

Jane finds herself in the laundry again and Gavin brings the blueprints to her there, just when she was seeing blood drip from the door in pints.  How did he know she was there?  Scratch that, why didn't Jane realize he found her there and came all the way down there to give her the blueprints.  Bit far fetched wouldn't you say.  Brian and Louise (Mercedes Masohn) take them to a club and Henry lets slip about the lease as Louise doesn't know.  Apparently Brian was a bit of a celebrated writer with a play on Broadway.  So what happened, he didn't make a deal with Gavin and thus lost his ability to write.  Alexis turns up too, ugh.  Wish they'd get the story over with her already.

Jane sees the girl in the corridor and she tells her "don't let him out."  She heads down there again in the night and brings back a suitcase. Olivia burns the note, but not before we see the words, "he is evil" written in it.  Referring to Gavin so why doesn't Olivia believe or is she under his thumb too.  Gavin aspires Henry he should aim higher and be the campaign instead of running it.

So referring back to Supernatural and this episode and the "dead won't stay dead line" and title, Supernatural had a similar episode with Dean mentioning how "what's dead should stay dead."  Quite a few similarities here too between the too, with the girl appearing when she's dead, the creepy dolls, and toys and how she walked across the screen.

I somehow feel Annie got her just desserts for making up obits like that and selling them as real journalism.  It's not as if journalists haven't got a bad name already, along with lawyers, yes this means you Henry.  He's kind of a wimp wouldn't you say, if he has dreams he should follow them and not settle for second best, easier said than done, but he has to have Gavin telling him to reach his goals all the time and realize his potential.

Why was Olivia so interested in Jane and Henry's sex life, it's too similar to Brain and Louise, first they couldn't 'get it on' and now they can after Louise returned from hospital and that scene with Brian and Alexis last ep.  What's Olivia doing, manipulating the Drake's resident's sex lives or something?

Monday 4 March 2013

Revenge 2.9 "Revelations" Review

Emily: "For the righteous a revelation is a joyous event.  The realization of a divine truth.  But for the wicked revelations can be far more terrifying when dark secrets are exposed and sinners are punished for their trespasses." Funny this opening has religious connotations as far as revelations are concerned.  Haven't done that before.

Conrad (Henry Czerny) and Victoria (Madeleine Stowe) are at a skeet shooting party and Victoria inevitably excels in this, as does Emily (Emily VanCamp).  Infact most everyone turns up here, all who are plotting that is.  Where introduced to us is Salvador Grobet (Joaquim de Almeida) [may as well have called him Grab-it - the way his name was pronounced, ha] has a bit of a wondering eye for ladies (used loosley where Ashley (Ashley Madekwe) is concerned) and who Daniel (Josh Bowman) wants to side with him in the takeover for the Grayson Global board.  Thus Daniel brings skank Ashley to the fore, a big mistake on his part especially since Grobet is a womanizer, having problems with his wife and also since further down the track it will be revealed just how much of a schemer Ashley really is.

Emily and Aiden (Barry Sloane) root for Daniel to become CEO and so they'll have a line to the initiative with Aiden having a place on the board.  Nolan (Gabriel Mann) is there too with the NolCorp takeover being on the agenda and he tells her he's got an ace up his sleeve but doesn't tell her what that is exactly.   No to mention Conrad getting a call from Helen (Wendy Crewson) who tells him Daniel will be in danger if Conrad and Victoria prevent him taking over as CEO.  She hangs up when Victoria grabs the phone.  Aiden kisses Emily's cheek when he leaves and Nolan points to his own cheek too but he doesn't get a kiss.  In fact he gets a surprise instead when he turns up at Grayson to lose 51% of his company to Daniel and he has to oblige cos of Marco (EJ Bonillo) who hasn't all but told Daniel where the money disappeared to.  Instead he's angling for a job, his old one as CFO, which we know has been taken over by Padma (Dilshad Vadsaria).

Marco continues to harass Nolan even at the bar, infact to the point of blackmail and Nolan later tells Padma he's looking for a position for Marco.  She's livid about that but I wouldn't trust her either so I didn't like him telling her how how Nolan intends to be a Trojan horse inside the company.  I find it remarkable that Marco was also able to piece together that Amanda (Margarita Levieva) never got any of the money judging from the Stowaway and he has more ammo to hold over Nolan.  So maybe she likes to live in poverty and is miserly, did he think about that?  Apparently he and Mason would have had a goo,d seedy double act going.

It's Carl's christening and Jack (Nick Wechsler) foolishly invites the Ryan's too.  Foolishly since it's not until later that Matt (Jonathan Adams) turns up and warns him about the brothers and how they are Joe Ryan's sons and he needs to get out from under their thumbs.  Emily is envious of Amanda and how she's got her hands on Jack and has a family too and Amanda notices this as she tells Emily she too deserves a family and should give up on this revenge business, asking when it's going to be enough.

Matt is beaten up by and Nate, mostly Nate (Michael Trucco) and when he's found by Charlotte (Christa B Allen) he tells Jack that he shot Joe and their father hid the gun on the boat.  So what's he going to do with that now.  Their father's little black book goes missing and later Nate brings it back with Matt's name crossed out in red.  I was surprised that it took Jack that long to spell out the connection between the Ryan name with that of Joe Ryan.  There can't be that many Ryan's about in the same place and conveniently stumbling into the Stowaway too.  Jack asks Nolan for help on info on the brothers and he finds they're nasty people.  Nate having a criminal record and Kenny (JR Bourne) doesn't even own a house here.

Emily and Aiden spy on the Grayson's and watch Ashley as she tries to poison Daniel against Aiden.  Thus Emily comes up with a plan of sending Victoria footage of Ashley and Conrad together.  This she shows to Ashley and Conrad who claims it was when they were divorced and she adds it only happened once.  Victoria tells him he has "wormed your way into the very nadir of repugnance." Oh those classy lines Victoria!  Conrad tells Victoria she can get revenge on him after they save Daniel.

Daniel however is in no mood to be saved as he follows in daddy dearest footsteps showing he's a Grayson through and through. Victoria attempts to use Ashley to seduce Salvador into siding with Conrad but that backfires when Emily finds out and Aiden shows Daniel the footage of her dirty deed.  Thought Daniel would have had more brains and would have figured out Ashley was doing the dirty on him with Conrad, I mean she was working for him, and providing other 'favours' for him wouldn't be that far removed.  Eeww, especially after she was also with Tyler.  Gosh, talk about cast offs!!

Danie turns up courtesy of Aiden and takes a photo of Salvador and Ashley in bathrobes to use as leverage against him.  If he doesn't side with him then he'll send it to his wife. Victoria attempts to force Daniel's hand and tells him not to go through with the takeover since he'll be in danger but she can't elaborate.  Thus he gets his way and becomes CEO.  Breaking the news to Aiden that there's no place for him on the board since he has acquired NolanCorp and so their profits will increase and no one wants to vacate their place.  Well that was a turn up for the books.  After all that.  However they got Daniel in with the initiative.  Later Daniel deletes photos of him and Ashley but keeps the ones of him and Emily.  Then picks up a card with the message, "welcome to the fold."  And a clock, which contains a camera and none other than the initiative watching.

Taking leaves out of Emily's books are they?! Ha.  Oh come on, would you keep a clock from a stranger?  It didn't even look expensive.  Victoria slaps Conrad and he can "take your pick" for whatever that was for.  Victoria calls Emily for help with Daniel but sees her with Aiden and will call her back.

Emily: "Revelations can help us accept the things we need the most.  Expose the secrets we so desperately try to hide and illuminate the dangers all around us.  But more than anything, revelations are windows into our true selves, both the good and the evil and those wavering somewhere in between, with the ultimate power to destroy all that we cherish most."

Plenty of backstabbing going on here, using Nolan's phrase of "come to remove the knife from my back" and Emily having to come up with countermeasures to counteract the countermeasures so they can get their own way in the end.  About Ashley, has she so very little memory or bairn cells, how come she doesn't recall Aiden as the bartender from that Russian bar, where perhaps she should have been left.  Let's face it, the Hamptons has done very little for her.  Oh that look she gave when she was preening herself in the mirror when Victoria spies on her.  Was she trying got mimic Madame Victoria.  Sorry love, you failed miserably!

Daniel's prob on a mission to get Emily now and maybe his refusing to have Aiden on the board was his way of getting one up on Aiden as far as she's concerned.  Daniel does have a shady side to him but don't think it's any match for the initiative or indeed whatever Nolan has planned for him and I can't wait for him to continue his Trojan horsing around!




Sunday 3 March 2013

Mr Selfridge Series 1 Episode 9 Review

                                       
The episode opens with Agnes (Aisling Loftus) and Henri (Gregory Fitoussi) wanting her to stay for longer with him, but she's already been late for work before, it's fine for him to show up late.  Though she needs to fix her hair.  Gordon ((Adam Wilson) is excited about seeing Sir Ernest Shackleton (Mark Dexter) at the store as he's there to give a lecture on his exploration to the Antarctic.  Rosalie (Poppy Lee Friar) gets a bouquet of flowers from Roddy (Oliver Jackson-Cohen) which Rose (Frances O'Connor) thinks are for her from Harry (Jeremy Piven).  Don't think he'd be giving her flowers especially since he hasn't really done anything wrong or to feel guilty about yet, ha.  When Rose finds out they're from Roddy to encourage Rosalie with her drawing.  Rose asks for the flowers to be returned and for no more to be accepted from the same address.

Rosalie won't go to the lecture and runs to her room.  Rose tells Harry that Roddy was here and he's furious he wasn't told before.  Rose thinking she could handle it, or more likely, deep down she wanted to see Roddy again, it was apparent when she later tells Rose why she can't see Roddy.  He's a man and she's just a 17 year old girl and he came to their house uninvited by her parents.  Even if Rosalie is infatuated with him, when she's a mother she'll understand what Rose was trying to do.  To be a good mother and she hopes she can teach that to Rosalie.  When Rosalie tells her about the pain in her stomach when she thinks of Roddy, Rose can understand what she's going through cos she feels it too.

Miss Bunting (Pippa Haywood) puts an envelope addressed to Harry in her bag and leaves her place.  Obvious what she is going to do.  The staff are late and Grove (Tom Goodman-Hill) doesn't know where they are.  Kitty (Amy Beth Hayes) comes in flustered saying there's an incident at Bond Street station with the tube and she was able to get out.  Gordon wonders what it is to be a good leader, something which Harry will ponder later on. Perhaps he should have also thought what it means to be a good family man too.

Crab (Ron Cook) asks if he can help Irene (Anna Madeley) at the Fashion department since Henri once again steals Agnes away for help with a window for Shackleton's visit.  A lady is embarrassed to ask for underwear whilst he's there and so Miss Mardle (Amanda Abbington) is brought in instead.  Clearly the two have a rivalry especially when Miss Mardle tries to sell some material to a customer.  Who walks away undecided.

Grove breaks the bad news to Harry concerning Miss Bunting, found under the tube and they identified her as well as a note addressed to him.  Doris (Lauren Crace) listens in and is upset by the whole news.  Grove comforts her, obviously making a play for her now since clearly Miss Mardle no longer interests him and tells Doris the same thing he did a few episodes ago about her having a good heart and being caring.  Especially when she recalls his wife and his looking after her.  He suggests they meet at the teashop later on as a tribute to Miss Bunting.  Grove thinking he should have written her a referemce himself. I said that too, but it's too late now.

The news distresses Harry and he wants to pay for the funeral expenses as well as attending in person.  Frank (Samuel West) has been fired and asks Harry for a job as press officer but Harry can't think about that now which not only surprises him but sets him straight off to Ellen Love (Zoe Tapper).  She thinks he can help her edit the play she's acting in and even more so when he tells her he has woes about "our mutual friend."

Victor (Trystan Gravelle) pays a visit to Lady Mae (Katherine Kelly) after having gotten time away by telling Perez (Timothy Watson) that Fortnam and Mason are designing a new menu and he should check it out as Harry would appreciate it.  She once gain falters on giving him any backing for his restaurant and Victor tells her he can't see her anymore.  "Dear heart" (as she calls him, so I called her the same, ha) wasn't too pleased about that as she turns up to the store later on with news that she will see Lord Loxley and ask him for money.  However Victor sees through her telling her she only wants to control everything.  Particularly after her, "you'll be in my debt" line she used on Harry too.  He refuses and they part ways.  But Agnes still believes in him.

Irene catches Henri touching Agnes's cheek and asks her if she loves him, if she does then she won't stand in the way of true love.  Agnes admits she doesn't and Irene warns her about her job which is what she should be thinking of.  Valerie (Josephine de la Baume) returns and Agnes did look jealous of her coming back but she's only visiting.  SO it was strange why Agnes said she doesn't love him.  Valerie wants Henri to come back to New York but he doesn't want to return.  Agnes commenting on Valerie's outfit as being from New York, but she says it's French through and through, which was funny since it reminded me of Charlie Chaplin for some reason, you know the tie and hat.

Harry receives Shackleton and has a press call, with Shackleton asking Gordon to put forward a question, thus his line of "what makes a good leader," which Shackleton doesn't answer yet.  The display is of the car he used in the Antarctic and Gordon is able to tell him everything on what the furs are made of etc.  He'll make a good explorer but he wants to follow in Harry's footsteps.  Harry replies there's plenty of exploring to be done here in the store, that's how those objects were found.

Rose sees Roddy with Rosalie and Harry takes care of him, he was rather restrained.  Roddy tells him how he doesn't appreciate Rose and he humiliates her and all the time he was with Ellen.  Harry threatens to destroy his painting career if he sets foot in the store again or has anything to do with his family.  Thought he'd have a change of heart about being true to Rose but that wouldn't be the case obviously.  Shackleton speaks of having to come home to save his men, he put his men first and brought them out of the cold.  Harry talks to his Head of Departments, reading out Miss Bunting's letter of not wanting them to be unhappy for her and to move on.  He says he left an employee out in the cold and it's never to happen again.

Poor Crab didn't even get Shackleton's autograph!  Harry looks at Rose's portrait and says he's going to have another one commissioned but she doesn't want that.  Then confronts her about Roddy telling him she loves him.  She replies "you believe whatever you want to believe."  Prompting him to storm out and head to the club, where he meets a woman in red.  Here we go again, he finds someone else or was that Ellen again?

Harry has his chance to make amends with Rose and he didn't take it.  Didn't think he'd let Rose leave with that sort of an answer and would have demanded more from her.  Since her telling him earlier on that nothing happened wasn't enough.  Then again it's back to double standards again and it's okay for the man to have his affairs but not for his wife and any other woman.  Not that I'm endorsing extra marital affairs or anything like that, but talking about the times they lived in!

Kitty was showing off mighty airs and graces too with having Doris call her 'Miss Hawkins' and she reprimanded George (Calum Callahan) for being on the shop floor.  Wouldn't he know where he belongs without her pointing it out.  She the apologizes to Doris and suggests they go for a bun and tea.  But Doris has plans.  Irene and Miss Mardle become one step closer to being friends as Irene remarks on it being lonely in the snow and ice.  Miss Mardle replies you don't have to be there to be alone.  Irene also mentioning how hard it is for women to find a man and if you so, then you can't work.  It's unfair that's why she joined the suffragette's and Miss Mardle agrees to go to their next meeting.

There's quite a lot happening in the penultimate episode in terms of new relationships being put forward for series 2 to explore and new avenues to pursue in terms of storylines.  Was Harry's threatening of Roddy enough to keep him away, he is kind of shifty and doesn't listen, wanting his own way, or has Harry's actions driven Rose to him?  Harry can't stay away from other women and even the trauma of the day hasn't led him to make amends or to give up his philandering ways for a while, then again some would say Rose only has herself to blame this time round, she practically drove him away.  Yet she still loves Harry.  Their relationship is complex, to say the least.


666 Park Avenue 1.2 "Murmurations" Review

                                             
The scene opens with Gavin (Terry O'Quinn) walking out of the lift to the tune of 'you belong to me' which was appropriate considering practically everyone's soul from the Drake does belong to him.  Especially ironic, eerie as the same line plays when Henry (Dave Annable) walks out too.  Lift inspection shows there was nothing wrong with the lift and Jane (Rachael Taylor) goes into the room vacated by John Barlow in the Pilot; since the wall 'devoured' him.  Jane is peeved and tells Tony (Erik Palladino) about this since she's the manager and no one told her.  Also telling him it was Gavin who gave her the job, seeing as he may have wanted it.  Masses of birds fly out through the window, exiting from the hole.  Of course all Alfred Hitchcock fans will point to his movie, The Birds.  Which I also mentioned even before Jane does.

She gets in an exterminator who tells her they're starlings and there are hundreds of them down there.  Jane was game popping her head through the hole, anything could have happened, but it wouldn't, not to Jane, not yet anyway.  He tells her the starlings are called 'murmurations' like a murder of crows, collectively used to describe them.  She also has him dig open the hole in the laundry, where the door was concealed.

Henry and Jane have been invited to yet another party thrown by Gavin and Olivia (Vanessa Williams).  Where Henry was meant to chance upon the new building Gavin wants to build on the land he is acquiring in a  deal with Frank Alpern (Mike Doyle). The couple are also introduced to Danielle (Mili Avital) who remarks on Henry being 'a keeper.'  She's having troubling dating and keeping any man and Gavin books a table for her at a swanky, romantic restaurant for her and her date.

Jane sees Nona (Samantha Logan) and tells her about her missing necklace, belonging to her grandmother and she'll keep an eye out for it.  What I want to know is why if Nona is a clairvoyant doesn't she save the people she sees in her visions, or at least tell someone about them. Not that there's anyone she can trust there, so maybe she may find an ally in Jane.  It's almost as if she's part of some 'deal' with Gavin.  Nona ventures down to the laundry and steals the exterminator's rabbit's paw, having a vision of him being attacked by birds and killed.  Though when we see him he's attacked by the birds and is run over. hey she stole his good luck charm!

Henry's invited Gavin and Olivia over to dinner and Jane must cook for them.  He also mentions the case he's working on, re the land acquisition to Jane and the land has traces of poisonous elements so can never be developed.  He can't tell Gavin cos he'll lose his job and he'll end up in Indiana.

At the restaurant, Gavin invites Danielle over to join him and his friend, Frank, for a drink as he's interested in her and naturally they hit it off, or so she thinks.  Jane had another dream the night before, though it wasn't really a dream, but she sees a dead man wake up, when she goes to get the laundry late night.  She asks Tony about any murders at the Drake and he tells her there have been suicides but no murders.  Yeah the suicides being of people who can no longer live with the deals they've made.

When she returns home from visiting Louise (Mercedes Masohn) in the hospital where she doesn't want to get in the middle when Louise suggests she's thinking about suing Gavin for the lift incident.  Jane finds an envelope slipped under her door containing a cutting about the murder of a man at the Drake, shot to death.  Jane later has a vision and sees him being shot by a woman.  Relevant since Frank tells Danielle he's married and she's sure she didn't see a ring before.  So she was just a one night stand to him and she stabs him.  Gavin naturally walks in to save the day and reminds her of all the other men she's killed over the years.  She glimpses herself in the mirror and she's old.  He tells her she'll be fine in the morning, which she is.  Gavin wanted her to kill Frank since he wanted to get out of the investment with him.

Gavin tells Henry he knows he couldn't tell him about the land and he's glad since it shows he's got integrity.  Anyway he sold the land to a Chinese company before news got out it's worthless.  Brain (Robert Buckley) is finally seduced by Alexis (Helena Mattsson) and no amount of curtain drawing will change that.  Gavin gives Louise a cheque, virtually buying them off for the lift 'accident.'  So they're his now.  Funny the timing of that cheque which came after Brian has been unfaithful.

The scene where the exterminator was attacked was reminiscent of the bird attack in The Birds, where they wait to pounce on their Vic, which was rather atmospheric.  Olivia, only used in the dinner scenes and taking Danielle shopping.  Please, that's all she used to do in Desperate Housewives and prob Ugly Betty too.  the dead man, Ed was a resident of apartment 7G, which is now inhabited by none other than Danielle.  But the apartment was probably hers to begin with.

Gavin doesn't want Jane to remove the birds since it's their home too and will come in handy no doubt to remove future dissatisfied 'customers.'  He also wants Jane to clear up the basement.
Gavin: "Finding love makes it worth the pain of searching for it." Gavin's creepy line which he says twice and both times to Danielle.  I want to know what happened to Olivia's daughter and why she didn't or couldn't save her.  Did she make a deal, or couldn't she?  Also wondering how she met Gavin to begin with?

This ep was relatively tame, you know, no scary, terrifying moments which you'd think you'd get in a show with such a title.  Seems the powers that be are taking too long in building up the stories and the suspense, no wonder it was cancelled by ABC.  The plots needed to be more attention-grabbing from the outset.  Should have taken a leaf out of Supernatural for how to do scary!

Friday 1 March 2013

The Mentalist 5.11 "Days of Wine and Roses" Review

Lisbon (Robin Tunney) pays a visit to Judge Davis (Amy Aquino) in the hopes of getting a warrant to proceed with the investigation on Volker (Henry Ian Cusick) particularly his financial records to ascertain the identity of the hitman he used.  She's obtained an independent autopsy on the Vic Amanda Shaw, as her death was ruled a suicide, the pathology report indicates the ligature marks aren't consistent with suicide.  The judge is surprised Bertram paid for an other examination but Lisbon admits she paid for it herself.  The judge thinking this is personal for her.  Which it is considering she promised Amanda she would protect her and keep her safe.  She feels Judge Davis won't be intimated by Volker or the fact he's friends with the governor.  How wrong could she be.  Good to see Lisbon being so emotionally involved, just as long that doesn't lead to her making mistakes.

She then arrives at another CS where Patrick (Simon Baker) is already there, observing the chess players, one in particular, as he drinks from a whiskey bottle.  He remarks on Lisbon's mood, hoping she has found a breakthrough in the Volker case, or love cos she deserves it.  At this point many will say it's kind of odd Patty should have said that considering he hasn't mentioned anything like that before.  Don't think it really means anything about his 'feelings' for her though.  He seemed genuinely sincere and anyway she doesn't reply.

The Vic is a model, Charlie (Michelle LaRue) who Patrick points out shaved her legs and so was meeting someone for a date.  They always get those tell tale indicators which point to a date or romantic evening.  Whilst Lisbon is left to talk to the first responders, Patrick makes a beeline for the cheese players.  He challenges one of them by taking the place of his opponent on the undertaking he'll win his money back for him.  Then asks where the Vic's wallet is since he bought an expensive bottle of whiskey since he's not that good a player.  As Patrick takes him to check mate.

Lisbon and Patrick talk with Charlie's parents, Jeff (Sam Hennings) and Lisa (Kathe E Mazur) who tell them about her Lisa's stolen ruby necklace but Lisa's insists the maid did it and so she had to fire her.  Especially since Charlie liked her and wouldn't want her to be fired of Charlie had stolen the necklace.  Charlie was at a drug rehab facility, which is the duo's next point of call.  Curiously there was no sighting of the maid.

At rehab Dr Reuben (Dennis Boutsikaris) who runs Oasis Ranch Rehab, has a psychiatry degree which Patrick finds amusing, not to mention perfect since the psychiatrist almost always does it.  Re Pilot ep where Dr Linus Wagner (Zeljko Ivanik) was a psychiatrist, aka the Red John copycat killer.  Nice bit of continuity going a long way back.  Though he did appear in the show again in season 3's Ball of Fire.  Reuben also he points out Patrick must have been in a facility himself, which he has.  But Patrick seemed rather standoffish in the sense he was nonchalant with the place since he's had his fair share of psycho analysis.  Maybe it was just a touche moment as Patty looks at Lisbon, ha.

Reuben also mentions they have high profile patients that they have to keep reporters out, also how people who are newly sober tend to act out sexually.  Surely not a reference to Patrick, since he does have a Red John obsession meaning he can't move on and meet someone else.  Mind you, that wasn't the case with Lorelei.  He did sleep with her albeit in the interests of getting info on RJ and then there was Erica.

Van Pelt (Amanda Righetti) finds Volker paid a Charles Milk $25,000 and Volker turns up in her office.  He tells her she looks good which was just his way to get under her skin and unnerve her since Lisbon did look relieved to have him gone when she throws him out of her office.  He mentions she's been working out, but that was after he tells her she should have asked him for his financial records as he believes in transparency.  yeah to the point in being so 'free' with the detective investigating him.  Has he been spying on her, should say perving, he's rather creepy.  Lisbon did look a little out of her depth without Patrick there to interject and basically butt in with his observations and wry comments.  However throughout the ep she insists she doesn't need his help and will handle this on her own.

Patrick is complimentary of her good police work, admiring her "pluck."  Yet he's worried Volker may be inside her head, he knows what that's like, having an adversary inside his head.  He wants her to be careful.  Whilst he sneaks off into the rehab facility and continues to nose around, er, investigate.  Lisbon sends in reinforcements in the form of Cho (Tim Kang) well to babysit and it's always Cho.  Like he and Patty have some sort of an understanding.

Patrick meets Johanna Lyle, who was Charlie's counsellor and tells Patrick she's not a doctor and also that she doesn't smoke.  She's also been burning the midnight oil she claims by having to work nights.  Anyway she was my suspect as soon as she opened her mouth!  She introduces them to Charlie's roommate Susie (Mary Lynn Rajskub) and Patrick notices a card from her parents saying they're proud of her.  The roommate asks Patrick if it's 'Jane' as in Austen or 'Jayne' as in Mansfield, obviously cos the two have different spellings.  Patrick replies 'Austen'.  That was a clue for later since it relates to the spelling of his name for 'journalistic purposes' since Van Pelt finds Tweets posted about the facility and celebs/patients there.

Patrick proceeds to gatecrash a rehab class where he wafts around the jasmine perfume which he sprayed onto his hanky from Charlie's bottle.  Obviously smells trigger memories, but in this case it was just another ploy.  There are two men there Armando (Jean Paul San Pedro) and Phoenix (Ken Luckey) and one of them is her boyfriend, so he sets them up saying Armando was sleeping with Charlie.  Then once again steps back in true Patrick form where they're at each other's throats.

Patrick later surmises Lisbon is going to her Thursday night poker game and it's an attempt for her to try another judge for a warrant.  This time she asks Judge Manchester (John Rubinstein) and uses the 'fear' card to get her way.  Obviously Volker or someone got to Judge Davis since she doesn't oblige with the warrant for Milk.  It was apparent the way she refused and even Manchester knew about Davis refusing.  Anyway Lisbon gets her warrant and also a call from Volker telling her in no uncertain terms Milk won't be helpful, which turns out to be true since Van Pelt finds him at a railroad crossing dead along with other two others, apparently a drive by shooting.  That was convenient.  But were the couple just innocent bystanders?

At rehab Patrick speaks with Susie again and asks her for a cup of tea, then thanks her by calling her Margaret, her real name.  That's why she asked him about Austen or Mansfield.  Also no addict would have a stash of camomile or mint tea.  She found Charlie changed after she received her parents card and was writing a letter in Spanish which she threw out.  She only knew the words 'Lo siento' Spanish for "I'm sorry."  Thus Charlie was writing to the maid.  Patrick then sets about stealing belongings from the patients.  He's with Lisbon when she gets the call about the thefts and she doesn't accompany him, but turns up later.  Cho sees Patrick pocket a watch in their rouse to draw out the killer.

This leads to another meeting with Reuben and Johanna and surprised that no one saw how Patrick's behaviour had changed.  As he now acts like he's in need of help for his kleptomania.  Lisbon mentions the ruby necklace is found in his car and lo and behold, my suspect, Johanna heads directly to her secret hiding place and pulls out the necklace! No one even knew she had the necklace so why go and check.  Even of they did find it they wouldn't know for certain who had put it there.  This time Rigsby (Owain Yeoman) gets to talk with her, darn and last time I said it was always Van Pelt who did that.

Johanna's a gambling addict and was in debt.  She needs the money and so killed Charlie for the necklace.  Rigsby is disgusted she let her parents believe their daughter was an addict and she claims she's got a disease.  Rather ironic since she's there to help people in that very same position and yet she can't help herself. Especially after her line to Patrick, "it's not your fault, there's nothing to be ashamed of,"  re his kleptomania.  Well no there isn't considering he's not a kleptomaniac to begin with.  But you Johanna are a whole different ballgame.

Nice moments: Patrick with his fists in response to Reuben with his thumbs up!  Also Lisbon finally asking Patrick for help after thinking she could go it alone.  Hey she deserves some credit here of course she managed quite a bit without Patrick being around.  That meeting with Volker and then the phonecall from him.  She exhausted all legal avenues like a good detective.
As for Patty, made a few boo-boos, okay Johanna didn't smoke but spent time around smoke, thus a reference to casinos and she mentions not having to commute between here and halfway to Reno.  What's in Reno?  Casinos.

Patrick playing chess against himself, priceless.

The title could be a reference to the 1896 poem Vitae Summa Brevis by Ernest Dowson : "They are not long the days of wine and roses.  Out of a misty dream our path emerges for a while and then closes with a dream."  Could mean all kinds of things here, re Lisbon's path emerging with Volker, wonder how long that will last.  Hopefully not long since we don't really want Lisbon getting her head all messed up in the same way as Patrick with Red John.  It could get boring having two elusive adversaries for both our leads.

Also the title is a 1962 Jack Lemmon film about two people who become alcoholics and need to deal with their addiction.







Thursday 28 February 2013

CSI:NY: Beyond 10 Seasons...or at Least 10

                                       
Every year CSI:NY comes up with exceptional stories and every year it ends up being on the bubble, whereas other lightweight shows always get renewed without problems.  This year with the close of season 9 in the US, the show once again finds itself on the bubble.  You'd think by now that all concerned with the show would get some kudos and recognition from the network after 9 years of hard slog.  But no.  Guess it's too much to ask for a show to get a renewal for a double figure 10 without any hassles, or keeping fans on tenterhooks.

Pam Veasey commented on how "it is sort of an incredible challenge each year to leave it open."  As she told TVGuide.  As well as adding "no one told us to write it so it ends."  Well no one would, would they?  Maybe that's a good thing and maybe it isn't.  But I for one have been saying it every year the show has been on the bubble, this is the third time now, that there should be at least 10 years of CSI:NY if not more.  Practically mentioned it in most of my articles. Of course we want more seasons!

Season 9 was more character focused and though it has yet to air on TV in the UK, Channel 5 have put it back this year for some reason since we used to get it in February.  Hate the way their excuse is to say that "schedules are fixed a few weeks in advance" so they won't know when it's airing but they didn't give any reason as to why it's not being shown now.

Gary Sinise said the season 9 finale entitled Life Today is a "very nice ending.  I think people who have watched these characters grow will enjoy it."   The episode involves Mac (Gary Sinise) and Flack (Eddie Cahill) under siege in the precinct as an angry mob gathers outside.  They're angry over whether or not an unarmed man was shot by the police.  We all know how tense those scenarios can get in real life too.

Hopefully it'll be as exciting as Snow Day.  That was a great Flack ep: never seen Flack run around so much!!  However on a serious note Gary explained how the plot is kind of based on events from the 1970's when a police station was 'stormed' and officers were injured.

However some fans are already bemoaning the end of the show since they point to Hill Harper, who played Sheldon Hawkes, leaving and joining Covert Affairs.  Thus they feel he knows something the rest of us don't.  Which isn't necessarily the case, especially since Hill tweeted that if the show returns he could be back.  Though that could even be for just guest spots.

I for one however refuse to give up and am keeping everything physically able to crossed!! I need my Flack fix and Danny (Carmine Giovinazzo) and Jo (Sela Ward) and Adam (AJ Buckley)...

You can reminisce season 1 with my book New York Minutiae. An Unofficial and Unauthorized Guide to CSI:NY.  Available online from amazon, Barnes and Noble, WH Smith etc

Wednesday 27 February 2013

The Vampire Diaries 4.11 "Catch Me If You Can" Review

                                        
Lots happening this episode as Rebekah (Claire Holt) recaps what Stefan (Paul Wesley) said last episode about each of the players being on a team paired together and how they have nothing.  The sheriff (Marguerite MacIntyre) arrests Shane (David Alpay) after what April told them last episode and he's not talking so Bonnie (Kat Graham) tells her father (Rick Worthy) she wants a minute with him and what a long minute that turned out to be.  Before Shane was arrested, he helped Bonnie control her magic which she was unable to do.  Here he mutters under his breath that they're right he did kill those council members in a ritual.

Stefan and Rebekah break into Shane's office and look for a headstone that will help them in the search for the cure.  Rebekah also tells Stefan how he was great in the '20's they had more fun.  He says he was crazy back then and she remarks on the sex being great cos he replies, he was crazy and it was crazy sex.  Ugh you just thought they'd be at each other's throats there and then but no, someone breaks into his office also looking for the headstone.  When they try and question him, they realize he's been compelled since he bites off his tongue and then stabs himself in the neck.

Klaus (Joseph Morgan) says the plan's changed and he sends the vampires after Jeremy (Steven R McQueen) so he'll have to kill them.  Otherwise Matt (Zach Roerig) will be killed instead.  They're hunted in the woods by the vampires and head for the cabin as they won't be able to get in.  Elena (Nina Dobrev) arrives of course and saves Matt.  Then takes Matt home.  Wouldn't he have been safer at the cabin., not only that but then he turns up for work too.  Meanwhile Kol (Nathanial Buzolic) has Damon (Ian Somerhalder) and Jeremy cornered at the Grill.  He wants Jeremy to back off from killing the vampires which he killed instead cos he doesn't want Silas raised to bring an end to the world, Kol being an immortal.  Of course they refuse and so Kol captures Damon after he tells Jeremy to run.  Jeremy standing there like that, dumfounded instead of running.  Oh my Jeremy what long eyelashes you have!

Kol compels Damon to hunt Jeremy and so will continue to do this since no one can un-compel him.  Damon later spies Jeremy at the Grill when Matt returns to work and makes a beeline for him, he can't help himself.   They end up in the tunnels and Jeremy shoots Damon before making his escape.  Elena calls Stefan for help and Rebekah answers.  Seems like Stefan won't help.  However he does turn up to help when Damon is about to attack Jeremy.  Telling her she hasn't seen him when he's not in love with her.  Neither have we.  Unless the Ripper counts.  Thus this shows us a new Stefan who no longer is whiny, and pining after Elena all the time.  Instead he and Rebekah finally get together, just what she wants.

Rebekah is also tormented by both Kol and Klaus when she has the white ash dagger pointed at her by Kol and Klaus has to save her too.  He tells her she needs training in daggering a sibling and she storms off too.  Well he's had plenty.  Kol also tells her about how this family is broken mentioning Elijah not rearing his head and she replies this family was ruined before the search for the cure.

Stefan has Damon tied up in the cellar so we're back there once more and tells him he can't let him out as he will kill Jeremy and since he can't be un-compelled he'll have to stay there.  His curse, ha. is not being able to see Elena either as he'll compel her to let him out.  Elena insists she won't but she can't control compulsion anymore than Damon can and plus there's the sire bond.

Shane mentions how Grams must be in agony and he knows Bonnie wonders about that, causing her to lose the plot once more with her magic.  Until he stops her. He tells her father he's the only one who can control her and he insists she listen to him.  That was manipulative of Shane the way he used her to get out and still keep his plan for raising Silas on track.

So who sent the mysterious compelled stranger to retrieve the headstone?  Also Rebekah hides it from Stefan since she's the only one who didn't betray him, like he did when he rescued Jeremy.  Showing he cares about Jeremy or maybe he has some other ulterior motive.  Elena will be in his debt now for what he did for them.  Klaus arrives at the Gilbert's house and tells them he's their only protection against Kol but they don't buy it.  Elena comes up with the plan that in order to kill as many vampires as possible Jeremy should kill Kol and thus all those vampires he sired will also die, speeding up the process and revealing the tattoo on his arms.  Take it none of the main leads were sired by Kol then.

Good to see Damon and Elena being kept apart, ha, for those who don't want to see them together.  Also Matt points out how she's changed as a vampire since she wouldn't have trusted Damon with Jeremy.  But Elena is still selfish and moans too much, so that hasn't changed much, ha.  It's like she's pushed her brother aside in order to do anything for Damon and to have Damon, like telling him she loves him, as if that will stop him from killing Jeremy.  Also Elena had no qualms about all those vampires/people who will die with her plan to kill Kol.

Tuesday 26 February 2013

CSI 13.1 "Karma To Burn" Review

                                     
Season 13 opens with the continuation of the two-part story with DB (Ted Danson) from Homecoming, still on the hunt for his missing granddaughter, Katie (Mia Hayes).  He opens his safe and takes out his gun, something his wife, Barbara (Peri Gilpin) thought she'd never see him do again.  DB: "Neither did I."  Finn (Elisabeth Shue) gets a text about Ecklie (Marc Vann) and makes a call to DB and thinks Crenshaw (Billy Magnussen) is up to something but she goes along with him hoping to get some whereabouts on Katie.  The CSIs arrive at the CS and Sara (Jorga Fox) leaves messages for Nick (George Eads) who's nowhere to be seen, or reached.

DB insists on conducting evidence gathering even if Sara tells him it won't hold up in court, which is the furthermost thing from his mind.  Sara found some trace outside, some sort of plaster and finds the same inside.  As well as an LVPD torch under Katie's window.  Ecklie is rushed to hospital and Morgan (Elisabeth Harnois) sits outside waiting for news.  Greg (Eric Szmanda) arrives and she asks David (David Berman) to get back to work.    DB picks up the note on Katie's bed reading "KARMA."  Which is what Ecklie said last episode about McKeen's son being killed.  He got his family and now McKeen (Connor O'Farrell) will get DB's family too in return.  DB only wants Brass's men on the case since there's a cop involved and there will be more dirty cops on the payroll.

Finn is taken to a club by Crenshaw and he takes her phone after she says she was in touch with Moreno (Enrique Murciano) and leaves the guns in the glovebox.  Obviously he's going to have another concealed weapon and can pick one up from anywhere.  Finn is bored and he leads her to a backroom and pulls a gun on her, taking her to Katie where she's being held by crooked cop Kimball (Peter Onorati).

A call is made to DB providing him with proof of life which makes him even more determined to kill McKeen.  Kimball wants DB to talk with McKeen after Brass already paid him a visit, he's in holding.  McKeen wants the $2 million which Gilmore (Craig Sheffer) had his wife steal from McKeen's drug dealers.  That's why she was shot.  Only no one can find Gilmore.  DB's got 24 hours or Katie dies.  Not likely McKeen will hold up his end of the bargain anyway.  He's after payback and revenge.

Two cops find Nick drinking and he throws a beer bottle against the wall.  They take him in, thought he was asking for a beating, ha.  Finn is left alone with Katie, reassuring her everything will be fine.  She opens up an air vent and gets her to climb in before Crenshaw returns and she's beaten up by him, but not before putting up a fight of her own.  Obviously sleazy Crenshaw wanted something more than that from her.  Sara is called by Nick and finds him in a cell.  He quit but she tells him he can quit tomorrow, not tonight.  He sobered up pretty quickly to get to work.

Greg says they found the abandoned car used in Ecklie's shooting and the rifle inside belonged to a cop.  They need the pellets from the hospital and Hodges (Wallace Langham) volunteers to collect them, just cos he wanted to see Morgan.  She tells him about how when she was little she wanted him shot and now that's happened and then kisses Hodges.  Well nothing will come of that of course.  They find a lead to a new sex club opened in the area, after analysis of the note doesn't reveal anything.  DB wants Sara to break the paper down and see where it was manufactured.  Nick and Sara find sex ads on the reverse of the letters and Greg narrows down the ink that was used, dating back to 2008.  Thus giving them the location of the defunct factory.  SO Finn is still giving as good as Crenshaw and is about to be shot by him when Moreno shoots him.  Hey the cavalry arriving just in time.

She's distraught that Katie is nowhere to be found even after a lengthy search and DB is angry that she let her alone like that, but she should get checked out at the hospital.  The trace Sara found shows animal hair inside which is analyzed as bovine hair.  Henry (Jon Wellner) comments on Nick's appearance when he returns to work.  Whilst DB has problems with his family especially Maya (Brooke Niven) who doesn't want him protecting her or lying to her anymore, as he did in Seattle about the campus killings.  She slaps him and there's nothing he can do.

DB is having flashes about identifying Katie's DB on the table and also about shooting McKeen in his cell and he really can't control his anger.  As his mind plays tricks on him, though it's understandable he would be that way.  He wants Doc Robbins ( and everyone else to get to work and find him some real evidence but Nick refuses to leave.  Instead he tells him Gilmore's phone is still on and he knows where he is. They find him and he tells them he paid McKeen the money already.  Suddenly a shot is fired and he's killed.  Brass is angry as Gilmore was a material witness in the police corruption investigation and DB and Nick led McKeen right to him, since McKeen didn't know where he was and wanted Gilmore dead all along.

Doc finds traces of a fungus in Crenshaw's lungs responsible for Valley fever and the search area is still too wide, seems like anything they come up with seems too little for DB and in the end it's really him who figures out the puzzle leading them to Katie, re the animal hair.

Greg finds the bullet used on Gilmore belonged to a former cop and Finn finds DB on Katie's bed where he figures out she's still alive.  Otherwise Crenshaw would have killed them both after they delivered proof of life.  Then sees in Kimball's file that he has children of his own and a daughter the same age as Katie thus he wouldn't hurt her.  He also realizes that the trace in the plaster dated back to World War II when they built houses using animal hair to hold the materials together.  Nick had always maintained they were looking for a dairy farm or something along those lines and they narrow down the area where such houses were built.  One such house belongs to the former cop's wife.  Here they find him dead along with two other cops but no sign of Katie, except for blood.  Finally they see scuff marks in front of a dresser and DB finds Katie behind it.  The man told her to hide.

Outside Kimball is cornered and claims he's not a rat and is about to shoot himself when Brass shoots him first.  DB brings Katie home and sees another image where he hears Barbara saying she can't do this anymore, after she looks at CS photos on his desk.  Nick and Sara have an argument over his quitting and she tells him, "words have consequences," she didn't verbally quit.  She left a note for Grissom and walked out.  Greg breaks up their fight by saying they're family and don't treat each other like this.  Yeah they do.  Oh and Ecklie pulls through.

Just to mention Moreno was working with Crenshaw all that time and he didn't realize he was dirty.  Not that that's any sort of criticism against him but it's kind of like his stepfather, Sam Vega last season being into what he was.  Enrique Murciano didn't have much to do in his two scenes which is a bit of a waste of both actor and character.
                           
Liked the way Brass paid a visit to McKeen after putting Mitchell (Larry Mitchell) on the door outside and threatened him if anything happened to Katie, "I got people too."  You can see the number of years he's spent with the PD putting him in good stead to throw his weight around and especially with someone as despicable as former undersheriff McKeen.

DB really showed his emotions this episode and was put through the wringer by practically everyone concerned.  At least he got one over on McKeen by transferring him to a federal facility where he'll spend the rest of his days in isolation.  Oh and the $2 million was donated to the Crime Lab in McKeen's family's name.  SO much for his kind of Karma!  A lot of friction around the lab too with Nick and Sara and she just doesn't want to see him quit even if he tells her it's not up to her.  She took a year out to clear her head and came back, but he doesn't want to hear it.

Greg being thoughtful and bringing Morgan a change of clothes at the hospital was just so Greg!  Showing her he's there for her, not that she really acknowledges him or anything.  Hoping something more is said about those Seattle campus murders since it seems to be another big part of DB's life in Seattle, they can't just mention it and not bring it up again.  Overall it's a typical CSI episode where the evidence finally does its job and reaches a happy conclusion for DB and his family.  Hopefully we'll get back to seeing our CSIs on screen for longer in episodes to come.