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Monday, 21 May 2012

CSI: NY - 8.03: "Cavallino Rampante" Review


The CSIs look into a car theft ring which runs in the family and stumble upon a dangerous criminal wanted the world over. Danny shows his rookie partner who is boss.

The scene opens with a woman who is dressing to impress and she meets up with another one.   They steal a Ferrari and drive away.   Danny (Carmine Giovinazzo) briefs his rookie officers on the car theft ring.   Sixteen Ferraris have been stolen over the past four months.   The first time we get to see him doing a briefing as sergeant.   Danny rides with his rookie partner Lauren Cooper (Jeananne Goossen) and they drive to five parking garages.   At the fifth one they come across a parked Ferrari with the engine still on.   There's a dead woman in the boot/trunk.   One of the car thieves.

Mac (Gary Sinise) arrives and comments on the murder, "That photo puts her behind the wheel, now we got to figure out who put her in the trunk." Jo (Sela ward) analyzes the interior and finds traces of powder flecks, as well as a crushed electric device on the ground.   Jo's been in many Ferraris and Mac asks how.   Stock or race Ferraris.   Flack (Eddie Cahill) says boosting cars is dangerous and someone who was having a million dollar mid-life crisis must be really angry.   The killer had to have been inside the car at some point.   Flack thinks it would be nice if she could tell them what happened.   Mac: "Maybe her body can."

Sid (Robert Joy) is puzzled by the COD and enlists Hawkes' (Hill Harper) help.     Sid found superficial contusions on her body: the thigh and upper abdomen, but she was healthy otherwise.   Flack, Mac and Lindsay (Anna Belknap) question the owners of the stolen Ferraris.   Flack questions one man who may have done it for the insurance.   He left the car keys inside and wanted a smart car to impress the ladies.   Flack: "So how's that working out for you?"  Ha.   Mac questions Purdue (Tim Guinee) my suspect cos he was being evasive but not in a direct way.    Also Tim Guinee has been in each of the CSI shows once and this is his second time on CSI:NY.  

Jo analyzes the car.   The VIN doesn't match the registration so several different parts have been added to the car.   Adam (AJ Buckley) compliments Jo, "Not many people can pull off those coveralls." (Meaning  Stella and Lindsay of course!)  Adam shows Jo and Mac how the electric coding device works on the cars and throws Mac's keys away.   He then unlocks his car and starts the engine.   He'll have to fetch the keys later anyway but he didn't think of that, maybe cos Jo was around and so he felt safe doing that to Mac.   The cars have a coded entry system and the device goes through the codes in rapid succession  unlocking the door.   He found a latent print on one of the components and ran it; coming up with an Arthur Noonan.

Flack goes to his apartment alone cos there's no danger or chase scenes either.   Arthur (Jonathan Schmock) is in a wheelchair.  The two women were his daughters.   Michelle's (Elizabeth Lauren Hoffman) death was his worst nightmare come true.   It was his fault.   Audrey (Michelle Page) knew what Michelle and Nicole (Courtney Ford) did and he made the device for them.   Stealing cars is the family business.  Audrey had coffee with her sisters a few weeks ago but she doesn't know where Nicole is.

Danny goes off at Lauren for issuing a summons to a dope smoker, she should use her judgment and discretion.   So he doesn't have to be stuck behind a desk when they could be out finding criminals.   This means overtime and he won't get to see his family.   (That's not  bad thing, as far as Lindsay is concerned, ha.)  But he should know them's the breaks that come with the job, he can't go round blaming his job or others.   Mac believes he's doing a good job and he's come a long way from those first years in his lab.  

Hawkes determines Michelle died from Krav Maga and whoever killed her had knowledge of where to apply this to pressure points.   Hawkes and Adam demonstrate in Adam's second funny scene of the episode and Adam plays dead until Mac leaves.   Mac mentions this to Sid who then realizes COD was electrocution.   The charge went through her leather jacket from a modified stun gun.   Hence no burning.   In the flashback the killer wears a suit as the cuffs and white sleeves of a shirt are clearly visible, thus clearly reinforcing Purdue as the killer.   Hey CSI:Miami used to do that a lot in flashbacks, giving away the killer's identity and NY does that here too.   As I said he wasn't too difficult to determine.  

Mac knows their killer is Dominic Janos. He learned Krav Maga and his specialty was killing by electric shock.   Lindsay identifies the powder as containing collagen, regenerative powder.   He was regenerating his cells after being burnt in a yacht explosion.  He's out for revenge.   Flack returns to Arthur's apartment and finds him dead and Audrey vanished.   Flack has to switch on the light in the bedroom, which is a clue. (Well if you hadn't solved the killer's ID yet.)   Hey he brought help with him this time round.  Hawkes finds Audrey's phone under the bed and fingernail impressions on the carpet where he dragged her out.

Danny apologizes to Lauren for his earlier outburst.   He was impulsive and arrogant when he first started out.  She'll be a great officer.   She invites him for a drink but he wants to see his family.   Lindsay finds the side effects of the powder include infection, pain and light sensitivity.   Mac recalls when he questioned Purdue and he was irritable when the lamp was on.   Nicole steals two cars and breaks from her MO, from in front of cameras and by force.   Mac tells them they had him.  

Jo tells Mac the FBI were investigating Purdue for months but didn't make the connection he was Janos until they did it for him.   Mac believes Nicole stole the wrong car and there must be something hidden in the car.   Adam tells them about the vehicle recovery system in the car she stole which is abandoned in Brooklyn, where Audrey had coffee.   Jo thinks they must have a garage nearby.  

Mac finds a list of car parts at the garage needed to put back Purdue's car.   Flack says if they can find who bought the parts and where the car parts went they can find her, which is what they do and she's caught stealing her next car, also with the keys being left inside for her.   Nicole explains how Michelle took the car to Purdue but it wasn't his car and so he killed her.   She wanted to help but hid.   Jo drives the car to Purdue and locks him in.   She looked god in her long wig.   Flack locates an SUV with Audrey inside.   Flack walks past Nicole at the station and says nowt to her as she looks at him.   Mac brings in Audrey.   He also sits in the car with Jo and mentions the three dials Purdue touched, the radio, thermostat and hazard lights, revealing a hidden compartment where he hid his fake passports, credit cards etc.   Everything he needed to leave the country.   Jo recalls what she tells her children, "The only reason evil exists in the world is that good can triumph over it."  Danny joins his rookies for a beer and Lauren gets the wrong idea about him no doubt.   Clearly she has a crush on him,  He's only there cos of the next episode so this will lead nicely onto it.

The title is the symbol of the Ferrari racing team and Jo mentions racing in passing when she explains she's been inside Ferraris.   Ferrari has used this symbol on stationary since 1929.   Cavallino is the horse and rampante signifies "prancing" as in the logo.   Danny's referring to himself as impulsive and arrogant and making mistakes was a hark back to season 1.   We know the trouble his "arrogance" got him into with Mac, but wanting to do the job, helping Vics of crime and putting criminals behind bars, can't be termed as arrogance.   Though he did on some occasions feel he was better than others in doing this job and challenged Mac's orders, as well as disobeying.   Conflicting with Mac when he was trying to 'teach' him.   That was a learning curve for him.   Ahh those were the good ol' days of CSI:NY.

Anyway those scenes with Danny and his rookies couldn't have continued all season; so it was inevitable he'd make it back to the lab eventually; as did Mac.   Lauren kind of views him as idealistic, but her boss and there appears to be a misapprehension on her part when he apologizes to her at the end, that it's akin to more than just being her boss.   Even if he's twice stressed he's got to go home to be under Lindsay's thumb (sorry).   As for having Lindsay in the scene where Nicole is caught was entirely unnecessary, and could that gun of hers be any bigger, what's she compensating for, don't answer that.   Particularly since Nicole wasn't exactly a killer or armed, she just stole cars.

Adam's remarks to Jo were fun, now that he's really comfortable speaking to her like that especially since he was in fear or awe of her when she arrived last season.   Another side of the multifaceted Jo is revealed re her experience with Ferraris and it's good to see her hands down under a car and getting dirty in her efforts for the job.   The FBI must have regretted losing her, right?  Since they couldn't make the connection between Purdue and Janos.   Also the line she tells her children has been said before, to which Mac replies they'd be out of work.   Jo's evil and good line is kind of a paraphrase of Edmund Burke's, "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."

Nicole says to Michelle in the opening, "Let's go find a wild stallion to tame," another allusion to the Ferrari logo.

The radio, lights and thermostat dials were also covered in season 1.9 Officer Blue when Stella (Melina Kanakaredes) and Danny were analyzing the car and the DB was found in the boot.   A secret compartment was meant to be opened when the AC was on, the radio was on full blast and the windshield wipers were on, at least it was a combination of these, but nothing happened 'til Danny hit the horn out of frustration.   The compartment opened revealing a rifle.   Yes I remember that far back.

Father and daughters in criminal activities being part of the family business have been covered a few times on CSI:NY, including the episode Triangle which involved father/daughter thieves.   Last seasons 7.18 Identity Crisis involved  father/daughter pickpocketing team.   Tim Guinee appeared in CSI episode Double Cross, CSI:NY episode Fare Game and CSI:Miami episode Sex and Taxes.   Michelle Page was in CSI:Miami episode Felony Night.

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