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Entry tags:
CSI and Law & Order: SVU
CSI:
Ted Danson seemed like an odd addititon to CSI, but I think he's working out pretty well, imho. Articles that I'd read prior to the new season promoted Danson's character as a "normal guy" and "family man" in contrast to the brooding Grissom and Langston. "Normal" is a bit of a stretch because he's pretty quirky, but I do like that he's cheerful and angst-free, which is indeed a nice contrast to the character(s) he is replacing. The other CSIs get along with him well enough, but have been thrown a little off-balance as they get used to the new boss's style. The show had been getting kind of tired, and Danson seems to have given it a bit of fresh air, as one positive review I've read stated.
I also like that Ecklie (the former head of CSI, now the Undersheriff) has been getting a little more screen time. When the show first started, he was just the ambitious bureaucrat who was mostly there to clash with Grissom, and I loved it when Quentin Tarantino humanized him a bit in the 5th season finale, "Grave Danger." That's the one where Nick was kidnapped and buried alive, and Ecklie showed that despite his sometimes petty ways, he really does care about his CSIs and fought to get the city to pay Nick's ransom (though he ultimately failed). I recall reading an interview with Tarantino at the time in which he said that Ecklie had been portrayed as a jerk up until then, and that he wanted to portray Ecklie as more of a three-dimensional character. I'm not sure why, but I'd always felt a bit sorry for the guy, maybe because everyone else on the show seemed to hate him (not entirely without reason), and I tend to have a soft spot for the underdogs. So anyway, I'm enjoying the current subplot about Ecklie and his estranged daughter.
Law & Order: SVU:
I had almost given up on this show, but started watching it again with the departure of Chris Meloni (Elliot Stabler) and the addition of new detectives played by Danny Pino and Kelli Giddish, formerly of Cold Case and Chase, respectively--I had really been enjoying Chase and was particularly sorry to see it cancelled, so I was glad to see Giddish get a new job. I had grown tired of Elliot and Olivia's constant angst and melodrama and anger management issues, and the way that they kept getting away with stuff that should have gotten them fired. Which is sad, because I like the actors, and I had liked the characters until they got too over-the-top. From lectures that the Captain has given to the detectives, it seems like the squad isn't going to get away with bending or outright breaking the rules as they have in the past.
Anyway, the new actors are still settling into the show (I've only watched the first four episodes so far), but I like their characters so far, though as always, I would like to see Finn and Munch getting more screen time, too. Olivia's being rather annoying--she's upset that Elliot's gone and is taking it out the new detectives, refusing to accept either one as a replacement for Elliot, and making her dislike clear when the Captain forces her to temporarily pair up with one or the other for a case. I understand that she misses Elliot, but it's not the new guys' fault that he's gone, and I just want to tell her, "Get over yourself already!" Hopefully she will begin to accept them gradually (if perhaps grudgingly) and won't be pouting all season. I'm not as enthusiastic about this show as I am about the new CSI, but it's off to a hopeful start.
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Even though I too was tired of the drama between Stabler and Benson, and like Olivia better of the two, I've stopped watching, in part because BD Wong left and in part because I understand that Olivia will take a supervisory role -- there were even reports that Harjitay would not appear in every episode, but I've read that's not true, just that her role and hours would be reduced (at her request).
What you describe, while not as pleasurable to watch, seems more consistent with Olivia's character and over-the-top relationship with Elliot than her warming up to them quickly would. I don't see how they can write her that way all season, though.
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I am sorry that BD Wong left, too--I was wondering why we hadn't seen his character yet; I guess that I wasn't paying attention to the opening credits! And Olivia is being a bit annoying right now, but you're right that it's in character for her. I think maybe she and Giddish's character are learning to respect each other after the last episode I saw, although I'll have to catch up to see if that actually pans out. Overall I feel like the show is heading in the right direction and I'm hoping that the new cast will help rejuvenate it.
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BD Wong left because he's in a show that's scheduled as a midseason replacement.