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jayrives
family thinks I'm crazy after I left a great paying job and a fab apartment in Arkansas to move to LA where I am a retail slave, starving artist and deliriously happy.
Reviews
CSI: Miami (2002)
Better than Vegas, not as good as New York
The greater focus on action makes, in my opinion, Miami better than the original which moves way, way too slow for me. That said, I'm not all that fond of David Caruso's character. there's just something about him that jars me. which is a pity cause David is a fine actor. On the plus side, the interactions between the younger characters more than make up for the less than great writing of Horatio Caine. In particular, the character of Ryan Wolfe, hired to replace a detective who tragically died on duty, is enjoyable. He's the newbie, trying to prove himself as a CSI (think what NY's Danny Messer was 4 years ago). He's the outsider shoved into this little family. and so on. How the others interact with Wolfe gives way more information about each person than was seen before his arrival.
Miami will probably never give viewers the level of character detail that New York (NY was designed to be much heavier in character than the other shows) but it does give us way more than Vegas. and the characters are just more interesting than anyone in Vegas. plus the crime stories are more fun. and Miami isn't afraid to put their folks in some real danger with gun running gangs targeting them and CSI's being shot in the face etc.
CSI New York will always be the tops in my book, but Miami is growing on me big time. Both have become don't miss items on my Tivo. whereas Vegas is just a thing for when I happen to be home and will probably stay that way
Criminal Minds (2005)
good, potential for great
the CSI-ish stuff is solid and intriguing and the acting is good. There are some very nice relationships developing between the team, especially Gideon and Reid (there's a hint of father/ son vibe between them that plays very nicely).
Particularly interesting is the character of Reid and how he's slowly growing out of his shell (combination of slight autism and general "I grew up as a freak" syndrome perhaps).
but there is one gripe that I have. Why is it that the only one of them with a life that we ever see is Hotch. No I'm not saying that Hotch and Morgan should drag Reid to a strip club or to get drunk at a bar. but it would be nice to get a few personal details about these folks. Learn what makes them tick.
that said, I'm enjoying the show and certainly want to see it remain on for a very long time.
Black Sash (2003)
sorry but this show deserved to be cancelled
I watched all 6 eps of the show and it wasn't being put against Alias that killed the show. It was the bad writing. Russell did a decent job in his role, but not a great role. The 'kids' were decent enough but the stories were so routine and full of over the top homilies etc that it was like someone recast 7th Heaven and tossed in some kung fu cause it was hip at the time. I had taped the eps thinking that maybe they would get better. I recently rewatched them and it was painful. When Drew Fuller turned up on Charmed later in the season, I was thrilled because his performance as "Nick" was one of the positives about the show.