The original CSI is one of my ultimate “comfort food” television shows. Each episode offered up a tight murder investigation that was usually tinged with unusual and intriguing details. It was satisfying, you always knew what you were going to get with it, and it was always given well.
So, imagine my elation when I heard earlier this month that the OG of the CSI franchise was coming back to television. That’s right, it’s CSI: Vegas, baby! Old faces, new faces, and all the casino-lit corpses and clues anyone could ask for!
In preparation for its fall debut, I thought I’d take a quick peek back at this CBS franchise’s history and how we got from CSI to CSI: Vegas
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation – 15 seasons (2000-2015)
The original, the classic, the one that started it all—and not just in terms of the CSI franchise, but the whole modern procedural era, with its revolutionary use of visual effects to “zoom into” a victim’s body to visually depict whatever trauma had caused their untimely demise. It paved the way for many shows, including the entire NCIS franchise.
Focusing on Las Vegas’ graveyard shift CSI team, this one starred William Petersen, Marg Helgenberger, George Eads, Jorja Fox, and later notable cast additions like Elisabeth Shue and Ted Danson. CSI finished its first season as the 10th most-watched show on television. By it’s third season it was number 1.
CSI: Miami – 10 seasons (2002-2012)
The second series in the franchise figured the best way to differentiate itself from the original was simply to switch shifts. Meaning that instead of playing against the darkness of the graveyard shift, this Miami team would be a day-shifters, (mostly) examining crime and carnage while basked in the warm and sunny tones of the Florida morn (this was also what kept me from becoming a regular viewer. I like my crime scenes dark n’ creepy, thank you very much).
Eventually CSI: Miami became mostly known for star David Caruso’s increasingly cringey cold open one-liners (for example, at the scene of a guy killed outside a speed dating club: “What he didn’t know is that sometimes….speed kills”). CSI: Miami’s highest-rated season was its third, where it came in at number 7 for the year.
CSI: NY – 9 seasons (2004-2013)
Two seasons after the debut of CSI Miami, the franchise expanded with the arrival of CSI: NY, starring Gary Sinise, Melina Kanakaredes, and Sela Ward. This one was set apart from the other CSI shows by having a more urban location, I guess? I don’t know. I only ever watched one episode. I’m not a fan of Gary Sinise, so anything he’s in usually goes right to my “do not watch” list.
It was the first CSI show to never have a season ranked in the top 10, and only cracked the top 20 once, when its fifth season topped out at number 17 for the year.
CSI: Cyber – 2 seasons (2015-2016)
Oh, what can I say about CSI: Cyber that I haven’t already said? Suffice to say, everything about this was bonkers, and that’s why I loved it. This way-too-late-in-the-game franchise entry flipped the focus from crime scenes to cyber crime as it followed the cases of the FBI’s Cyber Crimes Division.
That’s right—it was a CSI show about a non-CSI team. It was filled with janky logic and melodramatic techno-babble. And perhaps the best/worst thing is that during its run, star Patricia Arquette won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress…and then had to return to filming this, a show that once tried to posit that a roller coaster could be an accessory to murder. Fun fact: CSI: Cyber‘s two seasons were the two lowest-ranking seasons across all CSI shows (number 39 for the first and number 50 for the second).
One notable thing, after CSI: Original Recipe wrapped up its run, Ted Danson joined the second season cast of CSI: Cyber, making him the only person to be a series regular on two CSI shows, and giving CSI: Cyber the most significant connection to the original series than any other show in the franchise.
That is, UNTIL NOW.
CSI: Vegas
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