CSI: A Corpse Line

That title was for you, Liz. You're welcome.

This week, CBS's gimmick to lure you away from Grey's Anatomy is talking corpses. No, really. The victims from each of the four cases spend time between the investigations talking amongst themselves. I initially thought it seemed out of character for the show, but then I remembered that Rashomon-style episode from last season, where we learned that Greg's mind is a noir film. So it's not like CSI hasn't stepped outside the procedural box before.

The four cases are shown consecutively, so instead of having 48 minutes to make a couple of twists and turns, they have to wrap up in about 10. This makes for very straightforward cases, with no room for mystery. The way you think it happened is the way it really happened. So the real interest of the episode falls on the chatty corpses. Unfortunately, those scenes didn't work for me. The dialogue was flat and very nudge-nudge. Example: the woman whose brain fell out of her skull in a fall, who says that she thought her husband liked her for her brains, but "turns out he thought I never had any." Yuk yuk yuk! The only point at which I felt the idea was paying off was when the Marine, on first being wheeled into the morgue, asks the other stiffs if they've seen his wife and daughter and is relieved when they say no. Simple, understandable reaction. It's the difference between "What would dead people say?" and "What would people say if they found themselves dead?", if you see what I mean.

Charater updates: Sam Braun is most likely dead, and the same is true of Warrick's marriage. A gory crime scene reminds Sara of when she and Grissom first met (awwww). And Greg was an Eagle Scout. Those of you who know the show may be thinking, "Wait, Eagle Scout? Greg? Isn't he the guy who got a whole lecture from Warrick about being prepared?" Yes. Which makes him the worst Eagle Scout ever, if he can't even master the motto. Writers, are you picking up what you're putting down?