Translate

Tuesday 3 July 2012

CSI 12.16 "Unplugged" Review


A nanny, Shelby (Laura Fraser) and the boy, Harper (Aiden Lovekamp) go missing from the house.  Brass (Paul Guilfoyle) tells DB (Ted Danson) and Finn (Elisabeth Shue) that Riordan, (Jeffrey Pierce) the father, claims he was sleeping when Shelby put him to bed.  He's dressed in a tux.  Brass: "I dress a little less formally."  In Harper's bedroom there's blood everywhere which is tacky and Finn finds a bloodprint on the headboard too, which she sends to Morgan (Elisabeth Harnois) before there's a powercut.

DB notices Saturn is missing and metal particles are also found which Finn thinks could be transfer from the kidnapper.  Hodges (Wallace Langham) tells Henry (Jon Wellner) to hold the lift but he doesn't and forces Hodges to stop the door closing with his case.  Henry didn't want to hold the door.  They need to find Harper within three hours.  DB: "if the lights don't come back on we'll find the kid in the dark."  Morgan calls and tells him all the 'iss's' are down."  So they can't run the print against any database.  DB tells her to "use your head, use your hands" and to go back to basics.  Hodges tells DB that Morgan will dial faster for help if she knows he's in the lift.  Oh come on that means they have something going on together which no one knows about yet, which is more obvious at the end of the episode.

Finn finds white residue and blood patter on the ceiling.  Which DB explains means the kidnapper was already in the house.  That narrows down the suspects.  There's a void on the floor where the rug was taken, presumably someone was carried out in it.  They assume the blood could be Harper's but DB says they don't know whose blood it is.  Finn: "go old school."  Greg (Eric Szmanda) needs to use ABO typing to find the blood type.  Sara (Jorga Fox) found no sign of  a break in. When Sara mentions the number of candles in the house, it was apparent there was some sort of a seance going on there.  Nick (George Eads) spots blood drops on the table and floor leading towards the door.

Riordon says Shelby was his nanny since he was born and his wife died five years ago.  He was going to go out but fell asleep.  He doesn't know Harper's blood type, which is what DB and Sara were talking about a few episodes ago and how he and Catherine used to keep their children's hair or bandages in the fridge in DB's case it was bandages, just incase.  He recalls there may be Harper's bandage in the trash.  Greg tells Morgan to be creative when it comes to analyzing the residue.  He finds Harper's blood type is O.

Finn suspects Riordan.  DB: " I have a feeling this case is not gonna follow the rules."  Well not many cases do otherwise they wouldn't make for interesting TV.  Sara and Nick find the missing Saturn and the rug outside with Shelby inside.  Also a note is attacked to her with the knife, reading, "We have Harper."  Doc Robbins (Robert David Hall) can't see to conduct an autopsy but she was stabbed with a double edged blade, like the type that was recovered.  David (David Berman) makes his own version of a bright light using luminol and permanganate.  Doc concludes it could be a straightforward case of kill the nanny, take the boy.  Sara thinks there was an accomplice.

Greg and Morgan bump into each other and he suggests she use crystal test for the remaining 10% of her analysis since she can't find what narcotic the residue is from and an old fashioned microscope.  She finds it was ketamine which was kept in Riordan's medicine cabinet.  Greg also finds Shelby was AB and the blood type on the handle was O, belonging to Riordan.  Brass contacted the San Francisco police department and he neglected to tell them his wife, Natalie (Lauriane Gillieron) drowned in their pool.  Riordan admits he had a seance and used his blood.  So that's a clue as to who took the knife and also to the kidnapper.  His mother-in-law, Patricia (Bess Armstrong) was there and the medium, Karen (Rachel Roberts).  Anyway Karen could have said whatever she wanted.  He misses his wife.  He's a father and not a murderer.

Nick finds prints with tented arches on the note and Sara finds the same on the headboard and no match to Riordan.  Nick: "computers have really spoiled me."  Finn still suspects Riordon.  As said before it's not their job to suspect until all the evidence is in.  The kidnapper calls and asks for Natalie's jewellery as ransom.  Patricia believes Karen when Natalie told her Riordan didn't kill her.  Karen claims to have left with Patricia and tells Brass Natalie told her that Riordan betrayed her and he was holding onto her for selfish reasons.  His grief is all about him.  It was a giveaway when Karen calls him, "my husband."  Again she could have said whatever she wanted.

Henry posits they're CSIs, "of sorts" so they should analyze the metal particle for themselves whilst still stuck in the lift.  Nick notices there aren't any rear windows on the van and the kidnapper escaped out the back.  Shots are heard and they find the kidnapper wearing a red cap shot outside.  The jewellery is still there.  The prints match Trevor (Anderson Davis) as he has tented arches.  Sara finds Natalie's wedding ring is missing from the jewellery.  Greg also finds Harper's blood type is O and Shelby's is AB so she can't be his mother.  He already worked that out, it took him this long to tell DB.  Thus Shelby was a surrogate and there was no affair.  Natalie died accidentally and drowned in the pool whilst drunk after she threw his ring in there and later went to get it out.

Nick finds a wire transfer of money was sent to Trevor and the was signed by Natalie.  Power returns and Sara tells DB the metal particle was magnesium used in mag wheels, from a building across from the wire transfer place.  A part of town with abandoned buildings.  Nick finds Karen used fake ID to send the money.  At her place they find Harper.  Karen became obsessed with Natalie and became her.  DB finds Karen downed in the pool, like Natalie, only she was wearing the wedding ring and Natalie wasn't when she drowned.

Hodges claims it's good to have the "iss's back.  Just like Morgan did so there must be something more here between them.  As Morgan replies "it's good to have everything back."  Greg says they may "go ancient" again so she should keep the microscope, which she does. DB tells Finn he's good at hiding losing faith better than her.

This episode not only reminded me of the CSI episode Gentle, Gentle, about the kidnapped baby, where the baby was found dead.  But also of CSI:NY  2.11 Trapped, the panic room episode when Danny got stuck in the panic room and had to analyze the evidence the old fashioned way and had to improvize.  Stella found a bloodtrail leading from the room.  A knife was also the murder weapon and prints confirmed the suspect - but his prints were on the knife as he made himself a sandwich.  Here Riordan has the blood/seance alibi.  Another suspect's wedding ring is found in jello (jelly) again the use of a wedding ring as motive which was stolen by Karen here.  Danny discovers the ear of the DB's brother as 'proof of life' which is also what DB tells Riordan to ask for.  There were accomplices also in this episode.

Though CSI didn't need to do much.  That ABO blood typing was laborious though and there was potential to get it wrong too, as many would say, just like Nick, thank goodness for computers.  CSI has had many kidnapping episodes, including Gum Drops. A particular fave of mine.

No comments: