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Wednesday 23 July 2014

CSI 14.8 "Helpless" Review

                                                 
As a couple wait for their friends to arrive for wine, the man notices a large ball coming towards them, stopping in front of them, with a bloodied man inside.  Cue DB (Ted Danson) and his jokes of whatever happened to him, spinning, how he saw one of these hamster balls at the state fair, and David (David Berman) needs to collect all the evidence which is inside the ball, so has to take it back to the lab.  Brass (Paul Guilfoyle) commenting on how snags at the fair was no fun for the DB and telling David, "he'll have a ball."  Great to see Brass getting back to his one liners.  Or rather getting his one liners back.

Back at the lab, Finn (Elisabeth Shue) and David collect evidence and trace.  Hodges (Wallace Langham) analyzes the fauna he found and again makes a joke, but then that's just Hodges and well, he's allowed.  This leads them to the DB's house where they find all sorts of other items which show Zach (Gabriel Sunday) was into claustrophilia.  Meaning he liked tight spaces.  Looking at his video album they find he had a female playmate and the lack of oxygen and confinement led to all sorts of inhibitions being lost and arousal.  Finn finds trace on the statue which was used to hit the DB causing the blunt force trauma that David mentioned in the beginning.

The doorbell rings and a large package is delivered which DB can't lift. No, seriously it was only a woman inside, what was he implying, she was that heavy! Ha.  Doc (Robert David Hall) finds that rigour already had set in, hey that actress kept a perfectly still composure with her arms and legs in the air, usually you can still spot them shaking.  Anyway her husband is brought in and he says how she wanted to do this as she needed her own space, or confined space, rather and he agreed to save their marriage.  She said Zach was just a friend and yet they were both together, which he didn't like.  Brass asks him what he does for a living and he replies he looks after horses.  Thus incriminating himself cos the trace Finn found was from their feed.  He hit him with the statue and he rolled away from him.

A bit of a silly and obvious case which was so boring, that it seemed it had been done before but using a different scenario.  You know all the fetish eps, such as Fur and Loathing, oh let's not forget nappy man! 5.15 King Baby.

The second case was more interesting, as this involved Morgan (Elisabeth Harnois) investigating a rape of a woman in her own condo.  Apparently this was investigated by Dawn Banks (Sherry Stringfield) from swingshift and Morgan introduces her to Greg (Eric Szmanda).  Funny Greg didn't know her.  Anyway, the assailant, raped two other women and had the same MO, like leaving the TV open, but the Vic, Amy (Noell Coet) adding she did that herself as she falls asleep to the news.  (Ironic? Ha)  Also in the first two rapes, there was an open window which the rapist didn't use to gain access and made mistakes like that.  Leading Morgan to determine that she was the actual target and the other two were just like practice runs.  That was a bit obvious.  The Vics were all brunettes.

Amy thinks it was her ex Jared (Mark Famiglietti) as she recalls she faintly smelled him.  Jared is brought in with his father, Ken (Christopher Cousins) who is quite adamant Jared is innocent, but is unwilling to let his son 'man up' as Brass puts it.  Jared leaves but Dawn tries to antagonize him by wanting his DNA, hoping that he'll spit at her or something, though he does attempt to go for her juggler.  It backfires.  CSI trying to get back to season 1 with Nick and that pro ep 1.15 I-15 Murders, where the security guard spat on her and they used his DNA in that way to show he assaulted her.

Dawn tells Morgan that his father refuses to let him own up cos that'll show he's a failed parent.  More lilely cos he's the main suspect as far as I was concerned.  Also her comment is a reflection of her own personal life, as she hasn't seen her son, Tyler (Adam Hicks) in a while.  Greg and Morgan go to Dawn's apartment as Dawn doesn't run up for work and find she was working.  She takes a photo of an email open on her computer which shows there was smog absorbing material found at the CS, which Morgan links to a trailer park.  They find Tyler there and he just came in for food, but he doesn't know where his mother is. Morgan adding that Dawn is worried about him.

At the lab, Sean (Matt Davis) comes in and he's heard about Dawn being missing, so he accompanies Morgan to the trailer park.  Where he hears Dawn's phone ring when Morgan calls her and she finds it under some trash.  DB lets Hodges and Henry (Jon Wellner) search the trailer park and Henry finds a trailer with a security camera.  Inside it's not wired, but they find a jacket belonging to Jared, as well as porn videos and Hodges notices a white hair on the jacket.  Thus leading it to be Kevin who is the rapist.  That was a giveaway since as Dawn said, he wouldn't really man up either and take responsibility for his actions.  Having a pathetic excuse too for not only being a perv but also a rapist!  Anyway they find him in photos, clinging  a little too close for comfort to Amy and since Jared lost her, he wanted her.  Walking in on her in the shower, hiring call girls who looked like her.  Then finally getting his chance to attack Amy.  What a twisted man he was!

As Brass questions Tyler about his mother since Dawn's abandoned car is found off the route to Reno, Morgan believes she had evidence that the rapist is Tyler.  However it appears the Reno police informed Dawn of her son's death, as he was homeless and they found his driving licence.  Brass realizes he's not a suspect in a rape but she had his clothes for DNA purposes.  On the way she took a detour after stopping at a truck store and brought pills and booze.  Morgan asks where she would most likely be and why that spot would be important.  Tyler finally helping by replying they went camping there.  Dawn is found barely alive and is taken to intensive care.  Tyler realizing his mother's love for him after all.

So really the CSIs had three cases this ep.  Though Sara (Jorga Fox) disappeared after one scene and Greg didn't feature much either, once again allowing Sean to take an active role on screen and in Morgan's worklife again.  But it was good to see some good come from the story when Tyler agrees to stay with Dawn as he feels for her when she believed he would have died so young.  Also Hodges telling Dawn how much he likes her was a good scene.
Dawn: I can look into it. You're busy.
Hodges: Did I mention my fondness for you? I like her.


Marl Famiglietti was also in the CSI season 1.4 ep, Pledging Mr Johnson. Who could forget that ep? ha.

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