| CSI franchise | |
|---|---|
| Creator | Anthony E. Zuiker |
| Original work | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation |
| Print publications | |
| Novels | Novels |
| Comics | Comics series |
| Films and television | |
| Television series | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation CSI: Miami CSI: NY |
| Games | |
| Video games | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation CSI: Dark Motives CSI: 3 Dimensions of Murder CSI: Hard Evidence CSI: Miami CSI: NY CSI: Deadly Intent CSI: Crime City CSI: Fatal Conspiracy |
| Miscellaneous | |
| Exhibition | CSI: The Experience |
| Partwork | CSI Magazine |
| Toys | CSI: Forensics Lab CSI: DNA Laboratory CSI: Forensic Facial |
CSI (Crime Scene Investigation) is a media franchise of American television programs created by Anthony E. Zuiker and originally broadcast on CBS, all of which deal with forensic scientists as they unveil the circumstances behind mysterious and unusual deaths and crimes committed. As of December 14, 2011, 656 episodes of the CSI franchise have aired.
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The CSI Franchise is available in 200 territories with an audience of two billion people,[1] various spin-offs have been developed to cater for the market, including novels, comic books, and computer games.
The franchise has had a large cultural impact. It has spawned what has been called the "CSI effect", in which juries often have unreasonable expectations of real-life forensics because of what they have seen on CSI. Equally, the new-found popularity of forensics dramas on television has led to an increase in applications for courses dealing with forensic science or archaeological science—in the United Kingdom applications are up by 30%.[2] In some ways the franchise may also fill a cultural need:
"We started in 2000 and it was a success, but our ratings really shot up after the September 11 attacks," Zuiker says in a documentary about the CSI phenomenon to be aired at Christmas [2007]. "People were rushing to us for their comfort food. There was a sense of justice in CSI: Crime Scene Investigation – it helped to know that there were people like our characters out there helping to solve crimes. And, of course, 9/11 was the world's largest crime scene."[1]
However the "CSI effect" has a negative side, as criminals are frequently covering up evidence that could be used to trace them using techniques learned by watching CSI and other shows in the same genre.[3]
There are currently three series; the second and third launched with a crossover/pilot episode.
| Series | Duration | Location | Current Lead Actors | Former Lead Actors |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | 2000–present, 12 seasons | Las Vegas, Nevada | Ted Danson, Marg Helgenberger, George Eads, Jorja Fox, Eric Szmanda, Robert David Hall, Wallace Langham, David Berman, with Elisabeth Harnois, and Paul Guilfoyle | William Petersen, Lauren Lee Smith, Gary Dourdan, Liz Vassey, Louise Lombard, Laurence Fishburne |
| CSI: Miami | 2002–present, 10 seasons | Miami-Dade, Florida | David Caruso, Emily Procter, Jonathan Togo, Rex Linn, Eva LaRue, Omar Benson Miller, and Adam Rodriguez | Sofia Milos, Khandi Alexander, Megalyn Echikunwoke, and Kim Delaney, and Eddie Cibrian, and Rory Cochrane |
| CSI: NY | 2004–present, 8 seasons | New York City, NY | Gary Sinise, Sela Ward, Carmine Giovinazzo, Anna Belknap, Robert Joy, A. J. Buckley, with Hill Harper, and Eddie Cahill | Vanessa Ferlito, Melina Kanakaredes |
The title songs for all three series are remixes of songs performed by the legendary rock band, The Who.
| Song Title | Show |
|---|---|
| "Who Are You" | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation |
| "Won't Get Fooled Again" | CSI: Miami |
| "Baba O'Riley" | CSI: NY |
All three songs were performed at the Super Bowl XLIV halftime show. The game, like the CSI shows, aired on CBS.
Crossovers are possible between CSI series, as well as with other programs within the same creative stable. Between the series, the baton is passed to the new CSI series via a crossover/pilot where cases are overlapped and personnel are shared. Such episodes include:
| Episode Title | Crossover Between | Original Air Date | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Cross Jurisdictions" | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2.22) CSI: Miami (acted as series pilot) |
May 9, 2002 | Catherine and Warrick team up with Horatio Caine to investigate the murder of Las Vegas' former chief and the kidnapping of his wife and daughter following a wild party. |
| "MIA/NYC NonStop" | CSI: Miami (2.23) CSI: NY (acted as series pilot) |
May 17, 2004 | Horatio travels to New York, believing it to be the residence of someone who committed a double homicide. He's assisted by Mac Taylor, who suspects that the crimes in Miami might be connected to the murder of an undercover New York cop. |
| "Felony Flight" "Manhattan Manhunt" |
CSI: Miami (Part 1–4.07) CSI: NY (Part 2–2.07) |
November 7, 2005 November 9, 2005 |
A convicted serial killer, Henry Darius, sabotages and escapes an airplane that was flying him from New York to Miami, where he supposedly buried a body. After fleeing the crash site, he goes on a killing spree and abducts a college student. Since Darius was originally arrested in New York, Mac Taylor arrives in Miami to help Horatio track the killer down. Darius murders a group of teens in a luxury apartment where he tries to rob a security vault. |
| "Cold Reveal" | CSI: NY (3.22) Cold Case |
May 2, 2007 | Detective Scotty Valens visits the CSI lab in New York to tell Stella that her DNA matches evidence in a Philadelphia cold case, making her a suspect. |
| "Who and What" "Where and Why" |
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (Part 1–8.06) Without a Trace (Part 2–6.06) |
November 8, 2007 | Jack Malone joins forces with Grissom to track a serial killer since a boy who was kidnapped in New York six years ago matches the profile of a Las Vegas murder victim. The two of them establish the killer's pattern of behavior to track him down. |
| CSI: Trilogy: "Bone Voyage" "Hammer Down" "The Lost Girls" |
CSI: Miami (Part 1–8.07) CSI: NY (Part 2–6.07) CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (Part 3–10.07) |
November 9, 2009 November 11, 2009 November 12, 2009 |
Ray Langston arrives in Miami to investigate a severed leg found in the Everglades that belonged to a girl who disappeared in Las Vegas a week before. He discovers a human-trafficking ring that specializes in black-market organ harvesting that leads him to New York, where he assists Mac in attempting to free a hostage. Ray returns to Las Vegas to find a missing girl who's been taken by the human traffickers and may be part of a prostitution ring. |
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and Two and a Half Men exchanged writers. The first episode, "Fish in a Drawer," aired May 5, 2008 and featured a forensic investigation into a murder on Two and a Half Men. The CSI: Crime Scene Investigation episode, "Two and a Half Deaths", aired May 8, 2008 and featured the murder of a sitcom star. Writers from each show worked on the episode of the other show.[4]
While technically not a crossover, considering the difference between books and television, the fourth episode of the eleventh season of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation ("Sqweegel") uses the forensic-proof serial killer of the same name from the Level 26 series first novel ("Dark Origins") by CSI creator Anthony Zuiker.
| Season | Episodes | Timeslot (EST) | Original Airing | Rank | Viewers (in millions) |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season Premiere | Season Finale | TV Season | |||||
| 1 | 23 | Friday 9:00pm/8c (October 2000 – January 2001) Thursday 9:00pm/8c (February – May 2001) |
October 6, 2000 | May 17, 2001 | 2000–2001 | #10 | 17.80[5] |
| 2 | 23 | Thursday 9:00pm/8c | September 27, 2001 | May 16, 2002 | 2001–2002 | #2 | 23.69[6] |
| 3 | 23 | Thursday 9:00pm/8c | September 26, 2002 | May 15, 2003 | 2002–2003 | #1 | 26.20[7] |
| 4 | 23 | Thursday 9:00pm/8c | September 25, 2003 | May 20, 2004 | 2003–2004 | #2 | 25.27[8] |
| 5 | 25 | Thursday 9:00pm/8c | September 23, 2004 | May 19, 2005 | 2004–2005 | #2 | 26.26[9] |
| 6 | 24 | Thursday 9:00pm/8c | September 22, 2005 | May 18, 2006 | 2005–2006 | #3 | 24.86[10] |
| 7 | 24 | Thursday 9:00pm/8c | September 21, 2006 | May 17, 2007 | 2006–2007 | #4 | 20.34[11] |
| 8 | 17 | Thursday 9:00pm/8c | September 27, 2007 | May 15, 2008 | 2007–2008 | #9 | 16.62[12] |
| 9 | 24 | Thursday 9:00pm/8c | October 9, 2008 | May 14, 2009 | 2008–2009 | #4 | 18.52[13] |
| 10 | 23 | Thursday 9:00pm/8c | September 24, 2009 | May 20, 2010 | 2009–2010 | #12 | 14.92[14] |
| 11 | 22 | Thursday 9:00pm/8c |
September 23, 2010 | May 12, 2011 | 2010–2011 | #12 | 13.52[15] |
| 12 | TBA | Wednesday 10:00pm/9c |
September 21, 2011 | Spring 2012 | 2011–2012 | TBA | TBA |
| Season | Episodes | Timeslot (EST) | Original Airing | Rank | Viewers (in millions) |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season Premiere | Season Finale | TV Season | |||||
| 1 | 24 | Monday 10:00pm/9c | September 23, 2002 | May 19, 2003 | 2002–2003 | #14 | 16.50[7] |
| 2 | 24 | Monday 10:00pm/9c | September 22, 2003 | May 24, 2004 | 2003–2004 | #9 | 18.06[8] |
| 3 | 24 | Monday 10:00pm/9c | September 20, 2004 | May 23, 2005 | 2004–2005 | #7 | 19.00[9] |
| 4 | 25 | Monday 10:00pm/9c | September 19, 2005 | May 22, 2006 | 2005–2006 | #9 | 18.12[10] |
| 5 | 24 | Monday 10:00pm/9c | September 18, 2006 | May 14, 2007 | 2006–2007 | #12 | 16.98[11] |
| 6 | 21 | Monday 10:00pm/9c | September 24, 2007 | May 19, 2008 | 2007–2008 | #16 | 13.91[12] |
| 7 | 25 | Monday 10:00pm/9c | September 22, 2008 | May 18, 2009 | 2008–2009 | #13 | 14.26[13] |
| 8 | 24 | Monday 10:00pm/9c | September 21, 2009 | May 24, 2010 | 2009–2010 | #24 | 12.65[14] |
| 9 | 22 | Sunday 10:00pm/9c | October 3, 2010 | May 8, 2011 | 2010–2011 | #27 | 11.75[15] |
| 10 | TBA | Sunday 10:00pm/9c | September 25, 2011 | Spring 2012 | 2011–2012 | TBA | TBA |
| Season | Episodes | Timeslot (EST) | Original Airing | Rank | Viewers (in millions) |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season Premiere | Season Finale | TV Season | |||||
| 1 | 23 | Wednesday 10:00pm/9c | September 22, 2004 | May 18, 2005 | 2004–2005 | #21 | 13.59[9] |
| 2 | 24 | Wednesday 10:00pm/9c | September 28, 2005 | May 17, 2006 | 2005–2006 | #22 | 14.04[10] |
| 3 | 24 | Wednesday 10:00pm/9c | September 20, 2006 | May 16, 2007 | 2006–2007 | #25 | 13.92[11] |
| 4 | 21 | Wednesday 10:00pm/9c | September 26, 2007 | May 21, 2008 | 2007–2008 | #28 | 11.71[12] |
| 5 | 25 | Wednesday 10:00pm/9c | September 24, 2008 | May 14, 2009 | 2008–2009 | #17 | 13.50[13] |
| 6 | 23 | Wednesday 10:00pm/9c | September 23, 2009 | May 26, 2010 | 2009–2010 | #23 | 12.66[14] |
| 7 | 22 | Friday 9:00pm/8c | September 24, 2010 | May 13, 2011 | 2010–2011 | #37 | 10.73[15] |
| 8 | 18[16] | Friday 9:00pm/8c | September 23, 2011 | Spring 2012 | 2011–2012 | TBA | TBA |
There have been a number of comic books based on all three series, published by IDW Publishing. Writers include Jeff Mariotte and Max Allan Collins.
The CSI franchise has spawned 11 computer games across the three shows.
Gameloft has also published a series of mobile games based on the CSI series, including CSI: The Mobile Game (Vegas) and CSI: Miami.
In addition, several board games based on both the original CSI: Crime Scene Investigaton series and CSI: Miami have seen release, all published by Canadian game manufacturer Specialty Board Games, Inc. In 2011, the CSI Board Game was released by another Canadian company, GDC–GameDevCo Ltd. It is the first game to include all three CSI shows.[17]
A pinball game machine called CSI: Crime Scene Investigation was released in 2008.[18]
Chicago’s Museum of Science & Industry opened an exhibit in CSI's honor on May 25, 2007 called: "CSI: The Experience".[19] Starting in October 2011 it will be at Discovery Times Square in New York City.[20] There is also a game on the website where you are trained in forensic biology, weapons and tool mark analyses, toxicology and the autopsy.
Titan Magazines published 11 issues of CSI Magazine starting in November, 2007. They contained a mixture of features and interviews looking into the world of the three CSIs and the people who help create it.[21] It was available in the UK and US.[22]
Various novelizations have appeared based on the series. Authors include Max Allan Collins (CSI: Crime Scene Investigation), Donn Cortez (CSI: Miami), Stuart M. Kaminsky (CSI: NY), and Keith R.A. DeCandido (CSI: NY).
A range of toys have been developed. These include:
However, they have been the source of some controversy. The Parents Television Council, who have complained about CSI in general, and in 2004 released a statement specifically aimed at the toys.[23] The PTC e-mailed letters to their supporters, telling them the content of the games were entirely inappropriate for children to be exposed to "because the CSI franchise often displays graphic images, including close-ups of corpses with gunshot wounds and other bloody injuries." The letter went on to say "The PTC doesn't think the recreation of blood, guts and gore should be under a child's Christmas tree this year," PTC concluded. "This so-called 'toy' is a blatant attempt to market CSI and its adult-oriented content directly to children."
In urging members to file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission, PTC said CBS parent company Viacom needed to hear from parents who are concerned about the "graphic scenes of blood, violence, and sex" in their product. They also asked their supporters to contact Target and Toys 'R' Us.
Because of the popularity of the CSI franchise in the United Kingdom, Channel 5 created two documentaries about CSI. The first one called The Real CSI follows real crime scene investigators as they work on crime scene. The second documentary, True CSI, features true tales of how forensic science has helped solve some of the world's best known crimes. True CSI had actors re-enacting the crime as well as interviews with people involved in the solving of the crimes themselves. Cases featured included the Sam Sheppard case.
In early 2007, British channel ITV broadcast a special of its flagship documentary Tonight With Trevor McDonald discussing the ramifications of the "CSI effect", highlighting the effect not only of the franchise but of several other British and American TV police procedurals.
The popularity of the series has also spawned forensic based reality television/documentary programs, including A&E's The First 48 and truTV's North Mission Road.
As well as fictional books based on the franchise there have also been a number of guides published:
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