CSI: Vegas - Season One Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

CSI: Vegas - Season One Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman May 3, 2022

TV-on-Blu-ray fans have long been pining for more CSI on the physical high definition format. CBS and Paramount teased the show a long time ago -- the original series' first and ninth seasons released way back in 2009 while a two-part episode/"event" earned a standalone release a decade ago in 2012. And since then...radio silence. No more original series season releases (or a full series release, as CBS did with MacGyver years after the first season's Blu-ray debut). That is, no more until now. CBS/Paramount have released CSI: Vegas - Season One to Blu-ray hot on the heels of its October 2021 TV debut. The release is thin on supplements, but it's actually been released, which should be to the joy of physical format collectors everywhere.

Official synopsis: A new threat has enshrouded the neon streets of Sin City, and it's going to take some familiar faces to stare it down. William Petersen and Jorja Fox return to the roles they made famous - and to the crime drama that made CBS history - in CSI: Vegas. Can they prevent the perpetrator from bringing down the whole CSI crime lab? Old friends meet new enemies - and the latest forensic techniques - in CSI: Vegas.

CSI: Vegas is something of a bridge show that looks to the past but extends to the future. It intermixes old returning favorite characters and introduces a number of new faces as well. Yet no matter who or where, this is CSI to its core. It features the same type of familiar character banter and growth, story engagement, narrative drama, and of course complex crime scenes with gruesome autopsies and other content that made the original series, and its various spinoffs, so famous. It plays well, briskly at 10 episodes, and that it manages to hold familiarity while blazing a new path forward is welcome. The returning fan favorite characters tend to dominate and the newcomers don't grow or shine as brightly as they might otherwise have left to their own devices to carry the show, but this is solid work that fans are sure to enjoy.

The following episodes comprise season one. Summaries are courtesy of the CBS website.

Disc One:

• Legacy: CSI: VEGAS opens a brand-new chapter in Las Vegas - the city where it all began. Facing an existential threat that could bring down the entire Crime Lab and release thousands of convicted killers back onto the neon-lit streets of Vegas, a brilliant new team of investigators led by Maxine Roby must enlist the help of old friends Gil Grissom and Sara Sidle. This combined force will deploy the latest forensic techniques to do what they do best - follow the evidence - in order to preserve and serve justice in Sin City. In the premiere episode, an attack on Jim Brass (Paul Guilfoyle) kicks off a twisted conspiracy targeting the Las Vegas crime lab.
• Honeymoon in Vegas: Gil Grissom and Sara Sidle come to the aid of a former colleague who is implicated in tampering with evidence. Maxine and the rest of the CSI team work the murder of a couple slain on their wedding day, following the evidence to the salacious underbelly of the Las Vegas elite.
• Under the Skin: Grissom and Sara's investigation into charges against David Hodges heats up as Internal Affairs joins the hunt. Also, pressure rises for the CSIs when a video game developer's body is found floating in a fountain before a huge gaming tournament.
• Long Pig: The CSI team investigates when a body is dug up in the luau pit of a Hawaiian-themed hotel. Also, Internal Affairs begins to question Grissom and Sara's return to the crime lab.
• Let the Chips Fall: As Grissom and Sara close in on who framed Hodges, the CSI team investigates a lock room murder mystery at 30,000 feet, when a cargo plane lands autonomously at McCarran Airport and everyone on board has been killed.

Disc Two:

• Funhouse: Max puts CSI on lockdown when evidence in a new murder tips Grissom and Sara to a new suspect in the crime lab. Also, Folsom and Allie investigate a series of chilling killings at a dilapidated clown-themed hotel.
• In the Blood: An abandoned horse covered in blood leads the CSI team to a halfway house for convicted murderers. Also, Grissom and Sara begin to circle their prime suspect in the David Hodges case.
• Pipe Cleaner: When the CSIs are called to investigate human remains found in a convention center owner's bathtub, Sara and Grissom use the case to get close to attorney Anson Wix's star forensic expert witness, just days before David Hodges' trial begins.
• Waiting in the Wings: The CSI team looks closely at the eccentric world of sideshows when a couple of performers are discovered burned in a pit. Also, Hodges mulls a plea deal as his criminal trial kicks off, while Max, Grissom and Sara search for evidence to exonerate him.
• Signed, Sealed, Delivered: When David Hodges goes missing, the entire CSI team searches for any piece of evidence that can help locate him, clear his name and save the reputation of the entire crime lab.

CSI: Vegas - Season One Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The digitally sourced 1080p Blu-ray presentation is a delight. It is tack-sharp and intimately revealing. Viewers will see plenty of intricate skin details -- pores, wrinkles, hairs -- while also soaking in a number of gory autopsy elements with remarkable definition. The lab areas are slick and clean and Vegas exteriors and interiors delight with effortless complexity no matter the setting, or the lighting. Colors are bold and natural. Contrast and temperature are dialed in perfectly. There's fine balance to intense primaries and subdued secondaries. White balance is excellent, black level depth is strong, and skin tones look natural. The image suffers from very little in the way of source noise or encode artifacts.

CSI: Vegas - Season One Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The supplied DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack is a delight. The opening theme song has never sounded so rich and full. Score and popular music throughout the series holds to the same high standard for placement and immersion excellence, low end depth, and overall clarity. Support audio cues are always detailed and perfectly placed, and world atmosphere is fully alive and nicely immersive. Dialogue drives the show, and it is presented effortlessly, clearly, and capably from the front-center channel. It is always well prioritized.

CSI: Vegas - Season One Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This Blu-ray release of CSI: Vegas includes some deleted scenes scattered throughout the set and a featurette trio on disc two. No DVD or digital copies are included with purchase. This release does not ship with a slipcover.

Disc One:

• Deleted Scenes (1080p): Scenes from "Legacy" (1:26), "Honeymoon in Vegas" (1:41), "Under the Skin" (1:45), "Long Pig" (0:42), and "Let the Chips Fall" (0:48).

Disc Two:

• Deleted Scene (1080p): Scene from "Funhouse" (0:33).
• Everything Old Is New Again (1080p, 18:03): Looking back on the original show's success and legacy and updating the material for a new generation while still holding true to what made the franchise a smash success. It also explores new and returning characters and cast members.
• A Brand New Look (1080p, 5:46): Exploring key set pieces and production design in this new show.
• Seeing Is Believing (1080p, 7:40): This piece focuses on visual effects work, both design and implementation (i.e. the purpose they serve in building the story).

CSI: Vegas - Season One Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

With CSI: Vegas season two on the way, there is no better time to catch up with the world of CSI than right now, on Blu-ray. This new series is solid, as expected, brisk though it may be at 10 episodes, easily the shortest run for any in the franchise. It's fun and quickly digestible and works great for returning fans and newcomers alike. Hopefully this sells well and leads to future full series Blu-ray boxed sets. The A/V presentation is fine, and a few deleted scenes are included. Recommended and a must-buy for those who dream of future Blu-ray releases for past CSI shows.