Werewolves in Vegas? Plus a 'Trace' of a Difficult Reality

What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, right? Maybe that's why CSI loves to play on the unusual so much. Last night's outing was no exception as this show continued to present an intriguing case without taking itself too seriously. I think this is what I enjoy the most about CSI, its ability to tell murder stories in a light manner without coming across as nonchalant or flippant. There's a fine line there, but the show manages to skirt it and rarely cross it. It's a nice balance to the heavier, more emotional crime shows that I watch (see Cold Case and Without A Trace - which we'll get to later). Having said all of this, I do think that CSI might have skirted said line a little too closely last night. There were times when the overly hairy victim and his twin sister were treated a little too much like circus freaks for my comfort, but there were also more compassionate moments - like Catherine's interaction with Allison - that somewhat balanced it out. Although, I'm sure these more compassionate moments were thrown in the mix in order to minimize the "circus freak" overtones. Of course with any episode of CSI, there is always the humorous moment that reminds you that you really shouldn't take the show too seriously because they certainly don't. Last night's moment came after the killer admitted he killed Hayden because his sister was going to marry him. When Grissom asked him why he used the special-made silver bullet, the killer replied that he thought it was appropriate (and keeping with werewolf folklore). You've gotta love a show with a sense of humor!

See, we need shows like CSI to give us a more light-hearted look at crime because there are shows like last night's Without A Trace that love to give us the required dose of depressing reality for the evening. I found last night's episode to be very moving, which surprised me because it seemed to be headed right into cliche land fast. You know the story, kid from the streets goes good and tries to change the neighborhood he grew up dodging bullets in, only to be sucked back into that world of drugs and gangs in order to save those still in and so on. This episode was on the express train to this overused, cliched storyline when it suddenly hit the brakes (and not a moment too soon). Not only was the missing paramedic trying to clean up his old neighborhood, but he was also hiding a dark secret. Cole was all too familiar with getting roped into the gang life as a young adult. He ran with current gang leader Orlando when they were teenagers, and he was responsible for a young man's death. He and Orlando jumped out as the young man walked home from school and shot him dead in the street as part of their commitment to the Tombs gang. Turns out, that young man was the local preacher's son and Cole wanted to make sure that the preacher, whom he now volunteered with to help young men stay out of gangs, knew that he was responsible for his son's death. Cole had run away in order to help one of those young men escape the gang life, but Orlando caught up to him before the FBI, and a shoot-out ensued, leaving both Cole and Orlando dead. The only positive thing to come out of the whole story was the young man who Cole was trying to save. He ended up landing on his feet. This was a very strong outing, despite its seemingly weak start.

About Last Night... The return of Dancing with the Stars landed ABC on top at 8 p.m., followed by a rerun of CSI on CBS and comedies Will & Grace and Four Kings on NBC. At 9, a new CSI led CBS to victory, followed by the second hour of ABC's Dancing with the Stars and NBC comedies My Name is Earl and The Office. The final hour of the night went to CBS's Without A Trace, followed by NBC's ER and ABC's Primetime. For more on last night's ratings, visit Zap2it.

~Primetime Pass~
@8 p.m. - Find out which of the professional dancers/stars pairs gets eliminated on the Dancing with the Stars results show on ABC.

@9 p.m. - NBC premieres its controversial Book of Daniel with a special two-hour episode. The show stars Aiden Quinn as a minister who talks with Jesus. Over on ABC, it's the timeslot premiere of In Justice (the show premiered last Sunday). On CBS, Close to Home returns with a new episode. Annabeth tries to find the person responsible for the murder of a surgeon's wife.

@10 p.m. - Don and the FBI investigate the death of one of their own who was working undercover as a gang operative on CBS's Numb3rs. USA network begins airing reruns of Fox's hit medical drama House.

SUNDAY EDITION
@8 p.m. - It's an all Bruce Springsteen episode of CBS's Cold Case as Lilly and the team investigate the 1988 case of four high school friends brought in for questioning after one of them is found dead (NOTE: THIS EPISODE IS SCHEDULED FOR AN 8:30 P.M. START INSTEAD OF 8 PM). Over on NBC, it's time for the vice presidential debate on the return of The West Wing.

@9 p.m - Lynette lets jealousy get the better of her and her friendship with Gabby after she finds her in a compromising position with Tom on ABC's Desperate Housewives.

@10 p.m. - A snowstorm traps Jordan and Woody in a haunted bed and breakfast on NBC's Crossing Jordan.


QUICK CUTS

*HBO is serving up some good news for its hit western Deadwood. The cable network is close to announcing that it wants a fourth season of the show, and the third season hasn't even started yet. The show centers around a lawless mining town in what is now South Dakota. Season 3 of Deadwood is set to premiere this June on HBO.

*And finally, the college football fan in me just has to cover this story. Wednesday night's airing of the national championship Rose Bowl drew over 35 million viewers for ABC. It was the most watched college bowl game since Nielsen started the electronic database 15 years ago. For the record, the Texas Longhorns beat the USC Trojans 41-38.

That's all for today. Be sure to tune in Monday for Cold Case (you know you're dying to know about this mystery person in Lil's life!) and Desperate Housewives (what will go down between Tom and Gabby?)! Plus, all the latest television news!