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The following contains spoilers for CSI: Vegas Season 3, Episode 1, "The Reaper," which debuted Sunday, February 18 on CBS.

CSI: Vegas' Season 3 premiere is a pivotal episode for the CBS series -- and the one that elevates it to being the best TV procedural in a very crowded field. Season 3, Episode 1, "The Reaper" has the task of resolving the Season 2 cliffhanger that is exactly nine months old. As if that isn't enough, said cliffhanger could easily drive the show off a cliff if it ends up being another of the crime drama genre's many fakeouts. These two hurdles mean that the stakes are incredibly high both on and off-screen. Thankfully, showrunner Jason Tracey and fellow producer/co-writer Craig O'Neill gamble in the premiere as much as they did in the Season 2 finale.

"The Reaper" understandably picks up where Season 2, Episode 21, "Dying Words" left off in May 2023, because it has no choice. CSI Josh Folsom's mother has been murdered -- and Folsom is under arrest for killing the person responsible. The episode follows the investigation into who actually tortured Kahn Schefter. It's just as surprising as "Dying Words," but in a different way. Whereas the Season 2 premiere shocked with its plot twists, the Season 3 premiere catches viewers off-guard with its character arcs. By the end of the hour, CSI: Vegas is no longer in the shadow of its predecessor or any other TV crime drama.

When CSI: Vegas made Josh Folsom a murder suspect, it walked right into one of the most common TV procedural tropes of all time. Almost every crime drama has an episode -- usually more than one -- in which a main character is accused of or otherwise personally connected to a crime. And in nearly every one of those cases, viewers know what to expect. The episodes are a great showcase for the actor portraying the key character, but they follow the same handful of story beats and then everything wraps up nicely by the end. But just like "Dying Words" was smart in how it handled the setup of this particular dilemma, "The Reaper" cannily avoids every single trope, because its crime story ultimately evolves into a character story.

Audiences are left in suspense regarding Folsom's guilt or innocence for just the right amount of time. Tracey also wrote "Dying Words," and he carries his story threads through in a very understated way. The now incredibly necessary recap happens organically, as flashbacks are woven in while Folsom is being driven to jail by Maxine Roby and Serena Chavez. The obligatory scene in which Folsom's colleague debate whether or not he's a murderer is an actual back and forth between Beau Finado and Penny Gill -- with Beau actually thinking Folsom could be a killer, as opposed to most shows, in which everyone is automatically convinced the good guy is still good. And even the usually cringe-worthy beats in which a higher-up insists on villifying the hero make great sense, because there's already been one crime lab controversy; that plotline was the whole basis for CSI: Vegas Season 1. The fact that the Undersheriff is played by All Rise standout Reggie Lee is the icing on the cake, because Lee has a gift for portraying bureaucratic characters who are three-dimensional, empathetic people instead of mere human roadblocks.

Savvy TV viewers will already feel comfortable that Folsom is going to be vindicated, because Matt Lauria is the heartbeat of CSI: Vegas and so it's a better series with him in the mix. But Tracey, O'Neill and even Lauria himself provide enough tension to create some anxiety. Folsom says almost nothing in his own defense -- and has a proper reason for doing so, even when his silence makes viewers want to scream at the screen. And that's where the episode sneakily pivots; it becomes less about who killed Kahn Schefter and more about the effects caused by his death. When the murderer is finally identified, that's almost an afterthought because it opens up what appears to be CSI: Vegas Season 3's ongoing plotline: Folsom and CSI fan favorite Catherine Willows vs. drug lord Raphael Tarquenio (cast reliably with procedural veteran Benito Martinez, who has now appeared on all the major CBS crime dramas). There is no easy answer and nothing ends up being okay -- and that's what puts CSI: Vegas head and shoulders above its competition.

CSI: Vegas has differentiated itself from other TV crime dramas -- including the still-classic original CSI: Crime Scene Investigation -- because of the way it approaches its characters. Procedurals have a hard time finding balance; either the characters come second to the genre format, or a show gets bogged down in characters' personal lives and the cases only exist to service those personal plots. In contrast, CSI: Vegas has strong crime stories and then asks itself where those stories naturally take its characters. It's not afraid to break convention if that makes sense for its protagonists. That was true with "Dying Words," and it's true in "The Reaper."

Folsom might be vindicated, but he has a lot of emotional pieces to pick up. Trey -- the only family Folsom now has left -- will be behind bars for a long time, thanks to his own revenge mission against Tarquenio. His reputation at the crime lab is almost certainly going to take another hit (after Folsom was passed over for promotion in Season 2). And it's telling that just moments after he finds out that the jail lost the photo he had of his late mother, he has a tough conversation with Maxine Roby, who points out that she thought she knew him like family. Matt Lauria and Paula Newsome have created a beautiful dynamic between Folsom and Max, where they bolster each other in different ways, and now that's been broken on both personal and professional levels. But "The Reaper" doesn't belabor the point, simply lets each character say their piece and doesn't feel the need to resolve their issues for a happy ending.

The same is true for how CSI: Vegas doesn't drag Folsom's romantic relationship with Serena or his feelings for Allie Rajan into the plot when those two subplots have no reason to be there. All three characters are upset because they care about Folsom, and that's enough. There's no big emotional breakdown on anyone's part -- the closest anyone gets is Serena pleading with Folsom to say anything, and Ariana Guerra hits exactly the right balance between desperation and frustration. The way "The Reaper" ends allows all the major relationships to continue to struggle and/or heal in future episodes. Folsom's arc in CSI: Vegas is better for these challenges. By refusing to tie things off neatly, Tracey and his writing staff are not only more authentic, but they continue to show that procedurals can indeed have great character depth.

Between the possible pitfalls of its cliffhanger and the extended delay caused by the strikes, the odds seemed to be stacked against the CSI: Vegas Season 3 premiere. However, it accomplished everything that it set out to do. It revealed Kahn Schefter's murderer, confirmed that the killer wasn't Josh Folsom, and laid the groundwork for another ongoing storyline. CSI: Vegas has been hit-or-miss with serial plotlines (the first season's David Hodges story was stronger than Season 2's uneven Silver Ink Killer), but the concept of one long thread against cases of the week is another element that serves the show well. It allows for a more realistic feel and extra time to play out character beats. Audiences likely forgot that Catherine also has a past with Tarquenio, so allowing him to escape justice in "The Reaper" provides a reason for her to stay on the show -- and with All Rise cancelled a second time, Marg Helgenberger should have more screen time in CSI: Vegas Season 3 than she did in Season 2. But Catherine isn't the focus of the story; it feels like a group effort, of which Helgenberger has become a seamless part.

"The Reaper" may not be the most action-packed or emotional episode of CSI: Vegas; there's still nothing better than Season 2, Episode 17, "The Promise." But "Dying Words" was a close second and "The Reaper" is a satisfying, sensible conclusion to that story. All of the main cast members add an extra emotional charge to their performances without overdoing it, and Martinez is a Big Bad who toes the line between being evil enough and needing to show off. The arrival of Reggie Lee will add something new and special as the series moves forward. Season 1 and Season 2 had certain caveats because they focused partly on legacy cast members -- but the CSI: Vegas Season 3 premiere has this undervalued TV show standing entirely on its own.

CSI: Vegas airs Sundays at 10:00 p.m. on CBS.

Return to CBS' smash hit CSI franchise with this series that picks up after the events of the original. A new team at the Las Vegas Crime Lab uses their forensic expertise to solve cases, assisted by familiar faces from CSI: Crime Scene Investigation history.

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CSI: Vegas Season 3 Premiere Proves This Is TV's Best Procedural - CBR - Comic Book Resources