The Funniest Moment In CSI Season 6
"CSI" Season 6 aired in 2005, at a point when the franchise was at a major peak. It was very popular with viewers (via Variety), and both spin-offs, "CSI: Miami" and "CSI: NY," were going strong. The series wouldn't even end for another decade, airing the finale in 2015.
By 2005, "CSI" also had been on the air long enough that the show was now more comfortable experimenting with its own formula. A two-part episode, "A Bullet Runs Through It," depicted Jim Brass (Paul Guilfoyle) getting caught up in a shootout and the aftermath when a young Latino boy is placed in critical condition. Nick Stokes (George Eads) also deals with his PTSD after his recent kidnapping, while the episode "Rashomama" paid homage to "Rashomon" by telling a story with multiple, contradictory perspectives.
However, even a gruesome crime show like "CSI" must also lighten up. The funniest episode of Season 6 messed with the show's formula, but also happened to be hilarious.
A TV crew follows the team in I Like to Watch
"I Like to Watch," the 17th episode of "CSI" Season 6, depicts what happens when the fictional "Hard Crime" reality television crew starts following the investigative team around. r/csi subreddit user u/Zardran commented on the episode, writing, "Seeing how they all react to being taken out of their comfort zone whilst being filmed by the TV crew gives me a few chuckles."
Gil Grissom (William Petersen) is puzzled, and Sofia Curtis (Louise Lombard) is outraged at the crew's invasion of a victim's privacy. But not everyone is uncomfortable with the unexpected presence of the TV crew. David Hodges (Wallace Langham) actively wants to be on television and plays himself up for the cameras. Greg Sanders (Eric Szmanda) even recaps things for the crew, explaining crucial elements of the case.
The episode ends with a wink to the audience as the camera crew asks Grissom whether forensics shows are teaching criminals how to get away with their misdeeds. Grissom dismisses the notion, but it's still a funny nod to the public reputation of "CSI" and how much it popularized forensic science (via Scientific American).