How fitting is it that CSI: Cyber would decide to air an episode centered around cyber zombie the night season 6B of The Walking Dead premieres?
In this installment, Avery is shocked when she receives a call from a life insurance claims officer informing her of her ex-husband Andrew's death. Upon doing a little investigating, she realizes that he is still alive and kicking. As it turns out, a hacker named Stella Kaine (played by Kelly Osbourne) digitally killed Andrew by filing a fake death certificate in his name. She was hired to do so by the ex-husband of Andrew's fiance, who was hoping to put a stop to their nuptials (a dead man can't put in a request for a marriage license, after all).
Apparently, Stella isn't the only one pulling off this type of con, though. The team learns of a hacker known as the Reaper, who is hired by crooks to digitally kill federal witnesses so that they can't testify in court. Working out a deal with Stella, the time recruits her to get into the Reaper's head and set a trap for him. By episode's end, though, the Cyber crew realizes that Stella was playing them the whole time and the she is the Reaper. Fortunately, Krummitz and Avery are able to track the black hat hacker down before she can escape and make an arrest.
All's well that ends well, right?
Wrong!
The episode ends with a heartbreaking scene between Avery and Andrew, in which they admit they still love one another. Before the pair can act on these feelings, Andrew hurries out of her office, so as to preserve the state of his relationship with his fiance. Is it the end for these two? Time will tell, but I sure hope they get back together. Their chemistry in this final scene was undeniable.
Overall, I thought this episode was another strong installment in the show's second season. I thought Kelly Osbourne was well cast as the crook of the week. She portrayed the character with a great mix of wry sarcasm and sinister cunning. There was also something about Kelly's alternative sense of fashion that made her look the part of a hacker.
I also thought the idea of having Stella digitally kill her victims was an inspired plot unlike anything ever seen on a procedural before. A lot of times, shows on CBS run into the same issue: they seem to repeat everything. I honestly don't know how many times I have seen a crime show do an Uber driver murder plot since this show did it last year. It is nice to see this show come up with a really original episode. Keep it up, CSI: Cyber!
Overall Episode Score: 10 Megabytes Out 10
