The first trailer for CSI: Vegas season 2 seems to imply that the reboot will be deriving some inspiration from an even darker hit crime drama, True Detective. The CSI sequel series/reboot CSI: Vegas got off to an uneven start when CSI: Vegas season 1 debuted in 2021. CSI: Vegas was relatively well-received among the fandom according to online feedback, although reviewers weren’t impressed by the revival.
CSI: Vegas season 1 earned understandable criticism for the show’s focus on the returning characters Sara Sidle and Gil Grissom. Since Sara and Gil were the heroes of the original CSI, critics complained that CSI: Vegas wasn’t doing enough to establish an independent identity of its own. Now, CSI: Vegas season 2 has dropped the duo and appears to be borrowing inspiration from a less likely source.
The CSI: Vegas season 2 trailer certainly seems to be heavily indebted to True Detective season 1, judging by the teaser’s glimpse of a bizarre creature or corpse. The strange creature or potential human carcass looks like it could be a Lovecraftian nightmare, or like it might be the creation of strange cultists, both of which call to mind True Detective season 1’s string of ritualistic killings that were left open as to whether they were rational or supernatural in nature. While this might be only one of the many cases in CSI: Vegas season 2, the strange killing glimpsed in the trailer still seems to draw a lot of visual inspiration from the HBO hit.
Is CSI: Vegas Season 2 Inspired By True Detective?
The fact that the CSI: Vegas season 2 trailer only features a quick shot of this creepy, monstrous vision means it may merely be a hallucination, or otherwise be explained by an entirely rational reasoning. However, even if this is the case, CSI: Vegas season 2 is still clearly borrowing from the trippy visuals and cultish imagery that made the HBO series a hit. After all, all of the True Detective season 1 Satanic imagery and surrealism ended up being a cover for an elite abuse ring – so even if CSI: Vegas season 2 does reveal that this odd-looking monster has a logical explanation, this doesn’t negate a link between the two series.
It is no surprise that True Detective season 1 looks to have inspired some of the striking imagery of CSI: Vegas season 2. The HBO series was critically acclaimed upon release and has gone on to be parodied by The Simpsons as well as influencing everything from Mindhunter to Riverdale. The assured vision of True Detective season 1 – and the show’s combination of Southern Gothic horror imagery with more straightforward police procedural drama – impressed critics and viewers alike, which means it is no surprise that CSI: Vegas season 2 seems to be paying homage to the successful series.
