Ch-Ch-Changes

Season 5, Episode 8, Aired
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Episode Summary

A woman who was pulled over by police is found murdered two miles up the road from the stop. It's not long before Robbins determines that the woman is, genetically speaking, not a woman.
9.0
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Fan Episode Reviews (13)

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  • The murder of a woman who turns out to have undergone gender reassignment surgery sparks one of the best, goriest and difficult to take episodes of the series. Brilliant stuff.

    9.5
    "Superb"
    By qstevie, Apr 17, 2011 Report Abuse
    Wendy is killed, her throat slit. Doc Robbins is no fool, however, and when he discovers a prostate instead of ovaries, it soon becomes obvious that Wendy's missing brother Walter is actually also on the same slab, Walter having had surgery to become a woman.

    From there we are transported into a very interesting, thought provoking and disturbing story about the difficulties and prejudices faced by transsexuals, all of which are mirrored to some degree by the reactions of different characters in the show.

    The acting is top notch, particularly the remarkable Lindsay Crouse, who could probably keep an audience's attention whilst reading out a recipe for muesli. She is great as a counsellor for those undergoing transition.

    However, when a body is discovered in a storage shed, obviously the victim of a botched illegal surgery, the story gets very nasty indeed. I was impressed with the way the writers pulled no punches at all here. The descriptions of toothpaste tubes and piano wire being used to form the new vagina are difficult to listen to (and see in some bits). It's heart rending to hear the lengths people will go to because they are so desperate.

    Also the descriptions of sexual acts and transference of certain body fluids are very graphic. Well done to the show for not side-stepping the issues and the horror of what is going on for some of these people.

    It's far from the easiest episode to watch, and probably not a family viewing hour either, but it's good, tight writing and covers a subject well, without being over politically correct.moreless

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  • WOW!! This was such an episode

    10
    "Perfect"
    By ilsere15, Apr 17, 2011 Report Abuse
    I loved this episode, because it is exciting and because the acting is fabulous!! Kate Walsh was great, she gave an speech very credible and emotional...and the plot was super entertaining I never got bored, haha.
    I must say..one of the best episodes on CSI ever!! I just Loved it, and I think it was special.
    I think the Transexual operations are really good explained in this episode, and the information and "casualities" complete the history really good, this was an incredible job, and it's sad beacause this things happen every day, so I think the subject is very modern and actualized.moreless

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  • Botched sex changes. Gross.

    6.7
    "Fair"
    By tikidawg, Mar 01, 2011 Report Abuse
    This was one of the grossest CSI episodes I have ever seen. I wasn't nessisarily painful to watch, just horribly bloody and gorey. The part near the end with the operating table in the storage room was disgusting. It takes a lot to gross me out but this definately did. Not my favorite episode at all, too vomit inducing.

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  • Too gross for me to even finish watching

    5.7
    "Mediocre"
    By Random_Person_9, Mar 01, 2011 Report Abuse
    I'm not particularly squemish, but this is the first CSI where I actually had to turn off the TV halfway through, including the NY one where the guy got squashed between the containers. I switched off at the bit in the storage place, so I cant exactly rate it accurately, but it definitely isn't for the squeamish or faint hearted.

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  • CSI team comes upon a murder of a woman, who is infact a man who has undergone a sex change. the brutality of the crime brings about a platform for talking about people who have or will undergo such a surgury and the raw issues surrounding such a decisiomoreless

    7.2
    "Good"
    By csidale, Mar 01, 2011 Report Abuse
    First, this is a disturbing episode that captured me and rivited me. It can be uncomfortable for some due to the sexual theme of transsexuals and transexuality, but what came up for me was the level of the bloody aftermath of violence that was depicted. I like it when a show can really shock me, and this one did just that.

    One touch that I picked up on was the theme of ambiguity that Grissom allows himself to be comfortable with. He never seems to judge the female transexual characters that he encounters, but sticks to the case. This reminds me of his encounters with Lady Heather and the exploration of his sexuality that was never really resolved but left ambigous.

    The "good doctor" causing harm in the persuit of her cause was played off well and with a susprising revelation of who the good doctor in fact was. Again, the episode gripped me, shocked me, and built up to a dramatic ending. This was a must see.moreless

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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  • Trivia

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    • Goof: As Nick and Warrick are assessing Wendy Garner's travel path and find that there are 14 minutes unaccounted for, the screen says "Wendy Jones' House". Her last name is Garner, her old last name was Clancy, and her fiancĂ©'s last name is Lanner, therefore it makes absolutely no sense to have "Jones" on the screen. Edit
    • Goof: Greg isn't using gloves to recover prints from the cassette, same thing later with Archie while rewinding it with a pencil Edit
    • Goof: Nick says Wendy lived at Sunshine Road when the map reads Sunshine Lane. Edit

  • Notes

    ADD NOTES
    • Sarah Buxton appeared in previous season's episode Eleven Angry Jurors. Edit
    • Music: BT - Somnambulist Lost - Orbital We - Home Video Unreal - Unkle Meller Rollins - Tonal Edit
    • This episode received the 2005 Emmy nomination for Outstanding Makeup For A Series (Non-Prosthetic). Edit

  • Quotes

    ADD QUOTES
    • Doc Robbins: Piano wires. They're used to mobilize the lower part of the abdominal skin and anchor the neo-vagina, so it can heal in place. Catherine: I can only imagine those cramps. Doc Robbins: The surgeon stuffs the portal with a cylinder wrapped in gauze to hold its shape while it heals, and sutures it. Catherine: And how long does milady have to wear a wire? Doc Robbins: Well, after five days, the vagina is un-sutured, and the wires are removed. Edit
    • Grissom: Aborigines say they dance naked to make the gods happy. Catherine: The gods would be happy in Vegas. Edit
    • Catherine: Well, one thing's for certain: Walter didn't kill Wendy. Warrick: No, it's more like Wendy killed Walter. Edit

  • Allusions

    ADD ALLUSIONS
    • Dr. Lavalle: I don't recommend what you call 'passing' ... Dr. Lavalle is referring to a phenomenon that was common amongst light-skinned African Americans in America in the early 1900s. Some were so light-skinned they appeared white, and were able to 'pass' as such, enjoying the freedoms that came with being caucasian, as well as the significant pitfalls of being a negro. Nowadays, the term is similarly applicable for those doing the same thing by not telling others about their altered gender. Edit
    • The name Dr. Benway was the name of a sadistic doctor in William S. Burrough's novel "Naked Lunch". Edit
    • Episode Title: Ch-Ch-Changes The title of the episode is taken from the famous David Bowie hit, "Changes." Particularly applicable as Bowie's performing persona at the time of the song's production affected a certain androgyny. Edit

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