It was nice to step back in to a two-story arc this week on CSI, with a good measure of fun and drama, mixed together with fur, feathers and blood flying in "Wild Life."

The episode centered on an elderly couple that appeared to have been murdered by an intruder, along with an apparent suicide at a hotel.

Both stories were interesting, but the intrigue regarding the elderly couple and their pets stuck with me a little more. I laughed at pair's pet parrot and cat, which mixed in well with the inherent mystery of what had actually occurred.

And the solution, while wildly cartoonish, was in some small way still plausible.

Greg trying to get the parrot to talk was fun to watch. As was Hodges' aversion to birds, and it did not strike me as odd in the least that he should suffer from ornithophobia. 

The story concerning the apparent suicide, which turned out to be a wild night on the town gone horribly wrong for two out-of-towners, was decent, while guest star Leisha Hailey did a lovely job with the emotional trapeze act her character.

Both mysteries this week were accidental and it's always nice to see the CSIs work on cases that are mysteries, yet caused by mere twists of bizarre fate.

All that aside, this was a great Catherine episode. It helped to shed greater light on what other episodes had begun to faintly set up regarding her relationship with Detective Vartann. Catherine seems to enjoy the relationship, but there appears to be some unease with it, as well.

We learned this week that she hadn't been very forth coming about certain aspects of her life, such getting an inheritance from Sam. I did sympathize with Detective Vartann because relationships thrive on communication, but I really understood why Catherine acted the way she did.

It's unfortunate that this seems to be another CSI romance that's hit the skids, but this series has proven it's wisest not to get too attached to our favorite couples.

It was nice to have this slightly more lighthearted episode lead into the holiday hiatus. I'm hoping the show's return will start to tie up the lingering loose ends sooner rather than at the tail end of the season.

No new episode on Thanksgiving night. Have a happy and safe holiday.