Coroner Review: Crispr Sistr (Season 2 Episode 3)
It’s impossible to reach the end of Coroner Season 2 Episode 3, “Crispr Sistr,” without feeling a quiet hum of anxiety in your mind.
It’s probably a fraction of the anxiety that Jenny — who is clinically diagnosed — feels, but it’s critical to understanding what makes this episode of Coroner so unique.
The buzz of stress is low but constant, possibly akin to what we feel when we’re stressed in our everyday lives. Usually, TV aims for the much bigger emotions of shock, horror, and suspense.
You might feel those bigger emotions while watching someone with their hand on an explosive within a chest cavity for example, or watching someone die under the weight of an airplane after a crash.
They’re effective emotions to evoke but exhausting, especially when asked to feel them constantly over a series’ lifespan. Of course, this does require us to also suspend disbelief and numb ourselves.
On the contrary, watching Coroner and empathizing with Jenny doesn’t require much escapism at all on “Crispr Sistr.”
It’s incredibly easy to relate to an anxious woman with a difficult, high-stakes job who has to care for a parent with Lewy Body dementia.
Imagine the hope that she feels when a work case leads her to a clinical trial that could save her father’s life or at least extend it. Imagine how high your hopes would be. And then imagine how much it hurts when they come crashing down because the scientists involved are criminals.
Now, add on to those emotions the stress that comes with having a child who seems to have lost his way when his father died. And sprinkle in some of the confusion and anger that comes with finding out that your boyfriend broke your son’s arm while they were MMA fighting.
It’s a lot of sadness and stress. But it could happen to you. Or, at least it’s more likely to happen to you than saving the fate of a hospital by sticking your finger on a bomb in a chest cavity.
If any TV show were exactly like most of our lives, it would put us to sleep. So Coroner mixes authenticity in with understandably higher stakes. But part of the show’s effectiveness comes from how easy it is to relate to Jenny’s emotions.
“Crispr Sistr” is far from perfect. All that ever matters is the end of Jenny’s cases, but this one particularly hard to follow because of all of the science and medical terms involved.
Plus, any time evil identical twins murder someone, (no matter that they’re trying to cure their own Huntington’s Disease) I roll my eyes.
Dr. Sue Pham is a suspect from the moment we meet her (if you’ve watched any procedural ever.) So, while the twin twist is slightly effective, we have more of a stake in the Lewy Body dementia trials with Jenny than finding the victim’s cause of death and murderer.
Liam’s storyline evokes similar emotions, though suicide attempts should never be taken lightly.
We know Mal, but not very well. So, I don’t feel much about the fact that Mal attempts to take his own life. It’s definitely a wonder he’s alive and I wish viewers knew exactly why. More than anything, I’m worried about Liam.
He saves Mal’s life, but finding your friend in a pool of blood is traumatizing. Liam needs help, and soon.
At least he tells Jenny what happened (and it’s understandable that he breaks Ross’s arm after what he’s discovered.)
But the buzz in my head is getting louder and stronger again. Because on top of all else, Jenny’s boyfriend is a former member of the armed forces who has PTSD for days.
She’s going to need more than her meditation recordings to handle all of this. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but she’s justified in asking her doctor for meds that will work faster.
Autopsy Notes
- If you have thoughts of suicide or need someone to talk to, call 1-800-273-8255 (the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline) for help.
- I think I’m going to like Dr. Casey Winter more than Dwayne. Coroner also seems to have replaced one marginalized character with another, so that’s cool.
- Do you think Jenny will lend out her meditation recordings?
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What did you think of this episode of Coroner? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Coroner airs Wednesdays at 9/8c on The CW.
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Esme Mazzeo
Esme Mazzeo is a lifestyle and entertainment journalist from Long Island. When she's not writing for work, she's writing for fun, or searching for something to satisfy her sweet tooth. She thinks rainy days are the best kind of days. Certified night owl.