CSI: Crime Scene Investigation--'19 Down'

[CSI Files]

<p><b>Synopsis:</b><p>Two men sit in a room, watching a television when one of the men turns on the other and kills him, stuffs him in a trash bag and leaves him in a river to decompose over time. At the labs, Grissom passes out cases and drops startling news on his team: he's decided to leave CSI. Before he does, he takes on one last case, which brings him to the trash bag in the river. The remains are "soup," anywhere from weeks to years old. Nick is able to recover a Star of David pendant and some blonde and brown hairs from them, while Dr. Robbins concludes from the skull that the victim was a 5'9" Caucasian male aged 25 or older and that he was strangled. Grissom puts the details in the database along with the pendant and comes up with a hit: Joel Steiner, believed to be a victim of the Dick and Jane Killer, who killed couples back in the 90s. "DJK," as he's referred to, is a man named Nathan Haskell who was caught in Reno and changed his plea to a guilty one in the middle of his trial. Catherine notes that while seven male victims were found, each with one more stab wound than the last, the bodies of his female victims were never discovered. Joel and his fiancée were suspected to be the possible first victims of the killer. Wendy matches the blonde hairs on the body to Haskell, but Hodges has a surprising revelation: the victim's sneakers are custom-designed, and only two years old, meaning that the body isn't Joel's. The sneakers are traced back to a man named Gerald Tolliver, a criminal informant for the Reno PD who disappeared six months ago. Nick and Greg head up to Reno to examine Tolliver's house, where they find blood on the wall and floor and a bloody shoe print. The CSIs also find Joel Steiner's jacket at Tolliver's house--as well as glasses from another victim and concert tickets from concerts several of the victims attended right before their disappearances.<p>Back at the lab, Grissom and Greg connect one set of tickets to the unsolved murders of Ian Wallace and Justine Stefani (from <A class="link" HREF="http://www.csifiles.com/episodes/csi/season9/leave_out_all_the_rest.shtml">"Leave Out All the Rest"</a>). Ian had nine stab wounds on his body, suggesting a continuation of Haskell's pattern. The team is baffled--Haskell pled guilty at the time of his trial when it was even suggested that he might have an accomplice. Could there be a DJK copycat? Grissom and Brass have Haskell's phone records and correspondence collected to search for a connection to Tolliver, while Detective Vartann informs Grissom and Brass that Haskell has been corresponding with a Professor Raymond Langston at West Las Vegas University and will participating in a series of video conferences with his criminology class. Grissom decides to pose as a professor and sit in on the class, hoping to gain insight into Haskell and discover if he does have an accomplice. Grissom heads to WLVU and sits in the back, observing as Langston introduces Haskell and opens the chat up to a Q&A. Haskell reveals the disturbing way his mind works, detailing how he would give his female victims hope before killing them to make them compliant. Back at the lab, the CSIs learn Ian and Justine had tickets for all three nights of Paramore's Las Vegas shows and discover their final set of tickets were used the night after they were killed. The CSIs scan video footage of the concert and discover two men with baseball caps with a local car wash logo on them. The CSIs track the two men, Richie and Donnie, down and learn they bought the tickets from a scalper, whom one of them describes as a "skinny white dude." One of them hands a ticket stub over and Mandy is able to recover prints from it and match them to a Curtis Keesey. Nick and Vartann rush to the man's home and find a maggot-ridden body there.<p>Based on the maggots, Grissom determines Keesey has been dead at least a month. The tire treads of Keesey's car match the ones at Ian and Justine's house, indicating he was involved in the murders, but the shoe treads from the scene don't match his. Catherine and Greg posit that Keesey and Tolliver were partners but that when he learned Tolliver became an informant for the Reno PD, he turned on him and killed him. Grissom revisits Langston's class and witnesses Joel Steiner's mother bursting in and confronting Haskell. After she's removed, Grissom suggests to Haskell that he thinks he had help with his murders and Haskell correctly guesses Grissom is a law enforcement officer. Langston angrily ends the session and confronts Grissom and Brass, saying he would have been happy to help if asked. Grissom hands the professor his card and promises to keep him informed. Later that evening, Langston gets a call from Haskell and calls Grissom to patch him into the call. Haskell reveals the location of Joel Steiner's body, and nearby the CSIs discover a fresh male body, with ten stab wounds....<p><b>Analysis:</b><p>Even though there's been plenty of build-up to this moment--indeed, Grissom tiring of the job can be traced as far back as season seven--it was still jarring to hear him speak the words, "I've decided to leave CSI." His departure truly marks the end of an era and the way the team grapples with the news in what is the first of <font color=yellow>William Petersen</font>'s final two episodes as a regular on <i>CSI</i> definitely drives it home. In typical Grissom fashion, he slips the announcement in after divvying up the evening's calls. He calmly tells the team the news that he's leaving, that Catherine will be stepping up into the supervisor position following his departure and that he and Ecklie are searching for a new Level 1 CSI all at once as their faces register the surprise. Then, before anyone can really take in the news, he takes a call himself. It's a typical Grissom way to handle the situation.<p>But if the long-running and much-beloved CSI supervisor thought he was going to get off easy, he was wrong. During the episode, he's bombarded with the emotional response to his decision. Dr. Robbins gruffly tells Grissom he's crazy after Grissom observes he's going to have to find someone else to tell his old jokes to. Hodges is clearly upset by the news when he's with Catherine and Nick, asking them anxiously if Grissom may have been just referring to a "leave of absence." But when he's with Grissom, Hodges is downright angry, telling Grissom "it's too late" when the CSI supervisor tries to tell him about his decision. Hodges is obviously hurt that he didn't hear the news straight from the man he's obsequiously idolized for years. His hurt runs deeper than that; when he huffily tells Grissom that he's "gotta do what [he] has to do" and tells him to have a nice life, it's clear that he's upset at the idea of Grissom's departure itself.<p><HR ALIGN="CENTER" SIZE="1" WIDTH="45%" COLOR="#007BB5"><p>To read the full reviews, please click <A HREF="http://www.csifiles.com/reviews/csi/19_down.shtml">here</A>.<center></center>

 

[Faylinn]

Great review.

It's obvious right off the bat that Langston isn't a man to get tangled up in his own pride. Though he is upset that Grissom deceived him, his response isn't one of arrogance. "I would have been happy to help," he says to Grissom and Brass. Indeed, though he's convinced Grissom and Brass are brushing him off, he immediately calls Grissom when Haskell phones him up. Like Grissom, Langston clearly doesn't have an ego that gets in the way of doing what's right. Though I'm sure it will become clear in the coming weeks that the two are very different men, this is one trait that I'm glad to see they share.

Interesting comments about Langston - I like him so far, but I'm looking forward to learning more about him. It's going to be very important for him not to have an ego.

The case itself was thoroughly intriguing - I'm a bit annoyed that we have to wait a whole month to find out what's going on, though. Some of the details had me confused. :lol:

The scene at the beginning with the body decomposing was gross.

 

[Dragonfly]

The case itself was thoroughly intriguing - I'm a bit annoyed that we have to wait a whole month to find out what's going on, though.

Ditto :lol:

I have to admit, when I heard Fishburne had been cast, I wasn't sure what to think. Don't get me wrong, he's an amazing actor, but I just wasn't sure about having him on CSI. After seeing this episode, I feel a bit better about it, but I still have my reservations about the character. I guess we'll see how it goes.

 

[vegaslights]

Great review, Kristine. I always look forward to seeing what you have to write.

It was an interesting episode. I certainly didn't expect the "Leave Out All The Rest" case to pop up this quick, and certainly not come about in the manner that it did. That episode was so well done and I thought they did an okay job with bringing it back up and connecting it to the 'Dick and Jane' killer.

Langston was better than I thought he would be and I am looking forward to seeing what he brings to the show. When I first thought of his character when they announced his arrival to the show a few months ago, I thought of him as one-dimensional, but still looked forward to Fishburne's arrival on the show -- but he definitely wasn't boring and he seems like a good fit for the show. Bringing back the forensics and dropping the romance is what I'm looking forward to and I think it will happen with this character.

And I most absolutely have to agree... Bill Irwin was haunting with his performance and was perfectly cast.

 

[m1304m]

The episode 19 is a little of everything

• Grissom announcement that he is leaving CSI – his colleagues reactions
• The introduction of Dr. Langston.
• A step closer to solving the Dick and Jane murder

“It is great to see the character happy – for whatever reason” – Rocket Scientist - I totally agree with you.

There could be so many reasons for Grissom to leave CSI. Since, he started having a relationship with Sara. He has changed alot.

In Season 7 Leaving Vegas,

Nick said to Catherine that Grissom had shaved his beard, loss a little weight, finished his shift when it ends and he even took a night off last week.

In a man with a Horn, the Sheriff had commented that Grissom was 2 year late – I assume he had not played poker since dating Sara. He rather spend time with Sara than play poker. I think that twinkle in his eyes have nothing to do with fly fishing, discovering a new bug, visiting the pyramid or going back to the Amazon Forest. I believe that the “twinkle in his eyes is for that special girl in his life"

The day Grissom cross the line – he made his choice

In time of your death –

“May you dreams come true” Grissom secret fantasy of Sara was exposed.

In Dead Doll – During the search for Sara in the desert. We see and entirely different Grissom. He seemed to be have committed himself to Sara. His frantic search for her and he had tears in his eyes

It does matter if Catherine or Nick approves of office romance. Both had slept with people involved in the cases they were handling, which i thought it was worse than having an office romance.

But Catherine and Sara has a mutual respect for each other. Sara had never been jealous of Catherine being a close friend of Grissom. But I do notice that Sara get on well with the guys (Warrick, Nick and Greg)

In Season 1 Too hard to Die, Grissom had asked Sara what she did for fun. He then told her that Catherin had her daughter. As for himself he had his bugs and rollercoaster. In Slaves of Vegas, he told Lady Heather that he had his bugs, books and rollercoaster

Grissom on the other hand does not like to see Sara with other guys, though he does not show it openly, I do sense a little jealousy. In Season 3, episode 1- Hank said to Warrick “Say I said hi to Sara” to which Grissom turn around and look curiously at him. In The Accused is Entitled, Grissom was shock to know that Sara was seeing someone else. He later tried to hide his disappointment by saying “you deserve a life”.

In the Seller Beware “He paged for Sara numerous times when he could not get hold of her. Sara had gone to the vineyard on her off day. When Sara told Grissom that it was him who told her to get a “life”, he responded “Did I?” much to Sara annoyance

In 4x4, when Grissom overheard Greg telling Sara “When were in the Shower together” Grissom looked rather perturbed.

In Season 4, Getting Off - Nick and Hodges were surprise and disappointed that Grissom had given Sara a Christmas gift and not them.

Ghost of Christmas Past “I think you review will get more positive respond it you posted in the GSR thread (the other posting of 19 down...)

I am not looking for a positive respond. I interpret the scene as what I perceive it to be. Ain’t all of us here for that! Gosh, some of you are so ready to put down anyone at mere mention of Sara’s name

What never lies – The Evidence. There is always a clue, just because we do not see it, does not mean it is not there. I still firmly believe it is about Sara. In Season 7, Grissom was burn out. He went on a sabbatical. Even during his sabbatical he was missing Sara. He wrote a love sonnet to her. He told her that although they were far apart, he could see her vividly as if she was beside him and even in his sleep he dreamt of her

To JTD94 (the other post abt 19 down...) – I totally agree with you. Catherin is happy for Grissom for following his heart. In Season 8, Catherine had suggested to Grissom to take some time off and go after Sara

In Season 8 dvd, in an interview William Petersen had said that Grissom like most men, comes to a stage in life – they wonder if they could change their life. Grissom wonder if he could marry. And that greatly would change his life.

I think In Homebodies – Dr. Robbins told Grissom “Live alone, Die Alone

He once told Warrick that he is a teacher without students

In Man with a Horn – I think the Rosenthal case goaded Grissom into making a decision to leave CSI and follow his heart. After her husband death, Karen could have united with Henry but instead she went her way and he retreated to the Le Château Rouge and spent the next 50 years alone.

Happy Holidays

 

[myfuturecsi]

The episode 19 is a little of everything

Grissom announcement that he is leaving CSI – his colleagues reactions
The introduction of Dr. Langston.
A step closer to solving the Dick and Jane murder

It seems whereever I go on this website, this same posting appears. I think it's following me, but I could be paranoid?

It's been posted in the episode thread. It's been posted here. It even has its own thread.

I'm confused. Help? Am I being followed by this post? Or is it my over active imagination?

 

[m1304m]

HAhahahaha...sorry....i am new to this posting business. SO i am not sure where to put the post and i have been asked to remove this post from the other side

My sincere apologies.

I am going to post something new.

Sorry about this.

 

[koshi700]

I haven't gotten the chance to watch this episode yet. The Christmas rush has put a stop to a lot of my tv watching right now. Though it has been recorded and I plan to watch it this weekend.

When reading your analysis though, I was surprised that it was Hodges that had the angry response to Grissom leaving. I had heard that one of the team was going to be angry about it, and I had kind of assumed it would be Greg, because Grissom has pretty much been Greg's mentor for the last several years and Grissom is Greg's hero in a lot of respects. For me it would have made more sense for Greg to have issues with Grissom leaving then Hodges. I've never gotten the feeling that Grissom and Hodges were at all close. Sure Hodges is always trying to impress Grissom, but I never got the feeling he liked Grissom enough to warrent an angry out burst because he's decided to leave.

Oh well, you never know how the minds of the CSI writers work. In any case it sounds like I will mostly enjoy the episode. Knowing it is one of Grissom's last episodes is going to make it a little bittersweet. :*(

 

[m1304m]

In 19 Down, I was shocked and baffled that Catherine will be taking over Grissom as Supervisor. She has a bad track record and a poor choice. They should have brought in a new character to fill that position

Someone as dynamic as Grissom or at least close, to lead the CSI team. It is obvious that “NO ONE CAN REPLACE GRISSOM”. As far as I am concerned “Grissom is an entity that occurs once in a lifetime”.

I suppose Catherine was chosen for her seniority. And the original team there is really nobody left. With Peterson’s exit, there is bound to be a decline in viewership (YOU CAN COUNT ME IN). CBS will definitely try to cut cost. CBS will not be pleased to fork out money for a new character. I suppose with Fishburne and Lauren Smith entrance, they are not willing to bring another character (especially someone big & famous – which means forking out more money

Coming back to Catherine, i have 101 reasons why Catherine should not be the lead CSI. But I will not put you GREAT FANS OF CSI through such pain

I will keep it short!

Firstly, Catherine is “Not one who could be trusted to standby the CSI team”. In Season 7 episode 12, Catherine teamed up with the Undersheriff and Michael Keppler (Liev Schreiber) a new comers, who had only joined the team a couple of weeks to throw the CSI team (whom she had worked with for years) off track in the case (in so called Reverse Forensic

When the ‘treachery’ was exposed she claimed she was cornered and had no choice. Grissom on the other hand in “The Accused is Entitled” stood firmly by his CSI team, when his mentor Philip Gerard tried to “defame” his team members. At the end of the episode, even though Grissom solved the murder he attributed the success to his team “My team did it Philip, I have good CSIs"

Nick was so hurt and disappointed that he could not forgive Catherine even after Warrick advise him “To let it go”. Sara said that she finally found the right word to say to Catherine. It is obvious that “loyalty to the team” does not mean much to Catherine.

Sara on the other hand in “A la Carte” decided to move to the swing shift even though Grissom had decided to do so earlier. She did not want to do injustice to the team.

Catherine cross boundaries without hesitation, she gets involved with the people in the cases she handles. It is obvious she slept with the civil engineer in 35K OBO. We see him again in Scooby SCUBA doo, he was not pleased to see Catherine – “Obviously you are not here for me

In Early Roll Out, it was obvious that the night club owner was a sleazy character who was contently surrounded by young beautiful half naked girls. He looked half her age and she was looking for a serious relationship with him. Either she had poor judgement or desperate. Definitely not ‘gullible’! She was so broken hearted and reduced to tears (like a school girl) to catch him with a young girl. Give me a break! She should have known better.

In Fur and Loathing Grissom had said “Your breath of experience never cease to amaze me”

In Weeping Willow, she tried to cover up her involvement with a possible suspect much to Grissom’s disappointment. That he gave her a cold shoulder and did not want to speak to her – “People living in glass house should be careful where they take their shower”

I’m glad they got rid of Sam Braun. It was like the soap opera “Dynasty”. She even made use of the lab to match her DNA with Sam Braun. As a result it exonerated him from a murder case.

Grissom was forgiving and magnanimous not to record it in her file.

In Nestling Doll, Sara was suspended for an argument she had with Catherine. Catherine could have gone to Eckley and asked him NOT to suspend Sara since it was a personal argument between her and Sara. She refused even after Greg had pleased with her saying “Sara has always been there for us”. Later, she asked Grissom, “What are you doing about it?” (She knew Eckley asked Grissom to fire Sara) Grissom had looked at her in dismay.

She gets involved in cases pertaining to children (just because she is a mother) Lindsay’s role is overplayed. When Catherine becomes Supervisor, i hope her daughter does not appear often, Lindsay should go to college in a far, far away land and stay there for good. By the way it is about time Catherine’s mother kicked the bucket”

In Justice is Served, she was quick to point her finger at a child molester for the murder of a little girl,, with no proper evidence. The irony was – the little girl’s mother was the killer!

In Season 5, she was promoted to swing shift supervisor on Grissom’s recommendation (even though she had suspected at first that Grissom most probably had wanted the job for himself) She showed her true colours. She was so territorial and showed her dislike of seeing Grissom at her crime scene “What are you doing here? I thought this is my crime scene. Keeping an eye on me Gil?” Grissom assured her that he was there only to take photos of maggots and will be leaving soon.

In the same episode Nick was not please to see Catherine at the crime scene, He said “Grissom paged me, what are you doing here?”

To which Catherine had said “You don’t like me as you boss Nick

To which Nick replied “Whatever"

Happy Holidays

 

[Drumchik]

Wow. There's no need to guess who you don't like on CSI...

That being said, I respectfully disagree with you. On all your points. But, c'est la vie. Catherine's going to be supervisor. They've been setting that up since Season 1. It's all good.

 

[kc_from_kc]

There were actual reasons for each and every one of those storylines with Catherine. You make good points, but it would be extremely easy to counter all of them. The writers can't please everyone, and in the real world, somebody with as much seniority and experience as Cath, would easily get that job. But it's not the real world, it's a fictional tv show, which makes it even easier for Cath to get that job.

 

[kaylyne]

With Peterson’s exit, there is bound to be a decline in viewership (YOU CAN COUNT ME IN).

Thank goodness for that, if all of your posts so far are anything to judge by.

Coming back to Catherine, i have 101 reasons why Catherine should not be the lead CSI. But I will not put you GREAT FANS OF CSI through such pain

a little late for that already.

First of all, Catherine has already been supervisor of her own shift, so she has the experience. She knows that it's important to do evaluations on time so the members of the team get cost of living adjustments for their salary. And as she told Warrick when she took over Swing, Grissom let a few things slide that she won't. I'm guessing those "things" are the things that Catherine had to cover for Grissom that he didn't do like he was supposed to.

Secondly, she knows the people in the lab and is comfortable with them already. She knows their strengths and weaknesses. Bringing in someone new as supervisor would not have that luxury.

Third, if you remember, when the show started 8 1/2 years ago, Grissom had no supervisor experience when he took over. Brass was re-assigned and Grissom was given the job. Catherine was right there prodding him along to remind him to read his memos, giving out assignments, calling others in to work, taking over things when Grissom went into his 'shell' when he started losing his hearing, etc.

Firstly, Catherine is “Not one who could be trusted to standby the CSI team”. In Season 7 episode 12, Catherine teamed up with the Undersheriff and Michael Keppler (Liev Schreiber) a new comers, who had only joined the team a couple of weeks to throw the CSI team (whom she had worked with for years) off track in the case (in so called Reverse Forensic)

If you'll go back and watch the scene where the four were discussing the 'reverse forensics' idea, Catherine WAS backing up her team - saying that they can't be fooled and that they'd find out about it. The Undersheriff (whom if you'll remember now WAS dirty and involved with the mob) had the final say on the subject.

It is obvious that “loyalty to the team” does not mean much to Catherine.

Really? Wow! Did you ever see the scenes where Catherine saved Gil's life by shooting a guy who was going to kill him? Did you ever see the episode where she fought the Sheriff & Ecklie to take over the case against Nick when he was accused of killing Kristy Hopkins? Did you ever see the scene where she knew Sara was upset with Hank and offered to have a beer with her? Did you see The Strip Strangler where the Sheriff took Grissom off the case and put Catherine in charge, only to have Catherine go to Gil's house and tell him that the rest of the team was waiting outside to be invited into his house to continue their investigation of the case WITH his help?

In Fur and Loathing Grissom had said “Your breath of experience never cease to amaze me”

technically, that should be 'breadth', not 'breath'... but anyway, it's her 'experience' and her 'street smarts' that have helped to solve numerous cases. Most times Grissom has been clueless when it comes to common things, but Catherine has had to clue him in.

In Weeping Willow, she tried to cover up her involvement with a possible suspect much to Grissom’s disappointment. That he gave her a cold shoulder and did not want to speak to her – “People living in glass house should be careful where they take their shower”

So, all you're saying here is that Gil's a hypocrite for getting mad at Catherine doing this, yet he's the one who was sneaking around and dating/sleeping with a co-worker behind everyone's back.

I’m glad they got rid of Sam Braun. It was like the soap opera “Dynasty”. She even made use of the lab to match her DNA with Sam Braun. As a result it exonerated him from a murder case.

*snicker* a "soap opera"? Like the whole GSR fiasco?! Or like Gil not telling anyone about his deteriorating hearing wasn't hurting his work? It almost was the deciding factor in The Accused is entitled, because Gerrard knew it and was using it against him. It's just luck that he was able to read lips at the appropriate time.

In Nestling Doll, Sara was suspended for an argument she had with Catherine. Catherine could have gone to Eckley and asked him NOT to suspend Sara since it was a personal argument between her and Sara. She refused even after Greg had pleased with her saying “Sara has always been there for us”. Later, she asked Grissom, “What are you doing about it?” (She knew Eckley asked Grissom to fire Sara) Grissom had looked at her in dismay.

If you remember, Sara's behavior did cost them any cooperation with the husband in that interview. She became offensive towards the guy and blew any chance the guy would tell them anything. And, if you re-watch the scene with Cath & Sara in the hallway, you'll see that Catherine's voice was fairly quiet when she was asking the question. It was Sara who raised her voice for everyone to hear.

In Season 5, she was promoted to swing shift supervisor on Grissom’s recommendation (even though she had suspected at first that Grissom most probably had wanted the job for himself) She showed her true colours. She was so territorial and showed her dislike of seeing Grissom at her crime scene “What are you doing here? I thought this is my crime scene. Keeping an eye on me Gil?” Grissom assured her that he was there only to take photos of maggots and will be leaving soon.

My advice is, go watch King Baby again. If you notice, Grissom wasn't treating her as a supervisor - an equal. He was still treating her as his 'right hand'. During her little blow-up with Gil & Sofia outside the morgue, you see that Grissom had no idea up until then that he hadn't shown her the respect of an equal. Then at the beginning of Big Middle, where she arrives with Gil already there - it would have been appropriate for Gil to let her (as a supervisor) know that he would be at the scene because of the bugs. I don't think it was until Spark of Life where he actually treated her as a fellow supervisor.

So, the way I see it, you already have a pre-concieved image of Catherine and that's the only way you look at any of the scenes that she's in. Try watching the episodes again without any pre-concieved opinions. You might find yourself watching a much better show.

 

[kc_from_kc]

Kaylyne? That was beautiful. <3

 

[Drumchik]

ITA kaylyne. And you put it so eloquently.

 

[myfuturecsi]

I suppose Catherine was chosen for her seniority. And the original team there is really nobody left. With Peterson’s exit, there is bound to be a decline in viewership (YOU CAN COUNT ME IN). CBS will definitely try to cut cost. CBS will not be pleased to fork out money for a new character. I suppose with Fishburne and Lauren Smith entrance, they are not willing to bring another character (especially someone big & famous – which means forking out more money

So Grissom can play favourites with his subordinates such as Warrick who he treated like the Prodigal Son-see the Bible if you need a reference (and may Warrick rest in peace, it was not his fault-it was Grissom's) while he treated the ever-loyal Nick Stokes like an idiot!

But Catherine is not fit to be supervisor-the woman who bailed Nick out of trouble in season one, and encouraged him to think for himself.

And Grissom can sleep with his subordinate, Sara and allow her countless bad behaviour such as doing the bump and grind scene in Invisible Evidence and then she asks about her promotion! Whatever Sara whined about, he gave her and when he didn't such as the promotion in season four-well God help him.

But Catherine is not fit to be supervisor!? She has years of experience behind her.

Oh and who got the reward money for Nick while Grissom sat there staring at a coffee cup-had Catherine not got the money, they would never had been able to trace a thumb found at the scene back to Kelly Gordon.

Grissom was never a perfect supervisor, he wasn't the worst supervisor but he certainly wasn't the best one around. He made a lot of mistakes too, a ton of them.

Sure Catherine screwed up with the reverse foresnics, she was forced into it by the evil Undersheriff who took advantage of her position as a woman. He was a misogynist! He referred to the female DA as a b****!

No she's not perfect, neither was Grissom and neither is any supervisor in real life that I know of. If you find one let me know.

But I have to give the writers and the actors a lot of credit. I'm glad the characters were flawed, dysfunctional and quirky-it made the show more interesting to watch. I like characters who are imperfect.

So that's fine if you don't want to watch the show without Billy, from what I hear he would love for fans to continue without him. He's been wanting to leave for a number of years to go back to the stage, but stayed on because TPTB felt the show couldn't survive without him, but his departure for four episode proved the show could do just fine.

Even Gum Drops demonstrated a non-Grissom episode could do very well in the ratings.

Yes, maybe it will take a hit in the ratings, but that doesn't mean the end. People thought the show would sink without Sara, without Warrick and it hasn't.

Billy has faith in the show, I wish his fans would too.