CSI' stays strong after departure of lead actor William Peterson

    After eight and a half seasons as a series regular on one of TV's top-rated shows, William Petersen appeared in his final episode of "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation." There's no doubt that fans of the long-running crime drama will miss Petersen and his on-screen counterpart, Las Vegas crime lab night-shift supervisor Gil Grissom, but they can at least take solace in the fact that Petersen was given an excellent and well-deserved swan-song.
    Before the most recent episode, Grissom and his team had been tracking down victims of the now-incarcerated Dick & Jane Killer (or DJK) after realizing there was a copycat still on the loose. Pathologist-turned-professor Dr. Raymond Langston (played by Laurence Fishburne) was also introduced as a special consultant for the case and a soon-to-be crime scene investigator (as was heavily publicized by CBS).
    The newest episode picked up right where the last one left off: The latest victim of the copycat killer had been found dead, his girlfriend was missing and believed to still be alive, and the CSIs were thrown into a race against the clock to find the girl before she became victim number 20 of DJK and his copycat. This case was a great way to introduce Langston, and, although the story was a bit convoluted in part one, it was nicely tied up in the end.
    Despite the plot's ultimate success, many of its intermediary steps were disappointing. An entire classroom of students is suspected in the case, but a stereotypically scary-looking actor is cast as the killer in an unoriginal and expected twist. Additionally, Grissom's use of "reverse lunar forensics" to locate a cabin on the lake is almost laughable.
    In the end, however, this episode isn't about the case, which is just a backdrop for the characters to say goodbye to their beloved mentor and boss. Nick (George Eads) sums it up perfectly when he says the case is "Grissom's last big game." The killer is stopped, the girl is rescued and the final scenes are dedicated to Grissom as he takes his last walk through the hallways of the crime lab. He goes on to finally join his true love and former colleague, Sara Sidle (Jorja Fox), in the jungle of Costa Rica.
    Petersen's final episode showcases the best parts of "CSI" and proves why this show stands a head above the other police procedurals. While it is a formula drama, it doesn't settle for the same boring routine week after week. It has been known for its interesting cases — one of the highlights being the Miniature Killer from season seven — and guest stars who add even more intrigue.
    While Grissom will be missed, his influence will live on. If his last absence, during which Liev Schreiber came to Las Vegas as CSI Michael Keppler, is any indication, the writers and producers still know how to make a good show without him. They have already skillfully dealt with cast changes — Sara and Warrick (Gary Dourdan) both left the show in the past year — and the addition of Fishburne to the cast will undoubtedly allow for some fun storylines and character development. Just in case viewers are still apprehensive about the changes, Petersen is staying on as an executive producer and has agreed to return as a guest star eventually.
    Halfway into its ninth season, "CSI" is still drawing roughly 20 million viewers a week, so it must be doing something right. Non-watchers shouldn't write it off as just another crime procedural, and those who already watch shouldn't give up just because Grissom is gone. After all, nothing keeps a police drama going quite like a twist.