QUICK REVIEW: Criminal Minds, Castle, Revenge, The Good Wife, Blue Bloods

Criminal Minds

This is not a show that needs recapping every week but every once in a while, an episode or string of episodes happen that warrant discussion.  Last week’s episode broke my heart.  In the early days of Criminal Minds, I rooted for JJ and Reid to get together.  A big part of me, still does.  But I’ve moved on from the idea of those two getting together.  As a result, I was 100% on board with this romance between Maeve and Spencer.  And before you start referencing Manti Te’o asking how can you have a relationship with someone you’ve never met, this show handled it very well to the point I totally believed it.  Matthew Gray Gubler and Beth Riesgraf did a fantastic job selling this relationship that up until this episode, only existed via cryptic phone conversations.  The reason for this, she had a stalker.  So she was in hiding until the stalker was caught. Unfortunately, the stalker found her and kidnapped her and as a result, Reid, who is a very private person, needed to out his relationship to the team and ask for their help in finding her.  Turns out it was someone applying for a PhD and Maeve denied her application and therefore Diane (Michelle Trachtenberg) flipped out and murdered her ex-fiance and ultimately murdered herself and Maeve with a bullet to the head.  It was such a sad scene for so many reasons.  First, Spencer had never seen her face.  Even when Garcia had her picture, Reid refused to see it because he wanted the first time to be face to face.  He also wanted to tell her that he loved her because the last time they spoke, she said she loved him and he didn’t respond.  When he finally saw her, it was with her strapped to a chair with Diane pointing a gun at Reid’s head and Reid pretending to love Diane and not her so he could get her free.  Instead of telling her that he loved her, he had to tell her that he didn’t love her so he could protect her.  Unfortunately, Diane saw through all this and while holding Maeve against her, put a gun to her own head and pulled the trigger, killing both of them.  I told my husband I was afraid she was going to die but then I thought, there’s no way CM would do that to Reid.  Yep, well, wrong again!   Maeve is dead and Reid is crushed.  It was brutal to watch and I’m really curious to see how this will impact him moving forward.  Reid is so private and doesn’t open his heart to many people.  And for him to be ready to make a committment to this girl, only to have her murdered in front of him, will completely damage his already fragile psyche.

Castle

Still one of my favorite shows on TV and I’m loving this season.  The last two episodes were great.  Seeing Meredith (Darby Stanchfield) around making things tricky for Castle and Beckett was priceless.  But it was also a nice change of pace to see Meredith and Beckett go to dinner together and really get along.  Unfortunately before she left, when Kate asked why they didn’t work, Meredith told her the truth.   Castle knew everything about her but she really didn’t know much about Castle.  He’s fun and romantic and sweet, but he never let her in, especially when it came to his dad.  And she couldn’t handle being in the dark.  It really resonated with Kate because she’s in the same situation…to some degree.  Castle knows everything about her darkest time…her mother’s death.  But Beckett knows nothing about, what appears to be, Castle’s darkest period…his father.  And I know there were people who thought Meredith did that maliciously, I don’t agree.  I think she was honestly answering Kate’s question without trying to sabotage anything.  I also think that Kate’s relationship with Rick is VERY different from Meredith’s.  Yes, she is just in the dark about Castle’s history with his father as Meredith is, but she has seen so many different layers to Castle that I’m pretty sure no one else has.   They have been through so much together and she has been around some very vulnerable sides to Rick, that she can’t compare her relationship with Castle to his relationship with anyone else.   She has seen a deeper side to him.  But I think this issue regarding his father, could be a driving wedge between them.  I hope it isn’t but I think it’s inevitable.

I just quickly wanted to mention how much I enjoyed last week’s episode which focused on Esposito. I like when the show puts focus on another character (especially Ryan and Esposito) because I care about them just as much as Castle and Beckett.  Ok maybe not AS much, but it’s close.  Esposito is such a great guy.  I love seeing a hard-nosed, tough guy get hit in his heart (figuratively) because he has no chance to avoid showing his soft side.  I hope the show brings Joey back.  I know cop shows always have those episodes where the cop gives the troubled kid his card where the cop says to call anytime and the cop promises to keep tabs on the kid.  Well I would like to see that.  Not all the time, but I think twice a year wouldn’t be out of the question.

Revenge

I would have to agree with everyone else…this season of Revenge isn’t as good as last season.  I liked the simplicity of last season with a target of the week under the umbrella plan of taking down the Graysons.  Now we have Aiden involved and his story.  Then you have the Initiative involved.  And there’s the Ryan brothers going after the Porter brothers.   It’s too much.  I don’t know why things need to go to this massive levels of story telling.   Sometimes, less is more.  I’d rather go back to last season’s methods with twists and turns complicating matters along the way.   But having said that, I still love the show.  If we can cut down on the side stories (mainly Aiden and the Initiative) I would be ok.  I’m not a fan of Aiden would rather him go away and just have Emily do her thing.  I also don’t know why we needed some major secret group being behind some the Grayson’s decisions.  I would rather have had the Grayson’s be responsible for all their own decisions without having to drag this secret society in.  But if the show can wrap those two things up and go back to business as usual with Emily driving everything and Nolan being there to help her, things will be good again.

The Good Wife

Alicia and Peter sitting in a tree.  F-U-C….whoa!!!!  I’m not going to go there.  But how about that trailer scene? AWESOME!!!   If the show continues down this path with Alicia and Peter doing their thing and Will possibly working on a relationship with Laura (Amanda Peet) I would be very happy.

The second half of the season is already cranking.  They got rid of Kalinda’s God awful husband storyline, the firm is slowly starting to pick itself back up again, the case of the Justice Department going after Eli (headed up by Wendy Scott Carr) resulting in bringing in George O’Malley is fantastic, and Louis Canning is now one of the firm’s creditors which should be an interesting wrinkle.  My biggest complaint?  Cary Agos.   Can we PLEASE find this man a storyline worthy of him?  I’m so tired of him being on the back burner.  It’s time to bring him to the big front burner and let him dominate a storyline.

Blue Bloods

I know I’m really late to the party in commenting on this but I think it’s really shitty the way Jennifer Esposito and her character were handled on the show.  If what she is saying is true, then it’s horrible.  The short version, Esposito had been diagnosed with Celiac Disease.  It went misdiagnosed for years and her form of the disease is pretty severe.  I know people with Celiac and there are varying degrees with some leaving people down right ill for weeks, especially when you don’t know what’s wrong.  Esposito was violently ill but when she finally was diagnosed properly her doctors suggested she have a reduced work load on the show to accommodate her illness.  According to Esposito, CBS didn’t grant the reduced work load nor did they release her from her contract.  She was put on medical leave without pay but because she was still under contract, she wasn’t able to seek employment with another network TV show.   She could do theater, film, or cable TV (as long as it didn’t air at 10pm) but she was pretty much stuck.   That’s the part I don’t get.  You won’t grant her request because it isn’t fair to the cast and crew, that’s fine.  But then let her go so she can find other work.   And they wouldn’t do that.   So she went on medical leave and now she’s gone for good.   I hate it because I thought she was fantastic and her chemistry with Donnie Wahlberg was amazing.  I think it’s a big loss for the show.  Having said that, I don’t think the new replacement, Megan Ketch has been bad.  I actually like her.  Not as much as Esposito of course, but Ketch is doing a good job.  It’s tough shoes to fill and I think no matter who it was to fill them, fans weren’t going to like her.  Now apparently Ketch is moving on and Megan Boone is set to replace her for 4 episodes with an option to be picked up a series regular.  Guess we’ll see how she does.

In terms of the season, as always, I love this show.  I know people can get annoyed at how the Reagan family always does the right thing and makes the right decisions.   But I don’t care.  I like the fact that they are good people trying to do the right thing.  What’s wrong with that?  They still have flaws.  They still struggle with decisions.  But if they always try to go the right way, I’m ok with that.

 

Survivor Caramoan Fans vs. “Favorites” Cast

CBS released the next installment of Survivor’s cast this week.  There was much anticipation because this is a return to the Fans vs. Favorites theme that was probably one of the best seasons in Survivor history the first time around.  So myself and other Survivor fans eagerly anticipated who the batch of favorites would be.  Needless to say, this crew came crashing down with a loud thud (hence why favorites is in parentheses in the title above.)  Really?  This is who they came up with?  If these were the favorites, I’d hate to see who didn’t make the cut.   Let’s see who we have coming back:

• Andrea – Redemption Island
• Phillip – Redemption Island
• Francesca – Redemption Island
• Cochran – South Pacific
• Dawn – South Pacific
• Brandon – South Pacific
• Erik – Micronesia (Fans vs. Favorites)
• Corinne – Gabon
• Brenda – Nicaragua
• Malcolm – Philippines

Ok, let’s start with Malcolm.  I have no problem with them bringing Malcolm back because I loved his game and would love to see him have another crack at this.  But I think it’s too soon.  Three seems to be the magic number of times playing the game of Survivor so I’d rather have them spread out.   For Malcolm to come back so soon, is disappointing.  Not to mention, it’s hard to claim him as a favorite (even though casting was 100% right in their prediction) because when Malcolm filmed Fans vs Favs Part Deux, Philippines hadn’t even aired yet (these seasons were filmed back to back.)   So I wish Malcolm would come back, just a little later.

When Brenda, Dawn, and Francesca were first announced, I didn’t even remember who they were.  Once I saw Dawn and Francesca, I instantly remembered them.   Dawn I have no problem with.  Francesca, I’m glad she’s back because I thought she got a raw deal the first time around and I think she can do well in Survivor but it’s still surprising to see someone who was the first person out back as a “favorite.”  Brenda, even after I saw her, I didn’t know who she was.  She wasn’t that memorable to me.   Then I started reading about her time on Nicaragua and then I remembered who she was.  I wasn’t a fan of Brenda.  I thought she was pretty arrogant and rude but she was a great game player.

Erik and Andrea I’m happy to see back.  Erik for no other reason than to finally shed his “dumbest Survivor player ever” moniker.  And Andrea was a great player so I like seeing her have another crack at the million dollars.

Cochran and Corinne, I’m not sure about.  I liked Cochran at first but then he worked my nerves.  For someone who was a self admitted genius, he really made some dumb moves.  I hope he plays a better game this time around.  The one thing I do admire from him though, is his passion for the game.  He respects it and he plays hard, so I can always get behind that.  Corinne, I can’t stand.  She’s a nasty person.  She’ll bring ratings and interest, I guess.  But I don’t find her appealing at all.  I’ve never understood nasty, bitchy people who get off on being assholes and who actually think less of other people who are nice.  Corinne, I could have done without her.

But the two biggest head scratchers?   Phillip and Brandon.  WHY?  Phillip isn’t a good Survivor player.  The only reason he got as far as he did was because other people hated him so much, no one would give him a million dollars, so that’s why you bring him to the end.   Boston Rob played him like a fiddle.  Then you have Brandon.  What is the fascination with the damn Hantz family?  If you were going to bring a Hantz back, at least Russell is entertaining.  This kid is annoying and creepy.  I can’t think of one reason why bringing Brandon back enhances the game.  I seriously don’t.  That kid has issues and not in a good way.   There were so many other people to pick, I’m not sure why Brandon was one of them.  Waste of space if you ask me.

I have to imagine that there were other people they had in mind for this “favorites” list and they turned the show down.  And as a result, this was the B team.  Maybe even the Q team.  It’s the only explanation because I would never in a million years classify this group as “favorites.”  Some of them yes.  But the rest, not even close.   Jeff Probst did say, if we liked Philippines, we will love Caramoan even more, it’s that good of a season.  I love Probst and I trust him on this but it’s hard to imagine this season being that entertaining with this group of returning members.   But you know what that does tell me?  That the newbies could be an amazing group of players.

What do you think of the “favorite” list?

 

Latest Casting News (For Me Anyway)

As I am getting caught up, you may be reading some news that has been out for a while but is new for me.   So guess what, we’re talking about it people!

Chuck

Carrie Anne Moss has been cast as Gertrude Verbanski, as the woman in charge of Chuck and Sarah’s rival company who also becomes a potential love interest for Casey.

While I am all for Casey getting some lovin’ (finally), I was really hoping it was going to be with Alex’s mom and the former love of his life, Kathleen (played by Clare Carey.)   So that’s a little disappointing but I’m willing to give Moss’ character the benefit of the doubt.

The Firm

The final piece of casting for the midseason drama The Firm has taken place.  Molly Parker (of Deadwood fame) has been cast as Abby McDeere, Mitch’s wife, originated in the film by Jeanne Tripplehorn.   She joins Josh Lucas (Mitch McDeere, originated in the film by Tom Cruise), Juliette Lewis (Mitch’s crazy receptionist Tammy, originated in the film by Holly Hunter), and Callum Keith Rennie (Ray McDeere, Mitch’s troublesome brother, originated in the film by David Strathairn.)  The midseason premiere will pick up 10 years where the movie left off with Mitch and Abby starting their new lives in Washington, DC.

I am stoked for this show.  I loved the book (by John Grisham) and really enjoyed the movie.   So I am anxious to see what has transpired for the McDeere family and how they have rebuilt their life after the catastrophe that was Bendini, Lambert, & Locke.

CSI Miami

In what some fans are calling a “shocking” return casting decision by the show, Alana de la Garza is returning to CSI Miami.  How is that possible considering Mrs. Horatio Caine was killed at the end of Season 4?   I’m not sure.   The safe assumption is that it is in some sort of dream sequence or out-of-body experience for Horatio considering he was shot at the end of last season.

Suits

Alicia Coppola has been cast as Alexandra Leeds in the USA hit summer show, Suits.  Leeds is an old acquaintance of Harvey’s (Gabriel Macht) and her presence will drive him absolutely insane.  Whether or not that insanity level is of the bad, lawyering nature or the good, sexual nature, remains to be seen.  Either way, if she plays her typical character (currently she is playing the head of the Mai on The Nine Lives of Chloe King) that exudes intelligence, sexuality, fire, and trouble, it will be quite interesting to see those fireworks between her and Harvey.

A Gifted Man

Mike Doyle has been cast as Dr. Victor Lantz, who will be a recurring character, on the new fall show A Gifted Man on CBS.  Doyle is probably best known for his portrayal of forensic tech Ryan O’Halloran on L&O: SVU.

House

Odette Annable (Brothers & Sisters) has been cast on House for the upcoming 8th season as a series regular.   She will be filling the void left by Martha Masters (Amber Tamblyn) and Dr. Thirteen (Olivia Wilde.)   WIlde’s character will be on House but only briefly.   The show is still looking for a new Dean of Medicine.  They will be tough shoes to fill having been vacated by Dr. Lisa Cuddy (Lisa Edelstein.)   Stay tuned!

Blue Bloods

Looks like Jamie Reagan is getting a new partner.  But don’t worry Renzulli fans, he isn’t going anywhere.  Renzulli (Nick Turturro) has been promoted so he will still be around but as a result, Jamie is getting a new man in the streets.   Check that, a new woman in streets!   Monica Raymund (Lie to Me) has been cast as Lean Sosa, rookie cop who becomes Jamie new partner.   They did know each other from the academy but I get the impression they weren’t playing poker every Saturday night together.   I’m not as excited about this casting because I hated her character on Lie to Me.  But we’ll see how this goes on Blue Bloods.

Parks and Recreation

Patricia Clarkson (Six Feet Under) has been cast as Tammy 1, Ron Swanson’s (Nick Offerman) first wife.  His current wife is Tammy 2 (played by Megan Mullally.)

Once Upon A Time

One of my favorite actors in TV has just been cast on one of ABC’s new fall dramas.  David Anders (Sark from Alias) has been cast as a doctor on the mythological, fairy tale show.   I know I went back a few years referencing a show he was on but he will always be Sark to me.   But I guess I should have referenced his role on The Vampire Diaries as John Gilbert or Heroes as Adam Monroe or 24 as Josef Bazhaev.   Either way, the guy is awesome!!

Also cast was Paula Marshall as Malificent.  Malificent is probably one of the scariest villains in Disney history (just ask my husband)…Sleeping Beauty’s evil queen.  I don’t’ know if that’s bad luck for the show because while I like Marshall, every show she is on as a regular, the show gets canceled.  The cast and crew might want to keep their resumes ready to go!

 

CASTING NEWS: CSI (AGAIN), HIMYM, House, Glee, and Castle

CSI

CSI has made another significant casing announcement this off-season.    Sam Malone, otherwise known as, Ted Danson, is going to be a series regular on the hit TV show.  On CSI’s 12th season (wow!) Danson will be the new supervisor in charge and his experience comes from a lab in Portland.

Castle

Castle and Beckett and the boys are going to have a new captain in the fall and she is much different from Captain Montgomery (I still haven’t gotten over his death.)  Captain Victoria Gates will be played by Penny Johnson Jerald of 24 fame.   Captain Gates is said to be tough but she is more concerned about climbing the NYPD corporate ranks than the grunt “police work.”   Doesn’t sound like she and Beckett will be getting along initially.   I’m really anxious to see how Jerald’s chemistry works with this very solid cast.

How I Met Your Mother

Remember the guy that left House/acting altogether for a job at the White House?   Well he’s back!    Kal Penn is joining HIMYM in a recurring role as a love interest for Robin.   Not sure how long he’ll be sticking around since he is hitting the campaign trail with Obama in 2012.   But this will bring and interesting dynamic for all of us who are hoping the bride Barney is marrying at the end of the season is Robin.  Barney looks to be starting things again with Nora (who I love) which left Robin slightly perturbed.  But now Robin seems to be moving on herself.   How will this impact a potential Barney/Robin romance?   Time will tell!

House

Jesse Spencer has renewed his contract with House and will be back as a Dr. Robert Chase for  House’s eighth season.   I know a lot of House fans were sweating that one because it REALLY was down to the wire to sign him.  And after Lisa Edlestein’s Cuddy suddenly parted ways with the show, I don’t think House fans could take another major departure!

Glee

In what really isn’t that surprising (but some people are reportedly shocked by this news) Lea Michele, Cory Monteith, and Chris Colfer will NOT return to Glee for Season Four.   Season Three of Glee, which kicks off Tuesday Sept 20th 2011, will be their final season.  I don’t know why people were surprised by this.  Ryan Murphy had already said that as characters graduate from McKinley, they won’t return to the show.  This is a show about a high school Glee club, not this particular group of people and we follow them through life (like we do in shows like 90210 and Gossip Girl.)  So these people will move on, new people will come in, and the McKinely High School Glee Club, has been and always will be, the focus.  Sounds reasonable to me.  So it shouldn’t be surprising to anyone that Rachel, Finn, and Kurt will all graduate this year and move on with their lives apart from McKinley.  The question will be, who else is graduating?   I would have to think Quinn and possibly Santana.  Puck should but he could easily be left back.   Brittany may never graduate.   So we have to see.

 

 

James Spader Joins The Office

Ugh.  This is good news and bad news.  The bad news is, James Spader has signed on to be the new office manager on Season 8 of The Office.   The good news is, it will be short-lived because he has his sights set for the CEO position which he will get.   Therefore we still need to find a replacement for Michael Scott.   Which I still believe, is impossible.

As you can probably tell, I’m not the biggest James Spader fan.  I can appreciate that he’s a good actor but for some reason, he just rubs me the wrong way.  Maybe it’s the fact that every role he’s in, he comes off as so completely arrogant and obnoxious that I equate his characters with him.  Not fair, I know, but it’s the truth.   I was already concerned about filling Michael’s shoes, and this casting doesn’t have me very optimistic.  But like I mentioned above it’s not permanent so I guess I can see how it goes.

What do you think The Office fans?   Do you like the casting or not?

 

Joe Rogan Back as Fear Factor Reboot Host

If you haven’t heard, Fear Factor is looking to make a come back on NBC.   As a result, original host, comedian Joe Rogan, has been asked to reprise his hosting duties.

I’m happy about this because I couldn’t imagine Fear Factor without Rogan.  It’s like watching Survivor without Jeff Probst…it’s just not right!    I watched Fear Factor the first time around for the first season or two.   But then it got really gross and nasty so I stopped watching.   To be honest, I watched it more because of Rogan because I find him to be hysterical.  As you know, I am not a reality TV person, except for Survivor, so I’m not sure if I will check out FF 2.0    But I’m happy for the hilarious Rogan.  He made that show a lot more entertaining the first time around.   I have no doubt, he’ll do it again.

 

(UPDATED) CASTING NEWS: Law & Order: SVU

NBC and Law & Order: SVU have found a replacement for Christopher Meloni as well as an additional female presence when Mariska Hargitay reduces her work load during the midseason.    Danny Pino (Cold Case) and Kelli Giddish (Chase) have been cast as series regulars on L&O: SVU 13th season.

Pino is best known for playing detective Scotty Valens on Cold Case for seven seasons and has had other guest spots on shows like The Shield and Burn Notice.  Joining Pino is Giddish who most recently starred on the canceled NBC show Chase and had a great guest spot on The Good Wife this past season and whose resume includes shows like Damages, The Burg, All My Children, and even did a guest spot on L&O: SVU in 2007.

I don’t watch SVU so I would be curious to hear what fans of the show think.  I know Meloni’s shoes are very hard to fill but I loved Pino on Cold Case so I hope fans of the show will be pleased with the casting.   While I didn’t like Giddish on Chase, I really liked her on The Good Wife and I was hoping she was going to continue with the show this upcoming season.  Oh well.   But hopefully she will fit in well with the SVU cast.

What are your thoughts SVU fans?   Are we happy or not so much about this casting news?

UPDATED:

Two very popular actresses and characters are returning to SVU this season.   Stephanie March and Diane Neal are both returning as ADA Alexandra Cabot and ADA Casey Novak respectively.  Neither actress has a specific number of episodes they are returning for so we’ll have to wait and see.

Both of these women are fantastic in these roles so I am thrilled that they will both be returning in the fall!!!

 

CASTING NEWS: The Good Wife

Just when you thought the cast of The Good Wife couldn’t get any stronger, it does!!   TV Line has reported that Lisa Edlestein (House) has signed on as a recurring character on The Good Wife.   She will have a past with Josh Charles’ Will Gardner (of course she does) although it’s not clear if it will be a personal relationship, business relationship, or both.

You of course know what I am hoping for!!   That Dr. Cuddy and Will Gardner had a HUGE personal relationship, that she is the love of his life and they decide to rekindle their passionate relationship so Alicia and Will have no chance of getting together!!   Come on, does it really shock you that those are my thoughts?   It shouldn’t if you follow my The Good Wife posts!!

TGW fans, what are your thoughts on the casting news?  I am thrilled.  I have always like the actress and think she will be a wonderful addition to an already stellar cast.

Is it September yet?

 

BREAKING NEWS: Criminal Minds

WHEW!!!!!   I think all Criminal Minds fans can let out a HUGE sigh of relief!   Thomas Gibson has officially resigned with Criminal Minds for 2 more years!!!!   While I’m sure 99.9% of the fans are thrilled with this news, you know who is even more thrilled at this point?    That would be the writing team at CM!!!   The writers have been back at work for a few weeks now…could even be close to a month…and production on Criminal Minds 7th season is scheduled to commence in two weeks!!!    So imagine being in the that writing room and creating stories for the show without knowing if the “main” character of Aaron Hotchner will be back or not.  That had to be frustrating and stressful.   But luckily for them (and us) Hotch will be back!

Even though negotiations seemed to be intense and at times very far apart, I think most people believed Gibson would be back on Criminal Minds.  Especially since Gibson had been fulfilling all of his Criminal Minds obligations.  I’m just thrilled that it is no longer a guessing game and we now know for certain.  So other than Mandy Patinkin, our original CM cast is back and fully in tact!

 

CASTING NEWS: CSI

Another regular series cast member is off another hour-long drama.   Laurence Fishburne is out on CSI.  Last year when he renewed his contract, he only signed for one season so it isn’t that much of a surprise that he decided not to renew his contract again.  Plus, Fishburne is going back to what put him on the map…movies.  Marg Helgenberger is already on record as coming back for next season, but only in a part-time capacity.

So what does all this mean for the one time #1 show on network TV?   Well for one thing, the show has already been moved to Wednesday nights at 10pm from the prime Thursday 9pm slot.  Right there, the show is going to take a hit.  Now, not only are you losing Fishburne, but Helgenberger won’t be back full-time next season.  I also have to wonder what happened behind the scenes with Fishburne and the CSI team.   The reason I say that is because typically, production starts for the Fall shows in July.  It’s June 8th.  Fishburne didn’t give a lot of notice to the CSI team to find a replace and change or adjust stories as a result.  Or did he and CBS is just letting the cat out of the bag now and they have a plan?    I’m not sure it’s the latter because I don’t see the benefit to waiting to announce he’s leaving.  Plus, I’m pretty sure you would have had a replacement lined up to announce with his departure if CBS knew about this.  So what took so long for Fishburne to decide and wouldn’t CBS have put a timeline on it to be ready for production?

Either way, he’s out and as of right now, no one is in to replace him.  I stopped watching CSI when Grissom left.  Part of it was because I couldn’t see CSI being the same without him but the other part was because I had grown tired of the series.  When you don’t focus on the personal aspects of the characters at all, and you solely look at it being a case-of-the-week show, you can only watch so many episodes about the science of finding the killer.  At least that’s the case for me.  I know you would get some stuff like Grissom and Sara and Catherine’s issues with her father.  But you would only get 1 or 2 episodes in a 24 episode season that opened up the characters at all.  And when the best character leaves (Grissom), a great character leaves with him (Sara), and another great character dies (Warrick) it crushes a show, for me.  I love Catherine and Nick, but it’s like having Criminal Minds with just Morgan and Garcia.  They’re awesome but you are missing a huge group/family dynamic.  So I haven’t watched CSI in about 3 seasons and I don’t plan to revisit it anytime soon.