I cannot believe “CSI” Miami” is actually at the end of a successful 10 Season run. It came as quite a shock the show was ending, considering the ratings were still pretty good. As I understand it though, there was a feeling that one of the CSI’s had to go because of budget constraints and there was no way they were going to end the original juggernaut or “CSI: NY” because of its New York roots. So the sacrifice was made.
“CSI: Miami” boasted the return of David Caruso to network television after his foray into feature films. He starred as Horatio Caine, the head of Miami’s elite CSI team. The rest of the team was made up of Tim Speedle (Rory Cochrane), Calleigh Duquesne (Emily Proctor), Eric Delko (Adam Rodriguez), Alexx Woods (Khandi Alexander) and for a short time Megan Donner (Kim Delaney – who left shortly after the series premiered). Most of the cast had found limited amounts of fame in other shows, most notably Khandi Alexander in “E.R.” and Adam Rodriguez in “Roswell.”
Back in 2004, Paramount released the 1st season of this ‘new spin-off’ on DVD, which finally gave me the opportunity to see for myself just how it compared to the groundbreaking original series. And after watching all of the episodes of the freshman season I came to the conclusion that whether or not the show was as good as the others was certainly a matter of opinion, mostly on how you feel about the cast. I found the episodes to be just about as well written, but the characters were not quite as compelling as those in “CSI.” I tuned into that show specifically for the characters, while “CSI: Miami” had me watching in spite of them. I will say by the 3rd season, the cast finally reeled me in and hooked me. I still prefer the original “CSI” and the later “CSI: New York”, but I enjoyed “Miami” as a third favorite.
This final season brought with it some good episodes and the finale “Habeas Corpus” brought a relatively fitting end to the series. No cliffhangers and it ends on a rather light note. I can only assume the cancellation wasn’t set in stone at the time they wrote it. Most of the episodes are standalone stories with no overreaching arc.
I have in the past been impressed by the DVD releases for “CSI” and am just as impressed with this new release of “CSI: Miami: The Final Season.” It has all 19 episodes, plus several fairly good extras. This set has 2 commentaries (listed below). There are also four featurettes including “A Perfect Ten”, which looks at the final season. “Miami Meets Mother Nature” looks at Hollywood’s version of a hurricane, while “A ‘Tripp’ to the Set” offers tour of the set hosted by actor Rex Linn (who plays Det. Sgt. Frank Tripp). Additionally, “The Miami Look” gives us a peek at how the overall ‘look’ of the show is created. Finally, there is a funny Gag Reel to close things out.
“CSI: Miami” had a terrific 10 season run, and again while it may not have been my favorite ‘CSI’ show, it certainly had every right to continue as long as there were loyal viewers. I’m kinda sad to see it go.
Episodes:
Countermeasures (Part 2)
Stiff
Blown Away
Look Who’s Taunting
Killer Regrets
By the Book
Sinner Takes All
Dead Ringer
A Few Dead Men
Long Gone
Crowned
Friendly Fire
Terminal Velocity
Last Straw
No Good Deed
Rest in Pieces
At Risk
Law and Disorder (Part 1)
Habeas Corpus (Part 2)
Starring: David Caruso, Emily Proctor, Adam Rodriguez, Khandi Alexander
Extras: A Perfect Ten; Miami Meets Mother Nature; A “Tripp” to the Set; The Miami Look; Deleted scenes; Gag Reel; Audio Commentaries
Specifications: Widescreen Enhanced for 16×9 Televisions, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound
Studio: Paramount
Release Date: 9/25/2012
MPAA Rating: NR
