Premieres: September 23
Airs: Fridays, 9pm
Network: CBS
Who Is In It? Gary Sinise, Sela Ward, Carmine Giovinazzo, Anna Belknap, Eddie Cahill, Hill Harper, A.J. Buckley, Robert Joy
Where We Left Off: Mac (Sinise) cleared the last unsolved case off his desk in an episode that felt more than a little like a series finale. That was on purpose, seeing that the producers weren’t at all certain about getting renewed.
What to Expect: The procedural kicks off its eighth season by commemorating the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, which hold a special importance for Mac, who lost his wife in the tragedy.
New Faces: New character, Kaye Sullivan, not yet cast at this writing
Where We Left Off: While toasting the memory of a slain colleague at a bar, the entire forensics team became drive-by-shooting targets … and any one of them could have been hit.
What to Expect: If anyone didn’t renew his or her contract, let him or her speak now. As if. An ultimate lure to carry viewers from one season to the next is to set up a show’s whole cast for elimination. You know that won’t happen, and you also know the unhurt characters will spend at least the first new episode trying to figure out who orchestrated the attack and why. Then it’s on to more “CSI”-caliber investigations.
New Faces: Sela Ward
Where We Left Off: The group — specifically Danny and Lindsay — had survived the latest revenge attempt by serial killer Shane Casey.
What to Expect: The biggest change for Season 7 will be the departure of Melina Kanakaredes, whose character Stella has reportedly relocated to New Orleans. Stepping in is Emmy winner Sela Ward (Once and Again) as a transplanted D.C. investigator motivated by her empathy for the victims.
Ward is introduced in the season premiere, "The 34th Floor." She plays Jo Danville, a former FBI agent and newest member of the CSI team. She is welcomed to her new job by stumbling upon the body of a young woman murdered somewhere in the building that houses the NYPD Crime Lab.
One Comment
Glad this was renewed and that all cast members are returning. Been a fan since Day 1 and will continue to do so.