CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (season 8)

The eighth season of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation premiered on CBS on September 27, 2007 and ended May 15, 2008. The season stars William Petersen and Marg Helgenberger.

CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
Season 8
Season 8 U.S. DVD cover
Starring	William Petersen Marg Helgenberger Gary Dourdan George Eads Jorja Fox Eric Szmanda Robert David Hall Wallace Langham Paul Guilfoyle
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	17
Release
Original network	CBS
Original release	September 27, 2007 – May 15, 2008
Season chronology

Plot

As the CSIs race to save one of their own ("Dead Doll"), Sara makes a life-changing decision ("Goodbye and Good Luck"), and one investigator falls ("For Gedda"), in the eighth season of CSI. Grissom, Willows and their team investigate the death of go-kart racer ("A La Cart"), a demonic possession ("Go to Hell"), the death of a hermaphrodite ("The Case of the Cross-Dressing Carp"), the murder of a slasher film actress ("The Chick Chop Flick Shop"), and a kidnapping that brings New York's top FBI agent to Las Vegas ("Who and What"). Meanwhile, Catherine finds herself affected by the death of a three-year-old ("A Thousand Days on Earth"), and the death of a difficult TV star leads Brass and Grissom to Hollywood ("Two and a Half Deaths").

Cast

Main cast

• William Petersen as Gil Grissom, a CSI Level 3 Supervisor
• Marg Helgenberger as Catherine Willows, a CSI Level 3 Assistant Supervisor
• Gary Dourdan as Warrick Brown, a CSI Level 3
• George Eads as Nick Stokes, a CSI Level 3
• Jorja Fox as Sara Sidle, a CSI Level 3 (episodes 1–7)
• Eric Szmanda as Greg Sanders, a CSI Level 2
• Robert David Hall as Al Robbins, the Chief Medical Examiner
• Wallace Langham as David Hodges, a Trace Technician
• Paul Guilfoyle as Jim Brass, a Homicide Detective Captain

Recurring cast

• Liz Vassey as Wendy Simms
• Archie Kao as Archie Johnson
• David Berman as David Phillips
• Sheeri Rappaport as Mandy Webster
• Jon Wellner as Henry Andrews
• Marc Vann as Conrad Ecklie
• Jessica Lucas as Ronnie Lake
• Conor O'Farrell as Jeffrey McKean

Guest cast

• Louise Lombard as Sofia Curtis
• Jessie Collins as Natalie Davis
• Anthony LaPaglia as Jack Malone
• Method Man as Drops
• Katey Segal as Annabelle Fundt

Cameo appearances

• Jamie Hyneman ("The Theory of Everything")
• Adam Savage ("The Theory of Everything")
• Charlie Sheen ("Two and a Half Deaths")
• Jon Cryer ("Two and a Half Deaths")
• Angus T. Jones ("Two and a Half Deaths")

Changes

Louise Lombard departed the cast after the first episode of the season, while Jorja Fox signed on for only the first seven episodes. This is the final full season to star Gary Dourdan and William Petersen, and the last season to feature every original main cast member in a starring role. Wallace Langham joined the main cast.

Production

Only 11 episodes had been completed and aired before the 2007 Writers Guild of America strike. Only six more episodes were made after the strike, for a total of only 17 episodes. Some international broadcasters only showed the first part of the crossover "Who and What" because Without a Trace did not air (or aired older seasons) at the time.

Episodes

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	US viewers (millions)
166	1	"Dead Doll"	Kenneth Fink	Story by : Naren Shankar Teleplay by : Dustin Lee Abraham & Allen MacDonald	September 27, 2007	25.22[1]
Grissom and his team search for Sara, who was kidnapped by the so-called miniature killer and left to die underneath a wrecked car in the desert.
167	2	"A La Cart"	Richard J. Lewis	Sarah Goldfinger & Richard Catalani	October 4, 2007	20.97[2]
Grissom, Nick, and Greg investigate the death of a go-kart racer whose headless body is found yards from the highway he was racing on; Catherine and Warrick work to unravel the mysterious murder of a popular men's magazine publisher at a restaurant where patrons dine in the dark.
168	3	"Go to Hell"	Jeffrey Hunt	Douglas Petrie	October 11, 2007	19.79[3]
The team investigates the murder of a couple and their younger daughter, and the disappearance of their older daughter (Britt Robertson), who is believed to be possessed by the devil. Meanwhile Sara and a new CSI, Ronnie, investigate the death of a homeless man found on a garbage pile.
169	4	"The Case of the Cross-Dressing Carp"	Alec Smight	David Rambo & Jacqueline Hoyt	October 18, 2007	21.22[4]
The hanging death of a possibly hermaphroditic male is connected to a tainted water supply, while the day crew investigates 40-year-old skeletal remains found at the site of a recently imploded casino. Grissom proposes to Sara, and she accepts; Greg reveals he is writing a book about the history of Las Vegas.
170	5	"The Chick Chop Flick Shop"	Richard J. Lewis	Evan Dunsky	November 1, 2007	19.06[5]
The team investigates the murder of Weatherley Adams, a horror/slasher film actress found on the set with an ax in her back. The autopsy reveals that she was gored but that the ax wasn't the murder weapon. When Ronnie discovers a second body at the studio hanging from the rafters, she also comes face to face with the killer. Sara despairs at having death thrust in her face everyday.
171	6	"Who & What"	Danny Cannon	Story by : Carol Mendelsohn & Naren Shankar Teleplay by : Richard Catalani & Danny Cannon	November 8, 2007	21.94[6]
The FBI's Jack Malone (Anthony LaPaglia) joins forces with Grissom to track a serial killer after a boy who was kidnapped six years ago in New York matches the profile of a murder victim in Las Vegas. This episode begins a crossover with Without a Trace that concludes on "Where and Why".
172	7	"Goodbye & Good Luck"	Kenneth Fink	Story by : Allen MacDonald & Sarah Goldfinger Teleplay by : Allen MacDonald & Naren Shankar	November 15, 2007	21.37[7]
The CSI's investigate when a college freshman plunges to her death and her death is revealed to be a murder. They discover the victim had a relationship with Marlon West, a teen who was acquitted on a murder charge with the help of his younger sister, a child prodigy named Hannah. Sara handles the case and she becomes convinced Hannah killed Marlon's girlfriend and is framing him for the murder as an attempt to put him in jail and keep control of him. The whole affair ends in tragedy, with Marlon hanging himself in his cell and Hannah crushed by the news, seemingly showing that she did indeed kill the freshman. Sara burns out at the end and leaves Las Vegas.
173	8	"You Kill Me"	Paris Barclay	Story by : Naren Shankar & Sarah Goldfinger Teleplay by : Douglas Petrie & Naren Shankar	November 22, 2007	14.75[8]
Hodges stages hypothetical murders in the lab in order to give his fellow lab techs a chance to play CSI, but unbeknownst to them he has other motives behind his actions. Meanwhile, after Sara's farewell, everyone tries to comfort Grissom.
174	9	"Cockroaches"	William Friedkin	Dustin Lee Abraham	December 6, 2007	18.80[9]
A man's body is thrown from a garbage truck that is being chased by the police. The victim was a limo driver connected to a nightclub with mob ties. Warrick believes the club owner is responsible and sets out to prove it. Unfortunately, Warrick's addiction to pills and a sudden reckless lifestyle negatively impact his job. Later, Warrick becomes the chief suspect in another mob-related murder.
175	10	"Lying Down With Dogs"	Michael Slovis	Christopher Barbour & Michael F.X. Daley	December 13, 2007	19.87[10]
The body of a wealthy socialite, known for her charitable contributions, is discovered in a dumping ground along with the bodies of several dogs. The investigation reveals the victim was involved in illegal dog fighting and may have tortured some of the animals at a kennel. Meanwhile, Warrick tries to prove he is innocent of murdering an exotic dancer whose body was found in his car outside a nightclub.
176	11	"Bull"	Richard J. Lewis	Story by : David Rambo & Steven Felder Teleplay by : David Rambo	January 10, 2008	18.18[11]
Three murders occur during an annual bull-riding rodeo in Las Vegas. The first victim is a bull rider who is discovered after hours in an empty bull ring. The second is a hit-and-run victim who is linked to the dead bull rider. Later, a third victim, a local pimp, is gunned down in a saloon's restroom. The investigation reveals the crimes may be connected to an illegal bull-breeding ring.
177	12	"Grissom's Divine Comedy"	Richard J. Lewis	Story by : Jacqueline Hoyt & Carol Mendelsohn Teleplay by : Jacqueline Hoyt	April 3, 2008	20.58[12]
Grissom and his team return to duty after long and bad bouts of the cold. DA Maddie Klien calls on Grissom to be an expert witness for a grand jury investigating La Tijera ("The Scissor"), a very dangerous Las Vegas gang. The gang appears to be terrorizing and murdering witnesses who could land them in jail. Grissom is reluctant, but Maddie insists he is the only one for the job.
178	13	"A Thousand Days on Earth"	Kenneth Fink	Evan Dunsky	April 10, 2008	20.09[13]
The disturbing death of a 3-year-old girl found in a box has a great impact on Catherine as she searches for clues to her murder, like naming the baby after the street where she was found on and crossing the line in interrogating a suspect who turns out to be innocent.
179	14	"Drops' Out"	Jeffrey Hunt	Story by : Dustin Lee Abraham & Naren Shankar Teleplay by : Dustin Lee Abraham & Allen MacDonald	April 24, 2008	17.02[14]
Brass, Grissom, and Nick work the case of a female victim found in an apartment building with a gunshot wound. They also discover another victim in the apartment directly above. Drops (Method Man) becomes a person of interest during the investigation, even though he is still in jail.
180	15	"The Theory of Everything"	Christopher Leitch	Story by : Carol Mendelsohn & David Rambo Teleplay by : Douglas Petrie & David Rambo	May 1, 2008	18.01[15]
The whole team look into an abundance of cases, the death of a man who burst into flames in police custody; the death of a woman with green blood which is linked to drugs; and the death of a senior couple who were in a pest control problem with their neighbors, which are all related in different ways. Note: Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage make a cameo appearance as lab technicians as Nick tests the idea that a stun gun can ignite the shirt of a perp who had been maced. After subsequent massive viewer requests, they put it to the test on MythBusters and found it plausible in Fireball Stun Gun since some pepper sprays use a flammable oil-based propellant, some types of modern flannel material (especially acrylic fiber) are flammable and a stun gun is a more than viable method of ignition.
181	16	"Two and a Half Deaths"	Alec Smight	Chuck Lorre & Lee Aronsohn	May 8, 2008	18.07[16]
The difficult star (Katey Sagal) of a TV sitcom is murdered while filming an episode in Las Vegas. The investigation reveals plenty of suspects, including her husband, the actress who is her stand-in and the show's entire staff of writers. This was part of a writer exchange crossover with Two and a Half Men, with Carol Mendelsohn and the CSI writers writing the Two and a Half Men episode "Fish in a Drawer" that also guest-starred George Eads. Includes cameos from Charlie Sheen, Jon Cryer and Angus T. Jones.
182	17	"For Gedda"	Kenneth Fink	Story by : Dustin Lee Abraham & Kenneth Fink Teleplay by : Dustin Lee Abraham & Richard Catalani	May 15, 2008	18.06[17]
Warrick is accused of murdering a Las Vegas gangster. Even more troubling is the fact that Warrick is not certain if he is innocent or guilty of the crime.

References

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5. "CBS places first in viewers and adults 25-54; strong second in adults 18-49". The Futon Critic. November 6, 2007. Retrieved March 26, 2010.
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10. "First-Run Programming Carries CBS to its Most Dominating Week of the Season". The Futon Critic. December 18, 2007. Retrieved March 26, 2010.
11. "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. January 15, 2008. Retrieved March 26, 2010.
12. "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. April 8, 2008. Retrieved March 26, 2010.
13. "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. April 15, 2008. Retrieved March 26, 2010.
14. "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. April 29, 2008. Retrieved March 26, 2010.
15. "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. May 6, 2008. Archived from the original on February 21, 2012. Retrieved March 26, 2010.
16. "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. May 13, 2008. Retrieved March 26, 2010.
17. "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. May 20, 2008. Retrieved March 26, 2010.