I learned a few days ago that Laurence Fishburne wants to leave CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, presumably to work on his movie career, as speculated in the Yahoo! article.
The article went on to describe the show as "once powerful," as it was a highly-rated (and ranked) drama. However, at the end of its eleventh season, it was in thirtieth place.
Fishburne replaced William Petersen about eight or nine episodes into the 2009-2010 season, so the latter could pursue stage work opportunities. With Fishburne's departure, and Marg Helgenberger's desire to work "only a few episodes" next season, it got me to thinking about the show.
I must admit the show grew on me when my girlfriend and I watched syndicated episodes on Spike TV. (Because of her having lived in Vegas, where the show is set and on-location scenes are filmed, watching the show took on a certain surreal quality.)
Given certain cast members' departures over its history and the show's slide, I wonder if it's time to retire this procedural crime drama? I'm not saying CBS should do it, nor am I advocating that it be done. However, while it's still relatively popular (at least it's thirtieth in rank and not dead last), it might be a good time to for the show to leave on a high note. It's not without precedent.
I'm also a fan of Star Trek, and I remember when Star Trek: The Next Generation (ST:TNG)ended. One article I read at the time was that the cast and crew essentially supported the decision. While they still enjoyed performing their roles, and the series remained popular, costs would only climb as time went on. At least the show would end on a high note in terms of popularity, and it did.
I also remember Who Wants to be a Millionaire, a really popular game show that achieved such a high viewership that ABC had to air it around six nights a week with host Regis Philbin. I tired of the show because of its heavy (and dominating) on-air presence. Since those days, the show's popularity cooled to "normal" levels, and the show is now hosted by Meredith Vieira.
But Millionaire and CSI: are two different animals. Game shows such as Millionaire are relatively inexpensive to produce. While I don't have access to those numbers, a week's budget of CSI: might be able to cover a season's worth of game show production expenses. Furthermore, game show sponsors help defray production expenses, either through cash payments or more importantly, through prizes.
Dramas such as ST:TNG and CSI: don't have such an advantage, and their production costs are higher because of overhead such as the cast's salaries, special effects work, and so on.
I have seen maybe one episode of CSI: since Fishburne came on board in the lead role formerly held by Petersen, and it's been a while, so I cannot comment as to the quality of the show.
All else being equal, however, no show can realistically or reasonably sustain a high level of popularity over a long time. While a handful of dramas that come to mind (Gunsmoke, Bonanza, the original Law & Order) managed to maintain a high degree of popularity over their runs, these examples are several exceptions to what is otherwise common. Millionaire's fire waned after a time, partly due, I think, to its overexposure. I know I got sick of it early on.
Getting back to what was once a number-one rated show, I would be saddened if CSI: were cancelled, but on the other hand, doing it now would let the show end with dignity, and fans would be able to rejoice over such a move. It sure beats languishing until it dies an ignominious death, having faded into obscurity.
One question is whether it has jumped the shark. I can't comment on this, partly because I haven't watched it for some time. However, I do remember some plotlines that left something to be desired, such as Nick Stokes' (George Eads) being kidnapped and buried alive in a coffin that had a voyeuristic web connection so web viewers could "see" the goings-on of the victim before he dies. Does that qualify as having "jumped the shark"? I don't know, but taken by itself, it would mean the show did so long ago in an earlier season.
