Today is Emoday

Ah... I've seen it coming the past two weeks. I've known it's been coming. But it seems like it came so much faster than I expected... Sara Sidle is at last leaving the Las Vegas Crime Lab. Next week, Jorja Fox really and truly ends her role as my favorite CSI on the original hit series. I may be a n00b to the show, but she's what kept me watching. It'll be sad to see her go. But I'll keep watching if only because it's NOT money that had her quit, and I want to know if the writers can actually make Grissom still survive (I don't mean "live," per se, but I don't imagine Grissom can just "bounce back" from Sara leaving so easily. He'll be screwed over even if her reason is as good as gold) believably.

I am happy that they've at least taken the time to build it up, as the voiceovers from previous episodes re: Sara taking cases too personally, her getting upset over things that previously didn't faze her make clear.

I'm NOT happy that it is apparently the episode that got filmed at CSUN (based on the appearance of Juliette Goglia in the preview, who was also in the episode filmed on campus), because if I'd known then that it was Sara's last episode, I would have said "Fuck it!" to my JOUR 410 class and tried to get the chance to talk to Jorja Fox, even if it was just for a "I loved your work on the show, you turned me into a fan, and I hope that when the series ends, you have a guest starring role, because I know I speak for thousands, if not millions, of fans that would love that from the bottom of their hearts."

I do wonder what the final episode title ended up being, because I've heard no less than three things. How do people find out about episode titles, anyway? It doesn't announce/show it at the start of the episode, and my digital cable TV guide doesn't say it... so how?

I'm happy that William Petersen got his wish-- he said he wanted to kiss (Jorja Fox) before the series ended, and he has-- the previews confirm that. The question is, the context of the kiss. It didn't look like a sad, parting kiss-- they weren't alone, for one thing. You could see Hodges over Sara's shoulder. To me, it looked like the locker room at the lab, and that makes me wonder if they decided to forego a traditional wedding ceremony and get married in the lab, right then and there (who knows, maybe Doc Robbins is secretly hiding an officiant's certification?). If they did, they'd need a damn good explanation for Sara leaving despite getting married... but I think it's just as necessary even if, at this point, the audience only thinks they're engaged (hey, they could have gotten married off-screen, but I doubt that). And I don't think Sara's the type to leave Grissom "at the altar," as it were.

Oh, and we finally found out the name of Grissom's dog: Hank. Was that ever stated before? I don't think it was-- fanfiction always has him having different names. I think the dog really DOES belong to Petersen, and the real dog's name is Bruno, but I'm not sure.

I do want to know if they're even going to say where Sara goes and what she does. As in, will she even get mentioned anymore? Or will it still be just "cases," without any character development? I know it was mentioned in interviews that this season is much more case-based, with less focus on the individual characters, but I do think it's possible (and has been done) to strike a balance between the two, even in a single episode.

Well, I'll be waiting on the edge of my (couch) seat... and regardless of ending, "that's what fandom is for!"

Jorja Fox, so long, and thanks for all the great episodes. :)