With CSI in its tenth season, Szmanda has appeared in more than 200 episodes of the series. “What a long, strange trip it’s been,” the actor told Female First. “I know it won’t last forever, so I try to enjoy every moment. Not many shows make it this far, so I feel very fortunate to be part of it.”

“It’s a great show to work on, thanks to an amazing crew, cast and writing staff,” Szmanda continued, adding that he isn’t planning to leave any time soon. “If I wasn’t enjoying myself, I wouldn’t be doing it,” he explained. “Plus, my character’s gradual evolution from lab tech to CSI level three has kept me interested and challenged on a creative level.”

The departure of leading man William Petersen (Gil Grissom) shook things up on the CSI set, but Szmanda said Laurence Fishburne (Dr Ray Langston) was a good addition to the show. “The mood on the set is very good,” he shared. “We are still having fun. We’ve been through a great deal of changes over the last couple seasons, as any show would after 9 years, but we have a job to do and owe it to our fans to give it our all to the very end. Of course, we miss Billy tremendously. When he left, I realized I was on my own, as if my training wheels were taken off my bike.”

“It was kinda scary at first, but I’m getting more used to it every day,” he continued. “It has taken a long time to adjust to his absence, but I feel like we are finally back on track. While no one will ever replace Billy, Laurence has been a great addition to the cast. He is gracious, kind, funny and professional – which is exactly what we need. And having Jorja Fox [Sara Sidle] back has been awesome.”

The actor’s favorite episode marked an important turning point for his character. “‘Who Shot Sherlock’ will always be my favorite episode,” Szmanda revealed. “Not only does Greg pass his proficiency test, but he really proves himself as a competent CSI. Plus, the episode is shot beautifully and has a style reminiscent of Clue, which happens to be one of my favorite board games.”

For Szmanda, the chance to see Greg take charge would be a welcome addition to the show. “I’d like to see Greg step into more of an authoritative role,” he said. “I think Greg would make a great boss to someone… anyone.”

The mysterious deaths of two teens puzzle the Vegas CSIs.

Synopsis:

Doc Robbins and Ray Langston puzzle over the body of seventeen-year-old Trevor Beck, who dropped dead at Sagebrush Valley High School after a minor scuffle with a classmate. As far as the two doctors can tell, the teen wasn’t killed by a blow to the head. Trevor’s mother tells Brass her son wasn’t a troubled kid, but that he’d been grumpy and forgetful lately, complaining about losing his car keys and then finding them in the ignition of his car. She mentions that her son had just started dating a girl named Cindy the week before. The CSIs trace Cindy’s cell phone to Sagebrush Valley High, and question Renata Clarke, who shares a locker with Cindy. Renata tells Sara she’s been texting Cindy frantically, trying to get a hold of her, with no luck. Nick finds Trevor’s car in the school parking lot and discovers a fresh yellow paint scrape on the modified vintage car. Sara recovers Cindy’s cell phone from the car and finds pictures of Cindy with Trevor on it, and earlier shots of her with another guy, who her phone address book identifies as Miyamoto Takahashi. Brass finds Miyamoto at his job and questions the boy about a fight with Trevor the day before that Cindy recorded on her phone. Miyamoto insists that Trevor attacked him, and seems surprised to learn Cindy is missing. Back in the morgue, Langston determines that a pre-existing condition that caused Trevor’s brain stem to sit right up on his spine contributed to his death—most likely the boy had no idea he even had the condition. He confirms that the anti-depressants found in Tyler’s car could have contributed—as could some sort of trauma to the head.

The CSIs track Trevor’s car’s final trip and discover Cindy’s body along a road in a tree, both of her legs badly broken. Nick wonders if her body was dumped, and Greg observes that it’s as though she was dropped from the sky. In the morgue, Sara notes that the fractures are pedestrian ones, indicating Cindy was struck by a car, and could have been thrown as far as the length of a football field. Nick and Greg backtrack to find the site of the crash and discover two distinct tire treads. They’re able to identify one set as Trevor’s tires, while the other is a mystery. Nick concludes that the cars were involved in a drag race, and one swerved into the other—possibly causing it to hit Cindy. Catherine tracks down the kid who sold Trevor the anti-depressants and learns that the yellow scrape on Trevor’s car could have come from a car belonging to a member of the Demons gang—yellow is their color. Brass thinks to check the LVPD sponsored speed race that takes place on a weekly basis, and Nick and Sara head to the race and quickly spot a group of Demons there, standing around a yellow car, which belongs to Miyamoto. The boy tries to run when the CSIs spot him, but he’s quickly taken down and arrested. Nick and Greg go over his car, but Greg quickly eliminates it when he finds the headlights are plastic, inconsistent with the glass shards found at the scene from the headlights of the car that struck Cindy. Sara views footage of an LVPD race nine days ago and sees Trevor win a race, and then swerve his car, giving him whiplash and perhaps causing his unusual condition to act up. Catherine surmises his death was an accident. The CSIs are surprised when the identity of his opponent in the race is revealed to be Renata Clarke.

Sara and Nick go to the auto shop owned by Renata’s legal guardian, her uncle Gus Davis. Though Renata protests she was with friends the night of Cindy’s death, the CSIs impound her car, which the girl has been detailing. The CSIs track down the old parts Renata removed, and Greg discovers fibers from Cindy’s sweater on the car’s grille. The CSIs wonder why Renata would have raced Trevor again in an illegal race when Sara comes in with some interesting news: video surveillance from one of the roads the racers took reveals that Renata was actually at the wheel of Trevor’s car! A piece of gum stuck to the steering wheel of Renata’s car proves the key—it indicates her uncle, Gus, an admirer of old school racers, was behind the wheel of Renata’s car. Gus wanted to show Renata that it was the driver not the car that mattered in the race, and convinced her to have Cindy get Trevor’s keys so that Renata could drive Trevor’s car while Gus raced her in hers. Renata was in the lead, but Gus’s competitive streak came out, and he swerved the car he was driving to throw her off—and inadvertently hit Cindy. Gus swears he looked for her, but couldn’t find her. He convinced Renata to cover it up and swears she’s innocent, but both are charged with the crime.

Analysis:

A healthy dose of humor and team camaraderie distinguishes this entry, which, despite the fact that it deals with the deaths of two teens, never ventures into maudlin territory. The only time the humor seems a little off is at the end, when, after discussing how drag racing ended the lives of the two victims and will likely send Gus and Renata to jail, Catherine and Nick give in to the primal urge to have a race in the parking garage! It’s a funny moment, and a bit of lighthearted fun between the two characters, but it feels a little off tonally given the discussion the two were having right before getting into their respective cars. Perhaps that’s the point, that the urge to indulge in a race is just too much to resist, even when it’s perhaps not the wisest course of action.

Catherine and Nick aren’t the only CSIs to indulge in a little wicked behavior; Greg reveals to Nick that he went joyriding in his uncle’s car when he was twelve. Nick is heartily amused by the story, a grin plastered on his face as he teases Greg about being “a little car thief.” It’s a cute moment between the two, and highlights their easy rapport. George Eads and Eric Szmanda always play off each other well, and it’s fun to watch them joking around together. It’s nice to see the show take time for moments like this, for Greg to relate with glee his memories of driving around the block three times in his uncle’s car before almost running over his own foot. Anecdotes like this really make the show fun.

Wendy gets a good jab at Hodges in as Nick tells them to go over Renata’s car. When Hodges remarks that the car is pretty sophisticated for a teenage girl, Wendy quips, “Definitely more sophisticated than the ones you chat with on the Twilight message boards.” Oh Hodges! It’s so easy to see him hunched over a computer, dissecting the latest casting choice for the upcoming movie in the teen saga, or even getting into a nitty gritty plot point in one of the four books. Hodges, no doubt, is one who takes Twilight very seriously. I presume Wendy’s teasing also suggests Hodges has yet to come down to earth and take a chance by acting on their mutual attraction.

There is a point in each episode when I’m reminded of what a gifted actor Paul Guilfoyle is. It tends to be in the delivery of a line or a raise of an eyebrow, just a little reminder of how completely he inhabits the role of Jim Brass. This week’s moment comes in the scene where he gently questions Trevor’s distraught mother, trying to find out what might have led to her son’s death. When he lands upon Trevor’s new girlfriend Cindy, he asks Trevor’s mother if she has the girl’s phone number. The grieving woman does not, and Brass immediately reassures he, “That’s okay, we can find it, that’s easy for us.” Guilfoyle delivers that line with an easy assurance that’s both comforting and natural.

Both Trevor and Cindy’s deaths are ultimately accidental, and in Trevor’s case, possibly not one that could have been prevented. As Langston described it, Trevor’s condition was something of a ticking time bomb, more likely than not to be set off by something before being caught by a doctor. Cindy’s death is a different story—the girl stood in the middle of the road to judge a drag race between two very determined individuals. Perhaps her death couldn’t have been predicted—had Gus not swerved in anger to throw Renata off, Cindy might still be alive—but she was certainly taking a risk standing in the middle of a road during a drag race at night. But, as the final scene of the episode shows as Catherine and Nick race each other out of the garage, who among us is immune to taking a little risk now and then?

Nick, Greg and Hodges’ surprise birthday party for Henry goes awry; Dr. Jekyll graduates to murder.

Synopsis:

Henry Andrews has the day off for his birthday, but before he can leave to enjoy it, he’s abducted from the parking lot by three masked men! His “kidnappers” turn out to be Nick, Greg and Hodges, who are intent on taking him to Harry’s Hog Hideout, a remote Nevada restaurant with the best ribs in the state. Things quickly go awry when the four are run off the road by a woman driving in the wrong lane and their car flips over. Undeterred, the four walk to the rib joint only to find it closed by the board of health because of a hepatitis outbreak–and the body of a dead man with a raccoon on his face inside! The four investigate and discover a gun in the dead man’s hand. Nick searches for a phone while Greg and Hodges discover raccoon bait in a gas tube outside the restaurant. Nick returns to Henry only to find a man named Slick aiming a shotgun at the lab tech, accusing him of killing his buddy Gomez. Nick gets Slick to drop the gun, and Greg comes back to say he knows how Gomez died: he shot the raccoon in the gas pipe, which caused an explosion which killed both man and animal. Slick seems satisfied with the explanation–and then a very drunk woman, who Slick identifies as Harry’s wife Shirley, drives up and crashes her car into the restaurant. Nick recognizes her as the woman ran them off the road earlier. Shirley laments about Gomez’s death, saying that he was a genius chef, and complains about Harry, who cleaned out their accounts and left her six months ago. She even shows Henry a postcard Harry sent her from Florida.

Nick, Greg and Hodges continue to search for some way to get a call out; their cell phones are dead, as are all the phones in the restaurant. Greg finally discovers some wires that he’s able to hook up to a telephone poll near the restaurant. Greg manages to get a call out to Catherine, and then goes back inside where he finds Henry accidentally washing his hands with acid. Thinking quickly, Nick grabs some charcoal from the fire pit inside the restaurant to put on Henry’s hand–and notices a skull among the burnt coals. Nick orders Slick and Shirley to sit tight. When the bones are transported back to the lab, it’s confirmed that they belong to the owner, Harry, who Shirley claimed was in Florida. Several of his ribs are missing, and when Nick notes that Harry had Hepatitis B, the reason behind the restaurant’s closing is clear: someone chopped Harry up and served him for dinner. Brass questions Slick and Shirley separately and each accuses the other of killing Harry. Henry solves the case when he gets prints off of the postcard from Florida that match Gomez’s mother, who lives in Boca Raton. He compared the handwriting on the postcard to Harry’s and discovered it was a forgery. Gomez was being blackmailed by Harry into working for the restaurant, and one day he finally decided he’d had enough: he killed Harry, chopped up his ribs and fed him to customers and burned the body.

While Henry’s birthday party goes hopelessly awry, Langston and Catherine investigate the murder of a young woman named Lily, who is drowned in a bathtub while her much older boyfriend Bernard Higgins dozes in another room of the house. Bernard, who suffers from Crohn’s disease and sleep apnea, insists his medical conditions prevented him from hearing the attack on Lily. He keeps passing out during his interrogation, much to Brass’s irritation–until he keels over, dead! Doc Robbins determines the cause of death has to do with sepsis, and shows Langston that someone implanted a septic appendix into Bernard’s body. Langston realizes Dr. Jekyll, the surgeon who laproscopically tied a dead man’s small intestines in “Ghost Town”, is back–and he’s graduated to murder. Remembering Jekyll took the dead man’s bow tie the last time, Langston scours Bernard’s house for evidence that something has been taken, and he finds what he’s looking for in a large book with a single word cut out of it. Doc Robbins excises the appendix and finds a rolled up piece of paper tucked inside the organ, with one word on it: Michelangelo.

Analysis:

One of the most engaging episodes of CSI in a long time, “Appendicitement” offers up something CSI has been sorely lacking this season: a genuine sense of fun. Sure, not every episode can offer up consistent laughs–this is a crime drama after all–but sometimes CSI gets mired down in its own grimness. In part that’s because of its success: it’s so incredibly, consistently well-written, such a piercing commentary on the terrible things human beings are capable of doing to each other that it often ends up being a powerful but not exactly uplifting hour. Sure, Brass or Nick might make an amusing quip that elicits a chuckle, but for the most part CSI is pretty serious show–except, of course, when it isn’t. The episodes that focus on the lab rats are riotous fun, and this entry gets the guys out of the lab–with decidedly funny results.

Poor Henry Andrews definitely doesn’t seem up for the adventure–he’s seriously scared during the “abduction” and once he discovers who’s behind it and why, he’s quick to point out that he hates his birthday and looks decidedly skeptical when Greg vows it will be the best birthday of his life. And Henry’s right–the tense lab tech finds himself in a car that rolls over, hurts his ankle, discovers a dead body, is accosted by a horny older woman and burns his hand with acid. All in all, not a great birthday for poor Henry! But great fun for the audience, who get more than few laughs out of the predicament. After he sees Harry’s Hog Hideout has been closed by the board of health, he deadpans, “Nice. You were going to give me hepatitis for my birthday.” Later, when Shirley comes on to him, he first claims to be engaged, then married–then to have syphilis. None of these excuses deter Shirley, who exclaims at the last one, “Me too!” Jon Wellner takes the comedic material and runs with it, garnering plenty of laughs as things get worse and worse for poor Henry.

Though the birthday boy definitely gets the best material, it’s a total treat to see Nick, Greg and Hodges out of the lab and on a road trip with Henry. Realistically, after the car rolled over, that probably would have been the end of their little excursion, but Greg points out that their beloved ribs are a mere mile away… and off they go, on foot and armed with flashlights. Dramatic music plays as the four men leave the car behind and make their way on foot to their destination–only to be greeted with disappointment once they arrive. The restaurant is closed, and wouldn’t it figure–there’s a dead body waiting for them. These poor guys can never seem to escape work! George Eads, Eric Szmanda, Wallace Langham and Wellner are clearly having a blast with the material, making the wacky adventure a delight for viewers.

The cases at the restaurant flow together pretty well, and though the revelation that Gomez killed Harry feels like it comes a bit out of left field, it at least allows the episode to avoid the cliche of having either Shirley or Slick be the killer. The ill-fated Gomez doesn’t profit from his crime for long: he and his own personal white whale, “Raccoonzilla,” die together after Gomez inadvertently causes an explosion by shooting at the animal. Though it doesn’t make for a fun birthday for Henry, it’s definitely a wild, thoroughly enjoyable ride for the audience. While excursions like this can’t happen too often, it’s definitely a treat when they do: it gives the audience a chance to see the characters they love outside of the job, and also gives the characters–and the writers–an opportunity to let loose.

The B-case is more serious–it’s a continuation of the mystery that was teased in the final moment of the season opener, “Family Affair”. Dr. Jekyll, as Langston nicknamed the surgeon who tied a man’s small intestine’s in a bow in “Ghost Town,” has upped the ante here, this time performing a gruesome surgery on a live patient–one that Jekyll certainly knew would be fatal. Many people have their appendices removed, but the unfortunate Bernard Higgins has a second appendix inserted into his body via a tiny laproscopic incision. Jekyll leaves a clue inside his handy work: the word “Michelangelo.” Does the clue mean Jekyll considers himself an artist? The nickname “Dr. Jekyll” is a reference to The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson, a novel about a man who is literally living a dual life. Calling the killer Dr. Jekyll is a bit of a misnomer, since it was Mr. Hyde who personified the evil and unsavory characteristics while on the surface Dr. Jekyll was an upstanding member of society. But the reference, and the killer’s proclivities definitely intrigue, and I’m definitely looking forward to where this arc will lead.

The CSI Producer discusses the big crossover, what’s coming up in the remaining sweeps episodes of CSI and the return of a memorable nemesis. Lights spoilers inside!

November sweeps has already seen the historic first three CSI show crossover, but there’s more excitement to come, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation Producer Allen MacDonald promises. In addition to teasing the episode he’s at work on now–which brings back a familiar face–MacDonald discusses the return of Sara Sidle (Jorja Fox), the departure of Lauren Lee Smith and Nick Stokes’ (George Eads) promotion.

CSI Files: The three-show crossover scored big in the ratings last week. How did the plans for the trilogy originate?

Allen MacDonald: It all started with [Executive Producer] Carol Mendelsohn.  It’s something she’s been wanting to do for some time now.

CSI Files: Was the crossover tricky to pull off?

MacDonald: It was just a matter of scheduling on the part of all three shows.

CSI Files: How was Ray Langston (Laurence Fishburne) chosen to be the character to tie it all together?

MacDonald: Laurence and David Caruso (Horatio Caine) have worked together in features and very much wanted to work together again.  After that, it just snowballed. It was quite a kick to watch Langston interact on-screen with Horatio Caine and Mac Taylor (Gary Sinise).

CSI Files: What else can we expect from sweeps?

MacDonald: A Dustin Lee Abraham episode involving the world of professional bowling and a decapitated human head bowling ball. Intrigued?  Believe me, by the time teaser is over, you’ll be hooked.  It’s gross – but in a fun way.

CSI Files: Bringing in a new leading man after eight and a half seasons is obviously a big challenge. What do you feel was the most difficult thing about the transition from Gil Grissom (William Petersen) to Langston?

MacDonald: Just simultaneously having to do two very important things at the same time: giving Grissom the emotionally satisfying send-off he deserves while simultaneously setting up Langston, and making him a unique, compelling character in his own right, instead of trying to simply recreate Grissom.

CSI Files: Langston’s father seems to loom large in his mind. Are there plans to see him at some point?

MacDonald: Not that I know of — the character is dead and there are no plans to depict him in flashbacks.

CSI Files: Sara Sidle sure is spending a lot of time away from her new husband! Are we meant to read anything into that?

MacDonald: I think it’s always been clear Grissom and Sara would have a non-traditional approach to marriage.

CSI Files: What was behind the decision to have Sara and Grissom marry?

MacDonald: We felt it was a natural conclusion to where we left them both at the end of “One to Go” in the rainforest of Costa Rica.

CSI Files: What was behind the decision to promote Nick Stokes?

MacDonald: To recognize his huge contribution to the team and his growth as an emerging leader.  Catherine (Marg Helgenberger) needed somebody to back her up and Nick seemed like the natural choice.

CSI Files: Nick and Langston seem to be developing a friendship. Will we see more of this?

MacDonald: Absolutely.  They’re getting to know and trust each other.

CSI Files: Greg Sanders (Eric Szmanda) is expressing a little job dissatisfaction this season with regards to the assignments he’s getting. What’s behind Greg’s disgruntled attitude?

MacDonald: It’s like he said to Sara in the premiere, he still feels he’s being treated like the geeky DNA lab tech when, in fact, he’s matured into a seasoned CSI capable of handling anything thrown his way.

CSI Files: We’ve seen a bit more of Catherine in the leadership role this season. Will this continue?

MacDonald: Yes.

CSI Files: Is there any official word on the reason why Lauren Lee Smith (Riley Adams) didn’t return for the tenth season?

MacDonald: From what I understand, it was felt Riley never quite gelled with the rest of the team because she was introduced at a pivotal point in CSI’s history – two episodes after Warrick’s (Gary Dourdan) death and seven episodes before Grissom’s departure.  As a result, the character got a bit lost in the shuffle, which is not a reflection on Lauren, who is a spectacular actress and was much-loved on the set.

CSI Files: Are there any plans for another Lab Rats episode this season?

MacDonald: Yes.  It’s going to be written by Liz Vassey (Wendy Simms) and Wallace Langham (David Hodges), who are working on it with [Executive Producer] Naren Shankar right now.

CSI Files: Are you at work on a new episode now? Can you hint at what it might be about?

MacDonald: I am.  And the only hint I can provide is that it would be the completion of a CSI storyline trilogy involving Sara Sidle and a very, very smart young girl.

Executive producer Carol Mendelsohn admitted that CSI stumbled a bit during season nine, which saw the departure of leading man William Petersen (Gil Grissom) and the placement of Catherine Willows (Marg Helgenberger) as the head of the team. “We look at last season in a way not dissimilar from the fans,” she said. “We may have shortchanged a number of our characters in being focused on the transition from Grissom’s team to Catherine’s. We’ll try to make up for that this season.”

“We were out of our rhythm a bit last year,” George Eads (Nick Stokes) explained. “We needed to go back to the garage and find what inspired us, and there’s some good stuff with what’s happening on the show now.” That includes the return of Sara Sidle (Jorja Fox), who is scheduled to appear in several episodes this season. “I’m very pleased with what they’ve come up with to bring Sara back,” Fox said. “You do get to learn a little about what she’s been up to. I was pleasantly intrigued.”

With the departure of Riley Adams (Lauren Lee Smith), the return of Sara adds some more estrogen into the mix. Helgenberger said she doesn’t mind working with the guys, “But there needed to be more of a presence of female power. So I was thrilled to have Jorja back. She’s just the coolest chick on the planet.”

CSI won’t waste time telling what happened after Grissom and Sara reunited in the jungle last season. “The audience will know in very short order the status of Grissom and Sara,” Mendelsohn promised. “I can say that between the time they left and now, there are no little Grissoms out there.”

The rest of the team has something in store for season ten as well. Newcomer Dr Ray Langston (Laurence Fishburne) has a wife, “and we may get to meet her,” Fishburne revealed. The character will also deal with a serial killer who is “doing these strange operations on people, putting something inside them that doesn’t belong there.”

Dr Al Robbins (Robert David Hall) will help Langston with the serial killer, and he might get some help of his own in the morgue. “We have an idea for a new character who may join the coroner’s office,” Mendelsohn shared. Meanwhile, Dr Robbins gets a chance to take part in the action at the start of the season. “Dr Robbins is the defender of the coroner’s office,” Mendelsohn explained.

Greg Sanders (Eric Szmanda) will be looking for respect as part of the CSI team. “He’s not happy with the way thing have been, and he wants them to change,” Szmanda said. “This is something he’s been holding in all this time, and it’ll be a shock to everyone.”

Season ten will include an episode that centers around the Las Vegas Crime Lab’s technicians. Budget cuts, meanwhile, will force techs like Wendy Simms (Liz Vassey) and David Hodges (Wallace Langham) to spend more time in the field. Mendelsohn revealed that Hodges, who still holds a torch for Wendy, will have a “slight misstep and actually come bearing gifts for Catherine.”

The full article can be found in the September 28-October 4 issue of TV Guide.

As CSI Files previously reported, season ten will find the Las Vegas Crime Lab dealing with a unique murderer they will call “Dr Jekyll”. “There is a serial killer who’s coming around,” Fishburne said. Helgenberger added, “He does things with the internal organs that we don’t necessarily find out about until we open the body up.”

Sara Sidle (Jorja Fox) will be back for several episodes during the upcoming season, but her romance with Gil Grissom (William Petersen) might be the only relationship fans see for a while. “The writers have always been reluctant to take it too far into soap opera territory,” Helgenberger explained, “and they really want to keep it a mystery show. It’s always a mystery show first, and then it’s a procedural after that.”

Despite the fact that CSI tries to avoid including too much romance, Helgenberger isn’t against such a storyline for her character. “Look, I’m open to it,” the actress said with a laugh. “I tell them that pretty much every year.” Eads added that he feels it’s more interesting when the relationship is shown in one episode and then doesn’t pop up again for five or six episodes. “It keeps them interested,” he said.

“We tend to find stuff about about the characters on the show through a case, through the crime solving when it relates to what’s going on,” Szmanda shared, explaining that fans don’t learn details about each character at random. “It comes out organically, when it’s supposed to.” He added, “I think it’s more interesting when it’s done because it helps tell the story.”

You can watch the video interview below: