CSI: One To Go (Episode 910)

A well-deserved happy ending

Last month, Grissom and his new bestest buddy, Dr. Raymond Langston, tried to trick an imprisoned serial killer into helping them capture his apprentice. While the serial killer's apprentice motif has become trite, I guess I should be grateful that it wasn't revealed to be Greg. Yeah, I'm looking at you, Bones. Also? Grissom told everyone he was taking his toys bugs and going home to parts unknown.

We open on Nathan Haskell's voice telling Grissom and Langston where one of his old victims are buried, close to a new victim killed by Haskell's apprentice. Over a montage of Grissom and Nicky processing the crime scene, Brass and Ecklie give their report on the new twist in the case to the sheriff. Ecklie says they've tentatively identified the older body as that of Joel Steiner, DJK's first victim. The fresher corpse has been IDed as Jeffrey Masters. He's married to Maureen, who has disappeared, and it's believed she's being held by DJK's accomplice. Brass believes they only have 48 hours to locate Maureen before she's killed. The sheriff looks like he'd really like to have Captain Underpants back handling all this, murder and corruption be damned. He bitches about the PR nightmare and orders Brass and Ecklie to make it up to him by finding Maureen Masters.

Are you kidding me? Grissom doesn't get the punchy pre-credits line on his last episode? I call shenanigans.

When we return, Grissom tells Brass that it can't be a coincidence Masters' body was found so close to Steiner's. He's sure Haskell got a message to his accomplice and Brass agrees, but says the only contact Haskell has had with the outside world is the seminar and the call to Langston. Brass also adds, with some chagrin, that the sheriff has created a task force for the case and wants Grissom to stay on until it's solved. Grissom says nothing but Brass knows what we all know: Grissom may be ready to move on but he's still not going to ditch everyone in the middle of a case.

We check in on Maureen, who awakens to discover she's been tied down to a metal exam table. She peers around as much as her limited mobility allows and her surroundings are your garden variety serial killer's lair. You know, chains, trays of torture implements, a shadowy, menacing figure lurking in the background. Maureen struggles to free herself while the apprentice watches impassively.

Grissom enters Ecklie's office and waits patiently for Ecklie to get off the phone. When he does, Grissom says he needs a favor that has to be cleared with the sheriff. Ecklie, obviously reference the phone call, suspiciously asks if Grissom has bugs in his office. Grissom: "No, I have bugs in my office." Ecklie: "...What?!" Grissom: "What are we talking about?" Heh. Ecklie decides he can't deal with translating Grissomese today and moves on, informing Grissom that the sheriff is restructuring the department and just promoted him to undersheriff. Grissom congratulates him, but with a tone that's more sympathetic than congratulatory, and says he's got an idea for Ecklie's first official act as Captain Underpants 2.0. Ecklie looks at him like, "Oh god, what have I gotten myself into?"

Later, Grissom heads down the hall and finds Langston signing in at reception. They go into Grissom's office and Langston's got an idea of how DJK subdued his male victims, all of whom were larger and stronger. Langston thinks Haskell knocked them out with a mixture of cannabis, which was found in all the victims' systems, and something else that may not have shown up on preliminary testing. He hands over a list of possible drugs and Grissom promises to send them to Tox. Langston reminds Grissom about his promise to keep him in the loop and Grissom says he intends to keep that promise. In fact, he's arranged to have Langston brought on as a special consultant so he'll have full access to the case. Langston looks downright giddy at this news, which is kind of adorable. Now that Langston is officially helping with the case, Grissom says he suspects Haskell's accomplice was in the seminar. He wants to know who suggested the class with Haskell and Langston says it was a former student, Dan Forrester.

Brass interrogates Forrester, a PhD candidate who says he was tired of using secondary sources into the nature of psychopathy and wanted a first hand account. He says several incarcerated killers were contacted but Haskell was the only one who responded. Brass shows Forrester photos of some of DJK's victims, including gruesome crime scene photos, and Forrester looks nauseated and insists he doesn't know any of them. He says that he may have been the one to take the seminar idea to Langston but it was several students who drafted the first letter, only he can't remember who they were. While watching the interrogation from the hall, Langston asks Grissom if their next step is to question all the seminar attendees. Grissom says Maureen doesn't have that kind of time and he thinks they need to try and figure out who Haskell was communicating with.

The team, along with Langston, has gathered in the seminar hall. Langston says he wasn't allowed to tape the students but he's got a seating chart and they've placed photos at each seat. They play the video of Haskell's remarks on the screen and cue up significant remarks, trying to figure out who was in his direct line of sight when he made those remarks. The first two tries are a bust but on the second, when a student asked how DJK controlled his victims and got the speech about giving them hope, they figure out Haskell was looking directly at Thomas Donover.

The cops surround Donover's house and Brass pounds on the door, which is opened by Donover's startled and frightened wife, Hallie. She says that her husband is gone on one of his regular camping trips and she's got no idea where he is. Inside the house, the team looks for evidence of where Donover could be holding Maureen. Greg finds a shoe print match that confirms Donover is their suspect and Riley takes a laptop with encrypted files back to the lab. Brass asks to try Donover on Hallie's phone and she hands it over, but says Donover turns his phone off when he's camping because he likes his alone time. And by "alone time" she means "terrorizing young women," as we see Donover in the DJK lair with Maureen. Following Haskell's advice about giving the victims hope, he pretends he's going to cut Maureen but instead releases her from her bonds. He turns away while she looks around warily, then bolts for the door. It's barred and Donover is over there in a flash, smacking her across the face and restraining her. While Maureen struggles, he says the door is locked and she could try the windows, but he'd shoot her in the head. He tells her the only way she'll leave alive is with him and she calms down, apologizing and promising she'll do whatever it takes.

Grissom and Langston are in the evidence room, using a large map of the area to try and figure out where Donover is holding Maureen. Hodges barges in, sucking up to Grissom and jealously demanding to know who the new guy is. Grissom introduces Langston, who is more bemused than annoyed by Hodges' territorialism. They look at the map and note that all the male victims were found along major highways, like DJK dumped them where it was convenient. All of the roads lead to Lake Mead but that's not narrowing it down much, since it has over 500 miles of shoreline. Always happy to prove his worth to Grissom, Hodges pipes up that Greg found a bit of moss on the tread of Donover's shoes and it's a type of moss that only grows on the north side. Smirking at Langston, Hodges says this is what they live for, eliciting an ostentatious eyeroll from Grissom. Hee!

Back at Donover's house, Nicky climbs into the attic and finds a box full of videotapes. He goes back down and tells Catherine about the find, adding that it was the only recently disturbed thing in the dusty attic. Donover has a DVD player but not VCR and when Catherine asks him to go on, Nicky says Gerald Tolliver had a VCR and they know he collected serial killer memorabilia. He found one tape made in the summer of 1997, the same time Joel Steiner and his fiancee disappeared. He's going to take it back to the lab and Catherine says she'll do it, noting how tired he looks. Nicky demurs and admits this case feels like Grissom's last big game and he wants to win it for him. Catherine smiles in understanding.

Brass is still in interrogation with Hallie and he shows her photos of DJK and Donover's many victims, including Tolliver, whom she recognizes. Brass says her husband is a murderer and demands to know where he is, but Hallie calmly replies that he made her promise not to tell. Brass stares at her like, "Are you fucking kidding me with this shit?"

Still processing the house, Catherine finds a suspicious-looking jar of herbs. She calls Henry, who says he just finished testing tissue for what might have incapacitated the victims. Before he can tell her what it is, Catherine rattles off the name of the drug, prompting Henry to note that's usually Grissom's thing. Catherine just wants to know if she's right and Henry confirms that it's a strong hallucinogenic that will knock someone out for at least 15 minutes. She prints the jar and sends it to Mandy, who runs it right away and finds a match to Garth Harris, a drug dealer. The cops head out to arrest Harris, who runs as soon as he sees them. The chase ends pretty quickly when Harris darts into the middle of the street and is mowed down by a speeding cop. Brass is all, "No, SERIOUSLY, are you fucking KIDDING ME with this shit?"

As it turns out, Harris was so doped up when Master was killed and Maureen was abducted that he would've have been able to help. Making a possibly unintentional pun, Catherine gripes that they've hit another dead end. Luckily, Nicky arrives to save the day. He's turned up something useful, albeit disturbing, on the videotape he collected from Donover's closet. It shows Joel Steiner and his fiancee Tiffany Cohen hanging out with Donover and Tolliver on the night they disappeared. Donover says on the tape that he's got something to keep the party going and Catherine guesses it was a sedative-laced joint. After that, the tape cuts to a brief shot of Haskell torturing Tiffany before it cuts off. Grissom asks if there's a better shot of the house and Langston sees where he's going, saying that it makes sense Donover would continue DJK's work in the same place. Nicky finds the best shot he can and Grissom tells him to distribute photos to all officers. Langston is frustrated by how time is running out and thinks they need to go back to Haskell. Catherine points out that this is the most fun Haskell has had in years and he's not going to help them, but Langston is unconvinced.

At DJK's lair, Maureen is still alive but now tied to a chair. Donover uses a straight razor to cut off a few chunks of her hair, then raises the stakes when he blindfolds himself and terrifies her into playing a twisted version of Marco Polo.

Back at the lab, Grissom is going through archival photos of the moon when Nicky joins him and asks what he's up to. Grissom says he's hoping to figure out where Maureen is being held by looking at the position and phase of the moon seen on the 1997 video. "Forensic astronomy," Nicky muses and they both chuckle. Nicky looks at Grissom and says he'll never forget the things Grissom has taught him. Grissom gazes back at him with pride and affection and says Nicky was the best student he ever had.

Langston's frustration has driven him to seek out Haskell in prison, where he attempts to trick Haskell by claiming they've found Maureen alive and now just want to know where the other female victims were buried. Alas, while Langston is smart and his attempt is admirable he does not have the amoral cunning of a serial killer. Haskell easily turns the tables, tricking Langston into admitting they still haven't found Maureen. Haskell is led away, raving that Maureen is already dead and his apprentices are everywhere, while Langston looks furious and chagrined. Sure, it was a naive move but I do like that Langston is new enough to this whole crime-fighting thing that he hasn't become completely jaded like the rest of the team.

Grissom's taken his moon-gazing to the A/V lab, where Greg helps him clean up the best image of the moon and surrounding landscape they've got on the tape. Greg takes a moment to thank Grissom for giving him a chance in the field. Grissom jokes that there were probably times Greg wished he didn't and Greg laughs a little, but insists that Grissom changed his life. Nicky arrives with the Lake Mead moon tables and they use the data, the shot of the moon in between two mountains of similar height, and a topographical map to pinpoint exactly where the video was recorded. I don't even know if the whole moon thing ended up being necessary since they just had to look at the peaks and find two mountains near the same height right next to each other but maybe I'm missing something. Science, including fake TV science, hurts my brain. In any case, they know where to find Donover and, hopefully, a still alive Maureen.

Speaking of which, Donover's still terrorizing Maureen when sensors and a surveillance camera alerts him to the police surrounding the house. He pulls out a gun to kill Maureen but before he can make killing her his final act as DJK's accomplice, a magical slow-mo bullet comes out of nowhere and buries itself in his forehead. The cops rush in and Brass unties Maureen, assuring her everything's going to be okay. Well, except for her husband being dead, that is. Later, the team processes the house and surrounding area, searching for the missing bodies. In the torture room Grissom steps on a loose floorboard and exchanges a significant glance with Langston. The board is pulled up and underneath the floor is a skeleton. Eventually, more of the flooring is removed to reveal all of the female victims.

So, that's it. Case closed, Langston gets hired for real, and Grissom is all, "Smell ya later!" Thanks for reading, y'all have been great.

Oh, I'm just kidding. I'm frequently snarky, occasionally crabby, but I'm never downright cruel. So, Langston is brooding in his classroom when Grissom arrives. Langston is still upset that Donover sat in his classroom and he never saw him for what he really was. Grissom replies that he didn't see it either and says, "People lie. The only thing we can count on is the evidence." This is a nice callback to the pilot, when Grissom said almost the same thing to Warrick: "Concentrate on what cannot lie. The evidence." Langston thanks Grissom for letting him help and says it was something he needed to do. After a pause, Grissom tells Langston that there's a job opening at CSI. He says it's entry level with terrible pay and hours but "I think you'd be a great help to CSI and you might really enjoy it." Langston looks thoughtful and promises to think about it.

Grissom is packing up his office when Hodges enters and looks like he was just dropkicked right out of the denial stage in the five stages of grief. He takes a deep breath and tells Grissom that he's making a huge mistake. Grissom tries to stop him but Hodges winds up into a rant, hitting a level of whine not even heard in two year olds. "The bad guys will win more if we don't have you!" Hee. He demands to know who Watson is without Sherlock Holmes and Grissom gently points out that Watson was a genius in his own right, slightly mollifying Hodges. Grissom says it's the right time for him to go and Hodges nods, accepting it but still unhappy.

After Hodges leaves, Grissom looks pensively at Warrick's funeral program before placing it in a box. He takes one last walk through the lab, watching everyone busy at work and reflecting on what he's accomplished and feeling at peace knowing his team will continue their superb work. His last view is of Brass and Catherine talking in the break room. She looks up to see him watching her and knows this is it. Grissom smiles and Catherine winks at him fondly, giving him the quiet goodbye he once said he wanted. He turns and walks away, no looking back, as the picture fades to white.

Fade back in and Grissom's still walking, but now he's deep in the lush jungle of Costa Rica. He's got his straw hat on and he checks his GPS to make sure he's heading in the right direction, looking more anticipatory with each step. He's delighted by his surroundings and he spots one particularly fascinating bug but he spares it only a brief glance before moving on because he's got more important business. He reaches his destination and stops when he sees what he's been seeking. Or who, rather, since it's Sara. She's turned away from him, photographing a monkey in the trees, but she senses something and turns around. Grissom gazes at her, anxious and unsure but looking at her like he could do it for the rest of his life, while Sara looks stunned. She starts tearing up but she's also smiling and he drops his bag and rushes to her. They cling to each other, kissing ardently and joyfully, while the camera swirls around them and the music rises to a stirring crescendo.

Sappy? Yes. Improbably romantic on a show like this? Also yes. Deeply satisfying and possibly the best single scene in the entirety of this series? OH HOLY HELL YES. I couldn't have asked for a better ending for both Grissom and Sara.

Theirs isn't the only ending. In case you haven't already read the news, Buzznet, the parent company of Recapist, will no longer be paying the recappers. While I thoroughly enjoy recapping CSI, I will not be continuing on as a volunteer recapper and, so, this will be my final recap for Recapist. I have enjoyed my time working here for the last two years and I want to thank my fellow recappers, my terrific boss Michael, and especially all of my readers. You guys have been amazing and supportive and I love y'all like Jorja Fox loves beer. I don't know yet where I'll end up next or what I'll be writing but if you'd like to get updates please bookmark or friend my recaps archive. So long and thanks for all the bugs!