Gil Grissom is leaving CSI: Las Vegas. Which, in essence, means the show will cease to exist, haha. It could handle maybe one lead leaving (Sara) for dramatic effect; maybe even one lead lying (Warrick) because, well, that's how it goes. But what surprises me about Gil Grissom (William Petersen) leaving is how seriously it's affecting me.
Although I've enjoyed many attachments to many characters in books--like Jo March, who calls them her 'old friends'--there is something profoundly affecting about characters you see in the flesh, on a screen, hearing their voice, etc. Yes, it's an actor. We know this. So, we become huge fans of said actor. But the illusion still stands. We viewers no more know William Petersen than we do Gil Grissom. But we feel that we have a right to attach our souls to his presence.
He makes us feel better. He provides a fathering figure to a world bereft of many good examples of that crucial role. No, I am not saying that Grissom is exclusively a fatherly role, but many of the qualities that make his role so important, so stabilizing, arise from their association to the tenderness, protection, wisdom, and affection that we long for in our own hearts from our own parents.
Yes, art can be a helpful contemplation on real heart issues. Discourse provides opportunity for us to engage what's inside our hearts...but the far scarier thing is that it can distract. With Gil Grissom gone, many will have to find another means for satisfying that inner soul longing to be taken care of. I don't know where many will turn, but I myself am surprised at my dependence on a figment of imaginations for my own security and support. Isn't there something more? Isn't there something real beyond the great artistry of man?
Yes. Excuse me, I am going to go find Him.
