10 "CSI" Episodes Perfect For Crime TV Fans To Binge Now

Guess what... The CSI franchise is back! Before watching the new series CSI: Vegas on CBS 10/6, check out some of the show creator Anthony E. Zuiker's favorite episodes.

Anthony E. Zuiker is the creator and executive producer of the CSI: Crime Scene Investigation franchise, which includes CSI: Miami, CSI: New York, and CSI: Cyber. The new CSI: Vegas series is based on the original series CSI. Zuiker handpicked and curated a top 25 list for CSI fans on Paramount+.

10. "Table Stakes"

Season 1, Episode 15

“For those who work in TV for a living on the writing side, you always have that one script that breaks easy, writes easy, shoots easy, and cuts easy. ‘Table Stakes’ is that script. It was inspired by the 1990 movie The Grifters. It was also the first time we got to look inside Warrick’s gambling problem. The camera spin of an addict in his dragon’s den says it all.” —Anthony E. Zuiker

9. "Butterflied"

Season 4, Episode 12

“Carol Mendelsohn (showrunner) and I rewrote this script over the course of 16 days. Yes, 16 days of 16-hour days. It is in my personal top five. Finding an actress to be Sara Sidle’s doppelgänger was very hard but we found her with Errin Hayes, who played Debbie Marlin. It was also one of our most heavily processed crime scenes, where we purposely deleted a lot of dialogue to let the show play in silence.” —Anthony E. Zuiker

8. "Fur And Loathing"

Season 4, Episode 5

“My middle son, Evan Jerome Zuiker, identifies with being a ‘furry.’ Today, they still identify with this culture that was rooted out of this episode. Who knew ‘Nes’ or ‘Litho’ is the CSI creator’s son? At this point in our seasonal run, we were looking to do episodes about interesting and provocative worlds. Back then, this episode was the culture’s ‘fursona.'” —Anthony E. Zuiker

7. "The Finger"

Season 2, Episode 14

“This episode is a classic. Written by our showrunner Carol Mendelsohn and our top director Danny Cannon, ‘The Finger’ is a story about Catherine Willows (Marg Helgenberger) getting involved in a kidnapping of a real estate developer’s mistress. The rabbit shot is so iconic that we blew it up and pinned it in our writers offices.” —Anthony E. Zuiker

6. "Ellie"

Season 2, Episode 10

“CSI Alert! This is the first time CSI was ranked #1 in the Nielsen ratings. The year, 2001. It stars Captain Jim Brass’s daughter Ellie (Nicki Aycox). Her relationship with her father is strained due to Brass being a captain and Ellie a prostitute. The dialogue from Brass cuts a bit deeper in this show. ‘Sometimes I hear your voice…even when you’re not there’ reflects a deeper pain about me not seeing my own kids due to being on CSI full-time.” —Anthony E. Zuiker

5. "Lady Heather's Box"

Season 3, Episode 15

“This was the first time we did a 90-minute show. Lady Heather (Melinda Clarke) was supposed to just star in one CSI episode entitled ‘Slaves of Las Vegas.’ We liked her so much, along with her wandering eye for Grissom, that we brought Lady Heather back seven more times, including in our franchise finale ‘Immortality Parts 1 and 2.’” —Anthony E. Zuiker

4. "Blood Drops"

Season 1, Episode 7

“Although ranked #4 on the list of 25, this is by far the writers' number one CSI episode of all time. Written by my mentor Ann Donahue, ‘Blood Drops’ stars a very young Dakota Fanning. This was the first time, as writers, we wrote a single crime episode and undoubtedly it’s our finest episode to date. Beware of the ‘Buffalo.’” —Anthony E. Zuiker

3. “CSI — The Pilot"

Season 1, Episode 1

“The American dream is real. An only child from Las Vegas who drove a tram at the Mirage Hotel for $8 an hour can write one script and change television forever. I was 29 years old. We aired on Oct. 6, 2000, to over 21 million viewers on a Friday night and never looked back. This show started it all.” 

—Anthony E. Zuiker

2. "Immortality | Parts 1 and 2" (Series Finale)

Season 16, Episodes 1 and 2

“Although we never used the Celine Dion song ‘Immortality,’ the end of the most successful franchise in TV history was supposed to be anchored by her iconic song. Lady Heather (Melinda Clarke) was the pivotal love interest who spun the web that ironically sent Grissom and Sara to sail off into the sunset.” 

—Anthony E. Zuiker

1. "Grave Danger"

Season 5, Episodes 24 and 25 

“This truly was the Quentin-ssential episode in our franchise’s history. It started as a one-hour finale, but Quentin Tarantino and I hung out in a Vegas club after a UFC fight and the next thing you know, he wrote another hour in his head in the desert. What goes on in Vegas…stays on the screen…as they say. And the rest is history…” —Anthony E. Zuiker

Let us know in the comments below what your favorite episodes are. You can stream Anthony E. Zuiker's top 25 CSI episodes on Paramount+ now and watch the series premiere of CSI: Vegas Wednesday, Oct. 6, at 10/9c on CBS and available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+.

All images courtesy of the CBS Photo Archive.