‘Miami’ Adds More Edge & Excitement To Season 9

CSI: Miami’s ninth season gets underway tonight, and fans can expect a dynamic new year filled with strong moments for the characters who made it through last season’s tragic cliffhanger ending. (Spoilers after the jump!)

The death of a team member in the season premiere, “Fallen”, will bring the surviving CSIs closer together. Season nine will show a more personal side of Natalia Boa Vista (Eva La Rue), develop the relationship between Calleigh Duquesne (Emily Procter) and Eric Delko (Adam Rodriguez), and delve deeper into the psyche of the man behind the shades, Horatio Caine (David Caruso)—and that’s just the beginning. The series is responding to the new Sunday night timeslot with a revitalized Miami. “We’re answering the call with essentially a relaunch of our entire series in every category,” producer Barry O’Brien explained to TVGuide.com. “It’s rarefied air that you breathe when you’ve been on the air for nine seasons. It’s an amazing achievement, and we want to respond with appropriate gratitude and a sense of growth, both in terms of the characters and stylistically.”

A major plot throughout season nine will involve a prison break that “puts a group of Horatio Caine’s most desperate and dangerous enemies on the street gunning for him,” O’Brien revealed. “You’re going to meet a new Horatio Caine. He’s going to be unleashed, unrestrained in suspect’s faces in a way that he’s never been before. He’s more passionate than ever, and more dramatic and more compelling from a character standpoint. It’s a David Caruso you haven’t seen and certainly won’t forget.”

“A hero is only as effective and as dynamic as his opponent, and we’re working to bring more dangerous, more unpredictable opponents, killers and criminals in Horatio’s sights,” O’Brien continued. “His new style will be born out of that. He’s going to rise to that occasion and sort of has to up his game and become just as dangerous as his opposition.”

O’Brien added that Miami is “evolving”, and fans will be able to see the evidence when they watch the show. The way the camera moves will add a sense of urgency to each episode. “You’re going to see more edge, more excitement,” he said. “We’re bringing a sense of vitality to these stories and these episodes, and we’re going to stress the action part of the action-procedural.”

The full interview is available at TVGuide.com.