Fans of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit may be facing a big disappointment this fall when Christopher Meloni, who plays Detective Elliot Stabler, does not return for the season. After playing the family man and noted cop with a temper for twelve seasons, since the show’s beginnings in 1999, Meloni is leaving for good.

It might have been all right if the rest of the cast and crew were as strongly involved as they’ve been in the past—but that won’t be the case, either. Mariska Hargirty, the actress who plays the strong, smart and compassionate Detective Olivia Benson, will be reducing her own role throughout the season. And anyone who’s watched SVU throughout the last year already knows that the rest of the stellar cast—from BD Wong to Tamara Tunie, Ice T to the always hilarious Richard Belzer—has not been featured as prominently as they could have, or perhaps should have been, either. And we’re also used to not having a decent ADA anymore, without both Novak and Cabot around and the slew of irritating substitutes we’ve been watching.

I’m a bit heartbroken; I’ve heard rumors that Jennifer Love Hewitt, of all people, might be stepping in for a major role, and that isn’t even remotely appealing. Seriously, if anyone is going to fill Benson’s shoes, it’s not going to be her. But in all honesty, this past season was mostly just the same old plots we’ve seen before, recycled with new characters, so perhaps not watching the show won’t impact us fans all that much.

Who am I kidding? It’s been twelve years. Those of us who choose to sit the next season out (especially once Hargitay is gone, in my case) will definitely miss “our show.” This is the very show that my mother and I watched together (once Star Trek: The Next Generation was over), the show that got me through my time in San Francisco while I waited for my premature baby to be released from the hospital there so we could go back home, which was thousands of miles away. Losing myself in the cases, and even asking “What Would Benson Do?” when faced with tough choices, I came to really enjoy this program, and it was definitely a big—albeit only an hour a week!—part of my life. I’ll definitely miss it.

As far as where the two will head from here, I’m really hoping we’ll still see them around, either on television or in movies. I have enjoyed the few films I’ve seen with Meloni in them, though I obviously prefer him as a “good guy” (Runaway Bride) than a “bad guy” (Nights in Rodanthe). I think he’d be stellar in a dramatic crime movie role (something like Training Day, maybe?) and sure as heck would not mind in the least seeing him in a romantic lead, either! As far as Hargitay, I am not familiar with any of her acting outside the series, but I do know she is a strong advocate against violence against women, and I hope she continues to be one after she leaves the show.