'Law And Order: SVU' Recap: Detective John Munch Retires From Squad; Richard Belzer 'Sad' About His Departure (PHOTOS, VIDEO)

The beloved "Law & Order: SVU" detective John Munch (Richard Blazer) retired from the Special Victims unit on Wednesday, exiting the show as a full-time character.

Munch and his fellow detectives Olivia Benson (Mariska Hartigay), Odifin Tutuola (Ice-T), Captain Donald Cragen (Dann Florek) Amanda Tollins (Kelly Giddish) and Nick Amaro (Danny Pino) gathered at a bar for his retirement party. (Warning: show spoilers ahead.)

Dressed in a white and black suit with matching bow tie, the crew dedicated kind words to Munch. Tutuola credited his partner for letting informing him Harvey Lee Oswald did not shoot a weapon during JFK's assassination and other great conspiracy theories Munch always rattled off over the years.

At the end of the show, Captain Cragen thanks Munch for his service and congratulates him for his new job as a special investigator for the New York City District Attorney's office. Munch sits at his desk alone and a flashback ensues to his first day on the job, a scene from the show his character originated from, "Homicide: Life On The Street."

It was the perfect way to retire Sergeant Munch from the SVU squad, and introduce Benson's potential new promotion to Sergeant, though it surely won't be the last we see of Munch's character.

The man behind Munch, Richard Belzer, 69, wrote a blog post for the Huffington Post about his departure from the show, honoring his cast-mates and the production team:

"Now after 21 (record setting) years, Munch has lived over 500 hours of programming and appearances on 10 different shows (including "Sesame Street," where they made a Munch Muppet for an unbelievably adorable homage to "SVU" entitled "Law and Order: Special Letters Unit")...

"I am truly blessed to have been in the company of so many remarkable people for such a long time! Yes, I am sad. Yes, it's bittersweet. But after 21 years, smart money is on Munch not totally disappearing from the face of the earth. If Sherlock Holmes can survive the Reichenbach Falls then surely we have not seen the last of Detective Sergeant John Munch."

Belzer even gave Mariska Hartigay a shout out for the great things she's done woman and wants to raise awareness for U.S. veterans as well.

"I am most proud of the positive impact our show has had beyond its wildly popular entertainment value. Mariska's Joyful Heart Foundation has evolved into a major force in helping women to heal from unspeakable trauma and abuse in a profoundly caring and sensitive way," he wrote. "I am trying to raise awareness to spread the word to SUPPORT OUR VETERANS. In fact every member of our cast has always been ready when called upon to help wherever and whenever they can."

Check out the full blog post here.  You can watch the full episode in the video below.