NCIS 9x14 Thoughts (Part 2)
I haven't re-watched yet, but I had lots more time to think about it. Dangerous? (Part 1 of my rambling was here.)
A first: Gary Glasberg penned an episode that I actually liked, and credit to him for that.
However, the more I think about it the more some things are bugging me about this episode. I just wanted to know more. It felt like there was very little time in this episode and a lot left out. Additionally, Gibbs's mother took up a lot of time, and since she was the character who we'd never seen before, she was the one I cared least about.
I never really made the connection that both Gibbs and Tony lost their mothers at a young age. (And boy, Gibbs's mother did look very young. Any guesses to how old Gibbs was when she died? And how did she die? I guessed it was a debilitating illness based on the reference to Jackson having to change her bed, but then she also talked about leaving and problems between her and Jackson.)
The filtering and post-processing of the alterna-reality and diner scenes didn't work for me. I wish they had just let them match the rest of the series. Remember how effective Gibbs's dream is in 9x08 "Engaged (Part 1)" without any silly glowing effects?
To be a little biased for my favorite female character, I am sad that most of the "what ifs" necessarily meant that Ziva wasn't there. But I was also disappointed that Ziva's what if didn't actually tell us anything besides the fact that her name isn't Riza or Tiva, and that she has slightly more of an accent. I think it would have been much more effective to have the "what if" scenario featuring Ziva and Gibbs (maybe paralleling 7x04 "Good Cop, Bad Cop") and be much, much longer. Or alternatively, to have have shown Ziva being killed in a Mossad mission without ever meeting any of them.
I loved that Abby and McGee were together in every what if. Warm fuzzy feelings all around! (Edit: Wild theory that I don't believe at all, but I'll throw out there anyway-- What if McGee turned down that post in Japan because he and Abby are already secretly together in this reality, too? Ha.)
In the what if in the basement, is that an outfit we've seen Abby wear before? I don't usually notice things like that, but I thought it looked familiar and wondered if it might be significant? McGee has worn that jacket before, too. (Or is it just dej´ vu from the promo pictures?)
I thought it was totally possible that Tony didn't exist at all in the basement AU, since Kate & Tony's baby boy had morphed into just Kate's girl, and Shannon specifically said something about "No Tony...No Ziva." But I did think it was a little weird that it wasn't explicitly addressed either way.
Did you guys love that menu that just listed Steak, Coffee, and Whiskey? Ha.
I also loved Ziva and Tony finally teaming up to snoop.
I feel like I now have to go back and re-watch all the Tony/Kate episodes again. Thanks for the homework, NCIS. I always saw Gibbs/Kate more in the early seasons, so that may have masked the Tony/Kate interaction for me.
It was kind of weird how Gibbs didn't have even a plaster in the last scene after his gunshot wound the day before. Guess he really is superman.
Many people noticed that Tim Kelleher (Chris Pacci) was credited but didn't appear on screen. Again, weird. Director's cut!
More dead people I would have loved to see come back: my homegirl Paula Cassidy and Michelle Lee. The latter even makes good sense since it was Gibbs who killed her.
Edit: After that promo, I am so excited for 9x15 "Secrets." Back to the real NCIS world!
A first: Gary Glasberg penned an episode that I actually liked, and credit to him for that.
However, the more I think about it the more some things are bugging me about this episode. I just wanted to know more. It felt like there was very little time in this episode and a lot left out. Additionally, Gibbs's mother took up a lot of time, and since she was the character who we'd never seen before, she was the one I cared least about.
I never really made the connection that both Gibbs and Tony lost their mothers at a young age. (And boy, Gibbs's mother did look very young. Any guesses to how old Gibbs was when she died? And how did she die? I guessed it was a debilitating illness based on the reference to Jackson having to change her bed, but then she also talked about leaving and problems between her and Jackson.)
The filtering and post-processing of the alterna-reality and diner scenes didn't work for me. I wish they had just let them match the rest of the series. Remember how effective Gibbs's dream is in 9x08 "Engaged (Part 1)" without any silly glowing effects?
To be a little biased for my favorite female character, I am sad that most of the "what ifs" necessarily meant that Ziva wasn't there. But I was also disappointed that Ziva's what if didn't actually tell us anything besides the fact that her name isn't Riza or Tiva, and that she has slightly more of an accent. I think it would have been much more effective to have the "what if" scenario featuring Ziva and Gibbs (maybe paralleling 7x04 "Good Cop, Bad Cop") and be much, much longer. Or alternatively, to have have shown Ziva being killed in a Mossad mission without ever meeting any of them.
I loved that Abby and McGee were together in every what if. Warm fuzzy feelings all around! (Edit: Wild theory that I don't believe at all, but I'll throw out there anyway-- What if McGee turned down that post in Japan because he and Abby are already secretly together in this reality, too? Ha.)
In the what if in the basement, is that an outfit we've seen Abby wear before? I don't usually notice things like that, but I thought it looked familiar and wondered if it might be significant? McGee has worn that jacket before, too. (Or is it just dej´ vu from the promo pictures?)
I thought it was totally possible that Tony didn't exist at all in the basement AU, since Kate & Tony's baby boy had morphed into just Kate's girl, and Shannon specifically said something about "No Tony...No Ziva." But I did think it was a little weird that it wasn't explicitly addressed either way.
Did you guys love that menu that just listed Steak, Coffee, and Whiskey? Ha.
I also loved Ziva and Tony finally teaming up to snoop.
I feel like I now have to go back and re-watch all the Tony/Kate episodes again. Thanks for the homework, NCIS. I always saw Gibbs/Kate more in the early seasons, so that may have masked the Tony/Kate interaction for me.
It was kind of weird how Gibbs didn't have even a plaster in the last scene after his gunshot wound the day before. Guess he really is superman.
Many people noticed that Tim Kelleher (Chris Pacci) was credited but didn't appear on screen. Again, weird. Director's cut!
More dead people I would have loved to see come back: my homegirl Paula Cassidy and Michelle Lee. The latter even makes good sense since it was Gibbs who killed her.
Edit: After that promo, I am so excited for 9x15 "Secrets." Back to the real NCIS world!