NCIS is setting up a beautiful metaphor with a situation in which old and new team members are integrating into the new dynamic…by rearranging the setup of the bullpen so it works for everyone.
To use the visual impact of how to fit more people into the established setup by rearranging the familiar space is, in this writer’s opinion, nothing less that brilliant.
As the team struggles to establish its new identity, McGee (Sean Murray) will work to adjust to being the new senior field agent and will have a chance finally to shed any remaining “probie” persona.
Bishop (Emily Wickersham) will have an opportunity for a “butterfly” moment. Having worked at the NSA and losing her husband, Jake, who often was the only the person in whom she could confide, the possibility to live more “outside of her own head” could present itself.
Enter Alex Quinn (Jennifer Esposito) who has unique insight into Bishop’s personality after having trained her,
Quinn loves to tease Bishop while bolstering her confidence at the same time. Look for this bond to develop into “girl power” opportunities that open up new avenues for both women and add an aspect that the show has not had yet…a female dynamic duo in the field.
Meanwhile, Quinn will have challenges of her own. She is in the position of being the “un-probie”…the new team member who may know more than her senior associates.
She has a secret that will be revealed over the next few weeks. Gibbs (Mark Harmon) knows the secret. Will it affect his relationship with her? Will her hair turn redder over the season?
Perhaps the most difficult adjustment to “team spirit” will be for Nick Torres (Wilmer Valderrama). Having been alone during eight years of undercover work, he not only will struggle to be in a world where a team has his back, he will have to redefine who he really is after pretending to be someone else for much of his adult life.
MI-6 Agent Clayton Reeves (Duane Henry) will be the late-comer and not only have to learn NCIS procedures but also will be in what is to him, a foreign country where people drive on the “wrong” side of the road. Keep watch for some comedic opportunities.
As the three newbies work to find their place on the team (and the best place to sit), the other members will have to adjust to three new people instead of the usual solo replacement.
So how does the meshing of “who you were before versus who you are now” get illustrated? By sending the team to a reunion, of course.
Reunions…the place where people’s expectations of you often clash with who you once were and who you are now…another fabulous metaphor for the evolution of a team.
When a murder at a Quantico reunion needs to be investigated, the evolving NCIS team will begin its journey into what needs to be done and how to adjust to the situation of “what we were then and what we are now.”
Tonight’s episode, “Being Bad” features a guest cast that includes the delightful Vernée Watson as Miss Helen Frimkes, John Kapelos, Braden Lynch, Joshua LeBar, Devin Sidell, Mike Falkow, Conner Marx, and for our many SUPERNATURAL fans, Amy Gumenick, aka “Young Mary Winchester.” Executive Producer Steven D. Binder wrote “Being Bad,” which was directed by James Whitmore, Jr.
NCIS airs tonight at 8:00 p.m. on CBS in the U.S. and on Global TV in Canada.
