Friday, September 14, 2018

NCIS SEASON 15: ABBY

 

Let’s face it, by now everyone knows that the focal point of the series this season was Abby. When it was announced that Pauley Perrette had decided to leave the show fans were shocked. The character of Abby Sciuto was so ingrained in people’s mind as being associated with this series that it was a loss they all took to heart. With the exceptions of Mark Harmon as the series centerpiece Leroy Jethro Gibbs and David McCallum as Dr. Donald “Ducky” Mallard she was the only remaining cast member from the first season forward. Fear ran rampant. Was she going to be gone for good? Would they kill her off? Would she just leave for a while?

If you’ve been watching the show you know that season 14 ended with a cliff hanger. Jethro and Tim McGee (Sean Murray) had been captured while saving a group of people in Paraguay. This season kicks off 2 months later and the search for them is still going on. The episode ends with their rescue but that’s not the end of what they endured. Those mental scars will come back to haunt them at different moments of the season.

The series moves forward with the NCIS (Naval Criminal Investigative Service) unit investigating a number of crimes involving the military. A service man who disappeared a year ago, an undercover agent who went missing 10 years prior, bribery, kidnappings and arms dealers are just a few of the cases they investigate. And as with all 14 prior seasons the team works together to find the solutions to the problems they are presented with.

Last season also saw the dismissal from the FBI of long time agent and running character Fornell (Joe Spano) due to testimony provided by Gibbs. This season the character who was set free returns and Gibbs has the chance to help his friend. He makes Fornell a part of the team and they work together to bring the killer to justice.

The previous season introduced Nick Torres (Wilmer Valderrama) to the season and he fits in nicely here, a bit self-absorbed type who fills in for the missing Tony DiNozzo (Michael Weatherly) who left the series (to star in his own series BULL). But Tony does make an appearance just not in person. And it’s one of the most touching moments this season.

Jack Sloane (Maria Bello) was added last season as a psychology expert familiar with Gibbs and brought in to work with the team. Hints of issues she was working with have been periodically dropped but that all comes to the forefront in one episode this season. It’s an episode that shows how damaged she is beneath the cool exterior she displays for the rest of the team.

It seems cast members come and go in this series and sadly many of them are not just moving from one place to another (like DiNozzo). At various points in time cast members have been killed in the line of duty. That’s the reality that officers actually face on a day to day basis. That holds true in this season as one member of the team will not be there come season 16.

Wait does that mean Abby dies? Hey if you didn’t see and someone didn’t spoil it for you don’t expect me to be the one to tell you. Suffice to say that an incident involving Abby leads to her no longer being on the team. By choice or by death, watch and see to find out.

The series once again ends with a cliff hanger, one that affects Sloane and deals with those issues mentioned earlier. The appearance in D.C. of a man she knows is the same one who tortured her in Afghanistan has led those above her to question her decision making capabilities. At the same time if the man actually is here the odds that he is a terrorist with intent to do this country harm increases. If that is or is not the case won’t be determined until season 16 begins this fall.

It’s easy to see why this series always ranks in the top spot. It’s informative, it’s fascinating, it’s humorous, it’s entertaining and the mysteries being solved are always the type you can follow along with and try to figure out on your own who the guilty party is. The acting remains fresh even after watching these same characters for all this time. Harmon in particular has done an amazing job. Going back and watching previous seasons and seeing the slow polishing of the character of Gibbs is amazing to watch.

I came into this series late in the game. After several characters had died and others had moved on. I’ve since become a fan and I’m still in the process of going back to watch previous seasons starting with the first. If only there were more hours in the day.

I was asked the other day why would anyone want to buy TV series of shows they’ve already seen? I thought about that. I thought back to a time when there were favorite shows I grew up with that I could no longer watch on TV. Some came back as reruns or in syndication but not all. Even now episodes of the original STAR TREK or THE WILD WILD WEST are no longer showing on TV. But they are on DVD. I can watch them when I want. I can watch them non-stop if I choose. I can select particular episodes to re-watch. I can enjoy them again and again. Or, as with NCIS, I can go back and start from the beginning watching what I missed early on and enjoy them for the first time while those episode that take place after I became a regular viewer will take on a different meaning having learned what took place before. In any event if you’re a fan like me owning series like this is something to cherish. And if you’re a fan of NCIS you’ll want to add this season to your collection.

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